April showers bring May flowers is an expression typically
used in Michigan to describe the coming of spring. Well, in Uganda April showers bring flooding,
treacherous roads, and absenteeism in the school and in the Bible studies. Oh, the joys of being a missionary in
Uganda! We have learned to adjust and
accept these conditions as being part of the culture we live in. Even though
these are not our plans, we can trust that they are the plans of the God who
sent us to minister here. Job experienced much turmoil, but he yielded to the
sovereignty of God. Job 42:2 “I know
that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.” (NIV) We can be at peace knowing God is in control.
Absenteeism is not totally due to the flooding, but due to
the fact that the rain is here and it is time to plant the crops. The women, children and some men spend early
mornings and late afternoons planting in the gardens. Some gardens are near the homes of the people
that tend them and other gardens are some distance from the homes of the
people. We stress how important school
and Bible study is, but in the end food measures pretty high in order of
importance as well.
The close of the month of April also brings to a close the
work that the young lady Kendall was doing in the school. She is returning home for good on May 20th
and we will be making a trip to Kampala to bring her to the airport for her
flight home. To be honest with you we have spent a lot of time worrying about
her and checking to make sure she is Ok.
We never had a daughter of our own, so this is God’s way of letting us
know what we missed out on. “Worry” She was a joy to have around and we as a
team shared many of laughs, mostly at my expense.
Term I at the school came to an end on April 24th
along with the completion of classroom number four. The students finished their exams and then
the school became a ghost town. There is
only a three-week break until term II starts so we will enjoy the break from
paying teachers salaries, buying lunches, and from tracking all the orphans to
make sure they are in attendance at school.
The P-7 students will meet with Simon and I over the next
couple of weeks to assemble at least seven of the ten desks for them to use in
their new classroom when class resumes on May 18th. The school is closed, so the cooks are no
longer there. Janine and I provide the
lunch for the P-7 students while they worke on the desks. Michelle Obama would not be happy with us
because we provide a mendazi “doughnut” and a soda to each student for their
lunch. Not very high in nutritional
value! But, the joyful looks on their faces say how pleased they are with the
choice we made.
Thanks to 4 of the 15 P-7 students that showed up on their
school break, we present to you the 1st two completed desks of 10 from
the Vocational Training at St. Paul’s Learning Centre, Naigobya! 4 Proud students and 1 proud Omusomesa
(teacher)!
Janine wrapped up another beginner class of sewing and
beading this month. I will warn you the
women are becoming very skilled at making various products like: pocket books,
table runners, aprons, etc. which we will sell in the States and in
Uganda. I believe there is enough to go
around while we are home visiting several churches. All the proceeds will be used to replenish materials
used and to buy one or two more sewing machines and begin some micro businesses.
Speaking of Janine, I want to share a story with you about
her. A few weeks ago Janine and I were
in Jinja town doing some shopping and then planned on meeting at a coffee shop
when finished. While I was sitting
outside the coffee shop drinking a Mocha waiting for Janine another missionary
walked up to me and he was clearly amazed at what he had just seen. He said, “Bruce, I just saw your wife down
the street and I had to go back and take another look to make sure it was
her. She was praying on the street with
a local Ugandan.” I replied,
“Really”! He said he could never do
that, pray with another person at random, and on the street. He also shared that he could share about
Jesus, but not pray with someone. Of
course, I explained the importance of praying with someone whenever called to,
or if someone wanted to accept Christ he would need to pray with the individual
on the spot. As difficult as it might
be, sometimes we need to go beyond our comfort zone.
Janine and I want to
warn you and also ask for forgiveness in advance for newsletters we will be
sending in the next couple months. We
will be consumed with entertaining and traveling, so our time will be short and
the content of the letters might be a little boring. Please forgive us!
Beginning in May we are going to be swamped with extra work
not closely related to our work in the village.
We have a sea container coming mid May that is filled with school supplies
and items for ECM and Afayo. We will
gladly travel to get the belongings from Kampala to Jinja and then Naigobya
because we have a school full of excited kids and teachers. We anxiously will pick up the Actis family who
will be joining us and helping with The Afayo Project. We will spend time helping them find their
way, find and finalize a home and find furniture for their home. We will be
making numerous trips back and forth to the airport picking up and transporting
guests. Mark Luckey is coming to spend
some time in Uganda and in the village. Mark
has arranged for a team of teachers to come and spend some time teaching at St.
Paul’s Learning Centre June 12th through
the 24th. We will be bringing
them to stay with us in Jinja and take them each day to the village so they can
teach.
Janine and I will be brought to Entebbe on the 26th
so we can fly home for furlough.
Wow! Good thing is, we will be so
busy that time will pass quickly. We are
so excited to come home for a visit and can’t wait to see everyone and share
our experiences. God is Good!
Our Prayer Needs
*God’s intervention
and execution on all the upcoming plans
*Our work
permits get validated
* Please
pray that Hearts would be open to hear & understand God’s message
*Pray we
would be effective to communicate God’s love and truth with them better on all
levels.
*Safety
as we travel on the roads here.
Because He Lives!
Bruce
& Janine
