I once was blind, but now I see

This was our last week of ministry here in Jinja, Uganda and it was busy. We visited 7 houses, spent Friday during the day with Mary at Woman at Risk ministry, and cooked a dinner and had a party for a family of 15 orphans Friday night! In general though, the week was really difficult for me. Part of it was the pure exhaustion of being gone from 8 in the morning until 6 at night each day. Another part was the story of these families we were meeting, the intensity of their love despite poverty, and their joy beyond circumstances. On Monday we visited one family in the morning and in the afternoon we went to visit another family that had 10 children, but one girl stood out amongst them all and captured my attention. As we walked into the house it began to pour outside and the rain pounded on the tin roof making it impossible to hear each other. The mother motioned for us to sit on a broken bench, offering us her best as she settled down on the hard floor. As I sat down I looked to my right and saw a young girl, 9 years old, who had the biggest smile on her face. I tried to shout and ask her for her name but she just continued to smile at me. I thought maybe she didn't understand English, but usually when that is the case they just respond, "I am fine." (They think we are asking, how are you?.) So I tried one more time, just a little louder and the response was still just a big smile and then her eyes looking around. One of the men who cares for the family came to me and said "She is dumb." I was a little taken back at first. I thought, "how can you say this beautiful girl is dumb? Even if she is a little slow to learn,she can't possibly deserve to be called dumb." I think he saw that on my face and began to explain that the girl is deaf and mute. I signaled for her to come over and she sat on my lap. Song pulled out is guitar and despite the rain, he played music and we worshiped the loving God of these children. He played amazing grace and when he sang the line, "I once was blind but now I see" I could not help but let the tears go from my eyes. Here I was singing and a little annoyed at the rain and this little girl on my lap who could not hear never stopped smiling. Even though she could not hear the music, she looked at the rest of her family and clapped along with them. Then she began to take my hands and trace my fingers and the palm of my hand with hers. She pointed at my few freckles and giggled. Her laugh had so much joy in it and I wondered if she knew that. I wondered if she knew how her laughter spread through my soul and made me feel like Jesus was sitting next to me. We pulled out watercolors for all the children in the family and as they drew, the young girl would point at different pictures and teach me the words in sign language- car, flower, soccer, and fish were just a few. The whole time we were there she never left my side and her smile never left her face. As we said goodbye, I couldn't get her out of my mind. Everywhere we went, I saw her face. I couldn't understand why God had not healed her. She is already living in shack, sleeping on a hard floor, and struggling for food and school fees. Why can't she enjoy the sound of the guitar? The rain pounding on the roof? The sound of her beautiful laughter? Then God reminded me of His faithfulness and His love for His children. Maybe she can't hear the laughter, but her smile shines brighter than any other. I've heard that if you do not have one of your senses, the rest of your senses are even more sensitive. So maybe God has given her more joy from the taste of a banana and the vivid blue in the sky. And even though she may not be able to hear others say "Jesus loves you" or even "I love you," I have a feeling that this girl knows God's touch in a special way without the noise of this world feeding her lies about her beauty and identity as a child of God. She has a special place in my heart now.

On Monday we are leaving Jinja and beginning our journey back to South Africa. We will have a few days there to relax and debrief on our ministry then it will be back to the United States on June 1st! It's strange to think that in one week I will no longer be driving on the left side of the road or wondering if I remembered to bring tp with me into town for the bathroom! So please pray for our team as we travel back to south africa and then once again, a long 24 hour trip back to the states.

This is the Lawyer.

These past few weeks we have been working closely with a YWAM Uganda ministry called Orphans Know More. Each day we go to a different house that is caring for orphans and spend the day with the family. Some families have 5 orphans and others have over 20! Orphans Know More is aiding the families in providing school fees for the children to receive an education while the family provides a safe place for the children to learn about Jesus with food and shelter. The help from Orphans Know More is good but these families are still struggling to provide food and sickness is like a plague to some of them. Malaria is very common in this region and the cost of caring for it is high. Some of the families have mosquito nets, but the young children are sleeping on floors with nothing preventing them from rolling out of the net and being bit! Despite the hardship of life just for a regular family living in an impoverished land, these families live by faith, trust God to provide, and open their doors to children whom the rest of the community refuses to help.

At one house we went to, I met a young man named William. He lost his father when he was very young and lost his mother around 12. When they died, William became the oldest at home with 3 younger siblings. For two years he worked different jobs and paid his own way through school. His aunts and uncles rejected him and his family, refusing to help them. He asked me if that would happen in the United States and I had no idea what to say. We do not have the orphan crisis that Uganda has—it is not common for both parents to die and leave behind children. In addition, so many families here already are struggling day to day to have food, shelter, and fees for school for their own children. William's question really challenged me. I can come here and be more than excited to love these children and spend time with them, but what if this was my life? Would I live in fear of how difficult a task it may be to care for more children or would I have an open heart and FAITH to let God surprise me by how He provides?After 2 years of praying, Orphans Know More came to William’s aid and now him and his siblings are all able to go to school. William is now 19 and studying at the university. He is a focused student and full of dreams to make it out of poverty. He said someone here can work in a field for a whole day and only make 3,000 shillings—about $1.50. I pray that God will open doors for him and show him favor in school and trying to get a job here.

Everything is going very well here. Our team has had a few sicknesses here and there but for the most part we are all staying healthy. I'm still trying to get rid of this ringworm on my arm. It's becoming a part of me now though so there may be separation anxiety when it finally leaves. We get around by taxi most of the time and even though they squish us, it is nothing compared to Mozambique where people sit on top of each other. A few times we have taken motorbikes to get around when it is just a short distance. Ladies are supposed to sit sideways on them and I tried the first few times, but it was hard! I don't know how these African women do it.So I have given up and I will settle with the African's wondering why I ride like a man. Also while we have been here, I have been given a few new names. Apparently Laura is difficult to understand. Every time I introduce myself, they think I say lawyer! So now Song, Stanley, and John have taken it that I become introduced as lawyer everywhere we go before I even have a chance to say Laura. Some people accept it, others stare at me strangely, and one man said "Finally, a lawyer for Christ!". Anyways, we have one more week here. So thank you for your prayers and please continue to pray for our team health and safety.

Uganda

We are here in Uganda and safe! We have been here for the last two weeks and are plugging into different ministries. We went on a few home visits last week and worked with a ministry called Women at Risk that works with prostitutes. This week we are working with Orphans Know More and going to different houses that each care for orphans. Yesterday we visited a home that had about 15 orphans living there. God is really opening my eyes to the orphan crisis here and through that also showing me his faithfulness to His children. I would love to write more but I have no time! Hopefully I will have a chance to update sometime soon. Thank you for all of your prayers and support.

There is something about Mary.

We arrived here in Jinja, Uganda about 2 weeks ago and God is faithfully keeping us safe and guiding us in ministry here. In the short time we have been here, we have heard many different stories and all have touched my heart in a different way, but I want to share with you one particular story of a lady named Carol. In a near by village, there is a lady, Mary, who runs a ministry for women who have been trapped in prostitution as a way to support themselves and their family. Last friday, we went to visit Mary and work with her in the morning. She is currently discipling about 8 different women who she befriended at night clubs. Her ministry is called Women at Risk and she takes the women through a 12 week program of sharing the gospel with them, supporting them, and working with them to find a new way to support themselves. While we were there, Mary was teaching the women about forgiveness and she asked the ladies to make a list of women they have not been able to forgive. When the women came back, one of them, Carol, had written God's name on the list. I would like to share with you her story.

Carol grew up in Northern Uganda and when she was young, the rebels came and killed both of her parents. Carol and her sister went to hide in the bushes, but as the rebels were about to leave, her younger sister began to cry. The rebels heard her and went searching in the bushes for the tears. When they found her younger sister, they cut her in half, right in front of Carol's eyes. Carol was able to escape and she found a person to take her here, to Jinja, in southern Uganda. When she got here, she was given to a man who began to sexually abuse her and from that, Carol gave birth to two children. The man promised to take care of Carol and the children but he got her involved in prostitution then left her and never came back. Carol does not understand how a loving God could let such terrible things happen to such a young child. I know the reality is that we live in a fallen world and that evil does exist, but even with that knowledge, I do not know the answer to Carol's question and in no way can I relate to the trauma that she has been through. Despite that though, hearing Carol's story and her questions still taught me a few things. One, everyone has a story. Before we went to work with Mary, I was questioning how these women could ever get involved in something like prostitution. After hearing Mary's story though, I was reminded that judging and making assumptions about people comes all too easily. Carol has changed her life and given her life to following Jesus despite all the things that stand against her and speak lies that she is not loved-- poverty, abuse, and horrible memories that I can't imagine. Only a God who loves His children has the power to give courage and strength to change a persons life like that. Despite my opinions of prostitution, it was a way for Carol to provide for her family and now, she has left it behind to trust that God is bigger than this world and has a way to bless her and her children in a poverty stricken country. She may still be working out her past with God and learning to see how He loved her through the hardship, but her faith is real and alive. Just as any relationship has challenges, I believe her relationship with God is allowed to have challenges too. I don't think He needs us to protect His self-esteem by saying we are okay when it is not true. God has brought her to Mary and allowed our team to be part of her walk with God as well and I trust that He will continue to walk this struggle of forgiveness out with her. From all of this, I am now challenged to hear the story of every person we meet to gain understanding and see the wonders God is working out in other's lives.