To truly enjoy and engage with Africa, you have to be willing to sing and dance. Before I got to Uganda, dancing and I had an awkward relationship. As of right now, I've danced in some form or fashion every single day. It has been an interesting experience to say the least, and this Sunday was especially interesting. I was singing with the praise and worship team and for whatever reason it was decided that we should dance off the stage and around the sanctuary. Whoo hoo! Got to love being free.
This week has seemed both very long and very short; both hard and wonderful. We started working in different offices at the church on Monday. I've been helping in the office that oversees their child development center for Compassion International. I've sponsored a little girl in Guatemala for a few years now, so it has been really cool to see how the program works and all the details that are involved. We also get to help out with the program all day on Saturday, which is the day when all 260+ kids come to the church for activities, Bible lessons, to write letters to sponsors, receive items they need and much more. It was a bit chaotic this week, but was all kinds of fun…who doesn't love talking/playing with adorable kids all day? I got to meet a little girl named Stella, and she and I have been exchanging letters back and forth. We have such an opportunity to speak into the lives of these kids- be praying for relationships to be built and for us to be able to support and encourage everything the program is endeavoring to do.
Life in Uganda is certainly not all flowers and rainbows. There are children who are obviously starving or malnourished, beggars around every corner, mothers struggling to support a family on their own, very poor hospital conditions, street kids wandering around getting high on whatever they can get ahold of, and people who plead with us to take them to America just so they can have an opportunity at something better. It is easy- very easy- to get overwhemed with all the various kinds of need here. It is hard to break the stereotype that just because we are white that we are rich and can and will buy you whatever you say you need. It is hard to decide what we should do and what we should not do, how far to go, what to say, who to talk to and who to avoid.
All this to say, dependence on Jesus and listening for His guidance isn't just optional, it's essential. Being in a desperate place before God and pleading with Him to show us what to do is the only way to not drown in your own emotions and opinions about things. Pray for us as we delve deeper into relationships and ministries, that we would hear and obey the Holy Spirit's voice and leading.
Oh- we obviously didn't go on a safari this week. Stay tuned!
