Every morning when I wake up I
think about the same thing, and it doesn’t matter if I’m waking up in my bed in
Kampala or in my tent in the village, Zirobwe, I wake up in awe of my God and
what He is doing here in Uganda. I’ve been here more than a month now and still
have trouble believing that He brought me here, that I have the chance to be a
very small part of His great plan for this beautiful country. And I love that
each day is new, full of opportunities and moments that declare His greatness
and love.
I could
start off by telling you everything that I love about Uganda or about everything
that I don’t like, but both lists would be too long. Uganda isn’t hard to love;
it’s a gorgeous place where every morning and evening the sky comes to life in
a stunning masterpiece, with the rising or setting of the sun. The weather is
usually beautiful and sunny with a rainstorm thrown in every couple of days,
which keeps everything green and lush. There is the strong contrast between the
red dirt roads and the deep green of everything that grows. Car rides (which
are often and long) are always a perfect opportunity to take in the lovey
scenery and to marvel at God’s creation. It’s a place full of life. Yet it’s
also a place that requires hard work and struggle to survive. So amidst all the
beauty, pain is evident. Maybe this is why I love it here so much. It’s raw. It’s
full of real life and hard truths, but it’s also bursting at the seams with
hope. Just living is a challenge for many, but gives the people here a deeper
understanding and value of life. I don’t believe that life is meant to be easy
or that it’s about the striving for happiness, we weren’t promised either,
instead life is about fighting through all the pain and struggles and finding
pure joy and love from the growth and relationships that we receive.
Since I
am working with Empower A Child I have the ability to be involved with many
different projects and ministries here in Kampala. And while I’m in the city I
spend my time going to babies’ homes, orphanages, churches, schools, a children’s
hospital, the neighborhood kids, doing programs with the children and often
helping with any work that needs to be done. Our programs usually consist of an
introduction, praise and worship, a skit and story, questions and sweets, games
and playtime. And the work we might help with could be anything from; washing,
hanging or inking clothes to washing or painting windows, to washing, changing,
or making beds, or even sweeping trash and cleaning mattresses. It all really
just depends on what needs to be done. For instance Sanyu’s babies’ home is
one of the places where we do the most work, because there is always plenty there.
My
favorite part of the week is always going to the village, Zirobwe. There are
many reasons why I love this place so much, largely because of all people and
children there but it’s more than that. When I’m in Kampala, after a long days’
work I can come home take a shower (possibly hot), read or skype, go to Tuskys
(our store here) if I need something, and sleep in my soft warm bed under my mosquito
net. It’s really a life full of luxuries. Yet when I’m in the village I don’t
have any of that. My day consists of much
harder work; it’s full of manual labor and is mentally exhausting as well. When
you are surrounded by so much need and always giving of yourself, loving and
serving, I find that the Lord’s strength is all that gets me through that day. At
the end of the day you often go to bed sunburnt with blisters, bruises, and
bug bites, always sore and thoroughly worn-out but so full of joy and peace. See
when I’m in the village I’m living within that community and working and going
through life with them, and that makes it so fulfilling. I don’t care that I wear the
same clothes every day, that I go to bed filthy, and I even enjoy fighting just
to make it through the day because then I know that I’ve gone beyond my
strength alone and relied solely on God. It means that I can rest assured that
I gave everything that I had and I can sleep peacefully. See I’m never
worried about tomorrow because I know each morning I’ll wake with the sun, ready
for a new day.
