Good Friday, truly was a GOOD Friday.

So I have a story to share with all of you. This Friday I spent a good portion of my day at the babies home because there wasn't much help due to it being Good Friday. I have gotten to know the staff at sanyu very well and there is one mama whom I often wash bottles and dishes with and we enjoy talking together as we work. She told me of a baby whose mother had died giving birth and the baby was now left and how she has been doing the best to help the baby with the few dollars that she has. Ugandan English is sometimes very broken and hard to put things together and she kept calling him "baby dear" and honestly I thought she ment a baby deer! Lol I even asked her several times, this is a baby deer, like the animal deer??? Because I've never heard of a deer in Uganda, and she kept saying yes a baby deer. She also told me about the cemetery where the babies who have passed away at sanyu are buried. I knew a few babies that I had came and cared for but then after returning home I had later gotten news that they didnt make it so I asked her to take me to see the cemetery and this "baby deer" she had been caring for. So we hopped on a Boda and rode up to the graveyard and we walked through the cemetery which is quite the experience but that is a whole other post.

We walked down the long dirt path and through piles and piles of garbage that a few street children were digging through to find plastic bottles to trade in. I even had a team of street children following close behind me giggling and whispering things about the "mzungu" (white person). Soon we reached a small village with rows of small one room shacks and lots of children running around, everywhere! Margret brought me directly to the "baby deer" and said here he is!!! It was no baby deer it was the sweetest "human" baby boy. His name is Daniel. His mother died in childbirth. His father is now doing his best to care for the baby and 2 other older siblings. They were so welcoming (as most ugandans are), they immediately invited me in their little home, grabbed me an old chair and insisted "you sit!" When the father arrived home he was so happy to have a visitor he grabbed some change from his pocket and sent his oldest daughter up the road to buy me a soda. Understand this mans living is to carry heavy baskets up steep hills everyday and he only makes about 50 cents for each trip, Margaret told me he usually is only able to bring home a few dollars a day. Yet he insisted I have something special to drink. We spoke and he showed me pictures of the babies mother. It was clear that he truly loved her and misses her, it was so hard to think that he has been here alone with this little baby and 2 other small children. However, it is also so encouraging to see that he has not given up and is trusting in the Lord to provide for him and his children and doing all that he can to make sure they grow up strong and happy. I was able to leave them with some money to buy a nice Easter meal, which he was VERY excited about. Next Sunday they are taking baby daniel to be baptized and I am so honored that they invited me along with them. If anyone feels led to give specifically to meet this families needs please speak with Kim for any donation purposes.

Jesus raised me to love the Orphan and I didn't even know it.

Don't you think it is a little bit ironic that one of my favorite dolls grownig up was this little black baby?




My first favorite doll however was a doll I had that I named Charm. I got her when I was about 5 years old. My dad brought her home to me one day after work. He found her laying in the street outside and picked her up to take her home for me. I was so sad for this little doll, after all she was an orphan. She was an old doll with ratty hair, no clothes and if i remeber right I think one of her eyes was even broken lol but my dad knew I would love her anyway. I immediatly got to work scrubbing her in the sink. She was very dirty. Her hair was pretty much ruined so me and my mom cut her hair and I was so anxious to go to the store and by her a doll wig and a dress. I know it is silly but Charm was so special to me because she didn't just come from the store, she was a lost doll and I felt like I had helped her out and saved her.



I got to thinking about all this the other day and I started thinking about how much I LOVED to watch movies when I was little. You can ask my mom and brother I was always watching movies, but I would watch the same ones over and over again. My old brother Jordan use to get a little annoyed by this haha.

But let me just list a few of my all time favorite childhood movies:

Annie - Little orphan annie grew up in an all girl orphanage with a mean house mother.
In the end she is adopted by a wealth family and saves her orphanage.

Matalida - Matalida was adopted into a mean family that
didn't really care about her but in the end she is adopted
by her teacher who truly cares for her.

Madaline - Madaline is the only orphan in her boarding school and is the
reason the boarding school can not shut down because they are her
only family.

The Little Princess- The little princess is about a little girl who grew up in Africa with her father, but when he is called off to war he is obligated to send her to London to stay at a boarding school while her father is away at war, her mother died when she was young, she then recieves news that her father
died at war and since she is left there as an orphan with no other family, she can no longer pay to live at the school. So the home mother makes her live in the attic with a colored servant girl who is also orphaned and they work in the school as maids. In the end her father turns out to
be alive and comes back for her and her friend to take them both
back to Africa to live happily ever after.


I can't tell you how many times I watched these 4 movies over and over again as a little girl, obviously even as a 6 year old I was intrigued by the orphan.

A few of my other favorites...
Babe (a piglet that has no one to call mom and ends up being
raised by the farmers sheep dog who's puppies were given away.)
The Fox in The Hound ( Todd the little fox whos mother is shot by the hunter is taken in
by an old women and big momma the owl.)
Cinderella (orphaned and left to live with her evil step mother and sisters.)



Jesus obviously gave me a heart for the orphan, even as a little girl.

Thank you Jesus for loving the orphan and allowing me to be your hands and feet.

 

Life is like a box of chocolates

The weather today has been so odd and can't seem to make up its mind.

All afternoon the sun has either been shining or the snow has been swirling up a white blizzardy mess.

One minute I will look outside and all I see is a white wirlwind of snow and then 15 minutes later
the sun will be back out and the clouds will be completely cleared. Then once again 15 minutes later it is back to snowing again. It has been like this all day long.

It reminds me of life, sometimes the sun is shining down on you and everything is going great and then just like that life swirles you up in a blinding mess of snow.

It's it wonderful though that Jesus is always the light at the end of the tunnel? and you know the bad times can't last forever. It may rain sometimes but you can always count on the sun to come back eventually, even when it might seem like it's taking forever. God's timing is perfect.


I saw a little picture today that said "Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain."  I love that statement.

And you know, just like the flowers need the rain to grow. So do we. We need those rainy days. Those tough situations in order to grow and learn. Thank you Jesus for throwing us some lemons in life so we can learn to make lemonade rather than get discouraged :)

Go. Feed my sheep.

Peter is the rock on which God built His church. But fist, Peter was probably the worst disciple ever. I am Peter.
Jesus tells Peter the Peter will deny Him 3 times; Peter says, “No! I love you, I could never deny you, Lord.” Yet we all know that Peter does in fact deny Jesus 3 times. I know in my heart and my soul and the core of my being that I LOVE the Lord, that I would do anything for Him, go to the ends of the earth for Him, but how often do i forget to give the Glory back to His name? How often do I take compliments without giving Him the credit, without the honor and praise back to God who has given me this work? Do I, as Peter, deny Jesus the glory that is His?
Jesus told His disciples that it was God’s will for Him to be arrested. He went willingly when the soldiers came to take Him, but enthusiastic, loving Peter raised his sword and cut off a soldier’s ear. I’m sure Jesus chuckled and shook His head as He put the ear right back on the man. “put your sword away,” Jesus commanded, “shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” I am Peter. I have my own time frame. When I don’t see things happening, I try to make them happen. And Jesus says, “Put away your sword, put away your plans. Shall we not do what the Father has asked of us?” So like Peter, I put away my plans, my defenses, and watch as everything happens perfectly, in God’s own timing.
After Jesus had risen, He appeared to His disciples while they were fishing. When Peter saw his beloved Savior, He excitedly jumped out of the boat and began swimming where Jesus stood. Needless to say, the boat probably reached the shore long before Peter. I am Peter. Excitedly jumping into things, and then standing, sopping wet, at the feet of the Lord, smiling at my stupidity. I get excited, forget to think things through, and end up doing them the long way. Every time, though, just as with Peter, Jesus welcomes my soaking wet self into His arms and is simply happy to see me.
I am Peter who made many mistakes, but I am Peter who God had great plans for, who God established to do His work. Peter is the rock on which Jesus built His church. The very night that Perter foolishly jumped out of the boat, Jesus reinstated Him in the presence of the other disciples. “Do you truly love me?” He asked. “Then feed my lambs.” “Do you really love me? Take care of my lambs.” “Peter, DO YOU LOVE me? Feed my sheep, and come. Come follow Me.”
For each time that I deny God the Glory that is His, for each time I follow my will instead of listening to His, for each time I jump ahead without first consulting my Lord, He asks, “Daughter, do you truly love me?” and I do. “Feed my sheep.” And I will. And I do. “Come follow me.” And I am, or at least I am trying.

I am Peter. I mess up. I make mistakes, I am far from perfect, and God will use me. God will establish great things through me. You are Peter. God already knows that you will make a mess, but His plan for you is great. Go. Feed His sheep.

- Katie Davis
Source: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/kissesfromkatie/2007/11/254/

I just wanted to share this post by Katie Davis, it was this time last year that I was reading her book Kisses for Katie for the first time and she quoted from her journal in her book this post. It was what helped me decided last year that I would go back to Africa. It was rough the first time and hard on me to see all of the extreme poverty and I knew I wanted to go back, but I wanted to know that it was God's will for me to go back. I was currently in college and overwhelmed with working in Portland at my fathers insurance agency and driving back and forth everyday to classes. Also trying to figure out the right career and what I was going to do with my life and trying to find time for my boyfriend and friends on top of it. And I just didn't know if I had time to go back to Africa.

Reading her passage about Peter in her book was what confirmed it for me. And i'm so glad I went back.

Now this year I am 100% sure I am going back to Uganda this May, but I have a new decision to make. I am considering staying longer than a week, perhapes an extra month or two. I am praying for direction and if this is really something God would have me to do or if he would rather use me here in the US.

The Fortress

Josephine (Right) and her sister

 The girls at The Fortress braiding my hair.
http://www.thefortressuganda.blogspot.com/
The Fortress:

Vision

A society where vulnerable girls and women are empowered to live to their full potential.

Strategies

Providing a safe and loving home for the pregnant teenagers who are abandoned or come from abusive environments.
Provide guidance and counseling.
Training in life skills, for example self esteem.
Educative information about pregnancy and child care.
Hand skills like craft.
Resettling the girls to their families and communities.

Mission

To instill in pregnant teenagers the understanding of their God given value and purpose, grooming them into women of integrity and courage, and help them to develop fully above their limitations to achieve maximum impact in/with their lives.

Josephine, one of our dear friends whom me and Kim met on our first trip to Uganda, and is now Kim's adopted daughter! And my new cousin! :) Is the head of the fortress and the start of it all. Josephine is a beautiful young lady who is 28 or 29 years old ( I can't remember exactly) but only looks like she is 21! She has a huge heart for vulnerable girls and women who are struggling. She created The Fortress as a safe haven for pregnant teenagers in Kampala, Uganda who come from abusive environments. It is amazing all the wonderful things Josephine does for these girls providing them a home and meals, teaching them life skills, providing education and help with pregnancy and child care (she is a mid-wife), providing guidance and counseling from god's word, Teaching them skills they can use to bring income for them and their babies, and finally resettling the girls to their families and communities. She does all this AND still helps other women all over in Kampala. She is a really unique and beautiful person and I am so grateful to have met her. She is someone I really look up to as a true women of faith. Please check out her blog: http://www.thefortressuganda.blogspot.com/ and if there is any way you feel led to help Josephine on her day to day journey with helping young girls and their babies, please let me know!


The ladies at the fortress hand craft beautiful jewelery which is for sale and is how they solely make their income.

Trevor's Story

I met Trevor last year on my first trip to Uganda.

Trevor lives at The Redeemer House orphanage
with 15 other children
The Redeemer House is an AMAZING orphanage
I encourage anyone to read more about it here:
http://www.redeemerhouseorphanage.org/

It was difficult meeting Trevor last year because he was obviously having a difficult time.
He was the cutest little boy, but obviously struggling.
He was crying, I was told by some of the other children they often didn't know why.
Me and Junior, one of the other young men that guides our trips, sat with Trevor
and Junior tried to ask Trevor what was wrong,
Unfortunately, Trevor spoke a different dialect than Junior and he was hard to understand.
I could clearly see that Trevor had some kind of development delay but it was hard to say what.
Although we couldn't communicate with Trevor, I just sat and held him.
His arms and legs were all over the place, he couldn't seem to sit still.
I wasn't sure what his story was at that time or what was going on with him
but my heart broke for him. All I knew at the time was that this abnormally skinny little boy
obviously had a rough life before coming here, and thanking God that he
               was here now.


             Now a year later. 2012.
We traveled back to Jinja to visit Kathy Von at the Redeemer house again.
When I saw Trevor I honestly didn't even believe it was him.
He was doing so well!! It was hard believe he was the same kid.
He looked so much better, his once malnourished body, was now
filling out and he had gotten much taller.
The best part was he now knew some English and was able to say a few words to me.
He was dancing and singing (he is quite the little dancer I may add.)
He told me he remembered me and I can't describe how wonderful that felt.

This time I was able to speak with Kathy about Trevor's story before he came
     to the Redeemer House
She informed me that he has seizures and slow development due to years of malnutrition
They believe he may be epileptic, and are still working to find him the right treatment.
Trevor is also very sensitive, he gets his feelings hurt easily and LOVES attention.
She told me his story actually made the news.
He use to live with his step mother who was very abusive.
When he was brought to her he was bone thin and very malnourished.
His step mother made him sit alone in a room in the corner, where she kept him.
and to punish him, would force him to eat feces.
Trevor has a scar on his forehead that I wonder how he got.
It's hard to know for sure what all these children have been through.
Each one of them has a story.


Some of these children still need sponsors. If you are interested you can find more information at
http://www.redeemerhouseorphanage.org/

Uganda 2012

Our 2012 team just arrived back from Uganda, Africa this Monday. We had two long flights from Entebbe to London and London to Chicago. I have been catching up on sleep and getting back to the flow of things and haven't had time to post much yet! We left May 16th and returned home May 28th. This years trip was amazing, it's hard to explain everything that went on, mostly because there is so much to say and no words to describe it. I am already praying for the people God will choose to come along with us next year and I can't wait to see who they will be. Unlike last year, I was able to cope with this years trip much better. Last year, I struggled with leaving and knowing how much need and despair I was leaving behind to go back home to my comfy life where I have everything I need. It was hard on me, and my dad didn't even want me to go back this year because of it, but I am so glad that I did. It was different this time. I knew what to expect and things didn't hit me as hard, but what helped the most was the places we visited and seeing a new hope in things. I was even able to meet a few children I met last year who my heart ached to see because it seemed things wouldn't ever turn around for them and now they are doing incredibly well, its amazing to see how God can change lives.

It is so hard to tell everything in one post so I have decided to make several everyday for a while until I am able to cover everything :) I will include some personal stories, people I met along the way, places we went, things we saw, and all the wonderful blessings this trip had for me and the people of Uganda. If there is something specific you would like me to post about feel free to message me on facebook, email me, or find me at church!

love,
Lynne