06/09
I am in awe of God and the wonderful ways He has been working here in Uganda. With complete faith in Him everything has just been falling into place. To completely love and trust in Him with no questions or concerns about myself has been a refreshing and wonderful change that I should have made a long time ago. Those of you who know me well know I am a stressball and I have a tendency to worry about things that really just don’t matter or that I should be giving up to God. Since I have been here He has taught me how selfish that is and how it shows my lack of trust and faith in Him. Wow that was a smack in the face for me. I wasn’t trusting God…the one unfailing, most trustworthy, stable presence in my life. That seems strange to me. So I began to wonder why it was so hard for me to let go of these things and live in peace. Then I realized it is because I like to be in control. I like to know what is going on down to the last minute detail that most people don’t even realize is there, but God has shown me that when I let go and let Him take the lead amazing things will happen.
Lately we have been hanging out with the kids, going to Rays of Hope, and enjoying each other and Africa. It has been so much fun. Sunday was Carrie and Vivian’s birthday so on Saturday we went to the botanical gardens with the kids. It was like a mini jungle. We went to feed monkeys but they were hiding so instead we played and danced by the shore of Lake Victoria. It was hilarious to see all the kids dancing to the music from Kenneth’s van. I think I laughed more that day than I have the entire trip. Victoria was a sight! Catherine and I could not stop laughing at her and our laughter was her encouragement so she continued to dance the day away.
I have loved the opportunity to teach and Joel’s school. He has given me charts to make for the walls and books to write lesson plans and I am loving every second of it. The kids are so attentive and eager to learn. Here an education is something treasured and so it makes my job all the more fun!
Yesterday we took two rounds of kids from Sozo to the doctor…5 kids each time. Carrie and Catherine and Mato took the first round of Merci, Victoria, Weisua, Ivaan, and Vanitia while I stayed back and colored with the rest of the kids. When they returned Uncle Julius (Mato) and I took Fatumah (3), Ronald (7), Sharon (7), Deborah (8), and Esau (11). We jumped in a taxi and off we went. All of the kids were so nervous that no one said a word while we were there. When the Doctor was checking their heartbeats she said the Fatumah was so scared that here heart was beating out of control…poor thing. They definitely did not get the privilege of going to the doctor a whole lot before. We were then sent upstairs for the drawing of blood for HIV, malaria, and typhoid testing :/ They went oldest to youngest which was a mistake because everyone was fine except Fatumah who watched in terror as the doctor took everyone’s blood and pricked everyone’s finger. I had my Bible with me so I gave it to her to read and hopefully distract her. She held it to her chest and started whispering. Julius told me she was asking God for strength! How precious!! When her time finally came I felt like a mother. I sat down with her and she slowly began to cry. Quickly her quite tears turned into wailing and kicking when she saw the needle that was about to prick her. Julius had to hold her legs and I had to hold her upper body while the doctor held her arm straight. My heart ached for her and I just wanted to hold her and tell her it was ok but I knew this was necessary for her health so I just sat back and tried to offer useless comfort. Finally the torture was over….or so we thought. The doctor pulled out the finger prick. This resulted in even louder screams as poor Fatuma’s relaxation turned into shear panic. I thought the first time was hard but this time she knew what she was up against which meant a tougher battle for us. We finally got through it and went downstairs to await the results. I got the kids some juice and we sat patiently for almost an hour. The kids were so well behaved. I am grateful to say that all 10 of the kids checked yesterday are healthy, HIV, typhoid, and malaria free. Praise GOD!!! Today we are taking the remaining 7 so please continue to pray for negative test results.
Also, many of you have asked about sponsorships. We are setting up sponsorships for these babies so if you are interested please let me know. You can visit sozochildren.org and see their profiles. They need all the help that is available!
The world cup starts on Friday so since we are in Africa we are going to have some soccer spirit! So whoever is watching we will be watching with you from Uganda!
I love and miss you guys. Thanks again for the continued support and prayers. God is moving in mighty ways!
6/10
Today Catherine, Mato and I took the remaining kids to the doctor. Our first group was Merci (she had to go again because she was throwing up at school today), Vanita (to get another shot for her tonsillitis), Julius, Fredah, and Kirabo. Everyone did great accept Kirabo. The entire time we were in the lab she was screaming “I’m dying”. Mato could not stop laughing. It was quite a sight to see. We sat in the waiting room with sodas for the kids and waited for the results. Another round of wonderful news! Julius has a small bacterial infection, but other than that we have 5 more healthy kids.
Our last group was Michael, Dennis, Vivian, and Jalia. Everyone cried but Michael who was all smiles the whole way. He is going to be our little doctor. He wanted to watch everyone and eagerly awaited his turn to get his blood taken. When he finally sat down in the chair he was giggling and gladly held his arm out for the doctor. He intently watched and then when that was done he held his finger out for the finger prick with another huge smile on his face. Watching him brought me peace. Poor Dennis, on the other hand had a difficult time. The doctor couldn’t find his vein so he went for his hand. After digging around in there for a while he moved to the other arm. He searched for about 10 min and finally got a little blood. I felt so bad watching Dennis and knowing there was nothing I could do to help ease his pain. The all toughed it out though and we were overjoyed with the final four negative test results!!
What a miracle it is to have 17 African Orphans with no HIV, malaria, or typhoid!! One of the main reasons that there are orphans in Africa in because so many parents die of AIDS so for 17 orphans not to have HIV is a HIUGE blessing!! God really has his hand on Sozo and as long as we continue to seek Him more good things are to come.