Mission Uganda, Day 7

I love waking up in Uganda. This country is so beautiful and the people here are so great. We are always greeted with a smile, handshake and a hug. Had the usual breakfast this morning. Loaded the bus and headed to the village of Pasikula (Pass-ee-koo-la). There we were going to distribute the britches and dresses that Lord of Lifers had sewn, the school supplies that LOL had collected and give away 60 goats. First we needed to make a stop in Juba to pick Pastor Peter up to come with us. As we arrived Pastor Peter is holding a limp child in his arms and his mom was following him. Pastor Peter enters the van and says hurry lets go we need to get to the clinic soon. This child limp and so weak in his arms was suffering from malaria and was not doing well. It was an experience being in the van with a child on the verge of maybe dying and the mother sitting right in front of me. The little boy looked so frail and weak. We arrived at the clinic and took the boy inside. In Africa you pay for treatment up front first. So some of us gathered some shillings for the family and they were admitted. Talk about a life changing event for anyone. As we were driving down the dirt roads to get to the clinic I was praying a prayer of healing for the little boy. Hoping he would get well. We found out later that the boy got the treatment he needed and will be okay. I am glad I was able to help this little boy's life. After that situation we made our way to Pasikula. It was such a joy and experience to see all the beautiful smiles and hugs. To give clothes to these children who have maybe one pair of pants, shoes (maybe), and one shirt. For these young children to have another pair of pants and for the young girls to have another dress is huge.  For the children to have school supplies for them to simply have a pencil or pen to write with. The goat is a way of life for the families for the children. The children learn to raise and take care of the goat and have them multiply so they can have more goats. Use the milk of the goat and be able to trade a couple goats for a cow and so forth. Teaching the children responsibility and having them educated is important for these young children. Education here is Uganda is not top priority but for some pastors in the villages and some adults it is important for these young children to be educated. That is why it is important for the village to have a well or have one close by. It was a matter of the parents choosing for the child to go to school or go get water from the water hole which is a half days walk back and forth. Getting the water was more important in the parents eyes. So being educated and/or going to school is not top priority. Also part of the day were some well dedications. There is someone on the team here with us that raised over $75,000 to help make seven wells here in Uganda. That is just awesome. One of those wells was in the village of Waneaga. What was great is that we were the first white people to have been in that area of Uganda and that village of Waneaga. The original water source for the village and surrounding area was a six by five foot water hole that was very deep. In order for the children or women to get water they needed to walk along a log and bend over and get the water jug filled. It was a dangerous adventure because the log would get slippery or they might lose their balance and fall in. They had two children the past year drown in this water source that they were using for drinking or other things. So having this well drilled was so important. Water such a simple life giving substance. Such an amazing thing to have and witness people come to a well and know that the water they are drinking is safe and can keep them from contracting cholera and/or thyphoid fever. God is good! 

Grace and Peace be with you all,

Raul

Mission Uganda, Day 7

I love waking up in Uganda. This country is so beautiful and the people here are so great. We are always greeted with a smile, handshake and a hug. Had the usual breakfast this morning. Loaded the bus and headed to the village of Pasikula (Pass-ee-koo-la). There we were going to distribute the britches and dresses that Lord of Lifers had sewn, the school supplies that LOL had collected and give away 60 goats. First we needed to make a stop in Juba to pick Pastor Peter up to come with us. As we arrived Pastor Peter is holding a limp child in his arms and his mom was following him. Pastor Peter enters the van and says hurry lets go we need to get to the clinic soon. This child limp and so weak in his arms was suffering from malaria and was not doing well. It was an experience being in the van with a child on the verge of maybe dying and the mother sitting right in front of me. The little boy looked so frail and weak. We arrived at the clinic and took the boy inside. In Africa you pay for treatment up front first. So some of us gathered some shillings for the family and they were admitted. Talk about a life changing event for anyone. As we were driving down the dirt roads to get to the clinic I was praying a prayer of healing for the little boy. Hoping he would get well. We found out later that the boy got the treatment he needed and will be okay. I am glad I was able to help this little boy's life. After that situation we made our way to Pasikula. It was such a joy and experience to see all the beautiful smiles and hugs. To give clothes to these children who have maybe one pair of pants, shoes (maybe), and one shirt. For these young children to have another pair of pants and for the young girls to have another dress is huge.  For the children to have school supplies for them to simply have a pencil or pen to write with. The goat is a way of life for the families for the children. The children learn to raise and take care of the goat and have them multiply so they can have more goats. Use the milk of the goat and be able to trade a couple goats for a cow and so forth. Teaching the children responsibility and having them educated is important for these young children. Education here is Uganda is not top priority but for some pastors in the villages and some adults it is important for these young children to be educated. That is why it is important for the village to have a well or have one close by. It was a matter of the parents choosing for the child to go to school or go get water from the water hole which is a half days walk back and forth. Getting the water was more important in the parents eyes. So being educated and/or going to school is not top priority. Also part of the day were some well dedications. There is someone on the team here with us that raised over $75,000 to help make seven wells here in Uganda. That is just awesome. One of those wells was in the village of Waneaga. What was great is that we were the first white people to have been in that area of Uganda and that village of Waneaga. The original water source for the village and surrounding area was a six by five foot water hole that was very deep. In order for the children or women to get water they needed to walk along a log and bend over and get the water jug filled. It was a dangerous adventure because the log would get slippery or they might lose their balance and fall in. They had two children the past year drown in this water source that they were using for drinking or other things. So having this well drilled was so important. Water such a simple life giving substance. Such an amazing thing to have and witness people come to a well and know that the water they are drinking is safe and can keep them from contracting cholera and/or thyphoid fever. God is good! 

Grace and Peace be with you all,

Raul

Mission Uganda Day 12

Woke up really early this morning so we can get started to Queen Elizabeth National Park for our safari. It was going to be about a 2 hour drive. The countryside here on the west part of Uganda is so beautiful. Such great scenery and people. Got to Queen Elizabeth National Park and as we are driving to get there we see a herd of elephants on the side of the road eating . A herd of elephants! Wow! It was awesome. Such a great day and the animals God created. Will post some pics on facebook. I also was able to stand on both sides of the equator. So I was in the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere at the same time. Awesome! Had a very good day. Look at the pics. See y'all soon!

Paz y amor,

Raul

Mission Uganda Day 12

Woke up really early this morning so we can get started to Queen Elizabeth National Park for our safari. It was going to be about a 2 hour drive. The countryside here on the west part of Uganda is so beautiful. Such great scenery and people. Got to Queen Elizabeth National Park and as we are driving to get there we see a herd of elephants on the side of the road eating . A herd of elephants! Wow! It was awesome. Such a great day and the animals God created. Will post some pics on facebook. I also was able to stand on both sides of the equator. So I was in the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere at the same time. Awesome! Had a very good day. Look at the pics. See y'all soon!

Paz y amor,

Raul

Mission Uganda Day 11

On a bus headed from Tororo to Fort Portal. Left the hotel at 630 this morning. Gonna be a long 10 hour drive. We are going to see if we can go around Kampala because they are having some kind of riots right now. I think that would be a good idea. Made it to Fort Portal and checked into our hotel Mountains of the Moon. When we checked in we went to Sunrise House and visited the orphans there that are in secondary school and college. I had the pleasure of Bishop Kumenere. He is the bishop of the Church of Uganda. A very famous man of the church in Uganda. It was a pleasure and honor to have met him. It was like standing next to royalty in Uganda. Everyone in Uganda knows who this man of God is. Bishop Kumenere helped start Sunrise House and his son James and Stella have kept it going. They are doing such a great job with these young ladies and women. After Sunrise House we left and came back to the hotel to just hangout and relax. Had a terrific dinner here at the hotel and headed to bed. We are going to go to Queen Elizabeth National Park for a safari. So we are leaving at 630 am. Gonna get some shut eye. Miss all of y'all and looking forward to seeing y'all soon.

Paz y amor,

Raul

Mission Uganda, Day 10

Woke up extra early this morning to go hike and climb The Rock. The Rock is a mountain that all the Ugandans call in Tororo. It's a big mountain in the middle of Tororo. When you get to the top you can see for miles and miles. We started out at 7 am sharp and made our way to the mountain. It was a pretty steep hike and climb. I thought I was in okay shape. Boy, I was sucking wind pretty fast. I just had to adjust my VO2 max as I was elevating. It got pretty steep pretty fast. No ropes were needed you just needed to watch your footing and not lose your balance. Made it to the top of the mountain and the view was just awesome. You can see for miles and miles. Spectacular. You get to the top of that mountain and how can you not believe in God. How can you not believe in a God that crated such a beautiful place here and everywhere. Made our way down the mountain which was a bit easier. You still had to watch what you were doing and keep your balance. Made it to the bottom and there at the bottom of the mountain was a big cave where this man lives and has a church in the cave. That was pretty cool. So I did what I usually do. I explored the cave and that was awesome. The cave was not really deep into the mountain but still cool. Took a picture with the man who caretakes the cave. After the hike/climb got back to the hotel and took a much needed shower. After the shower had a super quick breakfast because we needed to get going to the village of Abur. When we got to the village they were so excited to see us. They hugged us, sang for us and just celebrated with and for us because we were there. They had a program for us with singing and dancing. They love to sing and love to sing and praise God. There at Abur were the Yum Yum Gardens in which the people in the village and nearby village farmed. They decided as  a group of villages that they were going to work together and farm the land to make money and provide for there families. This endeavor had worked and has been profitable for them. They grew corn last season and sold it and now they are growing watermelons. They were saying that watermelon is the most profitable for them because they can get 1500 - 2500 shillings per watermelon. Remember that it is 2000 shillings for one american dollar. Pretty cheap for watermelon but very profitable for the villagers. They also had other gardens in which they grew different vegetables to sell and eat. They had a lunch for us that was a feast and very good. I have been very pleased with the food we have eaten here. Very tasty and the fruit is amazing. Towards the end of the day Pastor Peter came and joined us for a bit and Kent and I went with Pastor Peter and Pastor Lawrence to a couple of other villages. We went to the village of Soni.  We were the first people to have visited their village. They were a good sustainable village. They did not wait for handouts from people. If they wanted something  they  found a way to get it done and Pastor Peter loved it. They had some sewing machines where they make dresses and shirts. That was a neat experience to be part of. After that village Kent and I headed to a nearby village called Wikusi and went there to see a classroom where Mama Jaquelyn was teaching english to the local women. Great ministry Mama Jacquelyn was doing. After that visit we headed back to the hotel to get some much needed rest. As we were making our way to the hotel there was a huge rain storm and it was crazy. I think Africa has crazy thunderstorms. Not looking forward to tomorrow because we are going all the way to west uganda to Fort Portal and that is a one days drive on a bus. Oh well, it'll be nice to the the rest of the Ugandan country. God Bless y'all and miss y'all. Looking forward to being home.

Paz y amor,

Raul       

Mission Uganda, Day 9

Woke up today excited about what our day was going to be like. Had the usual breakfast but had a bacon and toast sandwich. I thought it was bacon. It sure was good. Had family time on the morning and talked about the day before. Great stories about what teams did and how God was working in our lives and in the lives of people around us. Such touching stories. Love it. We were headed to the Beeson neighborhood where the Karamajong Tribe is located. The Karamajong have a long history of the tribe that everyone picked on. So the Karamajong Tribe lived in the slums outside of Tororo. There is a story that the kids in the neighborhood would walk around looking for food in the trash heaps to bring home to eat. This 10 year old little girl found a piece of meat in the trash that had a dead rat. She tore the piece of meat off and showed the other kids that were around her. The kids around her got jealous and started chasing her for her piece of meat. The little girl was scared and wanted to bring home the piece of meat for her family so she stuffed the meat in her mouth and ran and she grew violently ill and died. This is how bad this neighborhood was until Smile for Africa showed up and Feed My Starving Children. There was also another story of a baby named Esther and she was dumped in the trash after she was born. Her mother cut the umbilical cord with her finger nails and left her in the trash. This was about 6 months ago. I cannot possibly fathom that. I got to hold Esther Ruth and she is a healthy 7 month old baby. She is beautiful and loves life and smiles so much. Thinking about this story really makes me cry and think how can a mother do that and how many others are out there who have done that where the baby has not been found. That is why Smile for Africa works where it is at.  Smile for Africa is a ministry that Pastor Ruth directs in which they teach and educate widowed women and orphans. These women have been widowed by a husband who has passed away from HIV or some other disease or the husband just left. Smile for Africa helps these widowed women be self sustainable. The women take a year long course on accounting, finances, business and other courses so they can have a business for them selves and support their family. Today there were 14 graduating and all of them were so excited. Right before we were going to eat lunch there was about an hour to hangout with the kids and play. We were also there to help feed the 400 children that were there at the compound. The kids were suppose to get Feed My Starving Children meals but the containership was stuck on the border of Kenya and Uganda. What happened is that the government of Uganda has budgeted money for the taxes to be paid for the containership of meals. It just needs a signature to get the food shipped from the budget person from the Ugandan government. They just held there elections in February and there are some new politicians and things have been crazy with the government here. So, Feed My Starving Children is mad at Hope 4 Kids for not having the containership yet and has nothing to do with Hope 4 Kids but the government of Uganda. Bottom line its all about the money. It takes $24,000 in taxes to be paid and get the food. Hope 4 kids has been trying to get the shipment. Hope 4 Kids is hoping to get the food on Friday. Please pray for this that they get the food for all these children. The food will go toward Smile for Africa, the school in Juba, true vine ministries school and other places. I was blessed to help serve food to the 400 children. They ate this meal called posho (poh-sho). It is made up of finely ground corn(looked like mashed potatoes), beans and a sauce on top. Let me tell you the kids really sat and were very patient for there food. Everyone got the same thing. Not one of them saying I want something else or can I have this or I don't want it. They ate what they were served in front of them. We started with all the babies and toddlers then all the way up to the secondary kids that were there. All sat patiently and waited for there food. Amazing. It was just a different experience and just so awesome at the same time. These kids prayed and sang to God for the abundance  God has given them before they ate. They had smiles on their face and loved us. Unconditionally. That is the way God loves us. Unconditionally, no ropes attached, nothing…just loves us with a smile and open arms. After Smile for Africa about six of us went to the Tororo prison. We went to the prison with Pastor Eric who has started a ministry there and is doing such an awesome job. We got to the prison and they were hanging under a mango tree singing waiting for us. They were singing worship songs and praising God. It was such a sight to see about 300 prisoners singing and praying and enjoying themselves. Prison in Uganda is tough and is not a place where you want to go. In Uganda you can serve time even before you go to court or anything. Just because someone has said you did something or stole something they can put you in prison until you are found not guilty. Kind of crazy. So we get to the prison and they have seats ready for us in front of everyone as their honored guest. Let me tell you it was a bit intimidating being there in front of the prisoners. I had the privilege of preaching to the prisoners. They really liked what I preached about and took it to heart. It was such a great time and so moving. A lot of those prisoners looked as if they were under 18 even though the prison was for convicts 18 years and over. They were very glad we came and that we shared with them. Such a great day. Went back to the hotel ate dinner and got some good rest. Looking forward to what God has in store for me tomorrow.

Paz y amor,

Raul