RG’s vision is to develop a Christ-centered, model community that will foster God’s heart for physical and spiritual restoration among the people of war-torn Uganda. To learn more about Restoration Gateways many plans and projects, visit their website.

Look forward to seeing you there!

The Training School that we are attending through our church, Common Ground, is now underway! We just finished up our first week of class. This is the next step in our preparation for Uganda, and we’re very excited to journey with all the people in our class this year.

We just returned from a six-day trip to Toronto last week and had an amazing time getting to know everyone. While in Toronto we got to spend time with a church there called Sanctuary, and we had some opportunities to participate in their various ministries and attend their Sunday gathering. Outside of our time with Sanctuary, we spent a lot of time walking through the city and had some eye-opening experiences: hanging out in Kensington,  going to St. Lawrence Market and experiencing the annual Buskerfest, walking through and spending time at Dundas Square, attending the church service at Holy Trinity and seeing the Homeless Memorial,… to name a few. We’re looking forward to experiencing all that God is going to do in and amongst us all this year. Be sure to check out photos from our trip below:

Following a Uganda information meeting this past April, several people from Common Ground Christian Church (CGCC) have responded and are pursuing the opportunity of joining a CGCC team that will be moving to Northern Uganda in 2013 and serving alongside a ministry called Restoration Gateway (RG).

I (Steve) recently returned from leading a trip to Uganda to provide an opportunity for this potential team to put their feet on the ground at RG and to use this trip as the next step in confirming whether God is calling them to continue pursuing this opportunity. We invite your prayers for all the people that are praying about serving at RG and that God would provide wisdom and clear next steps.

Four people from the trip have written some great blog posts and we encourage you to read them below (The four posts following this one.) Also, be sure to check out the pictures from the trip from by clicking “View Photos” below. There are over 300 pics from: our travels to Uganda, time on the ground at RG and our day at Murchison Park which included a boat ride down the Nile, waterfall hike and safari. (If you missed pictures from last year trip, you can check those out here.)

As soon as the kids started their independent work, one of the teachers came up to me and began sharing his story with me. I had an opportunity to hear the stories of three of the four teachers. They were so eager to be known! Their stories moved me to tears. So much of what they shared was wrapped in sorrow and uncertainty. All of their stories involved living at RG and not being able to spend very much time with their families or loved ones because all the money they earned went to helping those families survive. Two of the three had to support their family because their father had died and there was no one else to take care of the family. They all three had such a burden for providing for their families! I was able to talk to them and share some scripture about the hope that God brings and the beauty of Christian community. Even though they had all been born again, they were eager to hear more! Although they thought I was teaching them, they were teaching me just as much!

Even though their stories were sad and moved me to tears, they all continued to share the joy they have found in Jesus. Their love for the kids at RG is evident in the way they interact with them, hug them, speak to them with patience. God was using the teachers and their stories to remind me that the redemption and salvation that is found in Jesus brings life and joy even in the midst of the worst circumstances. Having gone to RG to work with the orphans, I was grateful to God for calling us to go even deeper while we were there.

(Written by Aaron Munson – Common Ground Vision Trip to Restoration Gateway in Karuma, Uganda: July 2011)

*Re-posted from CG Vision Trips Blog