THE GET & GO  • What Did I Understand & What Will I Do About It ?

John Keltonic told me soon after our arrival to the Canaan Children’s Home (CCH) that he had been encouraging me to join this trip for the past 10 years because he thought that I would “get it”.   I still don’t know whether I got the same “get” that John had in mind but here’s some of what I was able to understand and from a wondrous two weeks in Uganda.

Before leaving I did ask God to enable me to see people and events in common with his own view.  I decided to improve my chances by cutting out some of my usual distractions of choice – music in the car and office and television at the house.  It seemed we were all helped by a very easy transition from home in Virginia to the Canaan Children’s Home.   No sleep transition or health issues ever occurred.   Personally, I missed my family and some friends, but knew I had their prayer and support and this too allowed me to live and embrace the moment that ran two weeks.

A WITNESS TO THE REGION

Sarah Kennedy talked to our team on our last day at CHC about seeing a greater contrast between Common and Special grace in Uganda than at home in America.   I would liken her comments  as a more enlightened version of my observation of Canaan as an oasis on the desert. The desert here being a spiritually and materially dry and barren land yet not without God’s provision for life sustaining elements.  The oasis at CCH on the other hand includes a safe home, clean clothes, a healthy diet, an education and a spiritual spring that feeds this biblically based loving family – community that produces God’s love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  This in turn enables the people of CCH, by God’s grace, to be a witness to this desert community in ways that we were able to watch:

At local schools.  Note Cindy and Tina’s comments on CCH children attending the Canaan Primary school:  they stand out as respectful, responsible, motivated to learn, give God the credit for what they have been given and thereby a witness to teachers and their peers. When Pastor Isaac brings in his mzungu friends with computers to improve local schools we’re giving God the praise – just as the calling cards says that we attached

To their parents and guardians.  At the graduation ceremony we all watched along with relatives a ceremony that celebrated the achievement of mind and spirit of these children.  This revealed that these children were being prepared to deal with world outside the oasis that is Canaan.  They witnessed God’s own plan – they saw God’s grace in action.

Business & Community.    Business organizations in Uganda need honesty from their employees and this has been too often difficult to find in particular from their men.  CCH has been growing honest young men and women that are now entering the workplace.   Pastor Isaac has also hired honest men and women who do not go along with the typical dishonesty in their business dealings from the outside community.  Ie Receipts from local business are sometimes marked up hoping to make a cut on the overage.  CCH will then take their business elsewhere – people learn the believers at CCH will not go along with the corruption.

When Pastor Isaac brings in his mzungu friends with computers for schools, medicine and medical supplies for clinics and hospitals and reading glasses for anyone his only motive is just what the calling cards say, “This gift is given to you by people have received the gift….”  On the others side read John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that he who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Nothing says, Stony Point Church, Pastor Isaac, Full Gospel Church. (JK drilled us all on this issue) Many people must be getting the message about Jesus Christ in all this. One day the lady that doubts John’s motives at Canaan Children’s Hospital may get it.

The Get & Go: I believe God showed us all that He is at work at Canaan Children’s Home.  I’ve never seen spiritual fruit bearing more tangible results.  This work needs to be encouraged and supported. This would be the reason I would support this ministry and return.

EXPRESSING JOY TO THE LORD

King David danced out of pure joy for the Lord.  In their own respective ways, we saw Isaac, Rebecca, Deby, Norah, Mommas Jane, Esther and others led by example to express their appreciation, love and praise to the Lord.  It proved most infectious.  All this culminated on our last evening for the last dance at the chapel.

The Get & Go: Don’t forget – Pass it on.

UGANDAN AND CANAAN DEPENDENCY

At the Amsterdam airport on the way home Michael Bryant discussed a book we saw entitled something along the line of “Why Foreign Aid is Hurting Africa” along with an encounter that Michael had with a man that operates a Micro-Finance business in Iguana. I’ve since read an article on this subject that concludes much like every article on the topic of free flowing welfare dollars to people and nations.  It stops the immediate bleeding but the continued long term stream of money actually makes the poor poorer, slows economic growth and contributes to inflation – I recall the money exchanger at the Amsterdam airport laughed when I requested an exchange for Ugandan shilling. That laugh served as a brief and simple statement on the state of the Ugandan economy.   And as Tina observed, …”where does this leave job prospects of Canaan’s high school graduate or Beatrice and Angel’s opportunities upon graduation from university in Kampala?”

Having reviewed, with Norah, Canaan’s income and expense statements it doesn’t take long to recognize that just as the nation of Uganda is nearly wholly dependent and vulnerable to foreign aid so is Canaan Children’s Home in a similar position with Christian aid.  Understanding that the nature of missions involves giving yet wouldn’t it be better if more funding were coming from God’s people in Jinga, Iganga and Kayunga?  And wouldn’t it be better if some of those people were Canaan CTC high school, vocational and college graduates that were profitably employed or operating their own businesses?

Get it and Go: Easy questions. Not so easy answers.  Pray and work for the right Ugandan people to be trained up to finance, advise, coach new businesses.

ON THE WAY OUT

As I walked through airports on the way home I reacted to the suddenly glossy hedonistic poster advertising and panel TVs targeted at me by turning away…not so much because of their moral failure, but rather they were exposed as a vacuous waste.  Since returning I’ve been avoiding the news cycle, political food fights, and commercials telling me what I’m missing.  I see this as a blessing and a message.

The Get & Go: While I’m not ready to throw away our two TVs I’ve been far more discriminating and have restricted viewing to the British Open. God has a better purpose for my time going forward.  Jack Wheeler

I don’t think I’ll ever have final thoughts about Uganda – I’ll always be remembering, reacting, processing experiences I have had there for the rest of my life.

In the spring, when Isaac visited us in the US, John and I spent time with him planning this year’s trip. Isaac expressed to us a particular concern for rural villages who don’t receive biblical teaching because they are too far off the beaten path. As a result, we planned to visit 5 villages during our time in Uganda – holding a one-day conference at four of them, and a 3-day conference at another. We ended up being on the road quite a bit, but what a worthwhile experience it was! We met so many gracious and dear people; their love and appreciation was overwhelming. I was deeply moved by their gratitude, but I think we were more blessed than we were a blessing to them. What incredible examples these godly believers were of faithfulness, trust, and joy in loving their Savior, Jesus. The only problem was having to say goodbye to them so quickly, when we had only just met.

Part of my ministry during our time in Uganda was teaching the youth. We began our sessions talking about the problems and struggles that the youth in Uganda face. I heard a lot of hard things – it was overwhelming for me to hear of so much hardship at once. One of the most difficult things I was told about was the persecution many young people experience from their own parents when they become Christians. Many are rejected and cast out of their homes, forced to fend for themselves. This is particularly hurtful in a culture where identity is found in the clan and the tribe, something that is difficult for Westerners to understand, where individualism is glorified. But in our discussions we talked about God, our heavenly Father, who perfectly cares for, teaches, protects, and provides for his children, and who will never desert or forsake us.

It was a joyful experience for me to see the truckload shipment of medical supplies delivered to the various clinics and hospitals in Uganda after their long and difficult journey there, beginning last January. In God’s perfect timing, the supplies that were sent to the village of Kayunga arrived just as there had been a cholera outbreak, and brought a stop to it the next day. In that one instance lives were saved. The administrator of the children’s hospital in Jinja took us to the location where their supplies were being stored. It was deeply moving to see boxes being unpacked, wheelchairs stacked, etc. that had been loaded onto a truck in Richmond months before. The head administrator at the Jinja adult hospital told us that the staff in the ICU were ecstatic when they received their supplies. I was reminded of how much we take our medical care for granted, instead of appreciating it as a gift from God.

Finally, what is most dear to my heart is teaching the children in the villages about Jesus. Many came and heard the gospel message. A moment that stood out to me involved a retarded child. It was obvious to me by her appearance and behavior that something was terribly wrong. But there was another child seated next to her that pointed her out to me and made sure that this child received a cross necklace that we were passing out to all of the children. Although she would perhaps be considered imperfect and flawed in this life, this child is precious in God’s eyes, treasured and dearly loved by her heavenly Father. A physical reminder that all of us are spiritually broken and lost, but are made whole and perfect through faith in Jesus Christ, and are dearly loved and treasured because we are his children and belong to him. Anita Keltonic

“There are people you meet once in your life and you know you have made a lifetime connection, no matter where they are in the world.” – Norah Osende

Well, the Uganda trip is over, but the relationships we’ve made and the memories we shared will probably last much longer than 2 weeks.  I couldn’t think of any way to open my reflection, but Norah seems to be able to put into words what I’m so clumsily trying to get at.

OK, so the relationships will definitely last longer than 2 weeks.  They actually already have lasted longer than 2 weeks.  I can’t believe it’s already been that long!  My reflection is only 4 days late; Africa time, right?  Eh, not quite.  I guess I find it a lot harder to find inspiration in America than I did in Uganda when I rattled off my first e-mail in an hour and kept poor Mr. B up until midnight, just so that he could have the Internet shut off on him and he’d have to post it the next morning.  In that report, I talked mostly about the team and how they were doing, but now that everyone’s home and safe and sound, I figure I’ll reverse it and write about the all the amazing people who blessed me in Uganda!  Well, the list is pretty much endless, so strap yourself in and get pumped to read about a ton of amazing brothers and sisters in Christ.

Sylvia. I loved getting an email from Mr. B this week from Sylvia, the translator I talked about at the end of my first report.  Her story is really incredible, and if you haven’t had a chance to hear about her, you should ask “Uncle Trouble” (Mr. B) to send it to you.  That first Thursday really was easier with her along; she helped us out so much in leading the songs and translating, not to mention adding more to what we would say!  Sarah and I were talking on the second Monday night about how when Jerry said that putting the women in leadership positions was going to help Uganda move forward, we both immediately thought of Sylvia.  Women like her who persevere in the face of such hardship and keep their faith so strong by relying on the Gospel really do give a developing country like Uganda hope.

Betty. Another gracious and competent woman that comes to mind was Betty, the Director at Jinja Children’s Hospital who led us around the second Monday morning.  She even had a leg in a cast, but was all smiles, showing us her medical lamps and showing her endless thanks for all the medical supplies donated to the hospital.  It’s such a blessing that the container finally got through!  Praise God!

Grace. Another person I need to mention was the teacher at a school the first week who looked me up and down before asking “is this a woman???”  I guess Ugandans have very rarely seen my shaggy long semi-surfer hairstyle on the guys over there, so she must have been confused?!? Needless to say, I stopped shaving the rest of the trip because of that comment.

Catherine K. Another person I won’t forget too easily is Catherine K, a girl who stepped up and volunteered to answer a question at the Liahona Secondary School.  After we all had spoken, on our way out in the hustle and bustle of a huge crowd going out 2 small doors, Samuel (from Canaan) stuck a note in my hand.  I didn’t even notice it until a few minutes later, and I read it after we had moved outside.  It was from Catherine K, and she was writing to thank me for the sweetie (candy) I gave her for answering one of my questions!  It was the fastest thank you note I’ve ever received.  It was her first piece of candy since her birthday in March, and it was only a bite-sized 3 Musketeers bar at that!  Not to brag or anything, but she also put in a good word about how she loved my long hair, thus redeeming my fantastic follicles from the previous week when it apparently made others confused about my gender.  (The first night I got home I did cut it though; it had gotten too long and I figured Americans wouldn’t get quite as much of a kick out of it as the Africans did.)  Back to Catherine. The next day, my last full day on Tuesday night, my dad and I were saying our goodbyes to all our Canaan friends, when my pal Samuel hands me another note!  This one about three times as long, about the length of two sheets of computer paper, with small hand writing even! I knew then that I most definitely had to write her back before I left, so that last night after I was done eating dinner and saying goodbye to everyone and doing some preliminary packing and getting ready for bed, I wrote her a reply letter at around 1:30 in the morning.  Mr. B read it the next morning, and complimented me on striking “the perfect balance between compassion and rejection.”  I told her that because I lived on the other side of the world, I thought it would be hard for us to meet in person very often!  I did give her my e-mail though, and told her that Samuel said he could communicate with me through e-mail, so that he could sort of keep being the messenger between us.

Deet. On a side note, there is actually one thing I don’t miss about Uganda  –  the deet!  At night when I walk outside in shorts and a t-shirt to let my dog out, I automatically think twice now for a split second about how I haven’t “deeted up.”  On the other hand of course, as soon as I walked out of Dulles, the 100 degree weather and fierce muggy humidity hit me like a sauna and beads of sweat started forming before we even reached the parking lot really.  Both climates have their ups and downs, what can you do, really?

Norah. One person I will never forget is Norah!  Getting to know her was so much fun; she’s an awesome person!   She kept me company while I was waiting for the Internet to work while writing my report.  She wrote such an incredible and mesmerizing essay about the trip; I just had to be the one to quote it to give my report a little more oomph  :P (not to use an idiom).  We’ve even been talking back and forth some online! How do you like that?!?

Loy. On Saturday night, I had fun getting to meet and eating dinner with Loy, Pastor Isaac’s daughter.  My brother Tim had been telling her since January about how I was going to Uganda and how she HAD to see me.  So she finally got to meet me, and I finally got to meet her, and now we chat with each other online! Just Africa. On the other side of the world. No big deal really.  Like I told my dad when he was shocked that Loy and I listened to the same music artists, “Two continents away is much closer than two generations away!”  It was so much fun hearing about Loy’s job and how she is living a life for Christ.  She sings on a Christian TV show, and I’m still sad that I missed hearing her sing Amazing Grace on Sunday morning!

Gideon & Stephen. Getting to know Gideon and Stephen, the Canaan kids my family sponsors, was so incredible, after seeing the pictures, reading the letters, and seeing the videos over the years.  Kids at Canaan are still so disciplined compared to American kids; they wake up around 6 and ride to school at 7 and are in school until 5 and then have homework after that!  But even so, they love school and realize that education is a valuable tool that they need… just like they sang to us, education is success!  I had such a great time having Gideon teach me some African drumming, even though I failed miserably. The way I was hitting the rim, he was so worried that if I kept playing I would break my hand!  He also taught me how to play imaginary soccer, so UVA watch out, because once imaginary soccer hits the town, Ultimate Frisby will be long gone.  Stephen should really pursue dancing as a profession, because he was such a better dancer than anyone I’ve seen in America!  It just came so naturally and flowed with him.  It was also such a great year for God to allow my dad and me to go on the trip; it was the year both Stephan and Gideon graduated!  They both put on a hoot nanny of a dance number along with the other 18’s at the Saturday ceremony.

Mama  Rebecca. Mama Rebecca and Pastor Isaac are really the last people I’m going to talk about.  To start, such wonderful hosts, and that’s at least an understatement.  I’ll miss Mama’s crazy “ululation” cheering and Pastor Isaac’s hardy good morning handshakes.  God bless Rebecca; she was cooking away all week like crazy for us, but it was great that she and the other girls in the kitchen got to go to Ling-Ling’s with the ladies on the team for “Girl’s Night Out.”  Us guys thought we would be feeding on bananas and power bars, but Mama still made us a couple of bowls of her famous potato chips and left bread for sandwiches out for us.  Talk about hospitality!

Papa Isaac. Pastor Isaac is a fierce and strong soldier for Christ, because one of my earliest memories of him is him preaching at Stony Point Church years ago and holding up his hand while holding a Bible, saying “This is your sword!”  His passion and all that he has been able to do in Uganda is astonishing, from being involved in so many churches, to running Canaan with such precision and compassion, to raising five wonderful children in God’s name with Mama Rebecca, to being shot and left for dead years ago when he would not renounce his faith in Christ! Praise God for this man who helps make possible our experiences in Uganda.  Because of Isaac and Mr. Keltonic, so many Stony Pointers have gotten to have an incredible experience of faith-sharing like no other, have gotten to go on truly the adventure of a lifetime, and have gotten to live the life of a Christian on the other side of the world!  In Christ,  Jonny Leaton

Some thoughts about Uganda, now four days back home.

I shook an American’s hand yesterday.  Forgetting I wasn’t in Uganda, I started pumping in the Ugandan way and was startled back to America.  How abrupt and impersonal our way is!   Like so many other things coming back home, two weeks in Uganda has changed how I view a lot of things.  It’s been said before, but our wealth and standard of living makes it so easy to forget God.  I’m sure it’s easy to forget God in any setting, but all this stuff – hot water whenever you want it, as much as you want; cars, food, clothing – not to mention a house, AC, milk, the list goes on – easily has taken my eyes off the Lord.

I’ve heard that Pascal, so he would never forget, had sewn in his jacket the words of an encounter with God that changed his life.  What I learned during the two weeks in Uganda I hope I can sew in my mind so I won’t forget either.  I have never experienced living by faith to the degree as I did in Uganda.  I had understood it before, but now I know it.  Was it that I had no other option?  I certainly didn’t want to let people down with nothing to give them from the Lord’s Prayer (what I was teaching in the villages and to pastors.)  I had prepared at home.  But at home I didn’t have a sense that this would fly.  What would teaching through an interpreter be like?  Did I have too much material – or worse, not enough?  I was scared to death, but at the first village I was to teach at, the overwhelming kindness of the people and their extraordinary attentiveness (not to mention the extraordinary interpreter, which to my surprise made teaching like this no problem) made me so comfortable that for the second session I put down my notes and spoke from memory.  I can’t explain the sense of direction in my teaching I felt I had, how I felt I had connected to these folks, the illustrations that came to my mind right then and there that seemed just right.  I was elated!  Was it that so many people on both sides of the ocean were praying?  God was using what I had brought.  God was using me.  I don’t know if I have ever felt better or more humbled.  Because I wasn’t doing this.

I saw God using every one of us.  The team members each had different tasks, and I saw each of us being arrows in the Father’s bow.  I’ve heard that often for missionaries, their biggest obstacle is – their fellow missionaries!  This having been my first missions trip, I saw none of that.  I think everyone enjoyed being with each other, had patience with each other’s foibles and sincerely tried hard to work together.  When Dr. Ed and Jonny left for home two days before the rest of us, there was a sense of incompleteness.  I think had anyone left there would have been the same feeling.  The team seemed so well-balanced.  John and the Holy Spirit made this a dream team.

The Ugandans receive love and give love very easily.  They do not hold back.  I really want to be more like that.  The kids at Canaan are so special, so different from American kids.  So poor, yet so rich.  How can I change?  Yesterday I was very uneasy because of feeling so back home and satisfied.  I really don’t have to live by faith here.  Up till yesterday, I thought I had just this mountaintop experience.  I told my wife again for the fifth time the sermon story.

I was told before I left, months before I left, to be prepared to preach.  Have a sermon ready.  I rolled the dice and thought it was just a maybe, so I prepared nothing.  By the middle of the first week it was clear that I was to preach.

I had zero time to prepare.  On Friday night, I lay in bed exhausted with one little idea for a sermon.  Just one tiny observation that intrigued me from John’s Gospel that Paul Miller, whose tapes I had been listening to help me teach the Lord’s Prayer, made.  I remember right before falling asleep praying in distress, “Lord, give me something.”  I had no commentaries.  There was somebody’s copy of “My Utmost For His Highest” (not my own – which at the last minute I cut from my pack because of weight.) That and my NIV Study Bible.  I woke up at 3:30 a.m. Saturday morning and a sermon started flowing from somewhere!  How was this happening?  I kept hearing James Boice (late pastor of Tenth Presbyterian in Philadelphia) in my head!  By breakfast I had half a sermon!  But only half and no application.  And no time to finish as our day kept us busy and away from Canaan!  But Sunday morning, 3:30 a.m., same thing!  By 8 a.m. I had the sermon written out in longhand.  Was I dreaming?

And preaching felt great.  How did this happen?  I did some math afterwards, and I calculated that I hadn’t preached in 25 years.  But the Scriptures came alive to me that morning, the applications came from what God had been teaching me the last 25 years of my life.  I was not able to preach 25 years ago.  Like I said, this I thought was some mountaintop,  some crazy God gift.  But it hit me yesterday that maybe this is how God wants us to live always.  I was in fellowship with the Lord like crazy for 2 weeks – we all were.  It was not a mountaintop.  It is the dwelling place.  Oh how I need to live there. Thank you, Uganda.  Stephen A. Wozny (the dad)

Final thoughts – not sure I like the word “final.”  Sounds like I’m either so presumptuous as to think my thoughts cannot be improved on or so utterly depressed as to think that these might be my last words.  So these are my current thoughts on Uganda 2010.

I’ve always considered serving the Lord with a number of other brothers and sisters to be the most satisfying of all endeavors.  This year was no exception.  How different we were from each other! How sweetly we enjoyed each other!  How effectively the Lord used us!  Yes, between us, we spoke to more people this trip than ever before, but that outcome is secondary to the evident presence of the Lord every day: providential provision of the best of translators, trunks arriving safely and on time, van driver who referred to himself as a Christian Muslim by the end of the trip, everyone healthy, comments and questions that indicated profound understanding of our lessons… All these are evidence of God’s hand on this mission.  I think that unique to this particular team was a special giftedness in writing.  As I read the words of Steve Wozny, Jonny Leaton, Sarah Kennedy, and of the others, I’m moved as I take it all in again through their eyes and ears.

After nine trips, I’m in a position to see the fruit God has granted over the years and to recognize again the wisdom of going back year after year.  Yes, there are others in need all over the world and the Lord of the harvest is planning to meet those also. However, this is where He’s put us. And He has honored our faithfulness, even though our performance is far from perfect.  Little tikes I met 11 years ago are now enthusiastic and godly young men and women.  Pastors who a decade ago had little more than a tattered Bible and the story of personal blessing are now leading their churches with energy and competence.  This year we saw that more clearly as we visited them rather than them coming to us.  That was Pastor Isaac’s idea, a good one.

Then there are people to be honored.  I’m in awe of John Keltonic’s energy and vision and so grateful for his continued commitment to Uganda and to Stony Point Church’s ministry there. Without Hal Johnson’s ticketing and packing skills we’d be wondering how we got to Bangladesh.  Finally, I can’t close this without mentioning Joy who loves Isaac and his people as much as I do, but has had to stay home while I globe-trot. Her sweet spirit and constant support are empowering in the Lord’s hands.   Frank Crane

I’ve been avoiding this, because I’m me but also because final thoughts on Uganda just seem like an end.  You know my social work background requires an ongoing assessment.  HA!

Uganda Africa has been a blessing to my heart.  I hesitate to say that only because it sounds so unoriginal but using words to describe a feeling so extravagant is not easy.  From the moment our feet hit African soil, we were treated with unearned love and gratitude.  Our journey began without me having a real sense of any of the members, except maybe John and Anita.  Through our travels, I was able to bond quickly and create some unique friendships.  Sharing an experience such as this creates a common ground otherwise non existent.  I am convinced that God had something to do with that meshing of personalities.  I will forever remember each person and the gifts each brought to the experience.

Outside of our team family structure, Ugandans touched somewhere deep in my heart and changed it.  The simplicity of life became abundant and for many days I forgot about the extras like air conditioning, guaranteed hot showers and drive through restaurants.  America seemed worlds away.  Day after day, I was able to watch the smiling faces and hear the laughter of the children.  While it may be easy for Americans to look on with pity, because we have no way of really understanding how such “poor” people could feel such joy, it is they who are happiest.  I do not doubt that Ugandans would appreciate better health care, more money, fewer hard knocks but based on their attitudes, we would not have known.  There was just a certain feeling on those Canaan grounds that I cannot seem to put into words.  I have not been able to really explain to my friends or my family, but I know that hearts became connected and God is at work.  I have no doubt that I will find myself in Uganda Africa again.  Tina Motley

My brother got married today.  After years of waiting for his beloved, his joy was palatable and contagious.  Tears streamed down his face as she walked down the aisle toward him and their new life together.  His journey toward this day wasn’t particularly smooth — in fact, there were many days in the last five years that pointed to an entirely different outcome.  But those days weren’t the whole story.  They were only part of a story – a story we couldn’t possibly have envisioned ending so well.

As I reflect on this year’s trip to Uganda, my thoughts return to this lesson.  The hard things we witnessed, the difficulties faced by our brothers and sisters seven time zones away, the seemingly impossible choices  – they aren’t the whole story, and they certainly aren’t the end of the story.  I was and remain awestruck by the difference inside and outside the gates of Canaan Children’s Home.  In some ways the difference is material — Pastor Isaac and Rebecca’s 100 children eat regularly, sleep under mosquito nets, attend school, own shoes — but much more profoundly, the difference is in the emotional and spiritual health of the children.

But for each of those children, a question of life or death brought them to Papa Isaac.  The days and weeks that proceeded their adoption into this enormous family were worse than any we witnessed this summer.  Those days are part of the story, just as their new life of care and protection are part of the story.

The truth is, we may never know “the rest of the story” for each person we met.  Grieving is both natural and inevitable when profound loss and deprivation are witnessed but not relieved (humanly speaking).  I am sad, but I am also powerfully reminded that God’s plans and ways are not my own.

I’ve also reflected on the dynamics of our little team from Richmond.  What a joy to share this 2010 ministry with the Keltonics, Leatons, Tina, Jack, Wozneys, Bryants and dear Frank.  The camaraderie, from intense political discussions on long, bumpy van rides to the sweet tunes of Sinatra — from heartfelt sharing around a bowl of homemade potato chips to the much needed and much appreciated cups of coffee outside Anne Frank’s — from the quiet cheerleading sessions for Frank, Steve, Johnny & Steven as they taught in challenging venues to the late night “how do we give crayons to 300 swarming children” strategy sessions — God clearly called and equipped this team of unusual and dynamic personalities for the specific tasks set before us.  It was all joy to serve with you.

For my Stony Point family, I join the many other voices of fellow and former Uganda travelers when I sincerely thank you for your continued and faithful investment in the work at Canaan Children’s Home. What began over a decade ago as a simple call to learn has grown into one of the healthiest partnerships I’ve ever seen cross-culturally.  We are blessed beyond all measure to enjoy a trusted and mutually beneficial relationship with Canaan, and to be served and challenged and prompted to continue to stretch and grow as we learn from the sacrificial, Christ-centered ministry in that place.

So, as far as a “Final Thoughts” missive goes, this one is pretty rotten.  The end of this traveling chapter is really only the beginning of my story with Uganda and what I’m to glean from this experience — and only a tiny contribution to the whole story written and lovingly directed by a good and gracious God. Sara Kennedy

I’m a very fortunate person to have served in Uganda with SPC Mission Teams many times. Each time, for me, has been an occasion of great challenge and comfort.

Moral chaos in every sphere and poverty of every kind have plagued most of Africa for centuries.  While the people of Uganda have it better than many, they still suffer in ways and to degrees that are scandalous. Violence, disease, and death are daily realties. There – everywhere you look – it is easy to see that the Fall really happened. There, too, I am most mindful of the Fall in me – my own sinful heart, weakness of character, and lack of wisdom. The challenges are almost overwhelming.

But, serving in Uganda, I have not been without a comfort – a comfort even greater, much greater, than all the challenges: the power of God in Jesus Christ.  I have seen that power at work in the ministries of the pastors and youth workers I have been blessed to meet and the many small churches I have visited. I have seen that power at work in the life-saving ministries of Canaan Children’s Home and Jinja Children’s Hospital. I have seen that power at work through the SPC teams and other missionaries as we have been teaching, encouraging, praying, healing, and loving together. I have seen that power at work in me as I wrestle with my faith and faithlessness.    For me, it has been a most humbling honor to serve in Uganda.  I have always gone to try to be a blessing – to our friends there and to our teams, but I am ashamed to confess that the blessing has been all mine. Although it sounds too good to be true, I have learned that God’s grace is not a myth.

In Uganda (and at home) the darkness is real and it is vast.  But the Light of Christ is more real and it is growing.  I say let’s keep praying and giving and doing our small part. I also give thanks to God for the challenges and comforts He blesses me with.  And I praise Him for His loving-kindness, His faithfulness, and His power.  Michael Bryant

Uganda.  For me, a dream come true:  to see the sights, smell the smells, and hold the people I have heard about for so long.  Immediate love. Immediate acceptance.  Hugs so tight you can’t breathe.  Children everywhere singing, dancing, laughing.  Family.

A land of greens and browns – banana trees, jackfruit trees, cassava, mud huts, dirt roads, fields of grass and shrub, thatched roofs, cabbages, walls of wood, straw mats, baskets, faces, hands, eyes of hope.  Simplicity.

Be careful.  Be careful how you eat (bacteria!).  Be careful how you walk (worms!).  Be careful how you sleep (mosquitoes!).  Be careful how you live.  Or live caring only for what God calls you to do, knowing He will protect and provide.  Trust.

Hurry! Hurry! Rush! Rush to get to an appointment on time only to sit down, talk, and have “introductions”  before the work begins.  Who are you?  Where are you from?  What do you do?  Let me know you.  Let me serve you.  Let me discover your needs.  Let me love you.  Relationships.

On one side of the wall, poverty.  On the other, the riches of  love, security, unity, affection, and care.  You hear about Canaan Children’s Home, you see the video footage, you read the reports – but now I know.  It is home.  The children learn about God, sing about God, give praises to God every day in all they do.  They know where their help comes from.  They know who provides for them.  They believe in His mighty name.  They say, “Praise God!” before they tell you their names.  They know the giver of all gifts.  Faith.

Hallo, Mzungu!  How are you?  I am fine.  Fine?  I am good.  I am great!  God is good.  God is great!  What a gift to see these things with new eyes.  Blessings upon blessings. Cindy Bryant

Since our return to the States, I’ve been struck by the absurdity of our culture. We have so little to complain about, yet we are champions of finding insignificant things to irritate us, and going to great lengths to change them. The Wal-Mart 15 minutes from my home was too far away, so they built another one five minutes away. It is easy to say that our culture is wicked and materialistic, and that Ugandans are living pure and simple lives detached from all of that, but that just isn’t true. Our need for Christ may be more obvious here because our physical needs are less so, but in Uganda dire physical needs are everywhere, and the need for Christ is exactly the same. While I was in Uganda, I was reading two books: The Fountainhead, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Written by an Objectivist (Ayn Rand) and a self proclaimed “radical atheist” (Douglas Adams), the central ideas of each are that the only thing worth living for is one’s self, and that life is completely meaningless. Not exactly missions trip fare, but contrasting those ideas with the Kingdom made me much more aware of how God was, and is working in the church in Uganda and the U.S. God is good, webele nyo. Stephen Wozny (the son)

Photos by Stephen Wozny, Jack Wheeler, John Keltonic, Cindy Bryant, & Frank Crane