I forgot to mention yesterday that our home base each evening was the Sheraton in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. While at our hotel, it was as if we were in any major city in the world. It was when we drove outside the gates of the hotel that the scenery changed.
Monday, April 29 - Of course no trip would be complete without souvenir shopping! So all 100 of us divided into our team buses (8 teams altogether) and went shopping at a couple of markets. The vendors were local people who sold primarily hand crafted items. My personal favorite items were the paper bead bracelets and necklaces, and the carved sandstone figurines.
Interestingly, $1 US = 2500 Uganda Shillings - Thank goodness our team leader gave us an easy exchange rate chart so we didn't have to think as hard when negotiating prices with the vendors.
After a scrumptious lunch of PB&J (or Nutella if you wanted to get fancy :) on the bus, we headed to our first stop of the week - a chance to watch The Greatest Journey Discipleship Program being taught to previous shoebox recipients!
You see, the receiving of the shoebox is just the beginning. Over that past several years, Operation Christmas Child has been able to provide a fantastic 12 week discipleship program which the shoebox distributing churches are able to offer to the children who receive shoeboxes. As I will talk about more tomorrow, the shoebox is a tangible example of the "no-strings-attached" gift we receive when we accept the grace and forgiveness of the gospel of Jesus.
"The Greatest Journey" discipleship program takes the children through what it means to be a disciple of Christ now that they have decided to follow him.
We arrived Lighthouse Bible School, to see The Greatest Journey being taught. The school is supported Streams of Life Church. The school enrolls children from around the community, including several Sudanese boys who were rescued from the Sudanese civil war.
Since 2008, Ritah Nihundo, the children's director of the church, has seen the children's ministry grow from 50 children to 300 children! The church and school are in a slum area. Ritah describes her ministry as a "ministry of love" to children from very poor and many single parent homes - where children can often feel abandoned and unloved
The church actively reaches out to the community - to build trust among the parents in order to minister to the children. Every Thursday night, children in the church are trained in evangelism and sent out into the community to reach the unchurched.
Sooo.... back to "The Greatest Journey" lesson -
In a very small classroom, our team of 12 got to sit among the kids as "Teacher Ritah" taught the lesson. I got to sit by Jolene and Esther - who you see here.
Before the lesson, worship and praise was led by Victoria, a young student - around 13 or 14 years old. Bernard, the school principal played the guitar as we sang. The worship was genuine, and the children were truly talking with God as they sang. You could tell - you could see it in their faces.
As you can see below, my friend and fellow OCC Area Coordinator from NC participated in the role-playing of Adam and Eve, and the Serpent an the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Can you see
the serpent looking over Janie's shoulder?
We had a great time with the kids during and after the lesson. As we de-briefed on the bus ride back to home base, the following observations were made by different members of our team:
1. The kids were so engaged in the story - soaking it in - really grasping the lesson - perhaps in a way that we don't always see in our churches in America?
2. The children just wanted hugs, love and attention - perhaps in the area and the homes they love in (single working parents, often with many children - they don't often receive that.
3. The kids are bright - thriving in spite of lack of supplies in the classrooms. They are learning with what they have. Could we in American learn something from that?
4. This church and school may possible be the only place some of these kids get any positive reinforcement - and also one of few places they hear about the love of Jesus.
When you boil it all down, are we all that very different, American and Ugandans? We are all yearning for love and affirmation. We are all God's children.
What can we do in Uganda and at home?
"Let your light shine in front of others. Then they will see the good things you do and they will praise your Father who is in Heaven." Matthew 5:16
Are you "Smelling Good For God" today? :)
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