The place He has led me to...

My flight to Uganda

Wednesday night my flight was changed unexpectedly. I was a little upset, because I thought I was going to have to leave America a day later, which would eat into my time here. I stayed on the phone with a booking agent for an hour trying to get it all straightened out. Finally my flight was booked for earlier the same day I was suppose to leave. What I didn’t know was that God’s plan was in effect. The only part of my trip that changed was having 3 layovers instead of 2. I had to fly out of Atlanta to Detroit, Detroit to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Kigali, Kigali to Entebbe, when I was just supposed to fly straight to Amsterdam. On my hour and thirty-five minute flight, I got to minister to a very nice man named Bill. 

I pulled out my camera bag (which doubled as a purse) to get my chapstick. The seat was empty between me and Bill. When he saw my bag, he asked if I was a professional. I told him that I just used it to take pictures of my kids and I was headed to Uganda to take pictures during my trip. So he asked why I was doing over there. This was my chance to share about Jesus and Ekubo Ministries. After sharing my life story, he was amazed by where I had come and where I am now. He asked if he could share my story with his 14 year old daughter. “Of course”, I told him. What a great way to share what God has done in my life, and so many others. How He can take nothing and turn it into something. Beauty from ashes.


Day 1 in Uganda

My flight landed in Uganda at around 10:30 p.m. I didn’t get out of the airport till around 12:30 a.m. Christie, George, my sponsored child Ali, Ritah, Viola, Godfrey, and Kakumba were there waiting on me. I squeezed the kids a few times and we were on our way. We reached home at about 2 am. Last time we stayed, Matt and I had to sleep on a mattress in the floor. Oh, but not this time. I have my own little space. 

Looks like a bed for a princess with all the mosquito nets around it and after not sleeping for 2 days during my flight, I thought I was gonna fall out. NOT. Christie and I stayed up talking until about 3 am. She got up and washed the bottle she planned on using when Josiah got up to eat. Right after she got it washed she literally flies across the floor from the doorway of the kitchen to the chair screaming, “there is a rat in the corner”. We sat paranoid for about 30 minutes. Every little sound we hushed. Later she said “you think I should wake Josiah up to give him a bottle?” I said “no just let him sleep.” It was not 5 minutes later when I heard the little runt. She got him out of bed. Of course I wanted to feed him, so she got the bottle ready and I fed him. After he was fed he was a happy boy. So Josiah and I had a great conversation until it was time for bed, then momma wasn’t happy, because little Magera wasn’t having any sleep. In fact, he stated he wasn’t going to bed, but after a long bout with the darkness and the bed, he proceeded to go to sleep. Poor baby. 


Day 2 in Uganda

I didn’t wake until around 11 am. I was so exhausted I believe I could have slept the whole day. George informed me I had a lot to do today. I started off with a cup of hot African tea, something I missed so much after being back in the States. The milk here is so much better. After you have fresh milk, you never can go back to that homogenized milk. Later went went to a NGO audit. I learned so much about the people here working on the ground. They each discussed what they have done and then the auditors evaluated each of their strengths and weaknesses. I was humbled by the choir director, Grace. When asked what motivated him, he says “I don’t want to be paid, all I care about is those kids”. My heart melted. He is awesome at his job. He is a great man. 

Those kids have come a very long way since I saw them perform last June. They are so happy and I truly believe he has contributed to that. They could go far. They could have a better life. They could change the future of this village, but you know what stops them? Money. They need costumes to perform. With costumes they could perform for fundraisers and Ekubo Ministries could have another way to support the ministry. How disheartening is it that money could stop the livelihood of those kids? The artist, Moses, had a smile as wide as this country. He didn’t have many questions asked because when he started talking, he answered them all. He was very up front with everyone. He was so educated. When he left, I asked George, “where did you get him from?” George says “I found him on the streets”. That is God, people, and what a divine appointment that was. The others were educated as well, but they didn’t stand out as much as those guys. My heart was full when I left that meeting.

Later I went on a walk with Moses to see if I could find some mangos. What I didn’t know was that they are out of season, but we enjoyed the walk anyway. We stopped by several homes. We stopped by Zziwa’s biological parents’ home. They were so happy to see me again. They talked about the wedding ceremony Matt and I had here back in June. Everyone was wondering where Matt was. They miss him and so do I. I wish he could have come this time. They gave me some fried G-nuts and we were on our way. 

When we got back home the choir wanted to perform for us. I watched in amazement. These kids have so much talent. The smiles on their faces were priceless. They love what they do. By the end of the performance it was dark so we walked back to the house. How wonderful this place is. I have missed it so much. I feel at home here. I don’t care about running water or a cell phone. I don’t even care about not having a bathroom. I just love the Lord and the place He has led me to. Amen.

(one of my sponsored children, Ali, who is also George & Christie's son)