In Their Own Words

Hello, friends! We are having a fabulous time here in Nansana! In case I didn’t explain earlier, Nansana is a “village” just outside Kampala. Now, when I say village, what I really mean is a smaller city on the outskirts of a big city. Last time I was in Uganda (in 2002) Nansana felt much more quiet and rural than Kampala, but the sprawl from the city has reached far and wide.

For me, being in Nansana feels like a homecoming. I lived with a family here for almost five months in ’02 and I’ve been longing to visit them again ever since. The village looks so different now; all the landmarks I used to navigate by have changed. “MaTractor Road” is where I lived, so named for a giant tractor that used to sit on the corner. The tractor is gone now, but thankfully everyone knows where the tractor used to be, so finding my way "home" the other day wasn’t difficult (reminds me of Rhode Island!) Words can’t describe how wonderful it was to see my family again. I have been teary-eyed ever since, wishing it didn’t have to be so long between visits…

The team has been split into three this week, working with Come Let's Dance (CLD) on various projects in Nansana and beyond. The group reaching out to vulnerable women and children in the Katonga slum has probably had the most challenging experience—they have been going door-to-door with medical supplies, playing soccer with the kids, treating minor cuts and scrapes, and working to set up a sewing shop that will train and empower vulnerable women and girls from the neighborhood. The stark reality of life in the slums has been shocking and painful for many of the students. Please keep them in your prayers.

Here are some pictures from the slums:


The group that has been running a youth leadership development program through a local church has probably had the most hopeful and exciting experience. They have been meeting daily with about 25 “youth” (ages 16-25) from the neighborhood to, among other things, give them a forum to express and articulate their dreams for the future, study Scripture inductively, and lead their peers in discussion and Bible study. They have had some wonderful conversations with the youth and have been enjoying the program thoroughly. Please pray for them as they continue to invest in these relationships.

Some shots from the leadership program:


The experience of the last group, working with abandoned or orphaned children at a “Kidz Home” in the neighboring village has been somewhere in the middle. We have grown very attached to the children and have enjoyed lavishing love on them at every opportunity. We also love the mission of this home, which intentionally does not call itself an “orphanage.” In conjunction with the sewing shop and other CLD-affiliated community development programs, their long-term goal is to reconcile these children with parents who have abandoned them and/or family members that refused to take them in when they were orphaned. But the days are long and exhausting and we have felt overwhelmed at times by the immensity of the need and the shortage of hands, by illness, and by the painful stories these children carry with them. Please pray for us too!

Some shots from the Kidz Home:

Every night (almost) we have been practicing the discipline of the “Examen” together, asking each other when we felt close to God during the day and when we felt distant. What has struck me each night is how easily we are able to identify the places in our day when we felt close to God—He seems to be showing up everywhere! We have seen Him in the beauty of this land, the warmth and hospitality of the people we’ve met, His power to heal and transform—in a million little ways every day that I could write pages about.

As I thought about this post, however, I began to realize two things: First, those of you reading this most likely have one or two specific people you are following and you might like to hear a little something from them. Second, my view of our adventures is obviously limited by my perspective and experiences—so allowing others to express what they are experiencing may help to “flesh out” the picture a little more.

So—in their own words—this is how the team members have chosen to sum up their experience thus far. (I limited them to one sentence each, so they asked me to include a general “shout out” to parents, friends, and family—they love you so much!)

Meredith: My heart is awakening to the beauty, love, and courage of these people and our God—“Mukama ye bazebwe—Praise the Lord!”

Teresa: We have seen the span of hope to despair and I am being shown what it is to find Jesus at each point along that continuum.

Miranda: I have a fuller understanding of what Jesus must have felt like when he said, “Let the little children come to me,” and to my loving, yet concerned, family—I have contracted no obscure diseases. 

Tracy: If ever I have seen the might of God, it is now, through the rescue of precious children and the empowerment of young people. Momma and Dad, have no worries, I am doing well.

Tati: The faith and hope of these people have both humbled and inspired my walk with Jesus; I want to know Him like they do. Mommy, I’m great and there’s still a 90% chance of me going back to school in September!

Marie: I knew God was great, but to see how He is working in the lives of the Ugandans as well as our own is transforming and expanding my love for and amazement of our Lord Jesus.

Abby: In only five days my whole understanding of faith and the power of God has changed. The Ugandans will continue to inspire me day after day.

Danielle: This trip has started great and has kept getting better, and I miss you very much but am very happy at the same time.

Sarah S: The sweetest song I’ve heard so far: the sing-along cooing of an orphan baby to “God Is So Good” as he drifted off to sleep in my arms.

Tom B: I am exceptionally happy with how the trip is going. The Team is awesome. We are hoping to help a women to start a charcoal business and also invest in a sewing business for street women. Brink Family, send my best to Chris and Yanna. Love.

Greg: I have been profoundly inspired and challenged by what God is doing among Ugandan youth and in building his church here, and I am finding that I feel very free to be myself in this culture.

Katie: In the past few days, God has shown me the despair in the Ugandan slums – children running around in muck without food or clothing, Ugandan women desperate to survive to the next day, and ridiculous amounts of disease. But God has also shown me the beauty of the Ugandan people – their joy and their hope. God is good.

Kelly: By all human measures the Katanga slums are a place of despair, sickness, and starvation. I have never encounter people in such a desperate situation, nor have I encountered people of such great faith.

Amanda: Since my arrival in this beautiful place, God has used Uganda and its people to teach me that God’s timing is purposeful, His will is perfect, His presence is comforting, His goodness-abounding, His Spirit-with me, His reign-mighty, His kingdom-victorious, His love-unending and His grace-amazing.

Becky: This country is so beautiful, the people are so friendly and God has been showing me his love and joy for the orphan kids and I really wish to bring one home with me.

Maghan: I now understand what it means to play in the rain, I now understand what it means to dance when worshiping, I now understand why my friends from Africa yearn to go home.

Ken: Working in the slums I have seen enormous poverty and injustice, but seeing Christ amidst the brokenness has led to an enormous amount of spiritual and intellectual growth.

Yeona: It’s been inspiring to see the hand of God upon this beautiful country—the stories of redemption in the midst of seemingly hopeless situations have led us to sing praises alongside the Ugandans. “Katonda mulunge—God is so good!”

Tina: One of my favorite parts of this trip has been seeing and hearing God through the local Ugandans—some who are former slum community kids, some who are former orphans, most of whom are no older than 24 years old, and all whose lives and stories of hope and faith inspire my own.

Thank you, friends! We leave Saturday for the North, and I'll update you again from Gulu! Please pray for safe travel and for quick bonds of friendship to be formed with the 15 Ugandan college students from IFES chapters throughout the country who will be joining us for this leg of the journey.