"Behold My Hands"

Hi Everyone!
Happy Resurrection Sunday to you all!
Today has been quite a different Easter for me than any other year. I am 10,000 miles away from all my friends and family celebrating at church.. for the first time ever!
We have some friends that live in Entebbe (around 4 hours from where I live). They run an orphanage for children affected by HIV and AIDS. Since I have 4 days off of work for Easter, we thought it would be a cool idea for me to come visit them for a few days.. have a change of scenery.. get to visit some friends, and experience a small part of their ministry.
This morning I began the long (longer than four hours by public transportation) trek to the agreed meeting place with our friends. Turns out they had some major car trouble, and were about three hours later than expected. I was at a nice little coffee shop,  I had my Bible to read, and journal to write in.. so I didn't really mind.


I was sort of bummed to be spending Easter without my family, and without my church back home. But I have actually been very blessed today, in a way I didn't expect. It was strangely refreshing to have nothing to focus on but the SOLE meat of Easter. I was able to celebrate my King's victory over death just quietly with myself and the Lord. It was very peaceful, intimate, and beautiful.


While I sat and waited for them, I decided to have myself my own little Easter service, and read the story of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. The story is so amazing to read.. it gave me chills. There was one part in particular that actually made me a bit emotional.
Thinking about the story from the disciples' point of view... Jesus spent three solid years with his disciples. No spring break, no summer vacation away from them. They were all together day in and day out for 1,095 days. They weren't just disciples, they were close, intimate friends. And not just socially intimate friends, but spiritually intimate friends...there is a big difference. They discussed the matters deepest and closest to the heart with each other. They prayed for each other and grew each other spiritually.Their bond was undoubtedly closer than any other human friendship that has ever existed. With that said, I can't IMAGINE all that went through their heads as they watched their beloved Jesus crucified on the cross. He was responsible for SO much growth, so much clarity, so much joy, and so much purpose in their lives... Now He's been killed? For no reason?? If you know the story, you know that they didn't understand why all those things were happening.. they didn't understand that that "Good" Friday would one day be considered a "good" day.. I can imagine how much hurt, sorrow, confusion, doubt,  and lack of purpose overwhelmed their spirits on that day.


But here's what I love.. Jesus, their adored teacher, mentor, and friend.... He came back. He rose from the dead! That is EVERY loved one's DREAM... To have a dear one die, then COME BACK just a few days later?!?! How amazing would that be?? I've heard so many people say  "I just wish they could come back." I have no doubts that the disciples said/ felt the same thing.. I can't imagine the stomach drop that happened when they found out it was true! He WAS back! He was alive! Their sorrow was no more! Confusion...yeah, confusion was still a little present.. But their beloved, familiar, Savior was with them once again.


My absolute FAVORITE part of this whole story, is Jesus's response to them when he appears before them. In their astonishment, He says "Behold my hands, touch my feet, feel my side. Touch me and be assured I am myself!" One of my  love languages is physical touch. I love to touch and be touched. I love the IDEA of touch. I love that He not only came back to them, not only did he explain, and give them understanding, but He invited them to touch Him. The intimacy was back. The familiarity of their closest friend had returned! Their precious Jesus- whom they thought they had lost- He was back, and better than ever. I really cannot imagine how they felt! How much joy and fulfillment must have been in their hearts! Their eyes were open, they knew their Savior, and they finally understood His sacrifice. Man.. how cool! I love the resurrection story for MANY reasons, but this is just one thing that popped out at me today!


Hope you all had/ are having a blessed Easter remembering/ celebrating our King's triumph so many years ago.
He is alive. Hallelujah. He lives!
Blessings
Gracie

Waswa

I've been going through ALL my pictures from the last few days, and this one came up.. all the other pictures are coming soon, but I just had to share this one.. This little boy's name is Waswa. He is 11 years old, and goes to the school (Kisega) that I work at on a regular basis. I have absolutely fallen in love with him. Just seeing his picture just now almost brought a tear to my eye. He has one of the sharpest minds you'll ever come across, but the ability of his limbs have not caught up to his mental ability. He can talk perfectly clear, but he can hardly use his arms or legs at all. He walks with a small metal walker, and has almost no motor skills in his hands at all. In the dictionary next to the word "sweetheart"...yep, I checked.. his picture is there. He is a little bit unsure, so he is quiet and shy, but man when he smiles, the earth starts melting. The Spring of Hope staff have started calling him my "boyfriend" because I gave him a part of my chapate (fried tortilla) once, and he's been my little pal ever since. Pray for Waswa with his abilities in school. It's very difficult for him to write because of his lack of motor skills. Also pray that his peers continue to encourage him.. Pray that people would realize his worth and value even though he can't play soccer, or run and play tag with them. Also pray that he realizes his OWN worth and value as a child of the King! He is truly a gem, and has completely, COMPLETELY stolen my heart. Pray for my Waswa!

Luganda

Living in a foreign country, most of the time you can't help but learn the native language.. In Uganda, the national language is called Luganda. It all sounds like complete gibberish to me! haha, but I HAVE learned a good amount of Luganda while I've been here, so I just thought I'd share some it with you guys!
(I totally had to google the spelling for most of these. They are hard to spell!)


Nedda- no, or "I don't want"
Yae- yes
Oli otya- how are you? 
bulungi- good
Weeraba -goodbye!
Weebale- Thank you (sounds like "wave-ah-lee)
Weebale nyo- Thank you so much
Kale- means "okay" or "you're welcome" (pronounced "kah-lay)
Wangi- what?
Ssebo - Sir
Nnyabo - ma'am
Maama- Mom
Taata- Dad
Nkwagala nyo- I love you so much
Ndi mumalirivu- I'm full
When greeting people, you say "Jebale ssebo" or "Jebale nnyabo", which means "well done".. then they will say "Kale, nnyabo. Weebale" Then you say "Kale" back.
Fuma- get out or go away
mpola mpola!- SLOW DOWN! (This one is used daily with the boda drivers ;)
Tugende- we go (used like "okay, I'm ready, let's go.)
Kotono- small
Katonda- God
Owange- excuse me
Selinye liange- that's not my name (I use this a lot in the market or with the boda bodas when people shout "Mzungu! Mzungu!" to get my attention. It gets very annoying! So I specifically asked someone to teach me how to yell back "THAT'S NOT MY NAME!" haha
Tambula- to walk- used when all the boda drivers in town try and get your attention to give you a ride. You just say "Nedda, ndi cotambula"- "No, I'm going to walk.)
Ndi kaloza- I'm thinking


the numbers (to 10) are:
emu, birri, satu, nya, tanu, mukaga, musanvu, munana, mwenda, kumi.. and yes, I did that without looking! I'm getting better! 
funny side note: the word "tomato" is "enyanya" .. so if you were to say "4 tomatoes" it would be "nya enyanya" .. say that 10 times fast! haha

Godliness with Contentment

This is just a small realization/ personal growth achievement, but I think it's worth posting about!


About a week after I arrived here, my mom sent me 2 "care packages" with some food, more conditioner (I was already running out), more skirts, dvd's, etc.. The post office said it would take 7-10 days to make it here. HAH. Boy they do NOT know what they're talking about! When talking to people here, they said it sometimes takes more than 2 months for the package to arrive here. This was disappointing to hear, but we were hoping and praying that it would make it here sooner! Last Saturday, I was out with my friend Jess all day, but I knew that Israel had gone to the post office that day. On the boda boda ride home, I said "Lord, can the packages just be there when I get home? Please? I really really really really would love to have this stuff before I leave here!" And the Lord said to me (super abruptly, I might add), "Well are you going to be content if they never come? Am I enough for you? Or are you just going to keep complaining until they come?" I then realized that I had been crossing my fingers waiting for these packages to come, thinking that when they came it would be easier to be content.. if I had some familiar food, more skirts so I didn't have to wear the same one every day, conditioner so my hair wasn't a rat's nest every day, etc.. And when the Lord said that to me, I just decided that it wasn't true, and said "absolutely, Lord.. you're enough for me, and I will just be content with your love no matter if they come or not" , and just changed my attitude about it.. and at that point, wasn't concerned about it anymore. Then lo and behold, when I walked in the door 10 minutes later, the first thing Teresha said was "look what's on the chair!" and there on the chair sat my two lovely packages from my mom. 


I was so in awe of the Lord! He knew my heart. Psalm 37 says that if we delight ourselves in the Lord, that He will give us the desires of our hearts. But we need to delight in HIM more than we delight in the desires in our hearts. I'm learning every day how the Lord is my everything. He's everything I need. I have to be reminded of it EVERY single day, because I'm a human, and I tend to complain more than I realize how much the Lord has given me. There's a song called "I'm Sustained" that has become sort of a theme song for my time here. It talks about how the Lord's love is so completely satisfying, we don't need anything else. There's nothing we need that He hasn't provided, and He can give us peace even in the toughest situations. The chorus is 
"Jesus, your love is enough. It's efficient for me. All I have needed you've given for free. Your love is enough, don't need man's applause, I know what I'm worth, I remember the cross. I'm sustained, Oh Lord. When your light surrounds me, the world goes away. I'm sustained, Oh Lord. My heart knows your love like it flows through my veins. Such peace and contentment, I found in your grace, I can't think why I ever complained. You love me what more could I want, I'm sustained."
I literally sing this song every single morning in my freezing cold shower that doesn't really leave me feeling clean. I'm not even kidding, every single morning, I just have to start singing this song- because otherwise I will go nuts, and be an extremely ugly person. It's really made the world of difference!


1 Timothy 6:6 
"But godliness with contentment is great gain."

Safari!!

My 2 days of safari was a very humbling experience for me. All of these amazing animals live and exist completely in spite of me, or anything that I've done. It is real live EXISTENCE! Untouched! The way it was originally created by the Lord! Life on the Savannah is so natural.. the food chain, the water sources, the migration cycles, etc.. I feel like in American society, almost everything is determined or managed by something or someone.. (was that vague enough for you? ;) What I mean is that humans don't "guide" the elephants to find shelter when there is a massive storm, we don't make a schedule for the watering hole "Okay, the zebras need to come at this time, and the lions at another time so the lions don't attack the zebras"..we don't make sure the water is safe for the animals to drink, we don't go in and cut out all the poisonous plants so the animals don't die.. Everything happens so naturally.. if the zebras show up to the water at the same time as a pack of lions, well, that's just how life goes! It's how God created it. The word "wild" seems so unruly, uncivilized, and unorganized.. But the REAL wild, where the wild animals live, it's the exact opposite! The LORD manages everything for them. Life for the animals in the wild happens exactly how it's supposed to- without human intervention!! What a crazy thought! I guess before the safari, I was just extremely egotistical, and had the notion that humans pretty much had a handle on everything in the world. It was so humbling and eye opening to see that that is SO not the case. And while I am an admitted, shameless control freak, this realization actually made me feel really at peace.. I love that there is a place where God is truly given all control. I think that kind of environment is the closest it comes to the original Garden, where God truly had total control.. but it's the place humans call the "wild"... strange, no?

Another thing that Jess and I talked about was how humbling it was to be able to hop back and forth in between realities. We got to go spend 4 days in a rather spoiled manner. Yes, we slept in pretty gross tents, but other than that, we were treated like royalty compared to how most of Uganda is treated. We had nice meals made for us, we had a big car to drive around, and we had nice cold water every day when we got back from driving. However, when we drove out of the gates at the end of our safari, I saw something that caught my eye. It was nothing out of the ordinary, it was just a boy pushing a bicycle with water jugs on it.. You see this EVERYWHERE in Uganda. It's a way of life. The children take their water jugs to the well, pump the water into their jugs, attach them to a bike because they're too heavy to carry, then take them home for their families to use. I saw women walking down the dirt roads with things on their heads, dirty children running around, etc... All things that I see every day in the village, but I was able to separate myself from that for 4 days. I didn't see any traditional Ugandan outfits, or fruit being sold on the side of the street. While compared to America's living standards, I was basically camping on my safari.. compared to Uganda, it was pretty plush! Around the safari camp site, and in my safari group were all white people.. hardly any Ugandans. I just remember thinking "oh, yes.. I'm going back into regular society now.. no more of this Mzungu [white person] society that I've been living in for the last 4 days." I had to switch my mindset. Seeing that boy with the water I thought "he doesn't even have the option to just switch over to that reality." He can't just hop out of his reality and just grab some bottles of water. He is always in that lifestyle. 24/7...and I wonder if he even KNOWS there's such a different reality than his (water filters, processed food, internet, etc)." I don't mind living in the Ugandan society that is more poor and dirty.. I usually don't have a problem with it. But I am so humbled by the fact that I have the OPTION to choose which one I want to exist in. The majority of people in the world don't have that luxury. It was definitely an eye opening realization

The Divine Romance

Hi Friends!
It has been soooo long since I have posted, and I am SO sorry! Changing schedules, late nights, and power outages have REALLY cramped my blogging style! haha
Well, there is a lot to talk about so I'm going to start with the stuff furthest back, then work my way up to the more current stuff. Enjoy!


Two weeks ago, I was amazingly blessed with the opportunity to go on a safari in Uganda. Coming here, I knew I would be able to go on a safari, but I was a little bummed knowing I would have to go by myself. Well, to say that the Lord "knows" me is an understatement, because not only did I get to go on a safari, but the Lord crossed my path with an amazing young lady named Jessica. The director of her organization (an orphanage) is very good friends with the director of my organization. We clicked instantly. The first 5 minutes we spent with each other (she came to help out at one of our clinics), I knew I was going to love her. She is SO filled with the Holy Spirit, you can basically taste it when you're around her. I loved spending time with her at our clinic, but I was bummed we weren't really going to be able to spend any more time together.. Then turns out she was wanting to go on a safari, but didn't have anyone to go with! OH I love the ways that the Lord works! I was so blessed to share the amazing experience of seeing God's creation with this fantastic girl, and to be able to TALK about and wonder at God's creation together was unforgettable.

Skipping backwards a bit to before the safari.. on my drive from Kampala to the rest camp in Murchison Falls.. Most drives in Uganda...ney..ALL drives in Uganda, no matter how long or how short, are very bumpy, and very loud. I was in a 9 passenger van with no shocks in the seats, and only the windows as air conditioning. Needless to say, it was a very LOUD 7 hour drive, and people didn't really get much talking in. While this was a tad of a bummer, I didn't really mind, because one of my favorite things to do here is just look out the windows and watch the untouched, beautiful landscape fly by me. My seating position in the van was not fortunate enough to be by a window that wasn't broken, so I didn't really get a whole lot of air blown on me. I mainly just tried to lean my head against the window and either watch outside or just close my eyes for distraction from the heat. At one point during the drive, I had my eyes closed and  my head against the window. All of a sudden a very soft, very light breeze blew over my face. Right when it hit my face, I just totally felt like it was the Holy Spirit trying to get my attention. It was so soft and so sweet. It felt so good! I opened my eyes, and the breeze stopped. KNOWING at that point it was the Lord, I said to the Lord "Lord! That felt so good!! Make it happen again!" And as clear as day, the Lord answered "Okay, Gracie.. Close your eyes." I closed them, and it happened again! That light, sweet breeze just came sweeping across my face. It was so soft, yet so powerful, I can't even describe it. It was just totally the presence of the Lord there with me. Growing up in the church and youth group, etc, I'd always heard the concept of the Lord being a romantic, and how he is so loving- like in a romantic way. I believed this was true, but I'd never actually experienced it before, and never really understood it.. not until that drive! The Lord really just spoke to me during that drive in a way I'd never heard before. He was so sweet, as if he was actually whispering the sweetest, most captivating things in my ear. He would say "Gracie, close your eyes...now open them." I would open them, and see the most breathtakingly beautiful scenes.. A lot of Uganda kind of looks the same.. a lot of green..random trees and random bushes everywhere.. But when I'd open my eyes, it was something completely different than I'd seen before..as if He put them there JUST for me to see.. as weird as that sounds. I've always loved the Lord, but that day I learned how to be IN love with the Lord.. and how much He is IN love with me.. which I had never realized before. It was the most REAL encounter I'd ever had with the Lord, and the amazing feeling. He's so charming! The creator of the universe is in to me!  haha.. something I'd never experienced before. The Lord really is so amazing how He reveals things to me differently at different times. He just captivated me in a way that had never happened before. I'm praying that every day he recaptures my heart, and takes my breath away. So far, it's worked! 

Stay tuned tomorrow for more about the safari! Most of it is written out, but I am so exhausted I can't finish it! It WILL be posted by tomorrow!! Stay tuned :)

Gracie

Kisega

Today I got to work in a school called Kisega. I was working with a woman named Erin who's been working in Uganda for almost a year now. Erin would teach a bible story to the kids, then I got to teach them a song. I taught the classic camp song "Hallelu, Hallelu, Hallelu, Hallelujah, Praise Ye the Lord." I split the class into two "teams" and told them it was a competition of who could sing the loudest. I did this with 5 different classes, and most of them (that really understood what was going on) LOVED it! They were singing at the VERY top of their lungs (and the headmaster said she could hear all the way from her office.. which to her, was a good thing :) I really had a fabulous time with the kids teaching them how to praise in MY language. Erin and I were talking about how much music and singing is a part of their culture, and how most of them probably went home today singing our song, and will remember it well for next time. I love that the Lord created something like music and singing that no matter the culture; is something ingrained in us. We were all made to praise the Lord. It may look different for each country, culture, or people group, but there is something about singing and clapping your hands that is universal. There is a natural part of us that wants to move to a rhythm sing a catchy melody (ABILITY to do these things is a whole different matter, but I think that the desire is there in everyone ;) As different as the cultures are, I think we have more similarities than we expect. Praise the Lord for our connections in Him!

 Saying "I can't hear you!! LOUDER!" 

I JUST GOT TO EAT CHEESECAKE!! Like real AMERICAN cheesecake! GOD IS GOOD people! Especially with my mother undergoing major surgery this very moment, it was a goooood VERY good thing :) :) Happy girl right here. (could you tell? :)

Dearest Tribal Dance Party..

Dearest Tribal Dance Party going on like 20 feet from my window, I understand you really value whatever tradition is going on with you guys right now, and I do too. In fact, I too, love dancing, clapping, shouting, SUPER loud music, and the sound of tribal drumbs. However, it’s now 3:33am, and I would just LOVE to actually be able to sleep. So, maybe reconvene in the morning? Maybe you guys and the rooster can hook up.. You have similar interests. 

Sincerely, sleep deprived.

The Light of the Lord

Hello All! 

Wow! Is the Lord good or what?? Every day I am blown away at the blessings that the Lord has just been pouring out on me. Praise Him!

I know I have a few new followers to my blog, so I thought I’d just begin this blog post with a bit of an introduction for those who aren’t up to speed yet. 

My name is Gracie Mills, and I have been tremendously blessed to have the opportunity to take a year off of school and travel for a year.. seeing the world, but also getting my feet wet in ministry world wide to serve the Lord’s precious people on a global scale. In the fall, I was blessed with the opportunity to travel around different countries in Europe for about a month and a half. Because of a few miscommunications, the MINISTRY aspect of that trip was a bit limited.

But THEN, in the winter months, the Lord directed me to be on staff at a Mission down in Mexico that houses only handicapped orphans. This is one of the most magical places you could ever be blessed to come across. The spirit of the Lord is so strong there, it’s almost like you hit a wall upon entering through their gates. While in Mexico, I was a full- time caretaker, mother, counselor, and friend to 17 of  the Lord’s  most precious gems.. gems whom I am SURE will all be sitting at the right hand of the Lord in Heaven.. right next to Jesus. There is some idea that these children are placed in our life so we can teach them something.. but I am convinced it is the exact opposite. We learn from them FAR more than they could EVER learn from us. Needless to say, I fell in love with these kids, and my life is changed because of them.

This time in Mexico just fueled an already- existing fire in me. I have always had a passion for children with special needs. I really, firmly believe that the spirit of the Lord can be stronger in a child with disabilities than in any other person on earth. Having worked with special needs children all through high school, and having a younger brother who struggled through school, I found that with an incredible amount of love and encouragement, a child can succeed; no matter how severe the disability. This realization brought me to the decision of making the rest of my life be devoted the betterment of children with special needs through both special education and occupational therapy. One of my very favorite things while living in Mexico was identifying an issue for a child, and coming up with a clever solution to help him/ her function successfully. I saw every child and their issues like a puzzle. Sometimes it can take a LONG time, but with persistence, and trying out “different pieces” to try and solve the issue until it’s resolved. This is why I feel like occupational therapy is so perfect for me. It’s all about identifying a problem in a person, and figuring out a way to make it work better. I am REALLY excited about pursuing this career once I am done with all my travels this year.. Which brings me to where I am right now!

Currently, I am living in Uganda working with an organization called Spring of Hope. Spring of Hope is a community- based, Christ- centered organization that aims not only to care for children with disabilities, but to teach the FAMILY how to take care of their own child with disabilities. One of the biggest issues with special needs children world wide is that people:

#1. Don’t understand WHY their child has a disability. Many believe it is due to a fault in the mother during pregnancy. Many believe it is because they are possessed or cursed with an evil spirit. This often leads to abuse or neglect of the child. Sometimes they are tied up in dark closets, beaten, and/ or taken advantage of sexually. 

#2. People don’t have the knowledge to know HOW to care for their child that is different than all the other ones.

Spring of Hope’s mission is to not only provide medication and therapy for the disabled kids, but also to educate parents/ family members on what they can do at HOME that will benefit their child and help them succeed. Sometimes, it’s just convincing the parents that their child is CAPABLE of succeeding that is the trick. There is such a negative perspective on disabled children here in Uganda.. but I will get to that later on!

What I do as a volunteer:

 As a volunteer, I go along on home visits, where we travel out into more rural areas to give children physical therapy, and also help teach them activities of daily living skills. We do this IN the home environment so that #1. the child feels familiar and comfortable #2. To educate the parents and teach them these exercises to do themselves, and #3. To be an example to the parents and siblings of how to love on their child. Our MAIN mission is to change the perspective in the community. We do this by being vessels of Jesus’s love and having His attitude towards the children. When the parents see US having fun and interacting with the child, they are likely to duplicate these actions and attitudes.

Along with home visits, I help out when we have any sort of clinic. There are 3 kinds of clinics. 

1. Drop- in clinics- these are held AT our office. Parents travel with their child to receive both medication and physical therapy, and also to get tips on activities of daily living (ADL) training. 

2. Wobwoko clinics- this is basically a larger- scale drop in clinic, but it’s in a different location (about an hour from our office). We set up camp in a public health clinic building as the people roll in (well, they usually walk… but whatever!) by the hundreds to receive medication and therapy for their children. We spend a LOT of time counting, sorting, and cutting pill capsules to hand out too.

3. Parish clinics- Parish clinics are kind of like an awareness clinic. We use this time mainly to focus on the perspective issue talked about before. We play games with the kids, teach bible stories, and talk to the parents about how special children are, and how they really CAN be a blessing if they choose to view it as such. 

Starting next week, I will also be working in a school called Kisega. This is a regular primary school that allows the admission of children with disabilities. (including deaf children) Another big part of Spring of Hope’s mission is integration and inclusion. So I will be working in this school doing things like teaching bible lessons, helping learn English, and what I’m MOST excited about is that I’m actually going to get to make up games to play with the kids outside in their big field. If you know anything about me, you know that my most favoritest thing in the WHOLE world is to have fun. Let alone having fun with KIDS.. Let alone having fun with kids in AFRICA… Needless to say, I’m super stoked! 

We will start having staff meetings once a week to spend time in prayer.. both for the community and for specific children. Also to consider the Lord’s word and see what HE says about the work we are doing, and about children with disabilities. This is really a time for regrouping, refocusing, and rededicating our mission and passion to the Lord. We had our first meeting this morning, and I was just SO encouraged and revitalized by it. There were just 6 of us in the room, all passionate and praying about the SAME thing. Obviously, I’ve worked with these people every day for 2 weeks now. But it was so refreshing to just read the word and talk to our Father about our calling. We read Psalm 139, which became one of my absolute favorite scriptures while I was at the Mission in Mexico. Although there are always different interpretations, to me, the passage VERY directly speaks of children with special needs and disabilities. It gives me chills every time I read it. It’s SO powerful, and SO clearly depicts the heart of the Lord towards his children. Here it is:

  ”For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.” 

I just cannot get over the power of those verses. God doesn’t make mistakes. Ever. It’s not like he accidentallycreated a child with disabilities, and said “Oh SHOOT! Man.. I’ll get ‘em next time..” The Lord KNIT each of us together. I love that word picture; it was purposeful. Not just a wave of the finger, BAM, there’s a person. He took time to make intimate details about all of us. Every single strand of DNA was meant to be. Sometimes, even in the Christian community, the phrase is used “Well, God will make something good out of a bad situation.” The truth is: It’s ALWAYS been good! It was never a bad thing in the first place. I LOVED our meeting today.. strategizing about how to bring Jesus into the community, how to bring His love, His light and better yet, His perspective into these homes.

After the staff meeting, I was originally going to the school to start being introduced to the kids, but it ended up not working out. The people had already left for the home visits, so I couldn’t do that, and Israel and Teresha (the directors) had a meeting out of the village with a pastor. Because I’m living with them, there are some circumstances when I need to tag along while they’re going to a meeting, but I’ve never been a part of one of their meetings. I usually have to wait in the car or something. As the only option was to tag along with their meeting, I was a little discouraged that I wouldn’t really be able to work with the kids today.. But MAN did the Lord bless me! We had this meeting at a school LITERALLY in the middle of nowhere in some village that I can’t pronounce. This guy’s name is Pastor Patrick, and he not only is a pastor, but he runs a primary school, and also trains other pastors in the area. When we showed up, I fully expected to just sit somewhere and try to entertain myself.. I didn’t even know what the meeting was about! But They all called me to the “office” (see picture for definition of “office” here) to sit down and participate in the meeting. So I pulled up a chair and just listened. The meeting was about how to reach disabled people through the church. This man’s perspective and insight was SO encouraging and so refreshing. While his full time calling isn’t for disabled ministries, he definitely “gets it.” He fully understands the weight and value of this issue around the world, but specifically in Uganda. He will meet with pastors all throughout Uganda and discuss this issue of disabilities when it comes to the church. If there is going to be change in Uganda, it’s going to start in the church. The church is the nation- wide example of how to live. Once people see the church making an effort to reach and value the disabled community, the rest of the population will follow suit. We weren’t aware beforehand, but Pastor Patrick had arranged for some families with disabilities to come to the school to talk with us today. So after we were done talking one on one with the pastor, he gave us a tour of the school, then we went out back to talk with some of the parents about Spring of Hope and who we are. (again, this area is an area far away from our normal circulation of ministry, so many of them had never even heard of us before). After Pastor Patrick introduced us all, Teresha spoke to the parents kind of like it was a parish clinic. She told them about our ministry and what we do, and that we would love to come out and hold clinics in their area. As they introduced each of us, we kind of said a little word of encouragement to the group of 30 or so parents. Pastor Patrick translated for me as I told the parents that I was so glad to be there, and that I was passionate about children with disabilities. I told them how much I love them, and how much the Lord loves them, and how I hope that they can come to know that feeling as well. It was awesome for me to speak to them like that, and offer a few words of encouragement. I could tell that the parents really appreciated what we had to say, and that really blessed me!

Argh, I have so much more to say, but it is now 2am, and my eyes are shutting as I type. I will TRY my very hardest to write more tomorrow! PLEASE be praying for us, friends.. We are on the brink of really making a significant change. Just pray for the hearts of the people that they will recognize the truth of the Lord’s love for all of us: disability or not. I’m so thankful that the Lord loves me, despite MY flaws, and the areas that I fail. Prayer is a powerful weapon. We (HE) really are capable of kicking this issue in the pants! Pray, pray, pray. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, etc. PLEASE feel free to leave them here or email me! 

Mysunshinemills@gmail.com 

Thanks so much for reading. May the Lord richly bless you today!

Gracie

My God is a big one!

Currently  listening to the (LOUD) church a couple doors down from our house singing (at 10:30pm) “How Great Thou Art” in Luganda (the local language here). Can’t help but smile. There are so many ways to praise our Lord! Blessed by how BIG God is.. He even understands Luganda! haha, sounds silly, but it’s really blessing me!! 

Apparently I'm Fat!

Yesterday as I went to get on the boda taxi, the guy wasn’t ready for me and it tipped a little bit. We stopped at the store on the way home so I had to get off, go in the store, then get back on.. when I was about to get on, I said “are you ready?” To make sure we didn’t tip again. He said yes, so I got on… but apparently he really WASN’T ready because the bike tipped again (didn’t fall, just tipped)… so the boda driver says “You are too fat! You tip the bike! Eat less.” Hahahaha I found that so funny!

 God is good!! Spring of Hope (Teresha & Israel) has been praying for their own car for a VERY long time so that they don’t have to take motorbike taxis into the village every day. Plus: Teresha is now pregnant, and its REALLY not good for her to be on the back of a Boda every day. Israel suprised us and drove in last night with the exact car they’ve been wanting! It will fit all the Spring of Hope staff in it for when we run clinics outside the village.. meaning we won’t need to take taxis anymore. This is a HUGE blessing to all of us. :D

Boda Driver

Today my Boda taxi driver was very charismatic and inquisitive. He asked me all sorts of questions, but one of the first ones, of course was “Where are you from?” I said I was from America, and he got a huge smile (I could see in his side mirrors) and started hooting and hollering (like the laughs described in my previous posts). So I said “What? What’s so great??” And he said “You are Obama country.” And I said yes he’s our president. He said “We LOVE Obama!” I laughed, and said “Oh yeah? Why do you like him?” He said “Because he have black blood.” So I said “Oh yeah? You like him because he’s black?? That’s it? But he’s a terrible president! Do you know that?” He kinda chuckled and said “We like him because he black.” I chuckled and kind of said under my breath “Americans too… Americans too.”

Video11 MAR2 NOTES

Update! Finally!

Hello All!

Sorry it’s been a while since I posted something substantial. The last few days have been very hectic and busy, and also, I’ve caught some sort of bug that has had me feeling very crummy! At the end of each day I’ve been too exhausted to write out a long blog post.
BUT- after a few different medications now battling in my body, I am feeling a lot better! Thank you, Jesus! :)

SO- to bring you all up to speed….. :

Wednesday was my first day “on the job” with Spring of Hope. The main mode of transportation here is by Boda Boda (dirtbike taxi). It’s a part of the culture that I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I do. While a bit dangerous, they are the BEST way to really experience the environment here. You can smell all the smells (the good ones and the bad ones), feel the (extremely refreshing) air blowing on your face and through your hair (often times resulting in foreign objects [sticks, rocks, grass, etc] camping inside the pony tail), and you can really SEE Uganda up close with no barrier between you and the people, the dust, the mud huts that are homes, and the adorable children waving and shouting at the strange white person on the bike. It was kind of intimidating to me at first, but I really enjoy the RAW experience. :)  

ANYWHO- after taking the hour long trip into the village, I was told that I was going to go on home visits (to rural locations) with a man named Steven and a woman named Josephine (both Ugandans). Steven is the physical therapist, and Josephine is a specialist in Activities of Daily Living for the kids. Home visits are twice a week, and the purpose is to do physical therapies with the children in their own home for 2 fold reasons: #1. Some families are not able to travel the distance to the office for therapy clinics and #2. Steven and Josephine work with the parents to show THEM how to care for their on child, and help them succeed. I LOVE this idea, because education is the BEST way to help people. DOING things for people is a blessing, but TEACHING people how to do it themselves is a blessing far beyond doing it for them. I definitely think there is a time and place for both, but in this circumstance, education is the most valuable aid we can bring. 

Thursday was called a drop-in clinic. This is where parents (or siblings or grandparents or friends, etc) bring their child IN to the Spring of Hope office in Kangulumira. They assess new children and their stories, they track the process of children they’ve seen before, and prescribe medication for the children with epilepsy and other treatable conditions. I really enjoyed this as well because I had the option of helping Steven with physical therapy at times, helping count pills to hand out, and I got to go in a separate room to talk with the mother (or caretaker) of the new children. I asked questions, made suggestions, and got to interact with the kids to kind of figure them out and see how they work. I really loved getting to interact with the kids. I love helping in any way I can (counting pills, therapy, etc), but there’s something so special to me in just playing with the kids, tickling them, and watching their faces light up when I show them their reflection in the mirror. It’s the simple things that really bless me!

Friday was a Wabwoko Clinic. This is a clinic held at a public health clinic building in a village called Wabwoko- about an hour or so outside of Kangulumira. This is similar to a drop-in clinic, but it’s (obviously) in a different location, and it’s MUCH much bigger. Steven has a big tent set up for therapies with the kids, and we have a table set up inside for counting/sorting/ cutting pills, with a huge line going out the door to receive medication. Parents waited with their kids in line all day to be seen, and most moms don’t have babysitters to watch their other kids while they’re at the clinic- so there were moms and kids and sleeping babies and crying babies and running babies and laughing babies all over the place! It was a pretty lively place when it came to the kids. But the moms all seemed very…tired. That’s how most women seem here. Not a lot of liveliness or bright eyes in the women folk. Most of them are very staid, withdrawn, unaffected, and uninvolved. With men and children- it’s very easy to make them smile.. Simply by smiling at them or waving, their faces light up.. But not the women. When trying to understand why, I have come up with this: there is so much hurt and so much lacking in this country. Most mothers can barely provide enough for their children to survive. If they become involved and attached, it will hurt them more to see their children suffering. But if they treat their children more like objects (which a lot of them do), it will affect them less when they fall short. (You can tell even in the way they hold and carry their babies.. They pick them up by their arms, and carry them by their arms too. It can’t be good for their poor joints!) So I made it my mission to try and lighten some of these women in line. I took my camera outside and started taking pictures of just the children. Every once in a while, I’d ask a woman if I could take a picture with her and her child together. They usually would say yes.. So I’d take the picture, then ask if they wanted to see it. When I’d show them their picture, all the ice would break off their faces. They would smile from here to Georgia. They would LAUGH and laugh and smile so big, and point and call their friends over to see the picture. After a while, ALL the women were tapping me and getting my attention to take their picture. I LOVED how in to it all the moms were. For them, having a child with disabilities is not a blessing in the least, so most of the moms were not super stoked to be there. It was a blessing to me to be able to give them something to be happy about.. even if it was as simple as my digital camera. :)

Today (Saturday) was a relaxing day. We were in the town so I got to wear PANTS and a TANK TOP! (YIPPEE!!) Usually in the village (Kangulumira and other villages that we work in) we only wear skirts that go below the knee and shirts that cover most of the shoulder. In Uganda, women will just pull out their breasts in public to breastfeed their babies.. So breasts are not really a big deal to people. However, THIGHS are a huge deal. If a man sees your thigh, he might as well have seen you naked.. So even wearing pants where your thigh is more defined is inappropriate in the more rural villages. However, we were in Jinja today, so I was able to dress like a normal American would in the heat! It was glorious. Little blessings.. Little blessings. :)

For some reason in the last week, the Lord has really put the song “Be thou my vision” on my heart, and stuck in my head constantly. There’s something just about that phrase “Be thou my vision” that is so captivating to me. I have my own eyes, and my own perspective, but I am praying constantly that God be my Vision.. to see these people, to touch these people, and to love on these people like Jesus would himself. It’s like putting on a pair of goggles to see what Jesus sees. Also, there is a difference between having SIGHT, and having VISION. Vision is putting is being able to see beyond what the eyes can show you. Vision is what I long for. And what better vision to have than Jesus’s vision? He can see everything! If you haven’t heard the song, these are the lyrics, but you should really listen to it while you watch it. It’s beautiful and powerful. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp5-oVX6PqI

Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art
Thou my best thought by day or by night
Waking or sleeping Thy presence my light
Be thou my wisdom and Thou my true word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord
Thou my great Father, I , Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one
Riches I heed not nor man’s emptly praise
Thou mine inheritance now and always
Thou and thou only first in my heart 
High King of heaven my treasure Thou are
High King of heaven my victory won
May I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s Sun
Heart of my own heart whatever befall
Still be my vision O Ruler of all

Israel

Israel asked me the other night if I had any R&B soul music on my ipod, because that’s the kind of music he likes.. The ONLY song I have even close to that genre was “Baby Come Back.” So I played it for him, expecting he would laugh at me… He LOVED it, and by the second chorus was belting it out and singing along with the song. I was laughing so hard I couldn’t see straight. He LOVED it.

Ate dinner tonight by candlelight because the power was out again. #Uganda

Roosters

Its official. I really want to punch.. ney.. put a cap in every rooster I see in Uganda. Note to self (and others reading this): real live roosters are 140x more obnoxious and annoying than the cell phone alarm ringtone ones.

Either: 1.Ugandans don’t wear deoderant OR 2. They all wear the same, stinky fragrance.

Ugandan taxi ride. Interesting experience.

Womens' Day

Tomorrow is Womens’ Day in Uganda.. a national holiday where shops and schools close down, and most people take off work.. all to “honor” women. Interesting!

Yeah… This is what I get to see.. every single day for 2 months. These children just WORSHIP “Mzungus” (white people).. their eyes glaze over with amazement at the difference in skin color!

I love the way Ugandans laugh. They are so expressive and hilarious. If they think something is funny, EVERYONE knows it. I love it! 

The hole in the wall restauraunt we ate lunch in. 

Steven, the physio therapist here in Uganda. We were both crammed on the back of a motorbike taxi for hours riding the dirt roads through the countryside visiting the houses of disabled children in rural villages. Fun! 

As I was riding on the back of the motorbike today, two boys walking down the street blew kisses at me. Not sure how to feel about this. 

Africa- First Impressions

Hey All!
So, I was planning on doing a video blog tonight, but for some odd reason my webcam is not working! So tonight I’m just going to jot down a couple things about the last 24 hours. I arrived in Entebbe last night (this morning) at 3 in the morning. O.o Teresha and Israel picked me up from the airport and I immediately loved both of them. We got a “hotel” which was really more like a hospitality home for the night so we could get some rest before heading more inland towards Jinja where they live. Best.Decision.Ever. It was sooo good to get sleep! We woke up, ate a wonderful breakfast, then headed out of town. 

I was FLOORED at how beautiful the scenery was. I always pictured “Africa” as being brown, dry, and hot.. Uganda is the opposite. It is so green and so full of life! One thing I quickly learned of was that there is a big Indian influence in Uganda. The main mark of this is that there are cows EVERYWHERE! In the streets, on the sidewalk, randomly laying in the middle of a field, etc. Apparently the Ugandans value cows almost as much as the Indians do. Interesting! Also- Ugandans use a lot of Indian spices in their cooking. YUM.

Another interesting thing was that all the taxis on the road were big huge vans.. and on the windshield of every van was some sort of Christian phrase; “God is Love,” “Jesus saves,” etc.. I mentioned this to Teresha and Israel and they told me that Uganda is mainly a Christian country; however, they have a lot of Islamic influence. Many people claim they are spiritually Christians, but are really more Islamic in culture and way of life. This has created a lot of issues within the Christian culture here. Also, many say they are Christian, but then practice witchcraft, see witch doctors, worship idols, and glorify ancestors. Because of this, the Ugandans have developed a different phrase to use. Some call themselves Christians, but others (Like Teresha and Israel) call themselves “Born Again Christians” meaning they have turned from all witchcraft, no not drink any alcohol, smoke cigarettes, worship idols, or ancestors. They were tired of having the Christian title be defiled by those who refuse to be completely changed, so they made a solution. I like it! In the States, this idea would never work. We would have WAY too many titles and subtitles (like denominations) so people wouldn’t be affiliated with those that don’t believe the exact same as them. I like the simplicity of the Ugandan Christian life.

Fun Fact: In Uganda, white people are called “Mzungas”

Another (not so fun) fact: Israel is one of 11 children. He knows for sure that 5 of his siblings are alive, but has no idea about the other six. When he explained he said “The other six… could be dead…probably are.. I will never know.” That is so incredibly sad to me! However, they said this is actually very normal in the old Ugandan tribes. Mothers have many children, and doesn’t always have the means to take care of them all together.. So siblings are often separated at a young age, and never see eachother again.

Last observation: I LOVE how Israel prays. He prays more sincerely than any person I have ever met; with the one exception of the orphans at the Mission in Mexico. He is so genuine when he talks to his Father. He is truly humble every time he goes before the throne of grace. Each time he prays, whether for a meal, or before a trip, he thanks the Lord for His mercy and His grace to “bring him where he is this day.” He is one of the greatest examples of being thankful for every moment he is given. He is aware of the magnitude of how vast the Lord’s love and blessings are. Right on!

Tomorrow is my first day on the job. We are waiting to hear from Erin, the girl I will work with in the school to see if she’s working tomorrow. If she is working, then I will work with her in the school. If she is not working, then I will go do home visits with a lady named Josephine. Either way, I can’t wait! 

Thanks, friends, for your continued prayers!

Love you all!

Gracie