Up, Up and Away.......

You are all officially on your way! I saw my "little boy" and the rest of the team off bright and early this morning. It was bittersweet for me...99% sweet, knowing you were all off to do great things for God, and 1% bitter, sending my son to the other side of the world without his parents. The plan was for noone to sleep on the way to NYC...wonder how that went.  :)  Well, by now you should be sitting in New York waiting for the next leg of the flight, which is to Amsterdam. Just think, by this time tomorrow, you will be in Uganda!! You may not be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, but you'll be there. I hope that you all have a truly awesome experience in Uganda and that in everything you do and say, Jesus' love will shine through you. We love you all and will see you in 10 days!  Now, go spread The Word!!

School is crawling by...

Sooooooo I think I am speaking for all of the students who are sitting in class right now that school could not be going any slower. All day people have been asking if I'm nervous or scared or excited and honestly I have NO CLUE how I'm feeling. This is such a new experience that I have no idea how I'm supposed to be feeling. I take it back. I'm sure Christiana is completely fine right now because she is the seasoned vet of the students going. Everyone else is nervous. My personal goal for the trip is to sleep 'till Amsterdam. The sleep deprivation starts now and will probably end either early tomorrow morning or sleep just won't be in the picture today... And my last meal will be amazing. I promise. The idea of chicken and goat for the next week isn't the most appealing. This trip is so amazing and I am so happy that we have the team that we do. I appreciate everyone's support in fund raising and we are only able to go on this trip because of you amazing people. I believe the countdown is at 20 hours until we leave. Its game time.....

- Austin

And the Weather in Gulu is.....

Saturday

Chance of Rain. High: 86 °F. Wind SE 3 - 7 mph. 70% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.09 in). Heat Index: 87 °F.

Saturday Night

Rain. Partly Cloudy. Low: 63 °F. Wind SSE 4 mph. 50% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.02 in).

Sunday

Chance of Rain. Partly Cloudy. High: 86 °F. Wind SE 4 - 7 mph. 40% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.03 in). Heat Index: 86 °F.

Sunday Night

Chance of Rain. Partly Cloudy. Low: 64 °F. Wind SSE 4 mph. 20% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.00 in).

Monday

Rain. Partly Cloudy. High: 84 °F. Wind SE 3 - 7 mph. 50% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.03 in). Heat Index: 84 °F.

Monday Night

Chance of Rain. Partly Cloudy. Low: 63 °F. Wind SSE 5 mph. 40% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 0.02 in).

Are You Excited?

"Are you excited?"  People have been asking me this for weeks and of course it is a natural question.  But quite honestly, I wasn't really "excited" until last Thursday.  I think I speak for most of the team that we have been in auto pilot mode---trying to get everything taken care of for the trip, making arrangements for work or family that we are leaving behind, getting all those last minutes details taken care of.  But this weekend, when we had our Packing and Prayer Night--it all came together.  When we left after an evening of packing, fellowship, and prayer, Noah was smiling ear to ear and he said, "Mom I am so excited I don't think I will be able to sleep!"  Yes, my friends, we ARE EXCITED.  Because it is finally here.  We leave on Thursday, March 31 at 5:00 in the morning! As I was praying for the team yesterday, I opened my Bible and read this:  "Keep me safe O God for in you I take refuge.  You are my Lord--apart from you I have no good thing." Psalm 16: 1-2.  And this is our hope--that as a team we would remember that apart from God we can do nothing and that with Him and in Him we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength! Faithful friends--please pray for our team as we set out on this adventure.  Pray that we would have open eyes to see what God wants to teach us, open hearts to meet the lovely Ugandan people, open minds to be flexible and patient with whatever comes our way. We are EXCITED!

Posted by Kirsten Loy

The Miracle of the Luggage

And the Lord heard the cries of his people in Africa and sent forth the 19 from CSC. 

And he told them to gather provisions to bring to his people; and so they collected all manner of things and brought them to the place called the Cove in their large motorized camels.  

There were bags and bags of socks and shirts and shoes and undergarments for boys and girls.  There were boxes and boxes of toothbrushes and toothpaste and floss.  There were piles of soap and washing cloths and crafty things for the children to make.  

And the 19 went to work filling 19 suitcases, each by each and one by one.  

And when they were finished there were 19 suitcases of 50 lbs each.  And 

not a space was left unfilled.  And not a scrap was left behind.  

And the people rejoiced at God's perfection and provision.  

Amen

10 Days and Counting

Wow it is hard to believe we will be on a plane ride to the adventure of our lives, 10 days from now!  I was talking with Ryan and Chase on the way to school this morning and they both said they are starting to get a little nervous.  They are both such wonderful young men who I am looking forward to watching grow from their time in Uganda.  I think it is starting to hit home to all of us that our trip is growing near.  My emotions are many, nervous, excited, anxious and joyful.

We will spend our remaining time, prior to the trip, in preparation and prayer to ensure our journey is filled with God's plans and not ours.

We have an amazing team of 19 going on this trip.  As we get closer to departure I am thrilled to see everything coming together.  I can't wait to experience God's amazing love and grace as we spend time working, laughing, crying and sharing with each other and our new friends in Uganda.

Donna

Stumbling Along

Todays verse is Psalm 37:23-24

The steps of the godly are directed by the Lord.
He delights in every detail of their lives.
Thought they stumble, they will not fall,
for the Lord holds them by the hand.

Good to remember as we plan for our VBS- Guru-Guru.  We have so many unknowns --
Will we have 100 kids? 200?  500?  more?
Will they understand us. English is the official language of Uganda; the language in schools, in government.  But we will be in the tribal areas of the north, where school is miles away and not all children attend.
What games shall we play?
What crafts shall we do?  Have they ever used scissors? Will they think glitter is pretty?
When we take their pictures will they know which face is theirs?  (they don't have mirrors and probably have never seen themselves).

So we prepare for our adventure, certain that we will stumble, but mindful that the Lord will be holding our hand. (And we will hang on tight)

Departure Minus 24......

Trust in the Lord and do good.
Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
Psalm 37:3

25 Days and Counting

Dear FF (a.k.a. Faith Family ;o) )

We leave for Uganda in 25 days. It has been several weeks since Leo and I made our decision to join this mission.  My reason for going back then was to get closer to God, to see Him at work in a place in the world that needs Him so much. That desire is evolving.

I think we are in a tender time right now.  It seems to me that God uses his "outside voice" when he first tells us He wants us to go and serve him.  But in the weeks after that……I have tried to revisit that clarity I felt about this decision, to hear His voice again.  But He is using his "still small voice" now and I strain to hear it.  Meanwhile, there are lots of thoughts that swirl through my head every day -- thoughts that are sprinkled with fear and doubt, and therefore definitely not "of God." 

So I try to keep my focus on something Kirsten said to me -- going to Uganda is being obedient to God.  Each day, I must take the next step, and the next, out of obedience.  To do that I must trust that He will take care of us, that He will handle all those scary things.  Trust and Obey.  To learn that, alone, would be enough.  But I know that is just the beginning.

It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. Deuteronomy 13:4

Mary

It's Countdown Time

Our Uganda team is in place--18 of us ranging in age from 13-63 will be heading to central and northern Uganda from March 31-April 10.  Our main mission will be working in a village outside Gulu.  This is a primitive village called Guru-Guru that was devastated by the warfare in that region.  We will be helping villagers build structures--primitive thatch roof/mud huts, plus a more stable structure--beginning the foundations for a primary school.  We will be teaching the villagers about first aid, CPR and basic health and hygiene.  We will also be running a simple Bible School curriculum with the children each afternoon--crafts, music, sports and recreation.  We have been told that many of these children will literally come out from the bushes to play and learn.  Many will not have any clothing.  Most of them have never seen themselves in a mirror or a picture.  We are taking Polaroid cameras to take pictures of the kids for them to have. Obviously there will be language and cultural barriers, but there is no barrier when it comes to sharing the universal language of love, hugs, and smiles. The team is busy planning and preparing for our trip which is one month away.  We will be having a Uganda supply drive for items to take to the villagers--items like soap, hand sanitizer, lip balm, small plush toys, small bouncy balls, bubbles, jump ropes, felt puppets.  What we need most is to be covered in prayer.  We would love for our friends and family to pray for us daily as we prepare for this journey.  We know that the God of the most High is with us, and we thank you all for your support.
Posted by Kirsten Loy