My Savior's Always There For Me

  It’s been so long since I’ve updated, and now I think there’s so much to tell about that I’m not going to get it all into one post! I’ll do my best!

  All the kids are doing really well here at the Rafiki home. School started a few weeks ago so the days have been pretty quiet around the house. There’s still much to do, though! Laundry can be an all day job at times, and dishes are quite the commitment. The other day I swept the driveway with a Ugandan broom, which was no easy task! I don’t know if any of you have ever seen a Ugandan broom, but when you have to sweep an entire compound with it, you would understand why they’re evil. It’s basically a bundle of small sticks that are about 2 feet long held together with a piece of elastic something or other, and they call it a broom. It does the job alright, as long as you’re okay with not being able to stand upright again for the rest of the day. So other than house chores, I’ve been pretty busy. The kids are doing pretty well- except that chickenpox is in the house. Two of our girls (Fauziya and Annet) have already gotten them and we’re just waiting for the day when we wake up and the whole house has broken out in it! Even some of our staff is saying that they’ve never have chickenpox before so it’s likely that they’ll come down with it, too. Prayers for survival would be much appreciated! Poor Fauziya is still miserable but Annet has made a quick recovery. Aside from that, the kids are just being kids! It’s great to see them playing like crazy little rascals and just knowing that this is exactly the kind of life they weren’t born into but knowing that the Lord brought them here so that they could just be kids. They are beautiful kids and every day with them is countless smiles, continuous laughing, and more stories to tell. Kids are kids, though, and people are people, and not everything is easy. But the Lord continues to be faithful. He continues to strengthen in the moments of weakness. He encourages in times of opposition. He comforts us when we feel broken. He prepares us for our battles and fights alongside us.

   There are definitely struggles when living in Africa that I have never thought of while living in America. Some of these, no matter how petty they may seem, include not having water, not having power, bathing in basins filled with cold water, having constantly dirty feet, and no matter how many times I wash my hair, the red Ugandan dirt is always visible in the soap suds, turning them equally as red as the dirt. This is the first time that I have ever seen dirt come out of my hair, and somehow, this is now the least of my worries. No, not somehow, God is how these became the least of my worries. The truth is, God can use people no matter how dirty their hair gets in less than 12 hours. He doesn’t care that my feet can get as dirty as a two year old in mud puddle. He can speak to our hearts when the power is out, and He still stands by us when the water is out and we can’t flush the toilet. The lord has really been working in my heart to close my eyes to the petty, materialistic “issues” and has been working on opening them to bigger problems that are in the world. I’m visual. And sometimes I can’t be spoken to, I have to be shown. God has shown me poverty, He has shown me hunger, He has shown me a need for love. These things are important. I have been thinking the last few days that God is working in my heart to teach me not to care what level of cleanliness my hair is, but to reach out to those around me. Rafiki has a ministry day once a week that we are able to get involved with. I thank God for this. These days are times to not focus on ourselves. We can step out of our little Christian bubble with our Christian kids and Christian employees and Christian volunteers where we have been so blessed by the Lord and been able to see the lives of the kids here so drastically changed, and we get to see how the Lord is just starting to work in different areas of Uganda. We get to see how he is just beginning to change lives. We get to see when people are just beginning to understand Christ’s love. It’s indescribable, and so much more important than dirty hair.            

“If our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?” These are words to a song that we sing here at the Rafiki home that have really been on my heart lately. Sometimes there are days where it just seems that nothing is working out and that there is actually something that is working against what we try to accomplish. This song is so encouraging! I find myself singing it often. If God is for us no one can stop us! If God is with us, nothing can stand against us! God speaks in different ways, and I found that since I’ve been here, he has spoken to me most through the kids. How cool, and how humbling! These kids are smart. They can counsel and encourage without having the slightest clue that’s what they’re doing. There are so many times when I think that I came here to teach, but since coming here I’ve done very little teaching, but have been taught more than I ever thought possible in only the 2 months that I’ve been here.

   This isn’t exactly an itinerary of what I’ve been doing here. It’s more of an overview of what I’m learning. I guess the itinerary will come later. But for now I want you to know that our “Savior loves, our Savior lives, our Savior’s always there for me. Our God he was, our God he is, our God he’s always gonna be.”These words are true, and I don’t know that I ever fully believed them until the Lord brought me home to Uganda. Praise the Lord!    

Completely and Fully Sealed in His Presence

   I have been living in Africa for 9 ½ days now. Every minute of every day has been completely filled with God and His amazing and perfect love. Never before have I heard or seen God so clearly, and it is so incredible!

   Every day here at the Rafiki home is the same, yet somehow everyday brings new experiences and blessings. Almost every day is filled with mounds of laundry, more dishes than I care to count, 24 baths a day, and washing chalk beards off of 12 tiny faces everyday before lunch. It doesn’t sound so great, but somehow it is. Seeing how much joy the kids are exploding with makes the mounds of laundry worth it. Seeing these little children dancing and praising the Lord every night during devotions makes the countless dishes worth it. Watching little Emma dance around on his tiptoes all day long, Jerom wrinkling his nose with every huge smile that he gives us 100 times a day, Annet throwing her head back and laughing at every little thing, and the countless other little quirks that I’m sure you will be hearing about. These things are completely worth the 24 baths a day. I love every one of these kids and it is such a blessing to be a part of their lives. s

   Twice a week we have the opportunity to be involved with other ministries around Kampala. Last Thursday, and again on Monday, we were able to visit Sanyu Babies home. This is one of the oldest babies homes in Uganda. This home has grown so much since it’s beginning in the 1920’s. Babies are left at their gate almost everyday. The last time I was at the home, there was a new baby there that I swear was born just the day before. There are so many helpless and desperate babies that are just craving the love and attention that the limited staff is unable to give them as often as needed. Just going there and holding a baby for just a little while, letting them know that they are loved can make a huge difference in their lives and is all that they want. This is a weekly ministry that we are going to be visiting.

   Another ministry that we will be visiting often is A Perfect Injustice.  This ministry works with boys who live on the streets in the slums of Kampala. The boys gather a few times a weeks to have some school lessons and do Bible lessons.  I loved being able to go there and hang out and just be a friend to these boys. They don’t ask for much, they just want to be with someone that cares about them.  I am so excited to go back!

   God is here in Uganda! I’m convinced that he has made this his home. I know that he is working here and I am so glad to be a part of what He has planned here. The Lord is working in the hearts of so many people. Just on Sunday at church, I was overwhelmed with how much passion there was in their worship. The room was filled with such a wonderfully devastating love for the Lord! He is everywhere. He is in our home at Rafiki Africa Ministries, He continuously loves the babies at Sanyu, and He is the greatest friend that the boys at A Perfect Injustice could ever ask for. It is not only me, not only everyone at Rafiki Africa Ministries, but all of Uganda that is completely and fully sealed in His presence! Praise the Lord!   

In His Arms of Love

Hiya!
 
  I know it's been a long time since I've posted, but I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things.

   Since the last time I posted, a lot of things have changed. Over the summer I was accepted to be a nanny for a missionary couple working in Uganda, Africa. I will be living in the orphanage that they operate and i will be helping to take care of their daughter so that the parents can be more focused on expanding the orphan ministry (You can look up the orphanage HERE ). I will be leaving for Africa in the first week in January and I will be there for one year.
  Now the time of my departure is only 6 weeks away and I am packing up my room and finishing all the last minute details before I leave the country. I can't tell you how many people have asked me how I'm feeling about leaving so soon, and to be honest, I can't think of just one word to describe my feelings. I feel so many different emotions that I think I might explode! I'm so excited to be doing this, but I'm also terrified! I am thankful that God chose me to do something that is so wonderful, yet I am overwhelmed by what he is calling me to do at this time in my life and there have even been times where I have doubted that God was actually calling me to Africa. I feel like God is challenging me more now than He has ever challenged me before in my life. All these feelings that I have are growing so much more intense everyday and I have struggled to stay focused on God's plan for my life.
  Just yesterday I was listening to a song on the radio called "Arms of Love". I've heard this song many times before but yesterday when it was playing in the car it really hit me. One of the lines in the song is "And there's no place I'd rather be than in Your arms of love". I thought about those words over and over again; There is no place I'd rather be than in Your arms of love. Would it not be amazing to be in His arms of love? Shouldn't this be everything that I want? What more could I ask for? After thinking about these words for the rest of the day, I realized that if I am doing what the Lord has called me to do, I will be in His arms of love. He is calling me to Africa for a purpose, and by going, I will be entering into His arms of love. How comforting!
   So now, 6 weeks away from my  departure, I am trying to think of everything differently. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, I want to embrace this opportunity that has been given to me. Instead of feeling terrified, I am finding courage in Christ Jesus. Instead of doubting, I'm learning to trust in the Lord with all of my heart. Why should I be struggling when I know that God's loving arms are wrapped around me every step of the way? There is no reason to worry! I need to cast my anxieties on the Lord.
   So, now with a constantly changing heart and attitude, I am going to strive to be in His arms of love, no matter where they take me!    

P.S Please look up the ministry that I will be working with while I am in Uganda! They are doing good work and on their website you will find opportunities to become a part of what they are doing. Please leave a comment if you would like more information =)

It's Just the Beginning...

Hello!

Thanks for visiting my blog! My goal in starting this blog is to increase awareness of those suffering around the world. In July 2011, I traveled to Uganda, Africa, for a five week missions trip. This was the most incredible time of my life. I saw God working in the lives of the poor and the sick, widows and orphans, and I saw these beautiful people rejoice in Him for their life. This is where the title of this blog comes in: Mukama Ye Bazibwe. It means "Praise the Lord" in Luganda (one of the main languages spoken in Uganda). Whenever I came into the homes of the Ugandans, they would say this to  me; Praise the Lord! They are joyful in their circumstances and they trust in God's providence and they know that He will always provide for them.

One thing that I have learned  is that sometimes God will use people to help those in need. So why would he not use you and me? I hope that you will see what's happening around the world and you will hear God's voice calling you to do something about it. I found a quote one day while browsing the internet: "You must be the change you want to see in the world". Changes need to be made in the world, and with God, we will be able to make these changes happen. Let's make a difference!