Update Melissa

All the Karamoja holds

Uganda 28th Jan - 9th February 2014 
Our trip to Uganda: Half a week in the South (Lake Mburo, Kampala, Jinja, Mbale to Soroti), three weeks in Karamoja; the first at the Peace villages in Nakayot, the second and third week in Nabilatuk (45 minutes drive from Nakayot) where Summer lives and where Melissa stayed in 2012 to do Vet and Bible storying ministries. Another half week (the last) in the South again meeting up with Summer's team mates, Simon & Carina Grubber who have just returned from Germany where they spent the last 4 weeks to visit church & family. 

Nabilatuk, Karamoja. Weeks 2 and 3. 
For the past two weeks, we've been joining Summer in her ministry work in Nabilatuk and surrounding villages. It was cool to be a part of what she does here, if only for a short time. Summer has been doing adult literacy classes for the last 6 months in the hope of addressing some of the problems that come with a mostly illiterate community not being able to read the Bible for themselves. The result is that they are reliant on what they hear from any random person about God and cannot check its accuracy for themselves like we can. 

We can see even in Australia the problems that happen in churches when they stray from the truth of the Bible! Imagine not even being able to read the Bible for yourself. This is also why the mp3 players were given out at the peace villages to help people access the word of God for themselves. So on Monday and Friday we joined in on the adult literacy classes with key members from different villages, combined with a Bible story and memory verse that they learn off by heart (and they are amazing at it!). 

It has been so awesome for Melissa to see everyone again, the joy of seeing old friends again cannot be understated. It's been 2 weeks of so much fun, joining in with life here again as if no time has passed.

We went to a village called Kasiapus (which you may remember from previous posts in 2012) and had church with them there under a tree. Church here in the village consists of singing songs to and about God, praying, listening to a Bible story (as this is done every week they are going through key stories from the Bible in order from creation, the fall, to Jesus and the first church), having discussion about the story we just heard and then more prayer and singing. The people here love to sing. The stories from the Bible are not paraphrased but are memorised by the storyteller from the Bible word for word. This helps the Karamajong people to understand the story better through the details in the story. The discussion at the end is really awesome, to see people really getting what God is saying through the story and teaching them about His character, about us, and how we can and should change to worship and glorify Him. 

On the first week Emmy (a local Karamojong guy who works for KACHEP with the animal health work and evangelism) storied the parable of the sower (Luke 8, Mark 4 & Matt 13) here and at another village on Friday. He had great discussion with them about what kind of 'soil' we should be, the fruit we want to bear and what that looks like for them in Karamoja. What it means to be obedient to Jesus our King. The second week here and at Napongai Summer storied two stories; from Matt 15:10-20 & the second from John 3:1-21 about Nicodemus and being born again, born of the Spirit. 

On every other Wednesday there is a cattle spraying event they run and men from the surrounding villages bring their cattle, sheep and goats to get sprayed for ticks as they are the largest cause of disease in the livestock here. Our first Wednesday here was the spraying event in Nabilatuk and Brenton had the opportunity to story. He told the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man from Luke 16:19-31. Brenton found it really encouraging to see the men being willing to enter into discussion about the story. It was amazing to share God’s word with these men and to look at what it really means when you say you are a Christian. Living as a Christian doesn't mean simply saying that you believe in God and saying things like Hallelujah and thank you Jesus; it's about being willing to let God change your heart and humbling yourself, being willing to serve others and repenting of selfishness. It was really cool when on Friday we ran into 3 young men whilst walking along the road and one of them had come to the spraying and heard the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus. Now he and his friends were going out to another village to share the story and to share what they had learnt! 

That afternoon we went for a nice long walk to a place called Mt Hyena. We climbed up the top of the mountain with a guitar strapped to our back and spent some time together with Summer singing songs of worship to our awesome God, whilst looking out at God's beautiful creation! We sat together and watched as the sun started to set and it was truly an amazing sight to behold. God was really using that paintbrush of His! The sun went down soooo fast you could literally see it descending! This led to a quick descent from up top and we returned home safe just as it was starting to get dark. Praise to God for bringing us home safely and for providing such an amazing creation for us to behold and reflect upon His majesty and power! 

We have devotions with all the staff members of KACHEP the veterinary NGO we work with. The first Thursday, Melissa lead the devotions on John 13:18-38 and on the second Thursday Brenton lead it on John 14:1-14. 
The devotions are a really cool part of the week because the method has been set for everyone so that all the staff are able to lead at some point. Even those who have never been to school before have been studying their passage for the week, learning it off by heart and God is teaching through them.

Other parts of the week include allocated time to 'greet' people. This is an important part to the ministry here, going to people's houses and sitting with them and chatting to them. Sometimes 4 hours can go by and we've only visited 2 families but it is a great time of loving them and hearing what is going on with them and in their area. Culturally it is seen as very rude to not visit people in the community and as Christ's ambassadors it is an opportunity to love as He has loved us. 

On Wednesday and Thursday Melissa ran animal health training with KACHEP’s two main animal workers, Emmy and Christine. Carina Grubber asked her to teach them about eye diseases and intestinal parasites as these two topics she hadn't covered with them last year. It was really great to see how much they remember and how far they've come in the last year as well. Mukisa, KACHEP’s manager also asked Brenton if he had any time, to teach Emmy & Christine some basics in computer skills which he did on these days as well.

 On the weekends we've done different things. The first weekend we went down to the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) mission to visit and have fellowship. They live an hour away and do ministry in yet another way in Karamoja.

It was cool for Brenton to see in week 1 the ministry at the Peace villages, week 2 Bible storying in villages around Nabilatuk and on the weekend see the OPC ministry that has set up a church in Karamoja that is Presbyterian in style and run by an American pastor, with the services translated in Ngakarimojong. That was a really fun time and in a really beautiful spot surrounded by mountains. It was great to spend some time sitting down with the pastor and his wife to discuss some of the things they have learnt about ministry in Karamoja and the culture here. We also got to greet an old Karamojong friend of Melissa & Summer in the town nearby on the Saturday as well. 

On the second weekend we went to the Lolachat market. Lolachat is a little town south of Nabilatuk but which is central to many villages and so has a huge market. People are everywhere as you drive up and they all turn to see the three white people in the sea of Karamojong. It is a bit intimidating at first to be such a huge centre of attention, but you sort of get used to being a circus attraction after a while. We bought a few things there, particularly of interest our dinner - donkey meat and sweet potato to make chips from.

Then we drove on to a village that's about an hour away (deep in the bush) called Okutoot to visit the people there and spend some fellowship time with them. Brenton storied Lazarus and the Rich Man here again with the people in Okutoot. It was really nice to visit them, Summer had not been in this village since her time with Melissa so it was a big reunion. It was great that they were willing to sit down and spend time together with us in worship of God and to learn from His word. We also got to see the agro forestry project that KACHEP is running here in this village, providing them with neem, mango, guava and orange. 

Summer's pet baby ostrich is going really well too. Growing fast and still so cute. Many a morning's entertainment has been had over breakfast watching Tangles run around, spin and fall over when he gets confused, or watching his interactions with the other animals! 

It's been such a privilege to spend this time with Summer and to serve in the ministry here. It is such a blessing to be able to witness the fruits of the hard work being done in these villages and to see how the Holy Spirit has been working in these people! The ministry being done out here is so vital and precious; enabling people to have access to and to learn from God's word.  Working together in partnership with the Holy Spirit to reveal to the people of Karamoja who our awesome God is and the amazing grace He has offered them! What a blessing it is that God allows us to be involved in the spreading of the Gospel of grace!

Update Melissa

Ministry in Peace Villages

Sunday 19th - Monday 27th January 2014

Sorry it's been a while since our last post. We have experienced so much over this last week! We are currently sitting on the floor of Summer's house in Nabilatuk, Karamoja, babysitting the newest member of the team. The new member is named "Tangles" and is a 3 day old ostrich! Possibly the cutest thing in the world.

On Saturday the 18th we met up with Summer in Kampala and spent an evening out being encouraged by her and Jean and Roger Tripp (who are a British couple that act as the country coordinators for Pioneers International in Uganda - the mission organisation that Summer is with).
The next morning we gathered up our packs, threw them into Summer's newly tuned up 4wd and headed off to Jinja to visit Sarah and her daughter Naomi and the 13 foster children who stay there! After a brilliant day of relaxing, chatting, volleyball and general hanging with the kids we headed off to town to stay the night at Calvary Chapel with Bev and Jesse Rich (friends of Melissa's and the church Summer has her visa here with). Brenton found it cool how, if he had still been in Australia, he would probably have been doing the exact same thing at 3pm in the afternoon whilst on holidays - playing volleyball in the lake up in Forster with lots of people!
After a great evening and morning of fellowship we once again jumped into the 4wd and headed off to Soroti to meet up with Daniel and Rachel Graham from the NGO CLIDE (Community Livestock Integration and Development) and to meet the E3 (Equip, Evangelise, Establish) mission team from America with whom we were linking up for the next week in Karamoja. By the way, organisations over here really like acronymns!

It was so awesome to meet the team from America. It's amazing how God calls people from all over the world together to serve in His mission. We had a brief orientation as to what the plan was for the week, had some dinner together, spent some time in getting to know one another and headed off to Nakayot the next morning (we made sure to throw in some true blue Aussie phrases to entertain). We all worked together setting up camp and were quite suprised by the sudden rain storm which came flying in to rain cats and dogs upon us. It was a great team building time.
Nakayot is the central village of the Peace Villages that were established by Dr Val and some key Karamojong elders in the middle of the 'raiding corridor'. This is a strip of valley between two mountains (very beautiful) that men from one tribe wishing to steal cattle from another, pass through. By placing the Peace Villages in this corridor, the men are discouraged from coming through and are sometimes even stopped and told about Jesus! Pretty cool.
We all gathered together with Dr Val and Waffle (married couple whose main ministry this area is) and went through some methods of presenting the gospel in Karamoja for the culture (e.g. tribalism is obviously massive so this can be used in explaining the gospel, e.g. God invites us into his tribe!) as well as looking at what we were all hoping to achieve over the week.
Brenton found it really interesting to learn about the different culture here and how that would alter the way the gospel could best be presented. The plan for the week was to meet with the churches in the surrounding villages and spend time with them encouraging them in their walk with God and to present them with tools to help them gain access to God's word as the communities are mostly illiterate. We were blessed to be given the opportunity to serve the village 'Alakas'.
Each morning we would be up by 6:30am and have a morning devotion surrounded by a lot of worship songs, most of which were in Ngakaramajong. The Karamojong people sing their songs so enthusiastically with lots of clapping and jumping. Their songs are sung with call and reply; the song leader will sing a verse for you to repeat after they sing a section. Devotions were followed by a breakfast of porridge made from corn flour with tea (sometimes coffee!) and a banana.
After breakfast we headed out with our team of 13 on foot to Alakas along rocky paths, up and over a hill, a bit steep in parts, and just over 5km for a round trip. The church in Alakas is led by a young man named Micky who can read and understand both english and ngakaramojong! What a blessing. We split up for our time at Alakas with Brenton teaching with the men and Melissa teaching with the women.
The tools we had at our disposal were mp3 players with the Bible on them in ngakaramojong and some other languages that they could play through and listen to, booklets with study questions that go along with each Bible story on the mp3 player, a cloth with about 30 pictures on it that depicted each Bible story so they could see a picture and be reminded of the Bible story, ngakaramajong Bibles for anyone who could read (these were first printed in 2011 so are recently translated which is cool) and evangelism cubes if people wanted to use them as well. None of the women could read but a few of the men could which was neat so Brenton could give out and use a lot of the resources.
Melissa and the other people in the women's group went through a Bible story (the stories are chronologically in order), using the cloth as an aid and asked 4 questions that could be reproduced for every story to learn, as they couldn't read the study booklet. These were; what was the story about/retell the story, what did we learn/hear about God, what did we learn/hear about people (in the story) and how will we change/be different, after hearing this story. Over the four days of meeting up, we did this again and again as we progressed through the stories (with prayer and a lot of singing accompanying each session as well of course) so that by the 3rd and 4th day, the women were leading the group and using the mp3 player without us as we sat back and enjoyed.
The men's group, Micky included, spent the first day learning about why it is important for christians to be looking at God's word. They spent some time sharing testimonies with each other and Brenton was amazed and greatly encouraged by what was shared by the men; it is a big thing to be willing to share your testimony within a group and be open and vulnerable. The mens group then all listened to the first story on the mp3 player; the creation account. It was awesome to see the men all listening intently to the story of creation; how exciting that those who were iliterate were now able to have access to God's word. Brenton was able to spend time showing Micky and the men in the group how to ask questions of the story using the study book and was very encouraged by the responses of the men in the group to the questions. It was amazing to see these warriors sitting together and allowing themselves to be vulnerable to attack or ridicule from the others as they gave their responses. All throughout the week the people involved with the men's group were encouraged by the willingness of the men to respond to the studies. It was particularly encouraging to be able to help Micky learn how to help the men to learn truths from God's word without having to preach to them.
The E3 group had a 'pass the baton' philosophy for the week; start the week off walking with the Karamojong church in your village and gradually pass the baton off running besides them until they take the baton to finish the race. The long term missionaries and local pastors will keep visiting the village churches to encourage and for accountability.
We both loved the entire week, it was an exercise in faith to leave the men and women at the end in the arms of God and trust the Holy Spirit to complete the work in the hearts of the people. It is God who teaches us and changes us, so prayer is so important for these new friends and brothers and sisters in Christ we have come to love over this last week.

"So what is Apollos? And what is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth." 1 Corinthians 3:5-7
Points for Prayer:

Ø That the people in the villages we ministered to over this week would remain faithful to God.

Ø That they would be using the tools and resources that E3 provided them with to learn more about the awesome God who created them, loves them and seeks a relationship with them.

Ø For the long term missionaries serving these villages; that God would hold them in His hands and give them the strength needed to keep carrying out His mission and desire for all peoples to know Him.

Ø Praise God for such an amazing opportunity to be able to serve with the team from E3 and to be able to serve the Karamojong people.

Ø Praise God for all the members of the teams who went out to the villages and through the sharing of the gospel over 100 people were saved; including a Commander of the warriors in a village who had killed 25 people. He is a changed man and is actively sharing the gospel with those he meets! What a great victory for the gospel!

Ø Safety as the E3 team returns to America and that this time in Karamoja will stay with them and give them courage to share their faith and the good news of Jesus there as well.

Update Melissa

Lake Mburo National Park!

Thursday Jan 16th 2014 - Saturday 18th Jan: Day 2 - 4 in Uganda
Mel:
Waking up to the African sunrise, the Ankole cattle and chirping Ugandan birds has got to be one of the best ways to awaken. It is so similar to back home with all the sounds of nature surrounding you as you lie in bed, yet as you listen you slowly realise that this is a different place and the sounds all around you are that little bit different. The birds singing aren't the magpies, kookaburras, rainbow lorikeets or cockatoos you grew up hearing. The frogs sound so foreign, almost like the shattering of glass. The insects you can hear buzzing and calling out are still grasshoppers but have that slightly different pitch. Yet the familiar steadfast call of the cicadas (pronouned: cic-ar-das or circ-a-das) knits all these new sounds together and serves as an auditory interface between home and here. I walked out onto the balcony to watch the sunrise and saw a big grey monkey in the tree closest just chilling having breakfast (not mine thankfully).

Brenton:
Upon awakening and visiting my bathroom, which has large windows of flyscreen so you can look out, I was quite suprised to look up and see an Impala standing on top of a rock right outside the window staring me down! Goodmorning Africa! Today we did a lot of relaxing, went for a few walks to see some wildlife, swam in the pool that overlooks the animal's water hole and did a night game drive.

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At this park around Lake Mburo in the west of Uganda we saw a lot of beautiful, graceful zebra, adorable warthog, flighty impala, fast topi, hippo near the water that have come out for the night, shy eland, the bush buck, water buck, buffalo (buffalo baby calves are THE cutest!), predator genet cat and the little mongoose! Sadly the lion, hyena and leopards didn't come out to pose but we heard the hyenas when we went for a walk in the early morning of day 3 (Friday). It was so amazing to just walk out and see so many animals that usually you only see on National Geographic or in books!!
I (Mel - although I am sure Brenton is too) am constantly amazed at the creative genius of God to have made so many animals (including us) so very different and in such a clever ways. The Topi for example has longer front legs than hind legs so that they can run very fast. The warthog's tail stands completely upright when it runs so that its offspring can follow it when it runs. The eland is a very shy animal that have fat humps on its back like camels and zebu cattle so it can go for a long time without water. The waterbuck however gets its name because it is always found near water and are quite good swimmers. The hippo have very small ears in proportion to its head but they still have a good sense of smell. They are in water all the day to keep them cool as they have no sweat glands. All the animals are also very instinctive in searching out rock near the water hole that is salty so they can replace their electrolytes as they drink.

It was really cool to see the animals at night, I (Mel) loved seeing the buffalo and watching their body language. They would put their noses high in the air smelling us and some would come forward and then drop back as if deciding amongst themselves who will attack first and keeping the youngster calves in the centre of the mob away from us. The most adorable thing was a month old buffalo calf clinging to the side of its mother. It was so small and round!
What a blessing to experience such a place and how awesome to get to know the people who live and work here and hear stories of the animlals they love from their perspective too. Our ranger guide, Azaria, said his favourite animal is the zebra. Although many like the lion, he said, he thought them to be wasteful killers that will take a zebra for dinner and not finish the meal. It is not good, he said, if you are going to kill your zebra, you eat your zebra!

It has been so amazing to be here and begin our trip here in such a way. On day 3 (Friday) we went on an early morning walk while the grass was still wet and the hyena were still gathering themselves to find a den to sleep the day away. This was a highlight for me (Mel) to see the animals in the early hours. At 11am we left the lodge and did a boat trip around Lake Mburo. We saw a lot of really cool birds; Pide Kingfisher, Fish eagle, Water Thickenee, Golias Heron, African Finfoot, etc. I (Brenton) loved to see the amazing capabilities of the fish eagle as it dived out of sky like a jet with wings folded and snatched what would have been a rather surprised fish out of the water! It's awesome to think of Job 38:39-39:30 where we see how God cares and provides for his creation! It's also amazing to think that this is happening everywhere in creation; whether we see it or not God is providing for His amazing creation and the abilities of His creation are amazing!
We saw a lot of hippos that just poked their heads above the water to see who was coming. Did you know they can hold their breath under water for 6 minutes? We also (much to Brenton's delight) saw one big crocodile and three baby ones! Although the Nile crocodiles aren't nearly as pretty (Brenton's words) as our salties back home! We then drove the 5 hours back to Kampala (capital city of Uganda) and are here now (day 4 - Saturday) til we meet up with Summer my old teammate from Karamoja around lunchtime. Our driver for the past few days was a guy called Nasser, he was really nice and did a great job. One of the great things about Africa is everyone's openness to speak about God. He is a Muslim and when we told him we were Christians we had a great chat about that and what it means to be Christian and the importance of the Bible in our faith, how we can talk to God anytime, not just in church and that with the Bible we know God's exact words to us! Pretty cool.

Also it is so cool how a lot of the cars and trucks along the way have signs on them saying things such as "God is Good" "God is there" "Jesus is Lord" "God bless u" "Jesus is the way to heaven" spirituality is such an integral part of life as a Ugandan, very different to back home.
We'd love you to pray for us over the next few days, here are some points:
 - Pray that God would give us the words to speak into the hearts of the people we meet here. That we would make the most of every opportunity to share our faith.
 - Praise to Him for those we met in Lake Mburo, particularly Azaria, Nasser and the Lodge manager Clemmi and prayer that God would be revealing himself to them.
 - Praise to Him for those we've met in Kampala, particularly Rainer who is staying at the Guest house we are at in Kampala and has been involved in mission in Uganda for some time.
 - Praise and gratitude for keeping us safe so far in our travels and expeditions and for safety as we continue to travel over the next few days.
 - For nerves here that God would give us peace and know His absolute control over all things in all places.
 - For good fellowship as we re-unite with old friends (for me) and new friends (for Brenton).
*From here we drive north to Soroti and Karamoja with Summer, meeting up with friends on the way which will be really fun but also as we enter Karamoja the internet connection is definately less reliable so although we'll try to post something new for you to read, don't worry if you haven't heard anything for a few days.
God bless, Mel & Brenton.

Update Melissa

Arriving in Uganda

Wednesday 15th Jan 2014 - Day 1 in Uganda
Mel:
Having travelled 11,000ish km over 36 hours and getting little sleep during that time, there was more than one reason it felt good to finally walk on Ugandan soil when we arrived at 12:40pm Wed 15th Jan. All of our flights and airport adventures went smoothly, getting to each gate on time while still having being able to to explore the different wonders of Singapore and Dubai airports. We are so grateful for safe travels, everything is in God's hands and wherever we are, he is keeping us. We had the blessing to meet up with Sonja Graml in Singapore, a friend from Australia who is doing ministry work in Singapore for the church and AFES uni student group there. She is so encouraging, it was awesome to hear of her work for God and to get excited together for what we will be doing in Uganda for God as well.
As I walked out of the airport in Entebbe, Uganda and began remembering this place from 2 years ago when I first came, it felt amazing to be back. We were picked up by a friendly Ugandan man named Nasser and we drove straight to Lake Mburo National Park, stopping only twice, once for petrol and twice to get photos crossing over the equator :) It took 5 hours to drive, Brenton got to see a lot of Uganda for the first time. I tried to see too but I confess I was so tired I slept a bit! When we got to the park however everyone was wide awake as we drove through herds of beautiful Impala, water buck, warthogs, zebra and Ugandan cattle (Ankole - see photos) with their amazingly massive horns!
When we got to our Lodge we were shown around by the host and taken to our rooms which are spectacular. Both our rooms are made out of the original rock and have views of the entire park from the balconies. We were warned a few times and very emphatically to lock our doors as the monkeys are "very cute but very naughty" and will come in search of food and find it wherever it is! No food in the rooms then!
After a delicious dinner we both went to our rooms and crashed.
Looking forward to the next few days, greetings from here, Mel.

Update Melissa

Returning to Karamoja 2014 

Hey everyone, it's been a year since I have used this blog but I am pleased to write that in just over 3 days I'll be beginning a new journey to Karamoja! I'll be returning to Uganda for four weeks with Brenton Kilby (see photo below) to visit KACHEP, CLIDE, old friends, meeting new friends and laying some ground work for potential future ministry parterships.
Watch this spot for updates on what we are getting up to, what we are learning (which will be LOTS) and what you can be praying for as we strive to glorify God and worship him, as we seek to encourage and support those serving God in Uganda and helping people to understand the gospel & the good news that is!
Love, Melissa & Brenton.

 

 

update for Jean

Hi everyone!
Dawn Wolf, Uttermost Ministries at the keyboard typing an update for Jean who still isn't 100% after yesterday's bout of "YIKES she is really sick!!!"  As she's reading her own tests and trying to diagnose herself at the clinic yesterday, had a brand new appreciation for this warrior!  Jean is such a trooper!  So much to tell after my first voyage to Karamoja to help the transit back to the States for my dear sister in Jesus.  Didn't realize when I signed up that we would possibly be physically carrying this weary wore torn veteran back to the States.
Karamoja is a truly beautiful land filled with beautiful people.  I see why Jean's heart was captured.  Kachep is an amazing organization!!!  Please throw your support behind it.  They are light in a dry thirsty land with endless need.  Testimony after testimony by the local population will be coming your way via multimedia.  Keep your eyes open for a near future Kachep website, Facebook page... twitter?  If you want instant info you can go to Our Father's House Christian Community Church's website.
www.ofhwi.com-- click ministry tab --uttermost ministries is the spot for information.
Uttermost ministries will also be sending out email updates so feel free to sign up at
uttermostmin@yahoo.com

Extremely excited about the future of Kachep!!!  Pray! Any questions just email uttermostmin@yahoo.com.  Will take us a few days to settle back in.

Pray for Jean's health. tested positive for brucella yesterday, has been suffering with pustules on hand ever since tough calf delivery in village.
pray for all the unfinished business. Jean had so many stops before we reached Kampala, but is now laying in bed sick unable to function.
Pray for preparation for and  safety while traveling!  Heading into this season of much traveling!!!
Pray.  Then pray oh yeah then pray some more. Why? (Ugandans are so interesting.  while talking they will ask a question for you to repeat or answer) because the Bible says pray without ceasing.

Pray for Uttermost ministries as we transition into the role CVM had for the past years.  Pray that the June transition will not be so much as a hiccup for KACHEP's funding and support.

blessings
Dawn Wolf
Uttermost Ministries

Prayer letter, April 2013 - Summer

April 17, 2013
Dear Beautiful Friends,
These last months have been full of God’s provision and care in my life. I am overwhelmed as I consider all that God has done. Thank you for your prayers and support during this time. Please rejoice with me at the provision of the Lord!

New Team:
Simon and Carina Gruber arrived in January, God’s special gift to me. I have been praying for new teammates to be able to continue to live and work in Karamoja. Simon and Carina are God’s perfect provision for my needs. Simon is an enthusiastic outdoors man who loves the Lord and is passionate about teaching God’s Word to the people here. Carina has a gentle and compassionate heart for people and for animals. As a vet doctor she will help us open doors into the community through animal health. I am very grateful for both of them.

Motorcycle:
When I had to say goodbye to our last truck, I wondered what I should do. I looked at the resources I had and decided to buy a motorcycle. A motorcycle is good for traveling between villages and can reach places that a truck can’t. So I bought a dirt bike (Yamaha AG 100) and expected it to be my primary means of transportation for a while (not my most favorite thought, but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do). My first solo ride: Mbale to Kaabong, 416 km one way on the dirt roads of Karamoja. Beautiful scenery, gorgeous blue skies, open spaces. But, not going to lie, it’s not the most comfortable ride in the world (especially for that distance!). And, I’m not really over the ‘fear of death’ aspect of riding a motorcycle, so I can’t quite enjoy the scenery yet. Plus, as God provided new teammates for me, I recognized that it wasn’t the most practical means of getting around. Three people on a motorcycle, though common in Uganda, is not ideal. A motorcycle is a great thing to have as a team resource; it will be used for doing local things (like Bible studies or vet programs in nearby villages), but not for long-distance commutes (especially when we have to bring supplies for 3-4 months at a time). So I praise God for my motorcycle and praise God for His provision, but I also praise God that He enabled me to buy a truck as well. I feel so lavished in God’s love. He is providing not just the bare basics but He is providing for ALL of my needs!

Vehicle:
Today I drove my new land cruiser for the first time! I love sitting behind the wheel, discovering this new machine. It was difficult to find a good vehicle at a decent price in the maze of car lots and con-men, but I prayed and I believe God directed me. My friend Aaron, a mechanic, checked this one for me and gave me the OK, so I went forward with confidence. I look forward to the many adventures I will have in it. I look forward to all the places that God will take me. I look forward to seeing what roads God will open up for me and for the ministry. This vehicle is a physical reminder of the presence and the provision of God in my life. In a week where I am faced with changes and challenges, it is God’s gift to me to remind me that it is He who is keeping me here, He who is guiding me, He who will sustain me. Thank you to every person who contributed to this provision. You have been more than just a blessing; you have been a tool of ministry to me and to the people of Karamoja. I am dedicating this vehicle to the Lord, to be used for Him to the utmost of His glory.
For those interested, I bought a 1993 Land Cruiser VX, turbo, 4x4, 80 series with a rebuilt engine. It has a study roof rack; good tires (with two spares), high lift jack, flood lights and even a small frig! It’s also a really pretty silvery color. I think it will be good for the roads of Karamoja. My only complaint is that it’s an automatic, I would much rather have a manual, but you can’t have everything!

Training:
On January23, I began a ten week training course with the Baptist Mission. My teammates for this training were a delightful mix of people- Simon and Carina Gruber were from Germany, John, James and Elice were from South Sudan (Dinka), Teko Simon, Ngole, Nalobe were from Uganda (Karamoja), the Lewis Family was from America, the Jeriamidass Family was from India/America. How amazing that God would take us from all these corners of the world and put us together in Lotim!?! This is the church. This is the body of Christ. We are united together through the blood of Jesus Christ, through grace, through love. We are called together by one commission “Go into all the world and make disciples…” And we have come together with one purpose, to be strengthened and equipped for the work that Jesus has called us to.

Throughout the course of this training we lived in simple mud huts with thatched grass roofs. We fetched water from the borehole at the bottom of the hill. We lived without electricity of any kind; kerosene lanterns were our only source of light at night. We cooked over charcoal fires and ate only pocho, beans, rice and small amounts of produce. We lived simply so that we could more aptly identify with the peoples around us. There is sacrifice in living simply, there is discomfort, frustration, hardship, but there is also joy and true gratitude for the provisions that we have. There is growth and learning as we humble ourselves and choose to do the hard things.

Days were filled with the tasks of survival, with classes, language learning, building relationships with the communities around us and fellowship with one another. Sometimes my brain hurt by the end of the day due to all of the learning and growing that it was doing. The classes focused on language learning, church planting and spiritual disciplines. They were fantastic. I loved digging into the Scriptures purposely and intensely. I loved listening as the Scriptures were read in four languages and discussed in those languages. I love praying together, all of our voices lifting to the One Living God, yet all of our voices speaking in our own languages.

Two days a week were dedicated to going out to the villages. Our task was to find people of peace and to build relationships with them. It was exciting to see how God directed each one of our paths to different villages, to different people whom God had prepared to welcome us. It was wonderful to build relationships with the local people and to practice language. I was hugely encouraged that by the end of the training I was able to tell a very simplified story of Jesus healing the blind man in Ng’Karamojong- and the people understood it!!! Slowly, slowly I am making progress. Someday I pray that I will be able to speak the Words of Jesus to the people of Karamoja fluently. For today, I rejoice in this small victory and press forward with the task of language learning.

God used our village visits to plant seeds of truth and we pray that those seeds will someday bear fruit. The above picture is of a man named Hunington. Hunington was an elder in a village that Simon and Carina visited, but soon he became a friend to all of us. He was a true “man of peace”, a man of influence that opened his community to us through hospitality. He was also interested in spiritual things and showed a keen interest in the Bible. He had completed the equivalent of third grade and could read at a very basic level, but when we gave him an Ng’Karamojong Bible, he was thrilled. He began to carry the Bible with him everywhere and read passages with enthusiasm. And because he was a respected man, people would listen to him as he read. Though he reads slowly and has no Biblical knowledge, we believe that God will teach him and use him to share his word in this community.

After starting relationships and seeing God at work, it was difficult to leave the Lotim area. This is the area that Tom once dreamed of settling our team, it is an area that I have hoped would someday become our home. But the logistics of living in this remote location are daunting. During the rainy season it will be nearly inaccessible by any kind of vehicle. So we continue to pray for guidance and direction for where we are to settle. In the meantime we rejoice in the partnerships that God has given us for the sake of the Gospel. Here in Kaabong (about 23km from Lotim), God has raised up three local men who have hearts to serve the Lord through church planting. These three, Ngole, Nalobe and Teko Simon participated in the training with us. They are amazing guys and I know that God will use them powerfully to be witnesses to their own people. Please pray for them as they begin their ministry. Pray that even if we are not able to live and work in Lotim, God would send others (such as these) in our place.

The training was an answer to prayer, a provision of God for all of us. It was the perfect introduction for Simon and Carina to begin their work in Karamoja. It was a safe place for us to get to know one another and to see our strengths and weaknesses in action. God is so good! This training provided us with a new beginning for the next chapter of ministry for my team.

Borehole:
In order to live in Lotim for the training, we needed to provide the community with a borehole. This fulfilled a need for the community as well as satisfied the practical needs of the training. Water is a need. Butte Bible Fellowship in Chico raised the money for this borehole but unfortunately, the actual cost of the borehole was much higher than we expected! But it was no problem for God, He was already at work providing through another organization (in association with the Baptists).

They raised the entire amount so I can use the money from Butte Bible for another borehole later down the road. Since I don’t know exactly where God is leading my team in the future, I am very grateful for this borehole money! I am sure that God will use it! Today, take the time to appreciate going to the sink and getting a glass of water.

This is a privilege that most people in the world have never experienced…

The Future:
A few months ago I was meeting with my area leader and she asked me “How has Jesus kept you today?” Jude 1 “To those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ…” This is a most excellent question, one that has stuck with me today. In writing the above I was reflecting on the keeping power of Jesus in my life. He has given me these physical reminders that He is at work. He is keeping me here, He is providing for my needs so that I can physically remain in Karamoja. He has also kept me in my calling. As circumstances have changed, people have changed, situations have changed, God’s calling on my life remains the same: His calling to obedience, to be poured out for the sake of the Gospel, to the glory of His name. He has kept me in His love. In situations I feel lonely, His love is enough. As I learn new culture, His love abounds to me to enable to me to love others. His love is deep and powerful, it is sustaining. I am here because Jesus is keeping me. Apart from Jesus I would not be here, but because of Jesus I am filled with joy and I partake in abundant life.

How is Jesus keeping you today?
As I look at how Jesus has kept me up to this point, I know that He will continue to keep me in His perfect will. But I would appreciate your prayers as we continue to seek God to know where He wants us to go and what He wants us to do. We have enjoyed a positive relationship with KACHEP for this last year, but we feel that God is moving us forward. Our heart is for the people who do not have access to the Gospel, which means we need to move out from Nabilatuk. We will continue to live and work in Nabilatuk alongside KACHEP until God shows us what to do. We are walking by faith.

Thank you for your continued love, prayers and support. I am so glad God put you on my team!
With love,
Summer

more here

step by step

tomoro this gal will finally get back to Karamoja. its been almost a year, yet it still draws me near, forces me to smile, excites me -yet at this season, it causes me anxiety too.

i ruminate how i will be received -now that i am on my final 2 months of being a Ugandan resident. after i leave Uganda 2 june , i'll return as 'just a visitor'; albeit a visitor with a rich history and past joys and struggles in Karamoja -none the less, a visitor. But - so much has changed in my personal life, and thus in the perception of outsiders in 'who i am'. even in my chaos -i hold on to the truth that God is the same yesterday as today and tomoro...

its gotten 'easier' since i arrived in Uganda at the end of last month, pushing forward and visiting friends -both  expat and local. but there are still times of struggle - the best tack seems to admit fault and move on. to take time alone in the word, to enter into worship, to revel at His creation, to exercise regularly and to get rest.

saying thanks, and goodbye

to do what i'm supposed to do, and not more - and not less. to rest in Him, that He is God, He is in control

if i'm square with God -the words will come as needed, when i get in those awkward situations. this is life, and i am in the thick of it. broken and weak, but still His precious daughter. i stand in Him

i'm still growing, still healing -like layers of an abalone shell

pray for me as i journey -that the piki would be ready by the morning, that the roads would be smooth, that my heart would continue to mend

Thanksgiving Celebration in Karamoja

24^th November 2012

As an Australian, I didn't grow up celebrating Thanksgiving as a holiday. After experiencing it with 27 American friends, here in Karamoja though, I am a fan of it! Historically, I am told, the day came about when the Pilgrims (those who fled England because they were being persecuted for their faith) came to America for the first time (If you want to know the year, google it). Many of them did not survive their first year, but the Indians/Native Americans taught them how to cultivate the land for corn, pumpkin and other crops. Those who survived, celebrated by having a meal together with the Native Americans. Thanksgiving was born as they shared all the things they were thankful to God for.

Today, of course ,the old tradition means different things to different people but I love the idea of a day dedicated to praising God for all He does. Plus there is great food involved!

Summer and I had bought a pig for the festivities which was quite an ordeal. We put him (Boris) in the back of our 4wd and travelled the 45 minutes home. When we got back we were preparing his 'sleeping quarters' and he jumped out the window of the truck, and galloped through the thorn fence to our neighbours. As he was escaping one of our cats Mojo, who may have been feeling a bit threatened by this new member, leapt on his back screeching with her claws dug into him. He was squealing, she was growling, needless to say it was truly horrid. We ran over to our neighbours, caught Borisand brought him back, realising that out here, something that we'd tried to keep a bit on the “down-low” (that we had a pig) could never have been kept a secret. Small towns hey...

So we had spent all week debating how to 'do away with him' for the party. We finally decided to fob the responsibility off in the name of animal rights and opted for a bullet in the head. Quick, easy and finished, we thought. Well, all we had to do then, was find a gun.
Early Saturday morning Summer and I walked over to the army barracks to sweet talk our way into getting someone to help us. What we got in reply to "We were wondering if you could please come and shoot our pig for us?" was laughter and a "No". There was a 'but' however, which was that they sent with us 3 men who, we were assured, were "expert pig killers", don't ask me how someone gets that title, but there you go.

Jennifer and me preparing Boris

So, in the end we had a whole pigs worth of meat and I got a good revision session in on my swine anatomy too! There were also other strange and wonderful foods brought by our American guests; sweet potatoes with melted marshmallows on top, green beans smothered in creamy sweetcorn soup, pumpkin pie, deep fried onion rings, and more.



I am thankful for the year I have had here in Karamoja, for the friends I've made and the lessons God has taught me. How great is it that God can bring people from all corners of the world together for his work, redeeming the world back to Himself. I am thankful, so thankful, for John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."



I am thankful that God looked at the world, his creation that rejected him, and was not content to leave us dead in our sins, estranged from him. I am thankful for the gift of life through the death and resurrection of His son, Jesus Christ.A holiday of being grateful :)

"Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

Some of our visitors for Thanksgiving

Grubers in Germany, almost Karamoja



R-Tom, Jean, Joseph, Simon, Carina, Summer, Christina, Daniel -April 2012

 I've been in Germany this week with Simon & Carina Gruber, who will soon join Summer full-time in Karamoja. It was a delight to see them at their home base and answer as many questions and concerns for them - to pray together and feel our collective, strong passion for the work and needs in Karamoja.

This picture was taken at the Kaabong strip in a flux of transition; Summer's friend had just landed -a week later Grubers left following their 2mo survey visit. Summer had been back for around 6 weeks and Melissa had just arrived from Australia. When the picture was taken, Melissa was back with Miriam in Nabilatuk tending to an illness that attacked our chicken flock. Meanwhile, Tom and I were soon leaving to USA for medical & counseling - completely unaware that we would not be returning...

I've gone through many 'what ifs' since this day - one of the biggest ones -would I have ever left Uganda at April's end if I knew all of the changes in my life and work? would I have, once again, tried to 'tough it out' on my own and 'make it work'? I'm at peace, and increasingly so, that God has a plan - He just keeps making it more clear to me each step of the way. 

So, now another transition will take place this next two months - Melissa will depart and the Grubers will return. Give Summer wisdom and stability. Pray for this team to continue to listen and hear the Lord's still voice as He urges us when to turn left and when to go right.

Irish

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat
Go raibh an ghaoth go brách ag do chúl
Go lonraí an ghrian go te ar d'aghaidh
Go dtite an bháisteach go mín ar do pháirceanna
Agus go mbuailimid le chéile arís,
Go gcoinní Dia i mbos A láimhe thú. 



May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

from here 

hope (center) across the street…

Update by Micey

By micey

Hope Center
After we cleaned at Ignace Deen, we continued the field trip with a stop at the Hope Center. The center is a building belonging to the hospital that a team renovated and brought up to modern standards. It’s purpose is to house patients when they are ready for discharge but still have a lot of follow up appointments. The folks who don’t live locally can stay here while undergoing outpatient treatment.

I enjoyed visiting the folks at the center. It’s really nice to see kids getting back to normal and recovering so nicely. The above boy is one of the many cleft lip repairs we’ve done. It’s such a great joy to be part of this ministry!
His… Michelle
Philippians1:20 

Melissa Graham

15^th July 2012 Prayer Points

Please be praying for Summer and I as we head back to Karamoja for:

            - safe passage and fair roads

             - solid learning as we visit the OPC missionaries again on Monday and spend the day learning the ins and outs of our wonderful 4WD vehicle from Bob the amazing handyman mechanic there.

            - me as I work with 10 women from the community next week to revive ethnoveterinary medicine in KACHEP starting with Neem oil production. Wisdom to make this project sustainable and something the community can take on themselves and benefit from with the eventual aim of not needing KACHEP to fund them in it.

            - opportunities to speak truth and light into our community and where God places us every step of the way, continued storying and bible study groups; that God would open the doors for us to spend more time in the manyatas/villages than we have been.

           - praise and glory to God for our Thursday Bible study with all the KACHEP members, that it is going really well and that as we read the Bible together in English and Karamajong, the Word is speaking into the lives of everyone who comes and is clearly growing them in their faith and knowledge of our great God and Saviour.

            - the growing friendships between us and the Karamojan people of Nabilatuk

             - Miriam, as she heads back to Germany and for wisdom and guidance and fun times with friends and family as she finishes her studies there.

             - Alyce and the blessing she was and the fun we had together (love you sis)

            - Tom and Jean in America

            - partnerships with new friends at OPC and CLIDE (Dr Val)

             - raising up new team members for the harvest of Karamoja

             - praise and immense gratitude for everyone here in Uganda supporting us and for everyone overseas supporting us; Calvary Chapel, esp. Bev and Jesse Rich, CVM, esp. Fred Van Gorkom, Pioneers International, Unichurch (Wagga Wagga) and our friends and families.

Alyce in Karamoja

14 July 2012
Last week my sister Alyce came to visit us in Nabilatuk! I want to thank her for being an amazing help and blessing to me and to the team. She arrived to find Summer and Miriam malaria stricken and most of KACHEP out or sick too. It was such a crazy week with so many fun things that happened!

I had just spent the week with Dr Val and upon hearing that my beloved teammates were practically dying in Nabilatuk and so probably wouldn't make it to come get us, Val and I went and picked Alyce up (Mon 2nd) from the small airstrip in Moroto where she was flying into. So 2 hours from Nabilatuk and not sure how we're going to get back there, we hear that Miriam had driven up to a hospital near us to get tested for malaria and bruscellosis. So we spent the morning in Moroto, Alyce did some souvenir shopping and we had lunch while we waited to get another update of the situation. Miriam came to Moroto, picked us up and somehow we arrived safely in Nabilatuk later that afternoon.

Miriam's malaria count was 180. People have malaria at anything higher than zero. People feel sick and unable to get out of bed at a count of 4. Miriam had 180 and drove 240 km that day, she shouldn't have been walking or talking let alone driving. Hmm the things you discover after the fact.

The day after, Miriam was on an intravenous drip with malaria medication and fluids for extreme dehydration, rotated for three days. On the second night the IV line came out and when she went back to the clinic to get it put back in, the nurse had to jab her in about 10 different places because her main veins had mostly all collapsed. It was a scary time for all of us, especially Summer and I in fear for her, let's put it that way.

So Alyce came in perfect timing and we were still able to spend quality time together despite the crazy circumstances.

Alyce came bearing gifts. I've got a licorice allsort in my mouth.
(in case you were wondering)

 Wednesday was, for all who are American or who have ever watched an American TV show would know, 4th of July, aka Independence Day. Alyce and I tried to make the day as special as we could for Summer. We have of course never celebrated the day so didn't really know what to do but we still had fun. Together the three of us (between checking on Miriam) drew an American flag (50 stars & 13 stripes and all!), made garlic bread and pizza for dinner and cinnamon rolls and a peach pie for dessert (which took most of the afternoon to do as all we have in the way of a kitchen here is a small fire), had fun singing national anthems together, Summer sung hers very passionately and played cards (4 corners, which became a game Alyce loved to play but never won until the last day she was here :). 

Summer, Alyce and I making the American flag

Alyce's swishy skirt.

On Friday we started a project that we'd been wanting to do for a while but was catalysed by the fact that we wanted to share it with Alyce who would be leaving the following Wednesday and Miriam who would be leaving the following weekend. So we got together with our Karamojan girls (Nabor, Valentina and Christine) and we all sewed traditional K'jong skirts! See photos :) We bought 7 large cloths of blanket-like material all of different patterns to make 7 skirts for us all. Working together we cut the blanket in rectangle panels and sat down and made 7 skirts that had 14 panels in each, all completed in a day! It was sooooo much fun! We are officially Karamajong now with our swishy skirts :) The best part about it was seeing Valentina, Nabor and Christine really get into it as well. They were just as excited, if not more excited about the whole thing!

This is me choosing the best cuts of donkey meat for dinner.

On Saturday we went to a local market and bought donkey meat for dinner. We were planning to go out to a nearby mountain and have a picnic under the great expanse of K'jong stars but then Miriam (who was on the mend by this stage) got a message inviting us to another 4th of July celebration (only it was the 7th of July) with some missionaries from America with the Presbyterian church who live about an hour away. From now on I will refer to them as the OPC missionaries for convenience :)

Our cooking stove.

So change of plans! We took our donkey meat with us but they had prepared hotdogs, so there was plenty of food to go around :)

Sunday was another crazy fun out of the blue opportunity in which Summer, Alyce and I went to a prison in Namalu, about 1hr from Nabilatuk. I gave my testimony of how Jesus has changed my life and Summer spoke about Zacchaeus the tax collector and how, although he was a thief,  he was forgiven when he made the choice to change his life and give back what he had stolen, asking Jesus for forgiveness, (Luke 19:1-10) "For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost." I won't mention that we didn't get home til around 9:30pm because we put petrol in our diesel land cruiser and then had to empty and replace it all again. Fun times!!

On Tuesday the three of us went to a local primary school and we were warmly welcomed with a song from the students with bongo drums and impressive harmonies. Alyce is a primary school teacher at home and so had brought 200 pencils that the students from her school had donated to give to this Karamajong school. We spent some time with the whole school (around 200 students) in their assembly and then we went into a classroom that had 20 kids of equivalent grading to Alyce's Australian students.

 Alyce's students had all drawn pictures for these children and wrote a few sentences about themselves. Alyce had taken photos of each of her students and attached them to the drawings so the K'jong could see their Australian student counterparts. It was nice to see their faces devouring these photos of fair, blonde haired, blue eyed children and read about their families and pets and favourite sports. We got the kids to write messages back to the Aussies with things like, My name is..., I have... people in my family, In my garden is... (all the children will have family gardens they work in with maize or sorghum or beans in them, etc.), at home we have...animals, etc. Then they also drew drawings and we took photos of them with their pictures. It was really fun to have such a reciprocal activity and I can't wait to hear what Alyce's Australian students say when they see cute Karamojan children holding up the drawings they have drawn! It'll probably blow their minds to think of their drawings all the way in Africa!

Tuesday night we had a massive party together with the KACHEP members and the four of us singing and dancing.

 We were not really celebrating but commemorating Miriam for her time serving in Karamoja and also saying goodbye to Alyce as well, as she flew out the following morning. I'm not going to lie, I cried when she left; having family visit you in such a place as Karamoja gives you a teasing taste of home that is both wonderful and horribly sad when the time comes to an end.

For a short time we were four! Now as I write this I am down country in Jinja and when we return to Karamoja tomorrow (Sunday), we will be two.