Family church

On the first Sunday evening of every month, all the children, house moms, and missionary families gather for a time of GSF family worship. There are daily devotions in the individual houses, and weekly devotions as a group. But this monthly time is a special opportunity to welcome and pray over any new children, sing praises together, share testimonies, and listen to some teaching from God's Word. Tonight this time was very special to me. 

Daniel Iya led our time of worship. Elijah played the drums along with a few other boys. And we all enjoyed singing! When the songs were over children took turns sharing testimony of things for which they are thankful. This is how it goes: a child stands up, usually in front, and says, "Praise God," and we all respond, "Amen!" Then the child says something for which they are thankful. After many children spoke, Zeke went up front. He said, "Praise God." We all replied, "Amen." He froze staring at all the children for a minute or so and then said, "I thank God for GSF." 

As I looked around, my heart was happy that our family could have just a small part in caring for these many children. Above are a few of the precious boys who have a special place in my heart. On the left is Danny; he was the first child I held here at GSF when we came to visit. He still gives me hugs, and is a good friend to the many boys here. He is a very sweet boy. On the right is another Daniel holding Kenny, one of our children with severe special needs. Daniel is such a kind boy always helping the children like Kenny, who cannot get around on their own. Instead of just parking Kenny's wheelchair, Daniel unbuckled him and held him for the hour long worship time. I am so thankful for the way I see the love of Jesus through these boys. 

After our time of singing and testimony, we prayed together for our 3 newest family members. I wrote about these three in a previous post. Today the mother of two of these boys passed away. They came to GSF a few weeks ago because she was so sick that she could not care for them anymore, and her illness was terminal. Please continue to pray for them all. After praying for them we sang to them. Here are the words:

   "Welcome to the family. We're glad that you have come to share your life with us, as we grow in love. And may we always be to you, what God would have us be, a family always there, to be strong and to lean on." 

I was nearly in tears as I thought of the beauty of how God is blessing these children with a family singing to them and praying for them just as they lost their mother. I am so thankful for our GSF family! I am grateful to be able to live out the words we sang. I pray that God would give us the strength and grace to love these children well and point them to Jesus.

David ended the evening by talking about the gospel with these children, praying that each one of them would know the grace of God through Jesus. It is a blessing to be a part of this very large GSF family! 

Hungry

Our dear friend Stephen left yesterday. He is on his way back to the US. But the day before he left he shared a passage of Scripture with our team at our morning prayer time which really resonated with me. He read from John 6. Here are a few excepts: 

Jesus said to them, " I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.... For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." (John 6:35&40)

As Stephen shared about how we feel our need for food as a tangible thing, we can also recognize our need for Jesus several times throughout each day. Lately this is how I have been living, feeling my very tangible need for God. As I struggle in daily life, trying to trust God with my anxieties and the needs of so many around me, I have found that the thing that comforts my soul is time talking with God and reading His Word, the Bible. 

At various times in life I have struggled with the discipline of a daily "quiet time." It has been hard to "make time in my day" to read God's Word. But recently, I wake feeling like I absolutely need to read the Bible and pray. I realize my dependence on God as much, or more, than I need food. I remember about 7 years ago, I was going through a difficult time. I could not settle my mind at night. For weeks, the only way I could fall asleep was that David would read God's Word to me. It would quiet my mind and encourage my heart. While I cannot say that I enjoy trials, I can say that in the midst of struggling, God has been gracious to show me my need and dependence upon Him. 

Before that season of struggle, I remember hearing a worship song that disturbed me. Many of you have probably sung these words, "And I... I'm desperate for you. I... I'm lost without you." My initial gut reaction was, "That sounds pretty pathetic." I acknowledged that it was probably theologically accurate, but I still felt uncomfortable singing those words. I like to be strong. But God in His grace to me, continues to break me free of my desire for independence and personal strength. He reminds me that "His grace is sufficient for me, for His power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9) Over time, I have begun singing about being desperate for God wholeheartedly. I have grow to love the hymn, "I Need Thee Every Hour." Here are some of the words:

I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord;

No tender voice like Thine can peace afford.

I need Thee, O I need Thee;  Every hour I need Thee; O bless me now, my Savior, I come to Thee.

I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their power when Thou art nigh.

Refrain

I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain;
Come quickly and abide, or life is in vain.

Refrain

I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will;
And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.

Refrain

I need Thee every hour, most Holy One;
O make me Thine indeed, Thou blessèd Son.

Refrain

Interestingly, the song that I did not like, back when I was "strong" (haha) also has these words from John 6:

"This is my daily bread, your very Word, spoken to me." 

I am learning to live dependent on God's Word. I'm sure this is an ongoing life lesson. But if you are struggling with making time for God, just ask him to break you a bit. As Jesus said, the healthy don't need a doctor, but the sick do. He did not come for those who think they are "righteous" but to call sinners. (Mark 2:17) It is still uncomfortable for me to feel weak and broken, and to see my utter dependence upon God, but he is using that uncomfortable state to draw me near and encourage me with His Presence and His Word. 

I just want to clarify one point. I don't "get" God by what I do, reading His Word and talking to him in prayer. He has brought me into his family by the work of His Son, Jesus Christ, through faith. That is a gift that I do nothing to earn. (Ephesians 2:8-9) and nothing can seperate me from that love (Romans 8:38-39) But in His grace to me, He reveals himself to me through His Word, the Bible and in times of prayer. I am comforted by his love when I read about and remember His mercy to broken, desperate, hungry people like me. I pray that you will know that mercy and grace too! 

Spring Break (sort of)

As most of you probably already know, here along the Equator seasons are very different. We do not have fall, winter, or spring, only rainy season and dry season. (The rainy season has just begun again.) So obviously "spring break" doesn't make much sense in Uganda. 

Although we are in Uganda, we are still following an American school schedule, and we have just completed our third quarter of school. It has been a fun and very different school year than any other year we have taught. We are really enjoying our K-11th grade school for missionary kids. It is always an adventure to teach on many different levels, but it is a lot of fun too. The students learn a lot from one another and they are a really amazing group of kids. Since we completed our 3rd quarter of school and since the Gwartney family was going on a trip with family, we decided it would be a good time for our "spring break."

We adopted the 5 weekdays of the Gwartney family trip as our school "spring break." I have explained that it is not actually "spring," but it also has not been much of a "break." We have taken the time off of school other than a bit of grading and reading, but our activities, while fun, have been a pretty exhausting. In my previous blogpost I wrote about the full day on Sunday and the long night that followed. On Saturday, the previous day, we drove to Kampala to take our children to see a movie, Mr. Peabody and Sherman. The movie was enjoyable and funny. We were also able to buy some supplies that are only available in Kampala, but any day that you have to drive to and from and through Kampala is a stressful day, not to mention the stress of shopping. Those who know me well, know that I don't really like to shop unless it is for plants for my garden. 

As we prepared to go on our trip on Monday, I was already running on a deficit as far as energy and sleep. But even after a night with kids vomiting, we still decided to go. Our plan was to go to a place called "The Hairy Lemon" which is an island in the Nile River. Portions of the Nile flow through and around the island providing creeks and pools and waterfalls. Our kids love exploring outside and playing in water, so we thought they would enjoy this adventure. 

It was a bit of a drive, but when we arrived, they were all very excited to get in the canoe and head over to the island. 

As soon as we arrived the kids started playing in the water. At first they played in the large open area and then after lunch we played in the little creek near our shelter. As the children and I were in the creek I noticed a long green snake on a shrub overhanging the water. Since I did not know what type of snake it was, I got all my children out, and we moved to another area to play. I needed to take Esther back to our shelter, and when we arrived I found the snake inside. I went to get someone on the staff to take care of the snake, but by the time we returned it was missing. While I was trying to find the snake David and the kids were relaxing in a stream. 

 After finding the snake in the place we were planning to sleep, I struggled to enjoy our time there, but everyone else had a blast. The owner did tell me that what I found was an emerald tree snake and that it is non-venemous which eased my mind a bit. 

David and the kids played in a waterfall, waded in streams, climbed on a climbing wall, and we all played with a beach ball in the large open area. I figured I could easily see a snake there. 

We also saw some fascinating wildlife, a tortoise walking and munching on plants, a Nile monitor lizard running ver fast, red-tailed monkeys jumping from tree to tree so far they appeared to be flying, many interesting birds wading and fishing, and of course, the snake slithering and scaring the life out of me. Here are pictures of our monkeys on the climbing wall. 

Everyone had a fun time, but I was unable to sleep much with high anxiety about snakes. I fell asleep for a bit, but then woke with a nightmare about many snakes. We decided that instead of staying for a second night at "the Lemon," we would just stay and play for the morning, then head back to Jinja for a play date with the Lawsons and maybe find a place to stay. 

While we were playing at the Lawsons, Jennifer was helping me look for places to stay. It can be expensive and hard to find a room for 6 people in Western type accommodations, so Jennifer invited us to stay with them. The kids were thrilled to have a sleepover with some of their best friends! Here is a photo of the kids all playing together in the Lawson's yard. 

On Wednesday morning we went to a place in Jinja that sells cinnamon rolls for breakfast, ran a few errands and headed home from our adventures. We start back to school tomorrow morning. We definitely had a full and adventurous "Spring Break," although I would appreciate your prayers as I recover from our adventures. 

An eventful Sunday

Today was a day full of much celebration and a bit of sadness. We celebrated visitors and improvements at our church, and we both celebrated and grieved over our last Sunday with two of our short-term missionaries. In the afternoon and evening we celebrated Ezra's birthday with friends and two families in the process of adoption. 

This morning our church worshiped together for the first time under our new roof! Praise The Lord! The building used to have papyrus mats and a tarp as a covering, but the tarp had torn in many places and been broken down by the sun and wind. The rainy season was approaching and we did not have a way to stay dry during worship. So the church leadership asked the congregation to contribute toward the cost of iron sheets for a roof. Through the financial support we received from many of you, we were able to contribute toward the cost of iron sheets and provide a bit of labor by our family cleaning up the pieces of the old roof that were lying around after demolition. Here are some photos from the afternoon that we walked over to help. 

It was wonderful to be able to be a part of this project in a small way. As the church gathered this Sunday under our new roof, several of the Jajas (grandmothers) stood to praise God for His provision. One woman, through a translator, praised God for the new roof, and praised God for giving her the strength to work in her garden until 3pm without even getting hungry. She had been sick and lacking food. But the rains are here and God gave her the strength to work to grow food. Her joy in The Lord is always apparent as she worships and greets the other members of her church family. I realized that I have much to learn from these women. 

During the worship service we also had a time to pray for our two dear friends who have been serving alongside us for many months, but are now going back to the US. Stephen has been serving at GSF since before we arrived, working with the secondary students and university students. He has been a great friend to our whole family, a good friend to David particularly while I was away, willing to play sports and card games and wrestle with the kids, and a fabulous dinner guest who always does the dishes while we are getting the kids ready for bed. Gracie has been here for 4 months, and has become a dear friend in that short time. She and I often go for a run together, she regularly encourages me with Scripture and she is also great with our kids. These two dear friends will be greatly missed, but we are excited to see God's work continue in and through their lives as they go back to America and continue their education. Please pray for them as they readjust to American life after a long time away, and for us as we say goodbye. I told Stephen that I sometimes grow weary of saying goodbye to friends. He reminded me that goodbyes are a part of this finite life, but I am thankful that in eternity we will not need to say goodbye anymore. Here is a photo from the time at our church praying for these dear friends.  Some members of Gracie's church are here on a short trip and they joined in this time of prayer; that is why there are so many mzungus in the photo. 

After worship and a relatively quick lunch,  we headed out to Kingfisher, the pool where we like to go to celebrate birthdays. It was a fun time celebrating Ezra's 6th birthday, just a few days early. My friend Jennifer made him an awesome Ninja Turtle birthday cake!! 

We all had a great time at the pool, and it was fun to have some new friends also come along with their children since they are here in Uganda for several weeks waiting on the rest of their adoption paperwork to go through. 

Overall it was a very full day! By the time we got home at 7:30pm, I was thoroughly exhausted. I knew we were preparing to go on our "Spring Break" trip the next morning, so we all went to be early. Little did I know that I would be up much of the night with vomiting children who had ingested too much pool water. Thankful they were feeling better in the morning and ready to go on our adventure, although I was completely spent. Not always the best way to begin a camping adventure in Africa, but that is how our "Spring Break" adventure began.... (To be continued)

Our new clothes

As you read this title in your mind, you are probably pronouncing the word "clothes" in the typical American fashion, but here it is pronounced "clothe-ez." 

As you can see Esther and I have new clothes. The staff at GSF all made contributions around Christmas time to give gifts to the missionaries here. I was given this material and told that the tailor would make a skirt and shirt for me and Esther with the material. After I returned from the US, we took measurements and discussed the plans. There are not patterns or anything here, but we just talked about common designs here. Now that they are finished, Esther and I are wearing them to church today! I thought you might enjoy seeing this photo of our Ugandan clothes. 

Our first snake encounter

Today we had our first snake encounter. It was a small snake, but it raised up to strike in the way that snakes in the cobra family do. I did not see it while it was alive, but it was found in our pantry. Praise God that no one was hurt (other than the snake). Here is a photo after its demise. 

Please don't misunderstand. Back in America I did not have a problem with snakes. Most snakes there are not venemous and are actually helpful in controlling the rodent population. In America you can easily identify the venomous ones, and the anti venom is readily available. I even had pet corn snakes twice in my life. 

But it is very different here in Uganda. Most of these snakes are venemous, and those in the cobra family definitely are. There is finally anti venom for cobra bites now available in Jinja (just in recent months). Jinja is about 45 minutes away from our campus. In the past the anti venom was only available in Kampala, which is a few hours away. We are grateful for these advances, but it is my hope that we will never need that resource. 

My change in heart toward snakes reminds me of this passage in Genesis 3. 

So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:14, 15 NIV) 

Today this particular serpent's head was crushed, but more importantly, Jesus came, lived a sinless life, took the punishment of my sin upon himself, and rose again from the dead in order to give eternal life to his adopted children. In this way, Jesus crushed the head of the Serpent, Satan. 

I can rejoice and rest in God's loving care for my family both in the way the serpent we met today was crushed and in the way he has redeemed us through the work of Jesus. Our lives are in God's hands and we will trust in his care for us. Here are some of my favorite verses from Romans 8. 

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31, 32 NIV)

So whether we encounter snakes or sickness or sadness, we can rest and trust in our Savior. I am learning to do that more each day as I struggle and grow through daily life experiences here. As a dear friend said, my life here, while full of many joys, is also a "sanctification pressure cooker." 

The Fish kids

I often write about how things are going with the children at Good Shepherd's Fold, but I also wanted to write a brief update about our four children. They are all doing well here and enjoying life in Africa. 

Elijah, our first born, has started taking guitar lesson from our Ugandan friend, Jonathan. They have a 45 minute or so lesson 3 days a week since Jonathan lives very close. (Jonathan is the young man who is the intern at our church, so we are also enjoying the opportunity to have him stay for dinner and discuss the sermon series or theology or Ugandan culture.) Elijah is really enjoying learning and often says he wishes he had a lesson on the off days. Elijah is also continuing to play drums at church and in the Hosanna Choir. He is becoming our musician. He also loves playing basketball and soccer with the kids here at GSF and has made many friends. 

Esther is just as creative as always and enjoys making up games and stories with her younger brothers. Esther has also started really enjoying reading. She is often found with a flashlight in bed staying up late reading the Boxcar Children books. She also loves teaching, and helps Amelia with her math each day. Maybe she will grow up to be a math teacher like her mama. 

Ezra continues to enjoy animals and anything to do with science. He likes to make experiments and study the critters he catches. Today we have a pair of millipedes and and a toad. He is trying to create natural habitats for them and study what they will eat, how they behave, etc. 

Zeke has become a hilarious, creative little boy who enjoys making everyone laugh. Recently he has begun talking about an imaginary "Grandma Joseph" who basically tells him whatever he wants to hear. This "Grandma Joseph" tells him not to take naps and that he will have 10 birthday parties and other such things. He also likes to look in the mirror and make faces at himself. It is always entertaining to hear him talk to himself as he plays. We are so thankful for this funny little boy. 

We have areas where we are praying for God's work in each of our children's hearts, but we are glad to see the ways they are growing and maturing here. Please pray for our children, the other missionary kids and all the children here at GSF, for God's work in each of their lives.