K2's Stories, Thoughts, and Who Knows What

Apologies & Soccer

2011-06-07T07:37:00.000-07:00

Well, I do believe I owe an apology to you all for such a long break between posts. Things have continued along pretty Ho Hum over here and do in my own opinion of a lack of eventful "blogworthy" things I didn't write anything, but I know there are and were things I definitely could've wrote about. So I apologize for my lack of discipline in this area, but I am human...

So I have continued on working on my two projects, Watoto I am still currently working on and I finished Eagles Wings about 3 weeks ago or so. It has been nice to only have one project to work on. Without the project trips to look forward to, work has became what feels more and more like "just" a job which it is, but hard to remember that this is my form of ministry here. Since I don't interact a ton directly with the community though that have presented a challenge here.

Anyways, we were lucky enough to be in Uganda for an International Soccer match that we went to this past weekend. Soccer is a god here. I definitely learned that. Downtown on the day of the game was crazily packed with people and horns and excessive noise of people in anticipation of the game.

Traffic was backed up everywhere and every direction trying to get to the match, but that was okay since Tim and I decided to go early and take a Boda (motorcycle). We ended up getting incredible seats at midfield in the 3rd row. Praise God it was awesome. It was absolutely just something you can really explain or describe. Fans are constantly screaming chanting yelling cheering blowing horns, playing music, dancing, anything and everything. Just crazy. It definitely was the noisiest environment I have ever been in. My ears were ringing for 3 days from the ear deafening of the game.

Uganda won 2 to 0 which made the game even more fun because when Uganda scored, the stadium erupted to a new decibel with cheering and screaming as well as everyone starts hugging and high fiving and jumping up and down! Just chaos.... it also makes it quite fun because there are no seat numbers... which I mean not too surprising right? It is a poor country and all that extra work getting people in their right seats and patrolling that is just a ton of work so easier to just have a first come first serve seating basis right? Ya that makes sense, but probably should only print the number of tickets the capacity of the stadium then Right?....

Well maybe not as we found out during the game as we ended up sharing our 4 seats with 9 people and come to find they sold 70,000 tickets to a stadium that has a capacity of 40,000 so I guess you could say that makes the stadium quite hectic, but it only adds to the amazing atmosphere of chaos. I mean what could be more fun than having almost twice as many people in a stadium.

My time is sadly coming to a close here though I am quite eager to get home to be with my family and fiancée as well as see all my other friends and relatives!

God does continue to challenge me here as always. I go through many ups and downs of feeling incredible closeness with the Lord and it seems so easy to continue to walk upright in the Spirit while times like now God feels so incredibly distant. I read my Bible, pray, seek, knock and just something is missing, but I truly know trust and believe it is for my good and God's ultimate Glory. He challenges me in these times to ask " Do you really love me?" And in these times I do my best by Gods Grace to press in and say Yes I do as hard as this is. My soul desires you (Psalm 42... I think)

Lastly, I am getting sick with what seemed to be like all the symptoms of Malaria, but I got tested and didn't have Malaria so praise God for that, but still not feeling quite all better so Pray for me.

God is working in my heart in amazing ways as I feel I try to truly understand what it means to Love the Lord with all my heart, soul and strength and what it means to fear the Lord and verses like working out my salvation with fear and trembling. There are so many verses that talk about these two things. So they must be pretty important. Anyone can say oh ya I love God, but do we? Because I know so often I live, I think, I worry and I feel like I don't love Him at all. But oh God I desire for you to be the deepest desire of my heart that all else pales in comparison. This is definitely something I am trying to challenge myself a lot with.

Keep praying for me to finish strong here as that can be a struggle here.

Love you all!

K2

Sipi Falls

2011-04-17T04:40:00.000-07:00

So last weekend, my fellow interns and myself were blessed to get to go on our first get away travel intern weekend to Sipi Falls....

A quick little background of what I had seen this far in Uganda is all flat very little elevation change and I hadn't seen a mountain in about 3 months since I left Colorado, which does have mountains for those of you not familiar.

Now all the sudden we get to Sipi which is on the border of Uganda and Kenya and BOOM mountains.

It is a little sad to see how the public transit Matatu (an old beat up VW bus looking thing) could barely I mean barely like people walking were keeping up with us going up these hills. I guess in the car's defense there were 16 people in the van with a desk on top. Too bad we didnt get a picture of it, it probably was a site to see.

So we got there and were pleasantly greet by one of the people working, This place was truly amazing... So i honestly really don't know a whole lot to say, so I figure I will go with the ol' picture is worth a thousand words kind of thing with lots of pictures. But on one hand I just wanted to share a few things from our trip.

Though I am not complaining at all by any means. I do love it here! I consider it a true joy to be here and such a blessing the Lord has chosen me to serve here, but you do make a few sacrifices and I am the first to admit my sacrifices are few compared to many missionaries. So I didn't realize until we got to go here a few things that were so amazing for all of us. You would've thought we had been brought to the Promised Land with how excited we got about a few little things... Hopefully you will find it entertaining.... Its the little things.

So we got to the resort just in time for lunch and served some really good pasta, but what came with it was CHEESE, SALAMI, and CRACKERS. Oh my goodness, please do not take this for granted. This simple combination is a blessing and like James 1 says all good things come from the Lord well this combo is from the Lord. My goodness it was amazing so I think we raved about that all afternoon until we went hiking and saw more of this beautiful place. But we also got cheese with just about every meal, Oh man it was incredible. I LOVE CHEESE. Such a blessing. Cheese is expensive here so it is a true treat.

Then with dinner, we had fresh homemade rolls and bread and with breakfast too I forgot about that. Just like my Mom makes. Another thing not to be taken for granted. Good bread is hard to come by so ... Aww Man it was incredible. It was like you know an appetizer at a nice restaurant that has good bread and you eat too much of it and ask for more because you are bored and eat while you wait for your real meal. Well, although the food was so delicious, we asked for more bread almost instead of our meal because it was SO Delicious and such a treat!

Also, at night here because we were at about 6,000 feet of elevation, something you will never believe happened... It got COLD. I got to, yes Got to wear a sweatshirt. Oh man I hadn't done that in 8 months. And yes that means I didn't go to bed sweating and sticky like many nights in Kampala though it has got much better since we now are in the heart of rainy season as well as Tim and I couldn't take it any longer and broke down and invested in a fan. Glorious. But anyways so ya in Sipi I got to use this foreign thing to me called a blanket, I believe that's the word for that soft cuddly thing you place over you while you sleep to keep warm... he he... sorry once again ...I am not complaining at all just so appreciative of these things. Another thing we honestly probably rejoiced in all weekend of how much we LOVED the Cold. It was awesome.

Last, but not least, they had not only a beautiful shower, but it also had this other thing foreign... water pressure to shower and feel nice and clean as well as it was a nice warm shower. Notice I said warm because they do have hot water for your shower here in our apartment.... But your choices are burn your skin hot or ice cold. So that was our topic of conversation at breakfast most mornings after we showered. When someone came up for breakfast that was the first questions, "Hey have you showered? ... Oh my goodness Ya I did it was amazing.... What I haven't showered yet?! ... Dude you gotta try it? Whoooo. Its amazing!

It may not look like much, but it is wonderful!

So ya just a few things the Lord blessed us with and obviously I cannot repeat enough that it really isn't bad at all. The sacrifices are so minimal and absolutely worth it. I don't want to discourage people from coming here at all. It is an awesome place in need of help so still such a great experience and blessing in my life!!! I LOVE IT!

That's Me swinging on this vine next to the waterfall

Completely safe....

Until Dan fell on the rocks below, which we have a video of, but the internet is a little too slow to publish, but crazy and couldve been a lot worse, but Praise the Lord he is fine.

The view right outside where we were staying such beautiful lush greenery and waterfall. Pictures do not do it justice

For those who followed my travels in Morocco and the finely designed structure bridge there, here is one in Sipi

Ya look at that view and you can see how flat Uganda is in the distance

That is Sipi Falls. 300 foot waterfall and we are hiking to the bottom. You can repel down next to it, but we chose not to.. (Your welcome mom... he he jk)

Almost to the bottom

The pool at the base of the falls

The Group with Hannah in front thinking she is Magellan, sorry to break it to you Hannah, but you didn't discover Sipi Falls.

This is our hut on the right where the boys stayed. Girls on the Left.

A better view of the falls outside our door

The third of the 3 waterfalls here. So there is Sipi Falls, the one by our lodge and this one above our lodge a little hike away

Now you can see Hannah to get some perspective of how big things are.

By the way all these pictures are by Tim who is missing from a lot of pictures bc he takes them, but gotta give him all the credit. He is a stud photographer...

Our girl interns. Jess in front just got engaged last friday. Her Fiance flew to Uganda, surprised her and proposed on Lake Victoria. I know right? Studly move! Props Adam. Well done sir.

Look at that view down the mountain from the top

Our friends who came and sat with us, very intrigued by us Mzungu (white person) they don't see us too often

Young Olympians Hopefully!

Our Guide Jasper.. Does it look safe to swim in Jasper?

Okay, I can test it... that little girl pushed me in....

jk, I jumped and was in the process of doing a cannonball to splash the children

Tim & I gave it another shot.

Yep God made all of it.

WOW

Well Done Tim!

This is our Album Cover

Or Maybe this

Or that?

This is for Dan's Solo Album

This one for his Christian album

I know isn't this Indescribable? That's my God, hopefully yours too

I know its a lot of pictures, but you can see how good Tim is of a photographer! SO glad he is here to capture just a taste of this beauty.

Intern Pics

Does something look wrong?

Here's all of us. Daniel on the left just got out of swimming in the waterfall....

Just kidding... Unfortunately, Daniel couldn't come, but we missed him and wanted him there so Tim also being a photoshop expert. Added him in there.

Hope you have a great day... Thanks for looking along and playing with me. Love to hear or see what you are doing, what you are thinking, maybe even a question for me?

I love hearing from people.

That's all for now.

Prayer

2011-04-12T03:04:00.000-07:00

So I am heading to Sipi Falls this weekend. Suppose to be a truly beautiful place. I am very blessed to go there and see more of Uganda, but I guess you can be praying for my safety as we (all the interns) travel. Unfortunately, the internet died so I didn't get to finish writing this before I left for Sipi Falls, so I am already back safely.

But I thought I would share just a little something real quick on something God has been revealing to me and hammering home to me in the past few months. This whole concept of Prayer.

It is a kind of strange thing sometimes and there is a lot in the Bible about prayer and I take so for granted sometimes. I don't bother talking to God in a meaningful way some days, I don't feel like it or I am tired or so many excuses always come to mind. Especially, those times where I don't feel God's presence as I come to pray. I feel like the only one is hearing me is the dogs outside my window here. God doesn't feel like He is there like He does sometimes. Am I doing something wrong?

Well, here is one thing that God just revealed to me in James 1:5-8

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."

So these verses I feel like basically are speaking of praying and asking God for things, but following that with Faith that God will actually answer those prayers. I so often pray for things because I feel like I should pray for this or that, but don't really care about it that much or really think God cares enough to really want to do that usually just with small things you know? Like I am feeling sick God please take this away heal me, but it is not accompanied by any faith. I feel like oh God is too busy to want to take away this He is doing so many other things and my sickness isn't really a big deal or I lost my sweatshirt (again) God doesn't want to help me find it though....

But I would argue that is completely false. Are we not talking still about the same God that didn't even spare His own Son just so I could be adopted, all of us could be adopted into His family. He cares about all of us and everything. This leads me also to Matthew 7:7-11:

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds and the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"

So God does want us to ask him for anything and everything. Jesus goes so far to say here that even though we are evil or wicked give good gifts to our children, somehow God our Father in Heaven doesn't want to give us good gifts. Where did we get this misconception? As we read in James above, God gives generously. So God wants to give to us and give generously to us. Don't misunderstand or confuse this with some sort of prosperity Gospel that God wants to bless you and make you healthy and wealthy because that is False. But God is Good and wants to give to us generously.

So God wants to be generous why doesn't He just give to us what we want in our prayers like it says here... What I feel like God showed me through James was that He wants us to expect Him to work and give what we need so we see Him work and provide and answer prayers. How often I look back and see WOW God was so in that and provided there and in that way, but totally missed it because I didn't expect to see Him. Darn it, but thank you James for showing me to look for God. Obviously, we still can see that God is Good and answers prayers even when we don't expect it because God is Good.

Anyways, last little bit I thought was insightful from James 4:2b.. starts off talking about not having because we do not ask. Oops, don't forget to ask God.

Lastly, I guess I don't want to end that if we ask and expect God to work that He has to do it and another insight from the following verse James 4:3 talks about asking and not receiving... Wait what I thought Jesus just said ask and He will give me, what the Heck?! Jesus tricked me... No He didn't. Finish the verse and it says it because we ask wrongly to spend it on our own passions... WOW... So not only is God good because He gives generously to us for asking and expecting, but He is also so good that He sees some things we ask for actually aren't good for us. God is above and beyond time so knows the future for us and how this certain answer to prayer might lead us into sin. How merciful is our God? To do this and Not give us sometimes. So this is where that other aspect of faith comes in... Expect God to work and answer prayers, but if He doesn't it is because He has looked into that option for us and knows it isn't what is best for us.... whether it is a better job, more money, a girlfriend/boyfriend, kids to get on track, or whatever.... Though we don't understand why He won't answer... We throw our hands and cries up to the Father expecting Him to work, but fully trusting His Goodness.

One other little add on, if you want to learn about an amazing man of prayer, read about George Muller, a missionary from the 1830's, I just started his autobiography. It is killer. He prays and expects God to provide and He does in miraculous ways. Just the basic premise is that George refuses to ask people for money. He only asks God and at the end of the last chapter he says he has now gone 4 years without asking anyone for a temporal need such as food and money and God has provided everything as well as excess for him to begin 5 orphanages, 3 schools for the poor, distribute 6,000 bibles and support other missionaries in south East Asia. Incredible. I recommend it. I also just finished Doctrine by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Bershears. Also, a great book to address a lot of challenging questions...

Love to all and always love to hear from people.

In faithful service to the Lord empowered by His Spirit hopefully showing people Jesus along the way!

K2

RESTORED

2011-04-02T01:26:00.000-07:00

Last night, I was so blessed to get the opportunity to go to see Watoto's Restored Tour, which is there incredibly children's choir integrated with dancing and story telling by all these children from Gulu.

It is a truly amazing show about Love & Forgiveness and the source of it all, JESUS. Jesus has redeemed these children, shown them love and forgiveness as well as given them hope for their future. The child performers are all from Gulu district where the majority of the atrocities of the LRA took place. All the performers have been affected by the LRA. Most of the boys in the show had been abducted by the LRA and forced to become child soldiers some younger than 10 when they were abducted and forced to kill. Majority of the girls were abducted by the LRA as slaves and captives, often raped by many of the soldiers as well as given to the commanders as one of their many wives. Some of the girls were even forced to become soldiers as well.

You wanna know the amazing thing? We didn't learn this by someone telling us about these tragedies who is an expert or historian from the area. We heard it straight from the victims. All those things mentioned above we heard straight from the children as they told their stories. Some had been raped and seen their whole families killed right before their eyes before the age of 10. Some had done the killing and the raping on stage... TOGETHER. In between songs they would take turns standing up and sharing pieces of their stories throughout, ending with them sharing of how some of the boys had killed the family of a girl on stage with them. Think you would want to stand on stage with someone who killed your family and relive the story, I sure wouldn't. Here's what is more amazing, they finished their story saying to them, with tears in their eyes, so heart felt,

I FORGIVE YOU!

Child after child stepped forward to say who they forgave... all the commanders, soldiers and even them forgiving the leader, Joseph Kony, who by the way I learned he is literally possessed by a "spirit" most definitely demonic and possibly Satan. They shared he could perform these signs and predict things and claims to be sent by God. Sounds like Satan to me.... But they FORGAVE him. HOW?

Every single child said One Name, the Name above all names, the King of kings, the Lord of Lords,

JESUS CHRIST...

that is how you spell forgiveness. Because of Jesus these children have been given life and hope and been forgiven and redeemed.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." ~ 1 Peter 1:3

Wow that verse is just packed full of so many things. Did you catch it though? How this ties into what I was talking about? So many things in there.

God's Great mercy... what did He do in His great mercy? God in His mercy forgave us. He crushed his son with our sins in His great mercy (Isa 53:5). He forgave us on the cross. So that we may be as it says born again. These children have been born again because they were forgiven. Because of the great forgiveness they have received and love that has overwhelmed them in Jesus, they cannot help but forgive others. They understand that God the Father loves them too and wants them to be born again like they have... But to What?

This verse answers this to.... HOPE... and what kind of hope? A Living Hope. Jesus is not dead. The Tomb was empty. He is alive. He has given them a living hope. The children's hope had been dashed... there hope was dead. Dead hope is no good... Is this what all other religions trust in though? A dead hope? Abraham & David (Judiaism) are dead and tombs worshipped, great men of God after His heart, Muhammed (Islam) is dead and his tomb worshipped where his bones remain, Buddha's tomb worshipped where his bones remain, dead hope, ... Is there a temple at Jesus's tomb to be worshipped? NO!

The Tomb was empty and Jesus is alive giving children like this and people like you and me and EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!

A LIVING HOPE!

This living hope will change lives and change the world if we understand the Gospel and let it change us. It will...

"...These men (Early Christians) have turned the world upside down..." ~ Acts 17:6

That is what real faith in the Living Hope does. It turns the world upside down.

Let's turn it upside down with guidance by the Holy Spirit with the Living Hope on our lips all for the Glory of God the Father!

In Faithful service to the Living Hope Jesus Christ of Nazareth,

K2

Watoto Advancement for the Kingdom

2011-03-26T01:33:00.000-07:00

Alright,

So I made it safely back from Gulu about 10 days ago now and unfortunately just getting around to writing about my trip. Sorry about that.

But so I left for Gulu in Northern Uganda on March 7th arriving late that evening at the Watoto Guesthouse, which I have to say was quite comfortable and really nice. We were treated very well. If anyone ever wants to come help Watoto here in Uganda, I would recommend it. They take great care of you.

Our welcoming at 10 PM they all were out to greet us.

Where to start, so maybe a little background on the area of Gulu. Gulu is where all the rebel wars, fighting and just atrocities took place. Children were abducted and forced to kill their families in order to be in the rebel group. Gulu is just an incredibly heart breaking war torn part of Uganda where the hub of much rebel activity was, led by Joseph Koni and the LRA, but there were also other rebel groups including the current president was actually a leader of one of the rebel groups and that is how he came into power was through the fighting. So then Gulu became the center of where this civil war started between the Ugandan army and the LRA, both corrupt and killing anyone and anything standing in their way of one another. Neither was really "good" or trying to help. The Ugandan army would kidnap children and train them to be soldiers as well because if they didnt the LRA would take them and train them. Just this awful vicious cycle that destroyed so much.

This forced many people into Internally Displaced People (IDP) Camps. Essentially all of Northen Uganda were forced into these becoming refugees in their own country. I kind of wish we would've got to see an IDP camp because many still remain and all the remnants do. Picture 8 to 10 huts with a family of 6 in each one living on one tennis court, now multiply it by one thousand tennis courts or maybe picture all those huts on one football field. Like 6,000 people living on a football field. That is an IDP camp. The even sadder thing is that though the war ended 5 years ago, a lot of those camps are still 50% full because the people are too scared to go home and if they do go home their land has been taken because Uganda has Squatter's Rights so if someone started living on their land while they were in these IDP camps it became that persons after 5 years. And these people were stuck in these camps for almost 25 years with war and destruction all around them. Truly, atrocious and heart wrenching. Sorry that is probably enough about that, but if you are interested research it or there are good books about it. So sad.

Enter Watoto. So 25 years ago a young Canadian couple came to plant a church in Kampala which now has turned into a 5 campus church all over Uganda and now expanding to South Africa with over 30,000 people consistently attending and people finding Jesus and forgiveness left and right. Just an incredible ministry that is amazing and HUGE now. Watoto has built 3 Children's Villages (New better orphanages) that house over 2500 orphans throughout Uganda with many more they are looking to build.

My friend that I made at one of the Children's Villages, Dad killed by the LRA and Mom died of HIV as did ALL his brothers and sisters (6 of them), but God healed and saved him.. Guess what he wants to do?
Be a Pastor and preach the Word of Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior!

We also hear another story of 13 year old that had been abducted by the LRA forced to kill his family and cousin, but wouldnt. So he was beaten within inches of his life, then taken captive by the LRA for years until he was rescued by a helicopter because he would just pray to God asking for help and the Lord hears prayers! He knew he would be fine... Guess what he wants to be?
A lawyer because he wants to fight for Justice because God is just. So Just that He crushed His own Son for our iniquities so that we may be His sons and daughters.

In addition they have two babies homes with about 30 babies in each.

Come on in to Baby Watoto :)

It was lunch time when we went :) They still there until they are 18 months then moved to the Children's Village

This little guy had HIV : (

Little Bonnie really liked me and I got to feed him, if you look on my pant leg you can see how much liked his food. I thought I was doing so good getting to feed a baby for my first time and he opened his mouth perfectly and I was like oh ya look how good I am, I am going to be a great dad first try feeding no problem, But the Lord is quick to humble as he spit it out time after time on my pants :)

About 75% have HIV which is so sad. Many of the babies have been found on the side of the road or many places just abandoned with no chance of living without Watoto. Often some of them are fished out of Pit Latrines as parents cannot take care of them try to get rid of them in a Pit Latrine (if you dont know what a pit latrine is, it is a deep pit with concrete slab placed over it with a hole to go to the bathroom, so picture a 30 foot deep hole filled with...). Many are very malnourished. Without Watoto, these babies would have no chance just like many of the orphans, who are also malnourished until Watoto cam along.

My other friend I made, you can see there big malnourished bellies :(

They also have a program for trauma rehabilitation in these IDP camps that we got to hear the director speak about while we were in Gulu. He has been in Uganda 2 years and his goal is to go one IDP camp a month until he goes to all of them with a team of counselors and do two week intensive psychological help and he has been to 25 IDP camps and isn't stopping until he goes to them all and then he just wants to go back and follow up with how people are doing. People are finding forgiveness and truly being helped and though the goal isn't to get them to be a Christian but to psychologically help them. Ninety percent of the IDP camps are meeting JESUS because that is where they find forgiveness and HOPE. He is the only true Hope. Amazing.

So I guess with that kind of segways into our project and purpose for being there. So each of the Children's Villages have a school on site, but where do they go after that.... That is where we come in to design there new Agricultural College and Technical School.

My job entailed a lot of water testing and calculating how much water they will need for the site, where it will come from and what to do with the wastewater on site and as always some surveying...
Oh and some on site water testing of existing springs and wells, which consists here really of just drinking some of it and seeing if I get sick...

Just Kidding :)

So we planned a 435 acre site for 400 students with on site housing and 100 staff with housing including 100 acres of agriculture to provide food for those on site and some of the orphanages and 100 acres for livestock for the site, a reservoir for fish, soccer pitch, a retreat center for the trauma rehab folks to do seminars and things for those affected by the war, and of course complete with 1000 person church because it is all about Jesus and the Glory of God.

So we had a unique and awesome partnership with a Australian architecture firm that had 3 employees there including the CEO and the other two staff were the two non believers.

They are the three sitting on the rock next to me, Angus next to me just graduated high school, Andrew next to him is 28 and has had a neat life living all over the world including Angel's Camp California not far from me and had been to Cal Poly, and next to him is there leader Tony. An amazing man of God who humbly and faithfully leads that team with such an amazing heart to serve. This was his 5th time to Gulu. He met with the mayor and Tony has master planned the future of Gulu and what it could look like and wants to be instrumental in rehabilitating Gulu with the hope that other cities will follow that example. Brittany our one girl on the trip is next to him, a new staff member to EMI and Chad our structural/seismic engineer from San Diego born and raised, crazy.

Our team exploring the site

Some more water we tested, good thing I actually didnt try this one because it had E Coli, but this is the quality of the water they use here often because water is hard to get.

We also tested their local well and some locals came out to talk to us about what we were doing including one sadly I think was drunk and claimed to be the Governor of the well as well as a general in the army or something... kind strange

So after many 12 hour days of planning and working on every aspect of the project

The rest of us working in the other half of the room

All leading to the presentation to many of the Watoto ministry as well as the Mayor of Gulu came to our presentation. Crazy

Tony our leader presenting.

Yes I presented too

So this is us relaxing playing cards, which I felt like putting on here with a little story, but we also just need time to relax because working 10 straigh 12 hour days gets tiring. So at the closing time we go around and share our highs and lows from the trip as well as why we thought God had us on the trip then John our leader gives some encouragement or affirmation. So mine were that I had passion for what we were doing, but more so for devotions and sharing about Jesus and being passionate about that, which is awesome, what a compliment so I am thankful for that, but then my other trait was I was the comic relief for the trip and keeping people at ease by joking around or playing cards :) so I thought that was really nice.

So after each EMI trip, we get to do something fun, which this time included going on SAFARI! So here are some pictures from that.

The first animal we saw...

And thousands more, literally thousands of all different kinds of deer, then we drive another 2 minutes and what do we see....

oh hello heard of Giraffes, and we saw probably like 100 of those as well....

So from there we saw quite a few more animals including some huge water buffalo, lots of wart hogs, and more and more deer then we drove down to the lake and saw....

A herd of elephants

This isnt zoomed in we were literally probably like 20 feet from this heard of 20 elephants in our cars....

Our sweet ride to see all the animals :) I am sitting on the back.... This was acutally as we are chasing the elephants... There were also probably like 50 Hippoes in the lake right behind us.

A monkey and baby

So ya we continued around still bummed not to see a lion but we had heard that this national park isnt where you see lions very often so that was a bummer, we might go to Kenya to go on safari thats where the lions are, then all the sudden our driven veers off the road and starts driving out in the bush even more so than the picture above, he thinks there might be a lion judging by the antelopes so we turn this corner and....NOTHING... bummer so then we looked the other way and thought we saw one in the distance in the tall grass so we start creeping towards it and we ask Tim if it is one because he has zoom lens on his camera and he says oh ya I can see its head moving, YES this is it....we get a little closer and.....

Its a termite hill... dang it strike two....

So once again our driver veers off randoms and goes around into these bushes and turn and....

Boom the King and Queen of the plains...

Mama lion didnt even care we were there, probably like 10 feet away from these two... AWESOME!!!

Thats as were leaving, we were even closer than that...
YAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

We saw a LION, mission accomplished, we are pumped. Thats Dan my fellow intern next to me and Chad from San Diego on the other side.

Well I am tired, time to go to sleep after seeing the lion... wait whats this we get to wake up to the noise of right outside our camp right on the Nile...

Oh hello, Hippo on my deck... ha ha isnt that crazy

Then in the morning...

Pumba the Warthog and other warthogs wonder the camp... he he..

Yep well the next day we went on a boat ride to see Murchison Falls and saw a bunch more hippoes, Elephants, and Crocs... Unfortunately, we didnt get good pictures of Crocs, but Nile Crocs are known to be 20 feet long and can jump out of the water near 15 feet... so maybe it was a blessing we didnt get too close to them to take pictures.

The Falls, pretty amazing

well lets see hopefully I can write more later, but the trip was amazing. God is so clearly present here and moving and advancing His Kingdom. I feel so blessed to be here. I see more and more the potential of wanting to do this always. So blessed to see what God is doing here I love it!

All for the Glory of God the Father. Jesus is alive and moving, We are His hands and feet, Show somebody His grace, love, joy, and passion today.

I love you all!

God is Still so Good and I see Him so often everytime I look to the sky and see His Radiance

Really? How can you not believe in God? That cannot be an accident. God is So Beautiful!

Rafting & Prep

2011-03-06T10:44:00.000-08:00

Sorry it has been so long. I have been slacking on keeping ya posted on what is going on over here in beautiful Uganda. I do mean beautiful. It is a really beautiful place. I am really starting to love it here more and more that I feel I could definitely see a larger portion of my future here with EMI.

Lets see so what has been going on. Work is getting busier and busier as I settle in to a 40 hour work week, doing work for different ministries all over Africa with my main focus being on the orphanage in Masaka that i went to. But an awesome thing they encourage here is getting involved with local ministries and we can take up to 4 hours of work off a week to help out with that so I have begun coaching under 7 boys soccer at the local school. It is a crack up. The kids are adorable and just so funny. The local Ugandans are really good already while the American missionary kids on the team are the kids roaring/barking at me while running around the field trying to flap their arms and fly... not exactly what i am trying to teach them, but it is my first time coaching soccer though so maybe I am doing something wrong.. :-) ha ha. I also am trying to help a little bit with the high school basketball team as well a little more up my alley so we will see how that goes.

On to the fun stuff I got to do last Friday. The male interns (the girls backed out at the last minute) and the EMI staff civil engineer all went white water rafting down the Nile River... side not real quick, which way do you think the Nile flows from the top of Africa to the bottom so Down on a map.... thats what I thought too. Turns out we are wrong... ha ha ... sorry random fact for you, back on track though.

So that was pretty amazing, how many people get to go rafting down the Nile River? It was really cool there weren't even that many crocodiles or hippos chasing our boat and I only fell out like 4 times.... Ha ha, totally just kidding, there are crocs and hippoes but not the area we were in. Not to worry it is completely safe, well for the most part. We were rafting down Class 5 rapids, which is on a scale for those who don't know rapids are gaged on a scale from 1 to 5, 5 being the craziest (Africa they claim to have class 6 rapids as well).

All of our boats launching into the Nile

We had a really awesome guide Alex who got us safely through the all rapids. It really was completely safe I felt like. I wwasnt nervous or scared at all. There were a lot of non "rafting" types lets say out there and they were going for so i knew it couldnt be all that bad. The worst thing that happened was we all got pretty fried even though we put on tons of sun screen. The Nile also is perfectly safe to swim in. You may get a parasite, but we got drugs for that to kill those really quickly so there really isnt much to worry about. There was a couple large flat sections where we werent allowed to swim in the water because the still water could have crocidiles in it, but the guide said it is very unlikely. But crocs want to stay away from rapids anyways so completely safe. Also the water is really nice. Not too cold not too warm just right. And praise the Lord we had a beautiful sunny day. So I dont know what else to say so picture are worth a thousand words right?

Here was a view of the first rapid we went down

Our first class 4 Rapid

Ya i am in all that white water, GONE :) SO fun!

SPLASH!!!!

Doing Fine Right?

WRONG?! Flipped the Boat

And we are in trouble again

Wait why are we about to go backwards?

Oh so we can go off a waterfall! Awesome!

Amazingly we all stayed in!

Told you :-)

Uh Oh another bad situation....

Going Over? I am in the Middle on the side in the Water or just in the Water floating down river

Ya thats me on the left hanging on the front of the kayak. He caught up with me : )

Here's our bang up team... Dan, Me, Pat, Our guide Alex in the pink helmet hiding, Egyptian friend we made whose name i cant remember right now because it was hard to pronouce, Tim, and Daniel ( Left to Right)

So overall it was awesome and I am doing fine, So that was big adventure recently and we are in the process of planning more, hopefully to Kenya for Safari and Sipi Falls in Uganda.

So I leave tomorrow morning bright and early for Northern Uganda on another project trip to Gulu, where the LRA rebel army (one of the big rebel groups known for abducting children and making them soldiers) started so a very war, terror and genocide torn part of Uganda so I feel like it will be awesome time to go help and serve, but also heart wrenching as AIDS and the LRA's slaughter have left tons more orphans, broken families, and disfigured people behind. So pray that we can serve faithfully and lovingly to these people. We are going to be designing facilities for the former child soldiers to learn some vocational and agricultural skills to hopefully improve their lives. Pray that we may be used.

Also, there are two non-believers coming on our project trip. May sound strange right? Why possibly would two people like that go on a mission trip with a Christian organization? That sounds insane and silly, No one would ever go on a Christian mission trip not being a Christian......EEEEEEEEERRRRRRRKKKKKKK.... lets step on the brakes real quick. Because I did that. I was those kids just over a year ago going on a mission trip as a non-believer or i thought i was a Christian and by today's American Dream standards I was a "Christian." But on that trip is where I found Christ, the GREATEST treasure and my whole life is completely upside down since then. So pray earnestly for God to move so greatly on this trip that set these people on our trip ablaze for His Kingdom and His Glory. If they see Christ on this trip like I did, there whole life may just flip upside down too. Only God can change hearts, but He listens to us, PRAY!

So with this and the message preached to me at church this morning, I feel like God continues to give me a heart to try to help disciple people and share with people the HUGE RADICAL difference between the religion: Christianity and a lover, follower of Jesus Christ the Lord, Savior, and King of Kings. I have heard it said so many ways, but is Jesus our GREATEST treasure? Is Jesus just a hobby? Then there is a good likelihood, you may not know Him. If we did, it would radically change our lives. Christ is not a hobby. He is the purpose we live. I honestly feel at times like Paul that I do hurt for the lost, but I hurt and yearn for those who claim to know Christ, but do not know Him. Like it says in Scripture that there will come a day when Jesus returns and some will cry out Lord, Lord and He will say, "I do not know you." WOW! (Matthew 7:21-23) Hard stuff. Anyways, I just want everyone to truly know Jesus, experience the Love that is really there because it is not about following rules, or going to church every Sunday or reading the bible daily, all great things, but it is about the Free gift of Grace to us from the Father through the Son for Everyone!

As always love to hear from people, anyone and everyone!

Love to all!

Lockdown 2011

2011-02-20T03:53:00.001-08:00

So far so good, Elections finished on Friday and results should be announced relatively soon so keep praying because things could get interesting then. However, I have learned many things about the country doing some research about the election that sadly not surprisingly Uganda has problems with government corruption. The current president and favorite to win, Musevini, who has been in office for 25 years which has been good and stabilized the country, but come to find out the more you research he is now rigging the elections to make sure he wins and most people know about it. What?! Ya, but peace is more important than a corrupt president. One of the locals informed us that Uganda is like a vicious dog, but scared to bite. Meaning there are lots of people upset with the government situation, but they are too scared to do anything about it. Honestly, this scares me a little bit because it sounds like it is only a matter of time then until the people can’t take it and the same riots of Egypt begin here. This might be soon or not for another 20 years. The locals don’t anticipate problems as Uganda may still be a little bit scared to “bite.” We will see, with that all I can do is pray and put my full trust in the Lord….

The Lord has definitely helped me in the last few days after a bit of hardship and dealing with past sins, God has shown me that those things I thought were gone and dealt with were actually preventing me from representing Him as well and not being able to have Him speak to me as clearly through His Word, but God is now speaking to me so clearly through His Word that I actually am feeling these other Truths so deeply! Here goes one of those that I literally just read and feel God compelling me to share…

It comes from our dear friend, James, the brother of the Jesus Christ. Yep that is correct. Jesus had a brother James, or I guess you would say half brother, since James had an earth father, and Jesus did not. On that note as well, probably would think that maybe James would take advantage of that little stat or tid bit to have on his resume. James however did not brag about this at all. In the open lines of his book, he doesn’t refer to himself as Jesus’ brother, but solely a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ ( James 1:1). Humility? I’d say so.

Verse 2-3 is where I started to get challenged and the Lord just used that to change my heart in some things

“Count it all joy, my brother [and sisters], when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”

James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem just for a little background and with how strong the Pharisees were, who had just murdered Jesus. It is very safe to say that James knew some trials himself and underwent a lot of trials and persecution being the leader of the church in Jerusalem. So James does not speak from an outsider’s perspective whatsoever on this topic of trial. It doesn’t say to count just little bits and pieces of trials as joyful or to be okay and happy with the little parts, but to count it ALL as joy. We don’t pick and choose oh this part I can be joyful about and that part is good too, but yuck that no way that part just stinks and has no value. That is contrary to Scripture. Count it all joy!

Next, the verse says “when” you meet trials, not if, when. We will meet trials. It happens. God is not our buddy, our friend or our homeboy that we go to with our problems and he takes them away forever. God wants to help and will help with things, but coming to Christ doesn’t mean our problems go away. This verse insures us that. Maybe you would argue that the verse is talking about unbelievers that are going through trials, but that contradicts this verse as well as it is clearly speaking to the church of believers (my brothers & sisters). We will meet trials and God wants to use those. God wants us to be joyful in our trials… What?! I absolutely will not be joyful in this circumstance. This circumstance bites and it very well might as I felt my situation was not something I wanted to be joyful about. So I by no means speak as someone who has this down, I failed literally 4 days ago until I read this.

Ok so why would I possibly be joyful? Why would I possibly have joy about this junk going on? Don’t worry James tell us why to be joyful. As our faith is tested in these trials, it produces steadfastness. A consistency of faith, our utter dependence and reliance on God with our faith. Now that is something I can be joyful about! Ok so this thing that is going on my life sucks, and I do not like it, but if it is going to increase my faith in the Lord and my steadfastness (steady, unwavering, fixed). I am so game and I can be joyful about that and I am.

For every trial that I go through here in Uganda, I pray and hope that the Lord gives me strength to look back to these verses and be joyful again. I can be stoked on that! If trials are going to make my faith increase and trust in the Lord, I am alright with that! I want my faith to increase! Don’t you? Think about if your faith was greater… if you truly trusted in the Lord just a little bit more, maybe that would help us not worry about finances and paying bills. Maybe that would help us not worry about all the little daily things that can weigh us down. I know I always want my faith to increase and though trials stink if they are used that God may increase my reliance on Him then I am for it and feel blessed by trials to see and know Him more.

Lastly, verse 4 has to be contemplated along with this chunk of text…

“And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Dang it, this is what challenges me even further. So I have to be joyful in these trials, okay I can try to do that, but lets get through these trials fast, lets bang them out so I can be done… I don’t think so James says. You have to let them have their full effects. Trials have to take full effect and really be gone through, physically, emotionally or spiritually as I am seeing. Other that problem or whatever may just come back up. We have to deal with these things to the full extent that we need to. I feel like such a child with my response to that just thinking, “Ooh Man, Do I have to?” And the answer here is yes. Why? Not for no reason, but so we can be perfected and complete, lacking in nothing! Once again, alright fine, I can get on board with that. I want my faith and steadfastness to be perfected. Not to lack anything.

This definitely isn’t easy though. I can think about so many things and be like oh yah, how many times did I have to learn that? I am so prideful in so many things and think ya I know, you don’t need to tell me. And until I humble myself I keep having to relearn things. For example, learning to cope with and be okay with the lack of comforts here is kind of a trial to deal with. At first, I was just like okay its fine just get used to it. No comforts here. I, on my own with my strength, can deal with it. Guess what? Wrong, those feelings of missing comfort kept coming up as I tried so hard to be happy with not having comfort. Then finally, I was honest with God that I miss things from home and I am sorry and know I shouldn’t because You gave up everything for me, but I do. Ahhh! Then I felt so much better. God basically said thank you for being honest with me. Quit trying to fool me or yourself that you are happy when you aren’t. Do you trust Me though and that I have a purpose for you here? Yes, God I do, I can say sympathetically. God wasn’t buying it though. He kept challenging me. Do you really believe that? Eventually I did. God wore me down. I do believe that now. I let that have its full effect and God used that to grow my faith and dependence on Him. Now I am joyful to be here and love my cold trickling shower. I count it all as joy! J

Let our experiences have their full effects to be perfected by God. So many lessons we have to learn over because we don’t let them affect us and change us the way God wants to use things.

I hope I did this as faithfully to God as I could. I am human and fallible though, but I believe God has been revealing truth to me through the book of James and I think there will be much more to come from that. If you have questions, critiques, anything, I truly welcome them. I want to have the humility to know that I have things off or not in line with Scripture.

God is definitely doing a lot in my heart right now the more I am learning and He is burdening me with all sorts of different things. Some things I start to think about back in the States are really difficult for me. Seeing people here who have so little, but such great faith and think about all the people in the States who would claim to be Christian, but are so far from that. Jesus is not a hobby to add to your life. It is not a choice between heaven or hell so you claim Jesus to make sure if that is true you get heaven over hell. It is about meeting and knowing Jesus. I believe if you do it will change your whole world and life. Honestly, it is a struggle for me how so many people could claim to know Jesus, but not have that affect them.

And I don’t say this to brag at all because I consider it an honor privilege and blessing that I was chosen to serve God, but I met Jesus a year ago and I am now in Uganda. I am not saying everyone needs to be here or foreign missionaries (actually partially the opposite as we need state side missionaries too!), but Jesus should be evident in our life back home in the States. If we think we are a Christian nation, we are fooling ourselves. I am so burdened and hurt by Sunday or cultural Christians. I want you to know Jesus and experience the love, healing and beauty of knowing there is a God who loves us. God Loves Me! WOW! How can that not change my life? I still fail and sin everyday, but I am chasing Jesus the best I can so that I may refined and rescued from sins to be more like Him daily.

Sorry that is just so constantly hard for me and on my heart.

With Love

K2 J

Eagles Wings Orphanage

2011-02-14T03:36:00.000-08:00

Sorry it has been so long, I have had a long chaotic week on my first project trip about 3 hours south of Kampala, Uganda down in Masaka…

Well, I am not even sure where to start, the week has been absolutely amazing. The ministry, Eagles Wings Children’s Village, is just incredible. So strange to think that we were the ones supposedly going to serve them when truly we were the ones being served on so many different levels that it feels in a way that they served us in a far greater way than we served them.

I suppose I will start with our team that consisted of 11 members from the USA and Canada, including Civil Engineers, Architects, a landscape architect, and a videographer. All very carefully chosen by God to be members of the team. It was very clear that God’s hand was in all of the team selection because we got along so well, and had so much fun along the way as well as were there to encourage and help one another with anything. Everyone having such a servant’s heart to help with whatever was needed.

We definitely laughed a lot throughout our time there. It seemed to be a battle of what was getting poked fun at the most between our 4 Canadians and our Kansas representative, for those of you who don’t know Kansas is in the US kind of right in the middle of the country if people have heard of it. Contrary to popular belief, they do even have electricity there and maybe just heard of this new phenomena called the internet… he he jk… part of the jokes this week and then Canada ( the big area of land above the US is called Canada) also took its abuse as well with the funny words and customs, kind of hard to type the funny ascent on here though, Eh?

I definitely came away though learning a lot about Canada. I really actually now want to go visit! Made some great friends that I really hope to keep. You definitely bond with these people in a really amazing way that only God provides as we are all there with the same purpose and love of the Lord.
Here are a couple of our Canadians, Patrick the Surveyor on the left and Pat a staff Civil Engineer in Uganda

Many things really impacted me on the trip. The people who started this organization are Canadian as well. They are just incredible. They are 67 year old, Bill and Ann Peckham. They retired at 55 which is very common in Canada and the Lord gave them a mission and a calling after visiting Masaka, Uganda. They were burdened of the heart crushing statistics of Masaka County having more than 60,000 orphans. I cannot even comprehend this. Then they did just like Jesus says, “ sell everything, pick up your cross and follow me.” (Mark 10:17-31). Amazing, they were retired ready to just kick back and enjoy being retired playing with their grandchildren, traveling enjoying whatever just like a normal retired person. They had no plans of starting this ministry until God took them to Uganda. Then they couldn’t go on, not doing anything and now Uganda is home and they will never leave. Talk about what we would call sacrifice, but they don’t think it is.

Amazing and so encouraging to see their faith. God has provided for them land, which they have already built a Christian Primary school, a church, and 2 children’s villages. Children’s villages are the new kind of orphanage where they put 24 orphans with 2 house parents to love and take care of them. The primary school serves the 48 orphans on site as well as an additional 250 children from the community. Many hearing about Jesus for the first time and choosing to follow Him! Hallelujah!

One Children's Village

Here's what I did and the Drawing from the Survey and can see how little is on there and what is existing, all the little blue buildings.

So then with the vision of Eagles Wings when the Lord provides as He has so much already and will continue to is to have:

· 8 more Children’s village (totaling 10 villages and 240 orphans)

· Hospital

· Secondary School (High School)

· Another Primary School

· Vocational School

· Kitchen to feed all the children that attend the school

· Church/Dining Hall

· Admin Building

· Soccer Field

· Agriculture Area

· On-Site Housing for Teachers

· Hospitality Center for Visitors

· Baby Center specifically for Orphaned babies

· And of course a small Directors House for Bill and Ann to move out to the site.

Quite the list right. So they have 70 acres they are going to fit this on… a lot of stuff for that space, but we have an amazing landscape architect who came up with a design to fit everything

Gorgeous huh?
And a 3D model our Architects did that you see the little family clusters in the front and the schools in the back.

The 70 acres I had the pleasure along with Patrick Cochrane to survey, in some intense “bush,” or thick trees and weeds and everything in between. Many times in reeds and thick stuff taller than me, but I had a GREAT time doing it. Really I did. I would be our wondering by myself and trip and fall trying to trample through this junk and would just lay in the junk laughing having a good old time by myself.

With that as well, I got a lot of time to think, and spend alone with the Lord, which was really challenging, but SO GOOD! Culture Shock symptoms had begun to hit me. As I would wonder surveying, I would go through many ups and downs of loving the culture and Uganda and never wanting to leave, then going to a very negative place of dwelling on all the comforts that I am missing and the negatives of being here, which really stunk because I am such a positive person usually so I hate feeling negative towards things and not looking for the good and grace in things. I am trying so hard to be “in tune” with God and what He wants for my life that I am hyper critical of things that I feel here.

One second, I am like oh I love it here, God must be calling me here then I don’t like something so I think God isn’t calling me here and just around and around I go, so silly. But God through this trip and Pat, one of the leaders, helped me just have a peace about God will open the door that He wants for me as long as I just continue to seek Him. If He wants me to be here in Africa, He will make that happen. If not, then that’s okay as well. I know such a Basic Truth, but you know so often all we really need is just the basics and try to focus on those so our hearts feel them.

I am starting to think and actually believe that very few people actually feel so many basic truths otherwise our lives would be so dramatically changed. Think about if our faith was greater than a tiny little mustard seed Jesus said that we could move mountains. I don’t know about you, but I haven’t seen or heard of any mountains moving (Mark 17:20). J So our faith is so small. Our heart and mind can’t wrap our brain around the simple truth of John 3:16. God so loved the world that He gave His Only Son that we may have eternal life. If I really believed that with all of me, would I ever worry about anything… NO. Because there is an omnipotent, omnipresent God who loves Me and loves You personally, that Jesus personally died for me. Oh man, if our hearts could just get this, we would change the world or we would take such steps of faith like the Peckhams to say I am dying to this world to go Africa and serve the orphans because Jesus loves them too! So I love them! Or wherever God may lead us which could be in the States or anywhere because people are hurting everywhere in all different ways.

One other thing I just thought of as I wrote that, it came back to me a part of Ann Peckham story as she was an orphan in the foster care system, who hated herself and her life and so many things, didn’t ever feel loved til someone told her that Jesus love her when she was 7 years old.

I don’t think there are many more simple truths, but Ann has clung to that truth since that day and now look where God has her with that heart for those orphans. It is amazing. They are the grandparents to 72 orphans and hope to be for 240 orphans. They know each one by name and their story and remember them because they love them with the Love of Christ. Perfect example that simple Truths change lives!

So there is a bunch more so this will be a multiple part post, but here is something for now.

Also, a short AMAZING video clip can be found of our project if you go to the Halle Project’s website and look at the video for Eagles Wings Orphange

The Halle Project

or I will post a link as well on the side bar. Watch it, be encouraged and see what God is doing J

Love to all, May God open the doors of a new truth to you today that blesses you, changes you and others around you for the Glory of the Lord and Savior of the World, Jesus Christ.

K2
Random pictures

Our Work Stations

Uganda Orientation

2011-01-29T23:31:00.001-08:00

It’s a long one, but Please read it all J

So the first week of being in Uganda is coming to a close as I hang out at the office this morning before attending my first church service which I am very excited about. Apparently Uganda church services can go on for hours with tons of singing and dancing and all sorts of craziness so I look forward to that cultural experience most definitely.
Heres a few pictures from our trip:

On our drive out to Jinja

The Nile River

Proof that I was actually there. One of the church retreat centers that EMI is working on is right on the Nile

Yep thats me

Sadly this is a little shack where probably at least 10 people live

Kids playing, but having a great time

The last week has been pretty amazing though incredibly exhausting as we have filled days with all sorts of orientation things such as learning specifics about different cultural things from the local Ugandan staff that work here at EMI. One thing I have already learned about culture from our on staff chef is that Public Displays of Affection (PDA) i.e. holding hands, hugging, kissing anything… is laughable. Janet, our chef, laughed at the mere thought of holding her husband’s hand or hugging him even in front of her children. I thought that was so interesting, and to be completely honest kind of thankful that Maddy isn’t here (sorry Maddy if you are reading this, I still would gladly have you here! J). I love holding her hand in public or just hugging and being close to her so just so interesting and funny that that is so different here. And not just different like laughable funny to think of the thought of doing anything with your husband or wife not even boyfriend or girlfriend. It’s not wrong though, just different J

Also, we have had an hour lesson on how to speak the local Lugandan language which sadly, I don’t really remember much of anything, but if you are wondering there is lots of clicking, popping, and making all sorts of weird noises which makes it hard to learn… jk… it’s a normal language just different with more consonants than normal and lots of “K”s. So I should fit in just fine…

Lets see what else, well I guess I feel like we have been treated like royalty here with all our lunches and dinners made for us thus far which will change, but my goodness the food here is AMAZING! I love everything we have had that I think I have had seconds at every meal because it is just that good! I am not even sure how to explain a lot of it, but all super flavorful with all sorts of different spices. Lots of vegetables, potatoes, and rice plus meat though meat is comparatively expensive. Not expensive by American standards by any means, but in comparison to how cheap everything else is, meat is a little pricier which is fine.

So with that, at first you can see that it is cool that 1 american dollar is worth 2300 Ugandan Schillings so that is awesome, but then you start to think about what that means and how poor it means it is here. Sad, to give you a reference of how poor it is. Last night, David this local Ugandan came over to cook dinner for us. He buys all the groceries brings it, cooks everything, serves it, and cleans up and the food was SO SO GOOD! It cost 5000 schillings a person or about $2.25….. sad huh?

Poverty is very evident, but you don’t know what to do or how to help. This is another thing where I have just learned so much in the last few weeks about how complicated poverty is. It is not as easy as anyone thinks. I don’t even know where to begin, so many problems. Here is a quick little summary of a few problems:

Tons of ministries and other non-profits do so many amazing things, which is just awesome, but we are so anxious to help and want to get our hands dirty with the people and want them to do things the “right way” when it is actually the American way which may not work for them or it leads to us coming in doing all this work for them giving ourselves a pat on the back and leaving. Well, did we help and do something good? Yes. Did we improve their lives? Kind of, but really only temporarily because within a short amount of time whatever we helped them install breaks down and we didn’t teach them how to fix it or why it is important to fix it. This is just the beginning of a problem.

A lot of times, we have messed up and we know the old adage of “teach a man to fish, don’t just feed him.” So we have done this as well in the past just giving out a lot of hand outs to these countries which is not what the majority of them want. Most of them want to learn skills to get themselves out of poverty. One of the EMI staff shared with us that when he was in Africa, a lot of the villagers told him to come get them whenever he was going to be working on any of the project so they could learn. They are eager to learn. I am making some generalizations here, but bear with me. Different than a lot of the poverty in America who are okay with handouts, these people don’t want handouts. They want to learn.

Last problem, to address real quick has to do with many people coming to help and we get in there with a desire to help and get our hands dirty so the ministries bring a team to build houses which isn’t always bad, but at least here there are lots of skilled good local workers that good be working on these orphanages, hospitals, etc. so we come in trying to help and end up stealing jobs that can help these people feed their families or send their kids to school. This is another sad thing that many parents have to take their kids out of school because they can’t afford it anymore. Because the school rates have gone up here to…. $50. That’s not per day, per week, per month, per semester even. That is for the whole year. Isn’t that sad? So now these workers who we took their job trying to help have their kids act orphaned so they can go to school for free. Heartbreaking!

This is where EMI is trying to come between. We aren’t trying to build anything. We engineer and design it and hire locals to build it. They benefit from the facility built as well as the process of the facility being built while we also teach them different things throughout the building process. Obviously, share the love of Christ with them! How to be a better man, a Godly man. What that means and looks like. Teaching these men to take pride in their work and challenge them to improve their skills.

Anyways, I will get off my poverty soap box… he he, but if you want to learn more, contact me or there is a good book about it called When Helping Hurts by Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett.

So what partially got me onto to that was yesterday, we took a trip to Jinja then to the outskirts of that to see more a village sort of poverty that is really going on. It was so sad, but the amazing thing is and the beauty of God is these people who live in a mud hut with a straw roof are happier than majority of Americans I would guess. We have so many depressed, anxious, people with all our billion dollar pharmaceuticals and these people who literally have NOTHING are happy. Just because they are physically poor does not mean they are spiritually or emotionally poor because for the most part a lot are rich in those areas. They love God with all their soul, might and strength and trust Him greater because they have to! WOW, we can definitely learn something here! I most definitely am because I want to learn from these people, and I want to help them.

So many things we can learn

What else what else…. Oh ya the EMI staff people here are just incredible. AMAZING stories! So during this week we have had dinner at each staff members house which is within walking distance from where I live so that is cool, but each night at their house they have shared their testimonies.

I will maybe just give a snip it of a couple, but they are all incredible

Well Phil and Emily Greene, have been here almost 2 years in their late twenties. Phil is a Cal Poly Alumni! Ya cal poly! Anyways, both of them are missionary children, born and raised in Africa, then went to college in the States. Is that incredible or what? Phil’s parents are still in Kenya and have been for 35 years and Emily’s parents are in Chad. I don’t remember how long they have been there probably around the same time. They met and started dating in high school at a boarding school ran by missionaries in Kenya. Incredible story. Both have some amazing things, one just real quick about Emily when she was a little girl in Chad, some Muslim Radicals came and attacked their house, destroyed everything, but their family huddled together in the kitchen and could not be touched because the Hand of God protected them! You can say what you want think I am crazy or Emily is crazy or remembered it wrong, but that is God. Choose to believe I guess or not thought I truly hope you do because that is the God of the Bible that protects His Children. Look all over the Bible, I am thinking of I believe in Acts when Paul is bitten by a poisonous snake and he is just fine because it wasn’t his time to die yet. God had bigger plans just like He did for Emily’s family. Jesus conquered the grave so we don’t have to fear death and if its not our time God will protect us. No this doesn’t mean be stupid and challenge God, look at the way Jesus was tempted to do this and said No Satan, I am not going to tempt God by being dumb thought he could have thrown himself off the mountain and been fine.

Well actually this is long enough so I think I am going to save Steve and Melinda Hoyt’s testimonies for another time, but be ready because they are Completely different and now still an amazing work of what God does with all of us broken people relying on the strength and power of Christ through us.

Lastly, a little scripture exploitation that God has really put on my heart as I read through 1 John. An incredible book that is really challenging me. I challenge anyone to read it and really think about what it is saying. It is insane.

So I have really been pondering kind of this dichotomy that John proposes here of 1 John 1:8 and 1 John 2:4

“Whoever says ‘I know Him[Jesus Chirst] ’ but does not keep His commandments is a liar and the Truth is not in him.” ~1 John 2:4

Wow, man this is crazy. So is this proposing some kind of legalism that if we ever break a law then we don’t know Jesus? Don’t worry it’s not, but it is saying some heavy truth.

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” ~ 1 John 1:8

Wait, what I thought we just heard that if I break the law or sin then I am not a good Christian or I don’t know Jesus, but now that has been flipped upside down (a common thing done by Jesus just read the Gospels). John is now saying that if I claim like the other verse that I have not sinned so I must know Jesus, but this is flipped around saying if we claim we have no sin then we are kidding ourselves to even think we can possibly not sin. Is it just me or does this seem a little contradicting? Lets try to dig into this a little bit.

Lord willing I can explain this in line with Scripture and please call me out if I am off base here. Here is what I would claim with my knowledge and understanding the point John is trying to make here. First, let’s be honest. We are sinners. I love Matt Chandler (a pastor from the Village Church in Texas, amazing preacher look him up, great bible teacher!) says at the beginning of a service if you show me a person who claims to not have sinned on their way to church this morning, then I will show you a liar. Basically, we sin all the time. We are sinful, lets be honest and just admit it. Jesus came to save sinners like you and me so lets be humble and admit it.

So now that we have admitted we are sinners in desperate need of Jesus, this doesn’t mean well you know I am just going to sin again anyways why even bother trying not to because I still fail. That is the beauty of Christ. We can’t earn our own righteousness anyways but God gives us His Son’s which lets be honest in comparison do you want your own righteousness or that of the Son of God. I don’t know about you, but I am going to take the righteousness of Christ because that is like saying do you want to be happy for 1 minute or joyful for all of eternity…. Hmmm tough decision. I am going to go with Jesus.

In addition lets get into that other verse so we know now that we are sinners so how could we have the truth in us and not break the commandments. Here is my understanding of this. I believe what John means is if we aren’t even trying our best with the help, strength, and Grace of Christ to fight our sinful desires. For example, lets say I struggle telling the truth so if I just accept that and pick out the sins that I don’t do and keep my lying going then we may think we are doing pretty good. Because we are not. We have to fight our struggles. I think this is what John is meaning here. We need to be striving for perfection all the while knowing that we aren’t and won’t be perfect so we trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Hopefully that makes sense. This is complete opposite of most things anybody is used too and counterintuitive, but that is Jesus… Wait so I am going to work my butt off trying to be the best I can knowing full well that I am not going to make it and I will fall short…. That’s right! J

We gotta pick up our Cross and fight the good fight of faith daily! And it is hard. Jesus doesn’t say it will be easy whoever is telling you that it will be easy and Jesus is here to make life easy is a liar and a false prophet. Jesus changes everything. And I say this hopefully with the utmost humility and don’t think myself highly at all just an unworthy servant God chose to use, but I met Jesus just over a year ago and now I am living in Africa trying to figure out whether God wants me to live here permanently. That could not have been farther from my plan, but Jesus turns things upside down. Let’s die to this world and this with one hand in Heaven with Jesus and the other down here on earth as His hands, feet, and voice to serve and help others. That is the greatest joy.

Much love! Please write me!

In His Humble Service

I'm HERE :-)

2011-01-25T22:41:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately, in the 8 hours I have been in Uganda, I haven’t learned how to say hello in Luganda, but hopefully I will get it and some things from the language down soon. Oh ya I guess that does imply that I have made it to Kampala, Uganda safely so Praise God for that and for all you praying for me and our team. I think everyone from all EMI’s different teams have made it safely as far as I know. I think last I heard we had heard from everyone except the India team and Canada. So Costa Rica, Middle East, and East Africa have all made it safely.

So where do I begin, well this past week of missionary training in Colorado Springs has just been so awesome! Sad to say I think myself and a few others kind of went into the week thinking, “Alright lets just get this week over with in order to get to the ‘real’ trip.” Little did we know that God had other plans (who knew because that hardly ever happens huh? Where God has other plans than we intended… ha ha).

This was just the most amazing week with the most amazing people. All of us had come together with a few major things in common that allowed an uncanny week of great fellowship of God’s Children. First, as just stated we are all children of the most High God (1 John 3:1). Secondly, we all have hearts for missions and serve God and others with those hearts. All willing hearts drawn to action for the Kingdom. Lastly, we are all somewhat technically minded. I say somewhat because I don’t know sometimes how technically minded I am and maybe a few others there who shall remain nameless…. Ha jk.

Anyways, we formed some amazing bonds that I truly hope all of us pursue in the future. Ya’ll are always welcome in California! That’s right I said ya’ll. Too many dang southerners there with their Ya’lls so I figure I cant beat them so I am just going to join them. And I don’t mean to brag, but my spiritual gift is hospitality.

Lets see so the week was awesome consisting of lots of teaching and learning about culture, our spiritual gifts and strengths, hiking, rock climbing, snow ball fights and absurd amounts of laughter and jokes many usually at the cause of the funny words everyone would say from all over the world. We had Midwest to deep south to Minnesota to Canada to England to Irealand. Who knew there were so many different words for shopping cart, buggy, trolley, etc.

So after this wonderful week of training, we had a lovely 8 hour flight to London where we got the opportunity to get a nice jog in the airport to stretch our legs before our next 8 hour flight to Uganda. Oh ya and the reason we got this opportunity to jog is because we were literally sprinting through the London airport to make it to our connecting flight, but made it just in time J

Ya so now you are up to speed pretty much, we landed in Uganda. Flights were awesome with British Airways (they are paying me for this product placement don’t worry), went super fast or should I say it flew by? J wow that was cheesy I know. Humor me I am going on 5 hours of sleep in 2 days. Plus probably an average of 6 hours or less a night in Colorado with so much fun to be packed into one day.

Phil (a Cal Poly Alumni) picked us up at the airport where 9 people and luggage for 6 people staying in Uganda for 5 months as well as a couple trunks full of stuff from EMI in the US crammed into what I would call a VW bus with an added row of seats. This was a blast at midnight (and I am not even being sarcastic, which is strange for me). So we got into our apartment about 1 AM local time and went straight to bed. I proceeded to wake up @ 4:30 AM to the lovely sound of dogs barking and a rooster crowing. That was a first. Once I was awake it hit me that I am in Uganda and I was just too excited to fall back asleep. I just wanted to go see stuff and play. I am so excited to be here! It truly is a strange thing thought that I absolutely loved it. I love all the strange noises, my apartment, my bed with bug net, everything about it here I love it already and I haven’t even seen it light out except for a little this morning which I happen to have a few pictures of the views just outside our apartment for you ENJOY! J

This is the view out of our balcony this morning. That’s the neighbors house. They had chickens and roosters running around J

My view the other way

The deck of the apartment next door. We are just in a two story quadplex but its awesome.

Our little courtyard area. The neightbor has toys so I am guessing kids as well J

Of course they still have hummers, I am guessing this is a hotel nearby.

More to come later, but I am headin into the office at 8 AM to have a time of morning devotions and worship the LORD! I cannot wait.

Colorado Springs is Awesome & Jesus is alive here sending people out!

2011-01-18T10:43:00.001-08:00

Hello all,

Well for those of you wondering, I have safely made it too Colorado Springs.

It is absolutely gorgeous here. I love it and would actually consider moving here Lord willing. I hope to get some pictures taken here at some point to post to show you all what I am up to, living conditions and what not.

With that said, living conditions here are awesome. Basically, all 26 interns are living in a huge mansion with all sorts of meeting and conference rooms, ping pong, fooseball, etc. It is pretty awesome, but we are also extremely busy all day everyday with things to do that this is actually one of few free times I have had since arriving hence why I am writing J

It is finally starting to hit me with all the things we are doing and training we are doing that I am a missionary and that I am going through missionary training. I think I always knew that and maybe even said that for those of you who talked to me, but now I actually few that. So that is kind of overwhelming, but also so awesome that God has hand selected all of us for our different project trips. I just truly feel so blessed that God has chosen me to be here where I am.

It is also a strange thing to really feel that and get that vibe from all of the interns that none of us feel like we are God’s gift to the world and we are something special, but that we are just so blessed by this opportunity that God has given us. I don’t say that to toot our own horn of how humble and great we are because we definitely are not and just so cool to feel that humility here. I think one of the team building guys said it well today that all of us are sacrificing things to do what we are and you could just see and feel that all of us were a little puzzled… Then he just said but none of us feel like we are sacrificing anything. We just feel so honored to be used, truly. Such an awesome feeling…

Sorry this is so short, but literally all the time I had I used to write this, but in short I love it here, I love all my interns though we are all so different ( I am the only Californian… ha ha J ), I love the staff, I love EVERYTHING!

GOD IS GOOD and is so evident here and just feel so near and loved by Him right now so PRAISE God for the amazing people here and Praise God for all of you praying for me because that is a huge part why so please keep it up! I love it, feel it and so appreciate it!

Love to hear from you all always

In Love & Service of the Lord & Savior Jesus Christ!

My Projects with EMI

2011-01-11T10:43:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

I just wanted to say real quick. I just added some links down to the side, Hopefully you can see them....

One being the Uganda Orphanage that I will be working on when I first get there. I encourage you to check out their site, see the amazing things the Peckham family is doing there. Also, there are children you can sponsor through their orphanage. From what I could see there are only 2 children left to sponsor there. It is only 40 dollars/month to make sure these children get enough food, clothes, shelter, so I think it would be awesome if some of us jumped on that. If we just skip going to dinner once this month, this child can eat for the month. Pray about it and if God lays these children on your heart to help them out awesome!

Mohamed & Frank

Secondly, the other link I posted about the Uganda Rehab center is the other project I will be heading to in a little bit more previously dangerous area of Uganda (safe now). If you have some time to check that out to, it is an amazing project with some people with hearts to help rehabilitate to people who have had run in's with the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army). The LRA is the group that kidnaps children and essentially brainwashes them to be soldiers, mindlessly, kidnapping and killing. Very very sad, So this organization helps them psychologically then teaches them a vocation to help them out. AMAZING! Check it out there is a little video on the main page that would be good to watch give a little overview.

Just wanted to say that real quick, another note to come soon!

Please again, I encourage people to contact me if you want. Love hearing from everyone!

LOVE to all!

God Bless!
K2

Balance

2011-01-04T11:15:00.003-08:00

Well, I hope that everyone had a good New Year’s and resolutions are going well, maybe haven’t failed little pieces like I have… oops. Oh well anyways…

So I continue to prepare myself for Uganda and what that entails which to be honest is getting a lot harder as the days go on. I start to feel more and more that I am going to be far away from family, friends and my fiancé.

I definitely was broken hearted attending my church down in SLO this past Sunday, really feeling how much I truly love everything about it and what a blessing a good church where I feel at home is. I love the worship and need that so bad in my life to sing out to God as well as being spiritually revived by powerful preaching! An absolute bitter sweet moment with the Lord there and probably similarly this Sunday as I am going in front of the church to share what I will be doing and possibly a piece of my testimony.

Now to what hopefully is something encouraging, thought-provoking, inspiring, who knows, hopefully God can use this and open hearts and minds like He did for me this morning in this text.

I was reading through 2 Peter chapter 3 this morning and God just really put this on my heart…

So I feel like this verse 4 really pops out as the church to whom Peter was originally writing with is having trouble with false teachers, false prophets, or in today’s context all these other religions or lack of religious beliefs with atheism becoming more and more popular. These are the “they” referred to in this verse.

They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” ~ 2 Peter 4

This just set a series of thoughts off for me of different people’s beliefs throughout the world, one of those being just like this verse is asking. Many choose to believe that there is some sort of being or creator or something that set the world in motion, but since then it has been just sitting back and watching. Or maybe that God set the world and motion and just sits back to see what happens like God created everything and now is sitting back with His popcorn watching us and enjoying.

Of course, this is heresy. This is not God. However, Christians will be mocked until the end for believing in the promise as stated at the beginning of verse 4 of His (Jesus) coming or return revealed in the book of Revelation.

I got to thinking of other tough questions that Christians may get asked. First of those, being often times a piece of Atheism, “If there is a God, who loves and cares about His creation, then why are there so many just atrocities and awful things all over the world.” This is true and a very hard question to answer and the only thing I can really pull from is from Shane Claiborne in The Irresistible Revolution (an Amazing book that everyone should read). He basically says well we are Jesus’ hands and feet so as Christians it is our job to help these different things and injustices. God will give us the means, strength, or whatever is needed to help these different atrocities in the world. We just have to identify our call and God will help with the means. We can’t just sit back and expect God to do everything. We have to be willing and obedient servants that is our call. Sherwood Carthen said, “There is only one position open and it is always open on Jesus’ staff and that position is servant.” We are called to serve others. Humble ourselves just as the One we follow. We follow the Homeless Rabbi, the Servant to all, Jesus.

Sorry went off on a little tangent there, but back to Scripture that still relates

8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, [1] not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repent.

God is beyond time. God is also so patient with me. I spent so long doing what I wanted pursuing my own selfish desires. And this for me maybe wasn’t selfish as many would consider selfish because I really do feel like I was a good person, morally for the most part and by worldly standards. This is not in line with the Gospel though. This I feel is a huge and possibly one of the huge marks of why I feel Christianity has many problems because of people like I was that claimed to be a Christian, but lived as if I didn’t truly believe. I didn’t understand though. God in His Mercy and Grace opened my eyes to the weight of truth. HALLELUJAH!

God, as Peter says at the end of verse 9, wants all of us to repent and turn to Jesus. He is the way, the truth and the life, no one comes through the Father except through Jesus (John 14:6). God is so patient to wait for us to just figure this simple truth out. He doesn’t want anyone to not come to accept this and perish.

10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies [2] will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

This is where reality comes though. There will be a day that Jesus will return. Justice will be served. Jesus is going to return like a thief. One day I am sitting here enjoying all my things and toys (not that there is anything wrong or sinful with that at all, don’t get me wrong), then with the blink of an eye just like a thief who comes and steals all your stuff and there isn’t much we can do, Jesus comes and it is all gone and all over. Jesus sets everything straight in the world.

Sadly, those who have chosen not to follow or their “secrets” or things they have been doing: cheating on their wife, stealing money, lying to whoever about whatever, using others for our own personal advancement and glory, all the corruption in politics and big corporations, we could go on forever… All these are going to be exposed and out in the open.

On the positive note, all the good people have done whether some noticed or not will be exposed, the times we picked up trash without others asking, the times we helped out the homeless, you name it. We don’t need to brag about it or share all the amazing things we have done how great we are that we may become prideful, but also we don’t need to hide it to “seem humble.”

There is a Balance, which is my new year’s resolution, finding balance in things. Not being too strict disciplined, legalistic, or moralistic about things, but also not becoming too relaxed and having no discipline.

I struggle with this at times being too strict that I am like read my Bible every day, journal every day, pray every day, all good things, but I see how quickly Satan will turn this on into pride. I get to think I am better than someone, but I am not because now I am committing the terrible sin of Pride, the same one that caused Satan to be cast from heaven to earth.

It’s all about balance. I love all those things and love to do them every day. It works for me and God has put those on my heart. It helps me set my heart on Him for the day. Does that mean I still fail and sin everyday… Yep! I am human, but it helps me to work hard and by God’s Grace to strengthen me to fight my own flesh and live for Him. Do everything we do, do it for the Glory of God the Father.

Please comment, respond, email me, call me, text me, anything, love to hear thoughts, opinions, anything, just love talking to people!

To Him be the Glory For Ever and Ever. Amen!

Ps… I am amazed how off topic and all over the place my brain goes as I write, ha ha sorry if it is hard to follow.

Praise God

2010-12-03T14:42:00.000-08:00

I just got a quick HALLELUJAH because I just got my support update today and God has raised me another 800 dollars in the last 4 days.
Can I get an amen?

That is just incredible. God amazes me so often. I do not know why I ever doubt anything or start to worry because he will take care of me.

I now have just under a third of my support raised!

once again

HALLELUJAH

K2

Prepping for Uganda

2010-12-03T14:38:00.001-08:00

Well, here I am 1 Month and 12 days before leaving for Colorado on January 15^th. Then I officially have my flight booked for Uganda leaving on January 24^th 2011. I come back on June 17^th.

I cannot believe how fast time has flown to where I am in my life right now. Let’s see so:

· I graduate Dec. 11^th

· Go to Uganda

· Getting Married

Then … Find a real job and start a career, family and all the fun of that begins. A lot is happening in my life right now this is crazy.

So let’s see to prepare, I have been raising support for my trip which has been such an awesome opportunity. I praise God for any of you that I have had a chance to hear about what I am doing and choosing to follow me and pray for me. It means the world and is so important to have that team behind me so THANK YOU! For those of you who felt led to contribute financially that is just amazing and thank you so much for being a part of my financial support team. I thank God for you and allowing Him to use you that I get the opportunity to be used to go serve.

I am so lucky that God chose me to go serve His people in Uganda. Continue to pray for my team and I to mesh together over there to serve the best way that we can and all mesh together to represent Christ well in everything we do. I really just want to live out Titus 2:14 being zealous for good works, that God has already laid out for me (Colossians somewhere I believe).

Although I couldn’t be more excited to go, there are definitely times of nervousness thinking about the downsides of being over there, but hopefully I can continue to really just focus on the good and positive things of this trip.

Well, recently all I have been doing in my quiet times is digging into Acts 20:18-38. It is an awesome speech by Paul that just has so many powerful things in it that after I read it; I knew I must spend some hours here.

“Serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews” Acts 20:19

What does serving in all humility look like? And with tears. At first this sounds weird to serve with tears in my eyes. What does that look like and why would I serve with tears in my eyes? Jesus talks about serving being the ultimate joy so why now are there tears?

I think what Paul is getting at here is that to serve with real humility means a few different things. One, it is hard. Putting others before ourselves always is not easy by any means. At times doing this may bring us to tears. Also, I feel this just shows how much Paul really cares about these people he is talking to and cares about the ministry he is doing. It brings him to tears because he takes Jesus’s command of loving others as ourselves seriously. WOW, I want a heart like this to love others so much that it does hurt at times. I wonder what that feels like.

Back to serving with humility, I feel like is really just all about lifting others up. Whatever that may look like in any situation. At times it may be as simple as asking “how can I lift you up, how can I support you, how can I pray for you?” all these questions I feel like can be helpful in making one another feel lifted up more so. Rather than my tendency is to want to help, but not come at it like this with the heart of love to lift them up, but acting as if I am above them and trying to help them by saying they come join me up here. This is not what the Son of Man would do. Jesus got down low and served. This is who I choose to follow as well as hopefully you reading this do too.

So let’s get down low and follow our example in our Homeless Rabbi (Jesus, yes He was homeless, Luke 9:58)

Please contact me with questions, comments, anything, ways I can help/ serve/ anything ways I can pray for you!

In His Name!

Thinking about the Future and Getting Left Outside

2010-09-30T10:23:00.000-07:00

So here goes nothing....

So as I was reading Luke 13 this morning and contemplating things that God laid on my heart the last few days. This text just really confirmed for me a few things.

One just how much we really need to be living in the present moment. Especially right now at a changing point for me in my life approaching the graduation of college and being excited for what God may have in store for me. I find myself thinking so often about how great and exciting the future will be. I'm sure lots of people can relate to that from so many different areas and perspectives whether something super exciting is coming up in our lives or something dreadful is coming up in our lives (dreadful may be a strong word, but you know like tests things like that can be just bad at times or just classes work all that junk). I spend so much time looking to the future things that either I think oh I can't wait for that to come or man I cannot wait until this week is over with this that or the other. I find myself often so focused on that that I just get this mindset of just get through this then it will get better.

But today the Lord just really strongly put it on my heart that Today is the day the Lord has made, so let us be glad and rejoice in that (Psalm 118:24 paraphrase kinda). This is just something I so need to work on rather than looking towards this future. Then this for me tied into Luke 13 in such that there will be a day when Jesus returns and its all over anyways. So I need to make this day count. I may never get to enjoy the opportunity to go to Uganda that I have started getting so excited about. I may not get to experience the joy of being married and starting a family. Would I love to? Absolutely, but I find my eyes too often looking at that instead of "Ok, God what do you have for me today?" I need to focus my eyes on God and things of today He has for me and for any of us (by us I mean any silly person who reads my random thoughts that I wrote...)

I don't think to look to the future at times or think about it is wrong at all, but I feel too often so many of us (me worse right now) can let that overtake us and give us the attitude of just get through this day or this quarter, this year, whatever it may be. I just really want to try harder and encourage anyone to do this just really focus our eyes on God and REJOICE in whatever God has for us this moment. I fail at this, but I want to strive to do better. Also, admitting that I or no person can do this themselves so humbly asking God for help motivated by His Grace to do better.

Secondly, the other thing that really struck me in Luke 13 just really tied into a part of my testimony that I didn't really think about a whole lot until just now. It is from the parable of the fig tree.

And he told this parable: "A man had^(A) a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. ⁷And he said to the vinedresser, 'Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none.^(B) Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?' ⁸And he answered him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. ⁹Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'"
~Luke 13:6-9

This was so me. I knew of God and claimed to be a "Christian" most of my life, maybe went to church a few times a year, but I was this fig tree. Year after year I produced no fruit. I did nothing. I did not think of God or Jesus or anything of the sort. I was just here taking up space doing my own thing. I knew the right things to do, but I would not do them. I fully remember having conversations with different people about how I was going to live it up now and once I settled down, I would follow the Bible more and go to church.... yada yada. Why was I so blind? Praise God for opening my eyes now, but WOW was I blind.

But God in His Mercy and Grace fought for me. He said K2 I will give you a little more time, but if no fruit, I am sorry I am going to cut you down. So many people could be just like me, thinking I will be a better Christian tomorrow. I will follow more things in the future. Don't be ignorant like I was and think that.

Because reality is that that may not be a tomorrow. What if Jesus returns today? Good luck telling Jesus, THE SON OF GOD, wait Jesus could you come back a little later? I'm not ready to follow you yet. Give me a few more years of living for the pleasures of this world. Come back another day. Why was I such a fool to think that? I had no idea the reality that Jesus could return at any moment. We forget this so often. I am so bad at this. But God give me your grace and power to dwell on this more! This leads me to the second part of the profound things God revealed to me. So simple and I feel like I knew this things, but He really laid the weightiness of this on my heart today:

²⁵^(A) When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying,^(B) 'Lord, open to us,' then he will answer you,^(C) 'I do not know where you come from.' ²⁶Then you will begin to say,^(D) 'We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.' ²⁷But he will say, 'I tell you,^(E) I do not know where you come from.^(F) Depart from me, all you workers of evil!'

Don't be a fool like I was. Praise God that I no longer am and so many people are on this side, but people on the fence or on the complete opposite side of Jesus, Please don't get left outside like Jesus talks about here. Jesus could return at anytime and restore things here. He will come to make a New Earth like Heaven where His will is done. I don't want anyone to be left outside saying wait Jesus I did not know that you were serious and would really leave me outside. Come on Man let me in. When Jesus comes, no one is going to want to be left outside of His Glorious Presence (or the alternate. do we know the reality of the other choice, read Revelation, its gruesome and awful). I feel like Jesus will just say, I am sorry I tried. I did everything I could. I died the worst death imaginable and all you had to do was trust me as your savior. Jesus made it as easy as possible for us. I don't want anyone to take this wrong though as many think life all the sudden becomes easier following Jesus because it doesnt, that's a whole other issue, maybe I will see if God wills me to write more on that... haha

I don't know what I am doing or why I wrote this.... oh well... if you curious