I woke up this morning with a keen awareness that we have rounded the corner and we are now on the home stretch towards our visit to the States!  We are planning to leave Afoji this Friday.   I was telling Jacob that the Lord gave me a wonderful grace to be where we are and do what we are doing, but now that we have set our sights on our visit home, my eagerness to be on our way is growing daily!

We couldn’t be leaving on a better note, though.  What a beautiful day we had yesterday!  We attended prayers at Abraham’s church in Moyo where Jacob preached an excellent sermon of exhortation to build our eternal legacy with gold, silver and precious stones by investing in the only truly eternal thing – people!  He reminded us of Jesus’ words to lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroy by laying down our lives to invest into the lives of others.  It was a most excellent exhortation and we always feel exuberantly welcomed at this church!

Following prayers, we enjoyed an afternoon of food and fellowship with all of our day workers and their wives, some of whom have also worked on projects here.  In five months we have become the beneficiaries of some great friendships and of some wonderful opportunities to speak of and display the gospel of grace.  We have a deep confidence that one of the workers, who is a Muslim and Inman, will be won to the beauty of Christ and His gracious legacy.  It is a joy to show Christ’s love to this young man and his very young, expectant wife.  We enjoyed getting to know our neighbors on a more personal level.

Before our gathering came to a close, Jacob and Sam left to meet Abraham at the Moyo Market for another outreach (Jacob’s second heartfelt sermon for the day, which left him feeling physically drained but emotionally high…the hot/dry season is definitely here), while I stayed and ended up doing a small health fair for our guests.It was nothing more than hearing their complaints, taking their blood pressures,  and offering some analgesics for their aches and pains; however, there were a few problems identified, for which a visit to a Ugandan health care worker was strongly advised.  I think everyone left happy, satiated and feeling cared for!

Reflecting in some quiet moments afterward, I wrote the following post on Face Book:  “I’m telling you people…we have it so good in other parts of the world.  We have the means to improve our lives and we have the education to advance our situations if the desire is there.  There is so much suffering that is endured here on a daily basis.  Life is hard.  It makes me appreciate these precious people all the more, because they keep going in spite of their pain and trials.  I am blessed to have the opportunity to be right here, right now, and to be able to show the love of Christ and speak of the lovely Christ to those around me.  Lord, help me to do as I heard Jacob Lee preach today, to spend/invest my life, my time, and my resources in people.  Everything else will be left behind!”

 

I am looking forward to being able to share with many of you in greater detail and in person the stories of the people we have come to love here in Uganda.

So, as we count down to our day of departure, here is what our week ahead looks like:

Monday:  We  enjoyed lunch at Maggie and Abraham’s home.  We also got some news of the RAU container being held in Kampala. Because of the recent abuse of the Red Cross and their tax exemption benefit (items were being brought in and then sold) other tax exempt NGO’s are suffering. We would have to pay over $20,000 if we did not have tax exemption which was granted to us last January. This is a note we received from brother Thomas in Kampala who has been faithfully working on the release of the RAU container: “As a follow up on our appeal to the government,this morning i was supposed to meet State Minister for gender and culture (Hon Lucia Nakadama), after the Resident District Commissioner’s (RDC)  introduction last week. This meeting never took place because the ministry is meeting this week to decide on the issue of paying taxes for organizations because of the of-recent abuse from NGOs...I met the under secretary this morning, and he asked us to be patient and wait for their response. he noted that it is not RAU alone at the crossroads, even Watoto Ministries, Vision for Africa, and many other organizations are suffering the implications of Red Cross. He advised me to check on them on Thursday;The RDC is continuing to liaise with the minister on this matter; so lets continue praying, and applying all capital that we have at our disposal...We are using all avenues to see that we get our container; and please be hopeful we shall get it.”

Pray for the container and the $4000+- needed for its release.

 

Tuesday: I will be doing a teaching session with some women from one of the local churches.  Please pray for me – this is totally out of my comfort zone and I have no idea what to expect or what would be most helpful to them.  I shall soon find out!  Jacob and Sam want to make a follow up visit to Yumbe to meet with Pastor Ben and hopefully some other church leaders.  (Jacob received an email from Ben last week, thanking Jacob for books and for the Kindle, which Pastor Ben describes as “the best gift” he has ever received.  The Kindle has over 100 great Christian books and the ESV Study Bible on it)

Wednesday: Plans need to be finalized for Godfrey’s move to Obongi. Please pray for RAU’s church plant there and that it will be the first of many,many more! Pray for the needed funding to get these churches established.

Thursday:  We will be packing and getting ready to go.  

 

Friday:  Currently, our plan is to travel by bus very early in the morning to Kampala where we will stay with Patrick and Vickie.  [It will be a joy to see Gabbie again; Vickie’s aunt was able to bring her back from California.  It is amazing to see how improved Gabbie is following her open heart surgery.  Prior to surgery, her SP02 (oxygen level) was in the 70’s and now it is 100% or very close to it.  She is talkative and full of energy!]

Our flight to the States will be on the 17^th and we will arrive in Texas on the 18^th.

Doesn’t it seem like the days before a long journey always manage to get filled to the brim so that you’re already tired before the long journey begins?!  Pressure!

The container is adding a good measure of pressure in our getting ready to go. The longer it stays in Kampala, the more storage fees will rack up.  This (in addition to the arrival of the vehicle) has put our faith in the Lord’s timing and plan to the test.  We know He is faithful and wise, but it is certainly evident that His ways are not our ways and our ways are not His ways!  Please continue to pray over the safe arrival of the container and the vehicle!  And pray that we would be at peace in trusting the Lord’s provident timing.

To all those in the Seguin/Stephenville area…we shall, Lord willing, see you soon!  To those we are leaving behind…we shall, Lord willing, see you, again, soon!

May the Lord bless and keep all of us for the good works he prepared in advance for us to do!