Hello again and most importantly, thank you, for joining me through your contribution and prayers, in showing love to kids in Uganda. I hope you’ve been able to read the blog I started to share with friends and family about this journey. I’ve been blessed tremendously in so many ways and I trust you have been blessed too, as you’ve read or heard about some of the things that took place during this trip. I am confident God will continue to bless you, for when you take care of His little ones, He’ll also take care of you.
Mark 9:36-37
reads: 36 He took a little child whom He placed among them.
Taking the child in His arms He said to them, 37”Whoever welcomes one of these
little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not
welcome me but the one who sent me."
You may not realize it
but you have certainly welcomed several of these little ones. We opened
our hands to them, we opened our arms to them, and we opened our hearts to
them. Every single time I extended a hand to one of them they reached out
and grabbed it. In fact, often I extended a hand to one of them and two
or three others also came to grab my hand. Every single time I opened my
arms to one of them they embraced me, and others also came looking for an
embrace. I was blessed to be there physically but I know I also
represented you and your heart towards these little ones.
As you know, the main
purpose of this trip was simply to give love to these kids. We did this
through songs, dancing, plays, holding hands, embracing and lots of smiles and
laughter. (We also had a medical team and a life skills team focused on counseling young adults but it all revolved around giving love).
Why was this so important? Many of these kids are orphans
or come from broken or dysfunctional families. Remember Aids has rampaged
through Uganda. In some of the best case scenarios, care givers are often
consumed with trying to provide for the basic family necessities and may not be
there for the little ones. We saw some very crude realities too. I
met a little girl with a beautiful smile but with a broken front tooth. I
tried asking her what happened but she backed away as she covered her
mouth. Later I found out that relatives sometimes break the teeth of
little girls to protect them from child sacrifices. I didn’t inquire
much, but I understand such things do take place. I also heard of young
women sharing stories of rape and sexual slavery. I also saw a kid whose
face had been cut with a knife. He had a long scare on the right side of his
face. He was likely a victim of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
The LRA is known for killings and ruthless treatment of kids. I heard
some stories that are so horrible I would rather not have heard and I would
rather not repeat.
It is not surprising
that these kids loved us back so much. They are not used to someone
simply loving them. The funny thing is we thought we would be going there
to give love but we were the ones receiving. In the process, my life was
changed. I didn’t know I was capable of pouring out my heart like this
and being filled like this. I realize most of us have not begun to
understand how vast love can be and how powerful it is.
By now, you probably
know Rebecca and I will be sponsoring two kids from the Siita orphanage. As I’ve shared before, this is very
different from any sponsorships we’ve been involved in in the past.
The love God has placed
in my heart for these two kids baffles me considering I’ve only spent a few
days with them. I think of them often and I pray for them
every day. Rebecca and I are still discussing this, but I can’t imagine
not being part of their life in a somewhat tangible manner.
We don’t know what this means but at a minimum I think it means we’ll be making
more trips to Uganda. Again, I thank you for your prayers.
So we went to Uganda to
love kids. We did it, it was great, and we’ve been blessed tremendously
but that’s not all. We also loved young adults and adults. I
personally built relationships with a few of them but must importantly, our
church strengthened its relationship with many of them. See, our church
has been involved in the lives of many kids in Uganda for a while. Some
of these kids grew up and are now young adults. It is very rewarding to
see how through the Siita Nest orphanage and the partnership with Kailua
Community Church (KCC) and people like you, kids that were once orphans now have
a huge family. They have a family with many moms, many dads, many
brothers and sisters at Siita and at KCC. Some of these kids have grown
now to be responsible young adults contributing to society and giving back to
their family at Siita Nest. I met several college students that are
orphans, grew up at Siita and are actively involved at Siita. I know of a
young man who will graduate as a lawyer in 3 months and intends to go into
politics to affect the lives of Ugandan’s in a global manner. I know of a
young woman who is a nurse and continues going to school. She is
currently, by default, the main healthcare provider at Siita, though she has
two jobs. I know of a sharp and eloquent young woman who is studying mass
communications and has a promising future. I know of a young man who
started his own business and wants to expand it to the US via the
internet. I know of another young woman who is about to graduate from
college, who is also a distance runner. I don’t know her times, but she
is good enough that she has been invited to international competitions.
All of these young people consider the kids and staff at Siita as their family
and they are becoming mentors to the little ones.
Two of the staff at
Siita had a calling to start a church. They did and the church is
growing. This is the Rivers of Life Church. We spent a few days
there too and interacted with some 200+ kids. These kids are not
necessarily orphans but they clearly come from poor or broken families.
The point I want to make is that through partnerships of various sorts, Siita
Nest is having a tremendous impact in the community.
This is also the
case at the Gospel of life Church. This church is in the slums of
Kampala. A few years ago the building was in such bad shape that it
actually collapsed during a storm. KCC partnered with the Gospel of Life
Church and financed the construction of a solid and large concrete
structure. This church brings hope to many families in the slums.
We also spent a few days there and we interacted with some 400 kids.
Finally, I want to close
with a quote by Jim Elliot. “He is no fool, who gives that which he
cannot keep, to gain that which he cannot lose.”
Thank you again and may
God bless you richly as you have welcomed His little ones.
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