Monday, December 26, 2011

Como se Dice?






Back when Bev and I were studying Spanish my favorite phrase was "Como se dice?" It means "How do you say?"
As I sit here on Boxing Day, one of eighteen official Uganda holidays, como se dice come to mind.

I have had an incredible month. Going to court, teaching School of Ministry. teaching Revelation at Wednesday night bible study, filling in for Kelli as the youth group leader and working with all the kids and adults on the Christmas program.

How do you say to God just how great a blessing is life in Christ? Jesus has guided and carried me through some difficult moments in a corrupt court to where I have come out smiling. Not because justice was served but because He is Lord!

How do you say to a group of young men what a privilege it is to teach them the Word of God and see them gain insight far beyond what they were taught in class?

How do you say to the youth how much fun it is to be with them and see their enthusiasm to become who Jesus wants them to be?

How do you say how proud you are of the singers, actors, dancers and drummers who gave up four hours every day for the last month to bring the joy and good news of Jesus Christ to men and women in prison? These kids all know loneliness and isolation because they are orphans, abandoned or HIV victims. The adults have felt the pain of losing children to sickness and they help these kids by giving their hearts to them.

The joy that Christmas brings is not found in traditions that bring comfort to heavy hearts that long to relive their past to find peace and see lost family again.

No, to me the joy of Christmas is found in the heart of Jesus who teaches us to love those in the present celebration. Making hearts light with new faces and opportunities to rejoice in Him.

I pray your Christmas was a blessed one, knowing Jesus fully today with the expectation of knowing Him even better tomorrow!

Como se dice Merry Christmas? Feliz Navidad. Jesus te ama!

Monday, December 5, 2011

A Lesson About Money

I had a meeting today in Kajjansi to settle a court dispute. To make a long story short I was ordered by a minor court to pay a former pastor 3,500,000 shillings and another man's widow 1,500,000 shillings. I couldn't help feeling bitter about the whole corrupt court process but I had been asking God to remove the bitterness.

As the court officials came and then the people who were to receive the money, they were all in a jovial mood. Only I was annoyed. But as the meeting and day wore on I started to feel the Lord reminding me that this is not a life or death matter but it is a matter of the heart. Cheer up, you still have Me. So I let Jesus lighten my mood.

By the time I paid the money a great weight was lifted off my shoulders. Then I noticed the most amazing thing. The farther the money got away from me the closer I drew to Jesus and the bitterness left me.

But at the same time that I was being released the people who were receiving the money were being put into bondage. They stopped laughing and started frowning. They started to grow agitated the closer the money got. By the time they actually received it they did not speak to each other and began to bicker.

As we traveled home Steven, Moses and I were down right happy and joyful. But I am sorry that the others were down right miserable. The desire of my heart was to draw near to God and forget about the monetary loss. "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desire of your heart." It is so true.

Jesus you are always enough for us!

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Warning Labels

Warning labels are put on all kinds of stuff these days. Cigarettes(Warning: The Surgeon General has determined that smoking may be hazardous to your health). Did he actually do surgery to discover this? Wouldn't it be simpler to just tell the truth? Like this. Warning: only a fool would set dry leaves on fire and put them in his mouth, and think he looks cool and intelligent.

Alcohol (Warning: Consuming alcohol may affect your unborn child.) Hey try some real truth. Warning: The contents of this bottle will not make you better looking, richer or more popular. It may cause you to run your pickup into a bridge abutment or shoot your friend but hey that's what Saturday nights are for. And your kids ain't bailing you out!

Prescription medicines,(Warning: This medicine may cause drowsiness.) That was on a bottle of sleeping pills. Hey, if it doesn't can I get my money back at the all night pharmacy?

Plastic bags, (Warning: Suffocation hazard. Do not put over your head.) Face it the people who would put a plastic bag over their heads are women trying to keep their hair dry and kids who don't know how to read yet. Women lose all sense when it comes to hair styles anyway and kids would better understand if the bag read Warning: Do not place over your head because I said so!

Blogs should come with warnings as well.

Warning: The following material may be of an offensive nature to somebody.

Warning: The following material may or may not contain humor or any sign of intelligent thought.

But the real warning for life should be written on our hearts.

Sin. Warning: Sin kills. 100% effective. Kills the soul on contact. It may also kill within a radius of acquaintances or blood relatives. Only known antidote is Jesus Christ. Jesus must be taken internally. External application of Jesus may prolong life but will not save.

Have you taken Jesus to save you from the poison of sin?

For immediate relief call 537 877 2837 (Jesus Saves)Tell the operator the poison you taken and accept the cure. Do it now!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Pressure

Yesterday started with a hunt for pressure, air pressure. Since Monday is the ministry's "official" day off (the sign that hangs on the gate says "Please we do not work on Monday") we had decided to go to Kampala just to run some errands and enjoy the day together. As we were loading into the car Tom informed me that the left rear tire was low. No problem! We'll get pressure on the way. I should have known better.

You see the power company Umeme, which means power in Kiswahili, can't make enough of their product to meet the demand. So every third night we are without umeme, I mean power, from 7:00pm to 7:00am or until whenever Umeme, the power company, restores umeme the product. Sunday night was Jinja's night! We went to no less than 12 fuel stations but none had pressure because they had no power. I offered to go back to the house and use our air compressor but that idea was vetoed by the others as an unneeded delay. So we drove to Kampala on the low tire. The trip was uneventful with the exception of one large puddle (it was raining and had rained all night) that nearly dragged us off the road but Bev, the designated driver for the day, handled it beautifully. Eventually we found a station with pressure in Kampala and filled our tire. All the people were happy as well as the tire.

But the search for pressure got me thinking about the pressure in our lives. We face all types of pressure. This week I spoke to someone who had just been informed of their status. That means they are HIV positive. And so is their spouse. The pressure on them is so great to accuse and blame each other. "You did this to me!" "How could you?" The pressure to keep this news secret is great. Don't let anyone know, pretend it is not there, don't let the kids know. Deny, deny, deny. The external pressure that the world exerts on people can crush them if we don't have the internal pressure that comes from Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

The world says we, like the tire, need to run at full pressure and cannot be useful if we are anything less than full. The tire showed me that this idea isn't true. We serve God with all our lives. Some days we have it all, full pressure, but other times we have only a third of what we should have. We can still continue though.

Illness, whether HIV or Parkinson's or a common cold, might make us feel unable to be useful but we can still serve our Lord, Jesus. To our minds it is better to serve when we are full of health and vigor but we forget that God's strength is displayed in our weakness. The underinflated tire is in danger of failing and needs to have more air put into it. When it is filled properly it can conquer the road with its potholes and puddles and carry the load with ease. Even when underinflated it can still perform well. It just needs to keep the air it has and wait to be fully inflated when the power returns.

We too must keep serving even when we feel deflated by the world and wait until God the Almighty Father, the real Umeme, fills us to the proper pressure. Just as the tire has a warning, "Do not overinflate" we too must not over inflate ourselves and become swelled up with pride. Let God decide how much we need in order to follow and serve Him. Carrying the load He has called you and I to bear. It is the cross that we pick up daily.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Trouble in Paradise

The trouble started when the serpent said to Eve, "Did God really say...?" That doubt the devil raised in Eve's mind is still there and has caused many people to doubt God's goodness and His word.

I have a similar problem to Eve. Satan comes at me with, "Did God really mean...?"
I can be so adept at twisting God's word so that it just misses convicting me by using that one little question. I know what he said, but did he mean it literally? Does Jesus really want ust to cut off our hand and gouge out my eye so that I stop sinning? Surely this must be figurative. So I allow myself to change it so that I don't cut off my hand. Phew! But sadly I don't get rid of the sin either! So now I don't do anything right.

I have been struggling with Matthew 5:38-42. Do I resist an evil person? My sense (notice it is MY sense) of justice says no one does an evil thing to me and gets away with it. But why do I react that way? What right do I have to say I am better or of more value to God than anyone else? Better than the evil person I resist? Do I turn the other cheek? When someone sues me for my tunic do I give him my cloak as well? Where are my rights?

This is where the struggle begins. We wrongly claim to have our rights. But we gave those rights to Jesus years ago. But are we slowly been taking them back. I asked Jesus to live in me and take control of my life and I sincerely meant it but now I somehow want to renege on my promises. After opening my heart to Him am I now looking for a way to close it to Him again. I must let go of me and hang on to Jesus. I must find a way to willingly go the second mile after being forced to go the first. I have to do this to be free of me. Then I will just be in Him!

Yes! Jesus really did say it! Now I really must do it!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

The Best Kind of Tired

Man, am I tired.

We just finished the Wednesday evening Bible study in the church. This is after saying goodbye this afternoon to the 40 guys who attended the Jinja pastor's conference for the past three days. Up at 4:00 everyday to be sure everything is ready for that day. Into bed by 11:30 every night after making sure everyone is safe and secure. Long days. But I find them so rewarding and the fellowship so sweet that I could hope that the guys don't go home.

Monday we got off to that slow start but then God began to work! The men came ready to share and the discussion times were the best we have ever had. They teach me so much and all the while they think we are teaching them. I truly hate to see them return home.

Guys like Michael who came after missing the last two conferences while trying to get married. The joy on his face when he speaks of his wife just filled me with joy.

Jeremiah telling us the news that his wife Victoria is expecting. We had a long time of prayer at the last meeting for this because they had just been told that she wouldn't be able to have kids. But God is in control so we rejoiced!

The warmth God put in my heart when Doug, Isaac and I laid hands on Aaron ordaining him as a pastor. It was like having a son receive the highest award there is from God and the Lord lets us present it. This happened after Aaron taught about enduring hardship.

Joshua praising God for what the Lord had provided for himself and his family.

All my brothers from Fort Portal who poured out of their vehicles, after a five to seven hour ride, with grins and smiles excited to see all of us again.

Nehemiah and Christian from Kampala who added so much to our discussion. Afterwards I asked Christian to ask how I was. He wanted to know why? "So I could answer at least one of your questions without having to have a theology dergree." Those guys wanted to KNOW!

But why am I tired?
I am tired of not giving my wife enough credit for her work at these conferences and in my life. Bev is tireless, bold and full of love. She treats these men like sons and they truly call her "Mom". She is awesome and I want the world to know how special she is.

I'm tired of not spending enough time praying for the men and their ministries.

I'm tired of letting a few men who did wrong in the past ruin my love, admiration, and respect for these good men. These guys are really showing a pastor's heart in knowing God and bringing others to know Him.

I'm tired of keeping Jesus only in my heart when His name should be on my lips and involved in every conversation and thought.

I'm tired of doing things my way, which is at best somehow scriptural. I want to do things the hard way, the foolish way and the impossible way. I want to do things God's way.

By the next time these brothers gather here, I want to be more like Jesus. I've reached the point that I don't know if I can teach them more. But if I trust Jesus more maybe they will see Him better.

Monday, September 19, 2011

A Pastor's Time

Our pastor conference started at 1:00 pm today. I hadn't heard from very many of the brothers that they were coming and I heard directly from four that they weren't coming, so needless to say my expectations were low.

Around 11:00 am Pastor Stephen arrived from Ogongora. He would have been two hours early but he was supposed to arrive last night. So he was actually 15 hours late. Right on time.

At 12:40 Isaac, Godwin and Joiakim arrived from Fort Portal. With no one else here they went around the corner to get some food. Then two men from CC Kampala arrived as well as Richard from Lumuli. Then...nothing.

At 1:00 we had six guys. But it is funny how God works. At 1:52, Pastor Doug with his wife Destiny and their two kids arrived from Fort Portal. Strange , I thought to myself, that these guys drive all the way across Uganda and the only people here in Jinja are from Fort Portal. People they work with every day! Isaac came and told me that four of his students from Kenya had been delayed and would arrive tomorrow. Richard also let me know he had to leave by 6:00pm. Oh no, this conference was having disaster written all over it.

But then all the rest came through the gate within five minutes. Go figure. If they didn't all take different roads to get here I would have thought they planned it. I like to think God was laughing at me rather than shaking His head and saying "Oh, you of little faith."

Anyway the conference has started and the teaching has gone well. We will get more practical tomorrow.

Two highlights for me today were Aaron Mawanda's teaching on "Enduring Hardship" and our after dinner prayer time.

I had not heard Aaron teach in about a year and the Lord had already given him a great gift to teach. But that gift is now overflowing in his life. He has a new maturity about himself and like Moro Steven he has great insight into God' word. The word refreshed me greatly.

Then tonight at prayer the brothers really shared what is on their hearts. It is such a privilege, thrill and honor to pray for their deepest concerns and needs. As I lifted my head to view these men in devout prayer I was rejoicing in the fact that we are and will be victorious in Jesus. That the name of Jesus can change any situation, any struggle, any hardship for our good and God's glory. It is such a blessing to have people pray for you. And we did too!

May God bless each of you with grace and peace.

Friday, September 2, 2011

Charcoal or a Box

Wow! The price of charcoal has risen to 45,000 shillings per bag. On the one hand it is good since Uganda burns more trees than it plants and has done so since 1994. The rise in prices may slow that wood deficit somewhat. But when you cook on charcoal as the only option you must find alternative ways to cook. Therein lies the story of the box.

Immediately after learning of the rise in charcoal prices I boldly said,"I gotta do something." So the decision was made to build a solar cooker. The "I" soon became Steven and I. Plans were found on the internet and we proceeded to buy the materials. But that is the problem. Solar cookers, or at least ours anyway, are made from wood. Wood and I have had a not so friendly relationship in the past. And Steven has pretty much the same relationship with our arborial friends.

Don't miss understand me. I love wood! Trees are great! I have always enjoyed cutting firewood. And toothpicks. Use em everyday. But once wood changes into the form of lumber it becomes my worst nightmare. Trees you cut and they regrow. Lumber you cut it and it will always be too short. It doesn't grow back. I know, I've waited.

So we started on our cooker. Actually it is supposed to be a solar cooker but it looks like a wooden box. In fact the only thing we'd been able to do with it is store the tools we are using to build it, in it. Steven says it looks more like a beehive. (who asked him anyway) Another problem is we have probably already used more wood to build our solar cooker/beehive/toolbox thing than we would have used in charcoal to cook for a couple of months. But progress is measured by small increments, not large leaps. And so the box continues to grow. It has now taken on a life of its own and even has its own room. My office is filled with wood and wood shavings and sawdust. And lots of slightly short pieces of wood. (strangely, if you cut the longest piece for your project too short it will for some reason never be long enough to be the shortest piece either) Time to get reinforcements. So the call went out for Rogers and Opio Jacob. It soon became obvious that they would not give insghts into the secret art of woodworking. But Jacob did volunteer to paint the beehive/box/cooker. So we let him join the project group.

Eventually we produced a trapazoidal box that roughly resembled the drawing I had produced two days earlier. I guess a ruler would have helped to keep it all in line.

Then we put a glass lid on it to let the sun's radiation in, this warms the bottom of the box which Jacob had painted black to absorb the energy. The walls of the box are lined with tin foil to reflect the sun's energy toward the pot that sits in the middle of the box. The reflected energy gets concentrated on the pot and the ingredients inside are slowly warmed and the food is cooked. The more the sun's energy is let in the faster the meal is cooked. I know becaused I read about it on line.

But it is not just one box. There is the inner box that holds the pot with food and there is also an outer box that protects the inner box by creating an air space that lets the inner box heat without losing its heat to the enviroment. It is really an impressive system when you consider the simplicity of it. But it does require another larger box. However with the experience Steven and I gain on the lesser box we quickly fabricated the outer box.

And guess what it works!

I cooked rice for lunch today. It only took three hours (that's okay I wanted to eat a late lunch) and it was the best solar cooked rice I ever ate. Steven and Bev agreed.

Not a bad week's work for two pastors who had to overcome serious cellulose issues. But God can help us do what we can't on our own. Now I just need some solar cooker cooking lessons. At least that doesn't involve wood.




Friday, August 26, 2011

Mental Snapshots

When teams come to visit us here in Jinja we hold a nightly debriefing so team members can express what God is showing them or doing through them each day. My snapshots for the past two weeks include:

DAY 1: As the team arrived Bev stayed at the aiport waiting for Carol while the rest of us went to the guest house. I forgot which team members were to be in which rooms. So the two guys got the surprise of the day when entering their room there was only one double bed. The look on their faces was priceless since they were not old friends but had only met earlier that day. It was almost the shortest short term mission trip on record but God resolved the problem and everyone got a good night's sleep when two of the ladies graciously switched rooms with them.

Day 2: The smiles on the faces of the congregation as the welcomed the team during second service. The next Sunday was the joy on the faces of the team as they saw their "old friends" from the previous week. Love can grow among God's people so quickly that you would have thought the body here was where the team came from. Indeed there are no strangers in Christ!

Day 3: The pleasure and joy of the Ogongora worship team as they played music on their thumb pianos and the kids danced. The joy was fully matched by the team as they danced with the kids. Andrew flat wore himself out dancing. Some ask "Will there be dancing in heaven?" All I can say is "I hope so!"

Day 4: The relieved concern when we found the people of Ogongora making a "new road" around the mudhole that had swallowed up the bus and Land Cruiser the night before. Then it was the surprise of seeing 300 people already waiting for treatment. I was blessed to see our Ugandan team showing compassion as they kept the crowd, that swelled to about 1000 by noon, moving for treatment.

Day 5: The medical team saying good by to their translators. It was difficult after being in such close contact and depending on each other for 60 hours. Both Ugandan and American teams had grown to admire and love each other more than we would ever have guessed. But then that is God's very nature doing more for us and through us than is possible!

Day 6: Jacob Opio winning a chicken paying bible trivia. He was great!

Day 8: The fun of sharing the Gospel at prison when the enemy had sent a man to interrupt. Guys got saved and treated and healed.

Day 10: The perseverance of the saints as they faced their last day of ministry, outdoors on a hot windy day. They stayed until all the prisoners had seen a doctor and received medicine.

The snapshot I didn't get, was saying goodbye to the team. Another team from America came and I happily got to work with them but sadly did not get to properly say good bye.

So here it is, Steve, may God bring you back this way again to finish the work. Andrew, let God begin the work He wants to do in your life. Deb, thank you for your time ministering to Bev and I. Bailley, sorry you couldn't stay longer but the third time's the charm. Alicia, Thank you for the incredibly compassionate heart you have shown to all of Uganda. Rachel, Miss Sunshine, God bless you for showing me what it means to have joy in the Lord. Brittni, May you always be as yielding to the Lord as you were here. And Doctor Jenny, Your warmth and professionalism are only outstripped by your love for Jesus.

Thank you all and may God bless you!

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Mud and Motorcycles From Nowhere

Man, I am so glad God watches out for us. Our visiting medical team got stuck in the same mudhole in the same bus three time in three days. The second day was only a small inconvenience but the first one happened in the dark and by the time we got it out I had gotten the landcruiser stuck twice, torn two out of three engine belts, lost a belt tension pully and we all got covered in mud. But I learned a lot about how to unstick a stuck bus in Uganda.

First you gather nearly everyone in the village and have them all shout directions at one time. For this part to work properly it is best to have half of the village confuse the front for the back of the bus and the other half just be confused in general. Also not knowing right from left helps add to the fun. Another apparent requirement to unstick a stuck bus is to throw as many bushes as you can fit, under, in front and behind the drive wheels. It seemingly helps to have more obstacles to battle than just the mud. Then get you must get all parties to agree on the next step. That is: which direction are we pushing the bus? For added fun and more serious mud time, neglect this step. The sad part is that no matter how hard you try you cannot out push the half of the village that is always pushing the wrong direction. I've tried!

Now that you've done the most obvious things get everyone to calm down and pray. And voila! The bus as they say, "Sheee become unstuck!"

Now having perfected the procedure try it again in the daylight in the same hole. Not only will all the rules change but you'll also be able to see just how stuck you are and just how covered in mud you personally have become. Then you know that only God is gonna get you out. This causes a more earnest prayer from the heart. Then God does indeed get you unstuck. Just remember God has a purpose for mudholes. Many times it is to drive us to are muddy knees to seek his help.

The third day while the bus was getting stuck I was fixing the broken engine belts. Having put in the new ones I was going back to the mud (don't even think about telling me about a washed sow returning to the mud) when God showed me His great hand of protection.

As I approached a spot where traffic officers always sit I made sure I was traveling under 80 kph. A van was coming the opposite way. Suddenly a motorcycle hidden behind the van swerved into my lane to overtake the van. All I could do was swerve hard left. I heard a sickening thud but just as I veered left there on the side of the road were two women and a child on a bicycle. I swerved hard right knowing they would be dead in a millisecond. But this time no thud. Somehow God protected them and me. I pulled over and ran to the motorcycle knowing they must be seriously dead. I waved for the traffic policeman to come. But miraculously the driver was fine, the two year old was only scraped on the side of his head, and the mom had some painful road rash on one arm. God had protected us from serious harm.

Then the legal process started but God was in this too. The taxi had stopped and the driver and conductor told the motorcycle rider that he was lying when he told the traffic officer I hit him. The officer was also the Officer in Charge for Traffic of Soroti District. Who saw the whole thing. I was free to go unstick the stuck bus and eventually with God's help we did.

Thank you Jesus! For saving us and protecting us always!




Sunday, August 7, 2011

Drip, drip, drip and more drip

The last time I wrote it was about the long dark African night. It was one of a series of nights I had with malaria that I could not get rid of. After two months of slowly getting sicker my body was giving up. Every other night was high fever, chills, sweats. backache, bodyache, headache.

Due too the meds I take for P.D. (parking zones disease) and the the disease itself, I can have some really crazy dreams and strange nights but those nights with malaria, I thought the morning would never come. Eventually I did get Steven to take me to the hospital at Rippon Clinic. After a blood sample showed malaria I was escorted to the private suite at the back of the clinic. It is a private suite since it has its own toilet that only I, the nurses, the doctors and the few dozen people I was too weak to fight off could use. There I lay for two days on quinine drip.
But I did have it better than Bev who slept on the floor for two nights. She did have a mattress from home though. And sheets. I don't think I would have made it without her. No more drip, drip, drip...

So what did I learn from the experience? Apparently nothing for as soon as I could get back to work I did.

I have become a work freak. I cannot sit still. If there is no class to teach I write a sermon. If there is no sermon to prepare I counsel. If there is no one to counsel I fix things. In Africa there is always something to fix. So there is always work. This week two water heaters failed. So I have to fix them. But parts aren't available so I have to make parts. It can wear you down and lay you out. And put you back on drip, drip, drip and more drip.

But God has His way to teach us. At the monthly missionary fellowship the host, Dan, shared about the way we missionaries overwork. We lead but never follow. But if we don't follow then who are we leading people to? It convicted me that I am getting people to follow me but not teaching them to follow Jesus Christ. I need to get back on drip. But I need more than drip I need streams of drip. Rivers of living water flowing from the Spirit into me and then to others. But I have a problem. Maybe you have it to. I seem to think that just because I have drunk the living water and I never thirst that I don't need to drink anymore. That condition can lead to dehydration. The Spirit causes water to well up within me but I also need to partake. I can get so full of streams of water flowing to others that I never stop to let it keep me satisfied. I am not a theologian so don't take this analogy too far but if the man who drives the water tanker doesn't fill the radiator of the truck sometime, the engine will overheat and the tanker dies and no one gets the water.

Lord help me to be refreshed and filled. Not drip by drip by more drip but by streams and rivers of the water of life, YOU!


Sunday, July 10, 2011

The Long Dark African Night

One of the things that a westerner notices when they come to Africa is how dark it is at night. There are no lights. In Jinja we have power all the time but it still is dark compared to Europe and North America. Vehicle headights never seem bright enough to do the job. Security lights don't penetrate but a few feet and in the village you had better have a good idea where you are and where your stuff is because there are only kerosene lamps to illuminate your night.

And when the night is long it can really bring despair.

In areas near the Nile River or Lake Victoria people are afraid to go out at night due to crocodiles. People have been eaten as they stepped out of their houses into the dark heading for the latrine to ease themselves. The long dark African night favors the wildlife so people stay locked in.

For some the long dark night is due to the thieves outside. Estimates for Uganda indicate 80% of young people are unemployed and many are turning to crime to make a living. If you are the average town dweller you don't venture out on foot after 10:00pm. This past Tuesday, the night guard for the compound two doors up from us was attacked with a panga, receiving serious head wounds. Meanwhile a suspected thief was killed two blocks from the church. No one is sure if he was a thief or not but it is another reason to stay indoors after dark so you don't get killed.

Many struggle in the night to keep their children safe from ritual killings called for by the traditional healer (witchdoctor) who has been hired to make someone wealthy or fertile or to get a spouse. It has gotten to the point that adults are often killed when no suitable child can be found. And what of the kids who have no adult to protect them. How long is their night?

For others the long night is because of the poor living conditions. Poor workmanship or lack of materials cause many to huddle into a corner of the house when it rains trying to keep themselves and their children warm and dry. That makes for a very long night. The same construction problems cause families to live with no protection against the mosquitoes that carry malaria and other diseases.

But perhaps the worst are those who face the darkness during illness. Living in Jinja we am blessed that we can get into our vehicle and get to a clinic in five minutes. People in the village cannot. If a man's wife or child falls very sick the best he can do is put the sick person on a bicycle and walk them five to twenty kilometers to get treatment. Saturday, the newspaper had a picture of a man crying out to passersby as he tried to lift his wife up off the ground. He had already carried her 5 kilometers and had seven more to go to reach medical care. This was in the daylight. What if it was at night? Who could or would help him. What is his level of despair? Where is his hope? Where is the hope for all those who face the long dark African night?

The solution to the long dark African night is light. The light of God's word. The light of Jesus, the Light of the world. Without His light nothing works. The despair in the African night grows and overwhelms without an end in sight. But God in his wisdom puts His children at the point where the light meets the dark.

Friday aternoon I went with the SOM students to a deliverance conference. There were 1500-2000 born again believers there. The name of Jesus was spoken and proclaimed many times but His word was never shared. At one point the speaker had the crowd repeat the name of Jesus 15 times and by doing so the people would receive the miracle they had come for. As I thought about it it occurred to me that they could have been shouting any name. It really didn't matter to them as long as they received their miracle of fertility, wealth, health and abundance. Yet the miracle they truly needed, a relationship with the Son of God, was never offered to them. The main teachers each drove up in successively more expensive vehicles. They would not leave their air-conditioned vehicles until it was time to take the stage. Their desire to be praised by men but at the same time giving no comfort to them was appalling.

2Corinthians 1:3-7 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, The Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort."

Whether it is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, through His protection or His provision, we need to comfort those in the long dark night with the comfort we have received from Him. People are in trouble, am I offering any comfort or hope? Am I giving those around me what Jesus died to give us all? Hope that He has done away with the penalty of sin for those who believe? Hope that He protects us from evil? Hope that He moves His people to be there for others?

Father God, thank you for taking us out of the darkness and into your light. Let our light shine in the darkness as well, easing the despair and hopelessness of those who long for the dawning of your light in their life. Amen

Monday, July 4, 2011

The Great Jinja July 4th Bake Off

The time was just past noon when the competition began.

As I had decided to make a cake for Julie, whose birthday is the 4th of July, I began gathering the necessary ingredients. The recipe looked simple enough. I could do this in my sleep, or so I thought. Flour, sugar, eggs, shortening, vanilla, cocoa powder, and baking powder. Is that the same as baking soda or are they different? Bev let out a groan and said "No, the powder is upper shelf that's soda in your hand." I mumbled something akin to "Thanks" but my mind was already going back to my daughter's 19th birtday. That was the last time I had made a cake from scratch. The mind still recoils at the memory of the mess I made. Did you know that two tablespoons of baking powder go a lot farther than the two teaspoons the recipe called for. Did you also know that overly agitated German choclate cake batter was used by Atilla the hun as armor? At least I'm sure it could have been after trying to scrape it off the oven walls and bottom. But hey, that was 18 years ago surely oven cleaning techniques have improved, I hoped.

Pressing onward I began to make the batter. Looked pretty good and as I began to add the baking powder low & behold the recipe had changed to baking soda. Someone ought to tell these cookbook publishers that they need to issue better updates rather than just changing ingredients when the baker is not looking. But clever fellow that I am I caught the problem in time and made the switch.

As I was just putting the pans in the oven Kelli came in the kitchen. Eyeing her suspiciously I asked "Whas up?" Her response was "Oh, I'm making cookies to take to the Davises."

You must understand that Kelli, Bev and I have a contest to see who is the least coordinated. Last night Kelli and I fought to a 3-3 draw on dings in the walls moving furniture. Kelli being in the kitchen at the same time as me was a definite threat to cleanliness and well being of the compound as well as to my title of King Klutz. Feeling the pressure to drop the cake pans for an easy win I forced them into the oven checked my watch and set off to read for 30-35 minutes or until my toothpick was dry.

About 20 minutes later Kelli asked," Uh, Jess, did you want the oven off or on?"

"I turned it on ," I said. "But it's not hot." Man, it's those little things that get you!

Turning it on I decide it was time to make the frosting. As Kelli had cookie dough in the mixmaster I chose to use a whip for my topping.

What snow in Jinja in June? No, it is icing sugar! Apparently you have to start real slow with the whip. But I soon had the technique mastered and before long the cakes were done and ready to frost. I'd estimate that 90% of the icing was used to fill the two craters that were my fallen cakes. But in the end they looked nice. And I knew it was envy that caused Kelli to suggest I use on of her cookies to fill in the flat spot in the side of the cake. I assured her it was a planned design so that the christmas tree... I mean cake could sit closer to the wall. (yeah like you never use that excuse)

Clean up took roughly 1 and 1/2 hours. But it was an opportunity to be a man of integrity. Under my cookbook I found Kelli's top secret chocolate chip cookie recipe. As it is widely known that this receipe makes the best cookies in the world I was holding a goldmine in my hand. Look out "Famous Amos", "Jess the Mess" is in town! Then I thought what would happen to her when the Wee Little People (not the Keebler Elves or the Irish mafia) came calling. All the kids on the compound would be heartbroken. No free cookies! So I gave the receipe back. I cleaned the kitchen with a greater enthusiam knowing I had done the right thing. Who cares about baking anyway. As Bev says,"You may not cook but you wash the best dishes in town!" "Don't leave spots on the spoons."

Friday, July 1, 2011

Lost on the Way to the Burial or What's Your Point?

Grace and his wife Patricia are two people I just can't help but love. Grace is a SOM student and a secondary school teacher. Tall and quiet he is an excellent example of how we believers should behave. Yesterday we buried Grace's father. It's not very funny really. Cypriano died of tetanus while suffering from cancer. But this story is about what happened on the way to the village.

We were supposed to be there by midday but we didn't leave till 12:30. We were waiting for those who wanted a ride on the bus we rented. When we finally left we had to come back because we had forgotten the speaker system. Well, not we but me. The PA system is why we were supposed to go early as the burial could not begin until the sound system was set up.

By 1:00 pm we had traveled the first 36 k's and all went well. Then we got onto the dirt road. In twenty minutes we would be there, a bit later than planned but still early for the 2:00pm burial. But after a long 1 & 1/2 hour drive the passengers on the bus mutinied. As we stopped to ask for directions, fingers started pointing in every direction. "I know where we are! We need to go that way!" While others with their fingers pointed said "I knew we'd get lost!" This was quite amusing since no one voiced that opinion until after it was found to be true that we were hopelessly lost.

My personal feeling was that since this dirt road was wide and smooth, I'd rather be lost and moving on a good road than be stuck, broken down or bounced into oblivion on a bad road, even if I knew where I was. The truth is there are not that many good dirt roads around here so the wise man stays on the good road, forgets the burial and enjoys the ride.

No one else seemed to share my viewpoint. Can't imagine why. But having gotten directions from a passing seven year old who had probably never been outside his village, we took off again in a cloud of dust. We may have been lost but there was no point in being late! At the next crossroads we did better. This kid was probably 9years old but what sold us was the way he said, "I know where I am. Do you?" Good point! Following his precise directions, "Just there" (and asking everyone in sight)we arrived promptly at 3:00 pm. Only three hours behind schedule. The rest was easy.

With the exception of the thirty-five minute down pour, I just read my Bible as the service was in Lusoga with no translation. I kept my mouth shut since I only know how to say, "How are you?" and "Bye" and neither one seemed good. Cypriano obviously wasn't well as was evidenced by his being in a coffin and he probably wasn't going to say farewell either!

The ride home was uneventful. I even made it home for dinner.

All fun aside, we went to the burial to honor our friend Grace. The more friends he has attend the greater he is valued in his village. And even greater still is the honor given to his father, who raised a son who is so loved that these people would come to honor the father through the son. Sounds just like our heavenly Father and our friend Jesus. Father God, let us always give you glory through your son, Jesus Christ!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

You Just Have to Trust God

Calvary Chapel Jinja has just hosted another Pastor Conference. The original plan was for a group of teachers to come from the States to lead this event. Unfortunately this didn't work out due to the high cost of airfare to get to Uganda. I hope we have another opportunity for them to come.

But God had a plan. Don't you love the words "But God..."? To me, they speak volumes about His sovereignty, power and plan that we don't anticipate. I had not anticipated being so sick on Monday plus having a major infection in my leg. But God did.

I asked Moro Steven if he could cover the majority of the discussion sessions and he did a great job. It has been good to watch this man mature over the last few months. But God didn't stop there. He enabled Craig Linquist fromm CC Entebbe to attend and he and Steven were just amazing. They taught and encouraged the pastors with wit and wisdom. It was quite a day.

But God had more in mind to do. Zane McCourtney from Kitgum arrived Monday night and when Craig left the next morning Zane took his place. How foolish it made feel to remember that I had been worried about the teachings. These guys were being led and filled by the Holy Sprit.

That afternoon Isaac Wooton arrived from CC Fort Portal and again God spoke through him to urge the men to let go of the traditions of men. It was as if God wanted to tell me that He was running the conference His way and not mine. Needless to say the conference turned out to be one of the best.

It has been such a wonderful experience to witness the Ugandan pastors and students grow. Praise the Lord for His work in all these brothers' lives.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

The Body and All Its Parts

The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church about the importance of the church being a fully functioning body. Every body part must do its work in order for the rest of the body to survive. God has been teaching me this truth first hand for the last month.

As I mentioned in my last blog we were blessed with a team from Colorado who came for a week to rebuid the roof on the Calvary Chapel Health Centre in Ogongora, Amuria District. They did a great job of witnessing the love of Christ to the residents of Ogongora and the patients in the health center. However they did face a bit of discouragement at the lack of participation in the project by the community.

Since their departure I have spent 13 days in Ogongora trying to move the project along. I too was a bit frustrated at the apparent lack of interest by the community in helping with the project. But this past week I learned some important lessons.

Lesson # 1: Let the body function in its proper way.
As we have worked to get the clinic back to running condition we have been doing some skilled work. Not me personally. I have no real constuction skills. My swinging a hammer 10 times produces three lost nails (two steelnails and one thumbnail), four dents in the iron sheet roof, two bent nails bent beyond use, and someone falling from a ladder. But even this is beyond the ability of the average villager. They do not have access to tools so they cannot do the work and are afraid to hinder the work. So they let the parts of the body that can do this work do it!

Lesson # 2: Let the body function in its proper time.
As we have toiled we have started early everyday trying to make the most progress and demonstrate a good work ethic. When no one would come join in, it was almost like a slap in the face. That was my pride reacting to no one telling me what a great job I was doing. The reason no one was coming was simple. In the village the a.m. hours are for digging. If you don't dig you have no crop. No crop means no food and that means starvation. When one family goes hungry it affects the whole village. So the proper function of the body is to show up when the digging is done. When the people would come in the afternoon and politly wait to be invited to work this Mzungu would miss the opportunity and they would wander away one by one. By not letting the body funtion in its time I was actually denying the body the right to help and build itself up.

Lesson # 3: We must know what body part we are.
This past week while in the village I was taken ill on Tuesday just after leaving on the 50 kilometer drive to Soroti to get cement and other supplies. I was so sick that after wandering aimlessly in town for two hours I returned having completely forgotten the cement. I was sick and useless for two days. But it didn't stop me from attempting to work and thus slowing down any progress. By Thursday night I was in emotional and spiritual meltdown mode. Nothing was going the way I had planned it. But a call from a dear brother in America, Neil, helped get things back together.
I'm not called here to be a construction guy but to be a spiritual leader. So the next morning we went to the clinic and prayed for every person there. Patients, attendants, staff, families, everybody. Suddenly what had been a very difficult week was now a blessing.

Lesson # 4: The members of the universal body of Christ work in the local body.
Having heard that I had fallen sick, Bev sent word to the greater unseen body (you) asking for prayer. God heard those prayers and got me home safe and well. But then Saturday I fell sick again. It was not malaria but some sort of infection. Receiving treatmet Sunday we then noticed that a scratch on my leg had become terribly infected. The body went to work again and I am happy to tell you that the infection is getting healed. Thank you for praying and seeking help for a body part that has been learning slowly what it means to be a part of the great body of Jesus Christ.

A special thanks to Rich Tedesco, Grady Colby, Mark Caldwell and Richie Tedesco for their sacrificing their time and resources to help expand God's kingdom in Ogongera.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Impressions of a mission trip

Well after eight days the team from Colorado has gone home and the Ogongora clinic has a new roof. It was such a blessing to work with these four guys but we did not get enough time to fellowship. I hope there will be days next time we are in Colorado. But for now let me share some highlights.

1. Louis tossing down a saw blade which was supposed to fit but did not and then saying. "I hate a Africa." If you've been here you have undoubtedly felt the same emotion when the simple task becomes an all day chore.

2. Rich banging his head on the truck rack for the 10th time in one morning and then smiling in the grace of God.

3. Grady looking stunned at the poor conditon of the wood he had to work with. This was the first thing he saw in Jinja. But three days later we had 45 trusses loaded in the truck ready to move. Who said it could'nt be done? Not God!

4. Mark telling me that if he doesn't get up off the ground in five minutes then we should come help him. Then changing his mind and say "Just leave me there."

5. The smoke pouring out of the motor on the new saw while we were at the clinic, knowing that the nearest replacement is 250 kilometers away.

6. Richie tearing the saw apart the next day, taking brushes and bearings from an old angle grinder fitting them to the saw and it now works better than ever!

7. Watching a small shower turn into a full blown storm on the last morning. Everyone was soaked to the skin but remained upbeat and some of us even danced in the rain!

8. Seeing the enemy attack the project to the point of our despair but God turning it into great victory as we looked for His intervention. He is so good!

9. Seeing the comraderie grow between the visiting team and the local workers as we struggled through communication problems, heat, rain and lack of tools. The guys from Ogongora learned a new style of truss making which they are now excited to try else where.

10. Louis getting stranded on the highway while taking a pregnant woman to the hospital in Soroti. If he hadn't taken her she would have died.

11. Grady's hat. A unique combination of the Hoss Cartwright ten gallon and the Pancho Villa sombrero.

12. The tears in Pastor Stephen's eyes as he saw what God did through four men committed to Him. We can never say thank you enough for God bringing us Grady, Mark, Rich and Richie. For He is good to us!

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Past the Point of no Return

Well, they'll be here tomorrow. At 7:45am the team from Colorado arrives to rebuild the roofs and ceilings of the clinic at Ogongora, Amuria District. This is the first team doing construction away from Jinja and trying to get everything ready has been a real challenge as I just don't have that type of mind.

After 13 years in Jinja I still have the Mzungu mindset of running to the 7/11 or hardware store. That won't be possible in the village So I hope it's all ready.

Now the team is past the point of no return. They are in the air heading to London. No turning back now.

What does it take to go on a short term mission? To use your hard earned vacation time from work to build something you will never use, for people you can't even speak with.

Some say it takes a sense of adventure but that's not it. You can have adventure and danger at home easily enough. Just try putting together a swing set for your kids and doing it right in your wife's flower garden.

Some say it takes a sense of duty to mankind to want to see medical care in a remote area. But that duty could be satified just by sending a check to an organisation. Or putting money into Santa's pot outside the supermarket. So it can't just be duty.

It must be love. Love for Jesus and for his people. A desire to know just how high and wide and deep is God's love for us. To experience the joy of fellowship in heaven in a small way here on earth by singing songs in a language you don't know with people who love Jesus as much as you. To demonstrate to a community what the love of Christ compels us to do.

I look forward to tomorrow. This team and our team here in Jinja are past the point of no return. No turning back from the decision to follow Jesus wherever He leads.

Ps. Before I could post this on Sunday I developed malaria on the way to the airport and have been out of commission since. But thanks to God's mercy I'm getting well again

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

How not to impress the wife

For some reason that I will never understand, my wife thinks I'm a pretty great guy.

I'll explain. Monday we had plans to go North to take the microscope and centrifuge, that I had repaired, back to the clinic. As we were gathering medical supplies suddenly the car died. 10:00 am Monday morning was not the best time to have this happen. Or the place, Main Street. There were regularly scheduled riots for Main Street slated to start at noon. I managed to get the vehicle to finally come to rest on the street the market sits on. This is typically where regularly scheduled riots go when main street gets too crowded or filled with tear gas. This was not good.

So I hopped out to look under the bonnet and everything looks fine. So I start to mess with wiring since to my diagnostic brain if there ain't oil on the road or a visible part broken or missing it must be in the wiring. As I'm trying to fix the car and dissuade those rioters who have arrived early that I am not purposely trying to block their route, Bev is on the phone to Steven, who is at James the mechanic's with the truck to get it fixed, telling him to come rescue us.

Steven, who has malaria and has had only thirty minutes sleep since Mary had a c-section on Friday producing Pheni Michael Collins, (when asked about the his son's name he said "Pheni you should ask") arrives with a mechanic who listens to my description of the problem tinkers for 5 minutes then says "It's electrical." They leave to get an electrician. So as the traffic is getting heavier I finally find the right wire, start the car and head to the mechanic's. He agrees with the diagnosis wraps the wire and off we head for Soroti.

Now we are far behind schedule and can't get to the clinic by dark so we opt to stay in Soroti at the Desert Island Resort. Wrong name! It is not in a desert, or near water or by any means a resort. The only recreation available is the one channel tv in the cottage we rented. But it was cheap and comfortable. And I stand corrected since the waitress told us that you get two channels NTV on #2 and NTV on #19. Both in hifidelity monochrome!

So we got up early the next morning to get to the clinic early. But the car starts and dies. So I put in all new wiring for the trouble spot and three hours later we reach the clinic. Bev, God bless her, thinks I'n the best mechtrician ever! Then after leaving the scope and fuge at the clinic we travel 20 k's back to the paved road and everything electrical quits! No smoke, engine still runs but no air conditioning, no fan, windows won't roll down and it's hotter than Texas in August. So we cruise the 30 k's to Soroti praying and asking everyone we know to pray. So why risk driving? Because it is better to be in the middle of a riot and close to parts than peacefully sitting in the middle of no where waiting for someone to bring you a part that you don't even know you need.

If this weren't a bad enough way of how not to impress your wife, earlier I had warned Bev how tricky these murram roads were and how easy it is to roll the car. She was doing sixty! On the way back I had almost rolled it twice doing eighty! Somehow she was losing confidence in me. So we got to Soroti and found that the wire I had repaired had come loose. I resecured it and everything worked! Boy, was my wife impressed! Give credit to Bev. She sticks by her man.

Open your eyes, Sweetie, we're home.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Rebuilding Time... No Worries

There is a time for everything Solomon wrote and one time is a time to build. But now we are in rebuilding time.

First rebuilding is the ministry here at the church in Jinja. JB left at the end of February and Moro Steven took over his pastor's duties. Teaching on Sundays and being the lead conselor and pastor. I was worried how Steven would handle the new responsibilities. Jesus told us not to worry and He was right. God has been answering our prayers by equipping Steven with wisdom and a desire to minister that I had not seen before. Perhaps these things had always been there but had no place to be used but now that God has told him to lead, Steven is doing so. It is so obvious a work of the Holy Spirit empowering him that I can't contain my excitement.

The other area of rebuilding is our clinic in Ogongora. We have hired an R.N. Jonathan who has a real heart to meet the health needs of the community. And as a born again christian he is helping to meet the spiritual needs of his patients as well. We also hired a Laboratory Assistant, Vicky. Only problem with her is that the microscope for the clinic was broken. But it is fixed now and will be delivered next week. With lab services available again the clinic should really start to grow.

But the clinic needs new ceilings as the old ones have literally collapsed. Time to rebuild them. As I was worrying how this would get done God was already bringing together a team from Colorado to rebuild the entire roof and ceilings. They are due to arrive in ten days and get the buildings back into shape. God is providing the funds for the project from various directions so again I need not worry.

The final rebuild is Bev and I. As things change here we are being led to spend more time in outreach. After our team's trip to Pajule the church body is excited to reach out further. Our "Outside The Walls" evangelism ministry is just taking shape but we are hoping to lead teams from CCJinja to our village church plants for 3-5 day evangelism programs. This would follow along the same lines as our Pajule trip. The ministry will also focus on various evangelistic outreaches in Jinja town. We already have 30 people signed up to participate.

I'm looking forward to what God has in store for all of us. Rebuilding Time! No worries!

Friday, April 29, 2011

Back to Jinja on a String and a Prayer

Sunday, our last day, JB let me teach, and praise the Lord there were fifty adults not counting us from Jinja. The message went well and it was good to be with the believers in Pajule. But then it was time to head back as we had a three day Pastors Conference starting the next morning in Jinja.

We said goodbye to Miss Grace and Aryana. Unfortunately Aryana figured out that her best friend Kelli was leaving and cried. But after many hugs we hit the road for Jinja taking the eastern route.

JB drove the first eighty kilometers to Lira. Then gave the duty to me. As we had been driving I watched the left rear tire going flat so in Lira we got fuel and then tried to get the flat fixed. Nobody had air or a repair kit so we changed to the spare. Now this tire had also been repaired in Pajule. No, not by me but a tire man who knows us from Jinja. He said he could fix it so he did. Showed me a neat trick using string and rubber cement. As he was fixing it I could only pray that we wouldn't have to use it. It is 118 kilometers from Lira to Soroti which gave me plenty of time to pray for our safety.

Now you have to wonder what makes a patched tire fail? Is it time or is it mileage or speed? I personally believe it is time. Some say mileage so they change the tire as soon as possible. Tried that but couldn't get the thing fixed in Lira so view #2 was no good. View #3 says the speed will heat up the tire and cause the patch to fail. Well having 400 kilometers to go before dark required that we move at a rapid pace so that view wouldn't help. As I said I prefer to think that the patch will last a set amount of time so the quicker you start and the faster you go the better chance you have of getting there. So that was my choice. Everybody in the car, it is time to conquer the road! I didn't know our car could go so fast but it does and did. We reached Soroti in 1 hour and 8 minutes. By then all conversation had ceased and serious prayers were being offered. God is so good! He got us safely to Soroti where we aired up the flat and decided to keep riding on the string tire. It lasted all the way home! Of course the next morning it was flat as a pancake as was the spare. Turns out that we had picked up three nails in Pajule from their grading the roads there.

We pray that there is lasting fruit in Pajule. But also in our church as we are beginning to plan outreaches to our village churches monthly. But more about that later.

Thank you Jesus for letting us proclaim your Name to the world!

Sunday, April 24, 2011

A Kitgum Borehole Story

On Friday we loaded up and headed to Kitgum, 40 kilometers north, to visit Zane and Summer who have been leading a church there for the past year. It was a blessing to say the least. We spent time discussing life on the field in Kitgum and Jinja over lunch then we went to see the farm.

Zane and Summer are starting a farm and a community just out of town. They are building compacted dirt houses using 50 kilo sugar sacks. The house was so cool inside that you almost had to put on a jacket to sit. It was as good as we felt all week, temperature wise. We also checked out the 60 foot deep hand dug cistern. I nearly fell in but that’s another story.

We decided to break into groups to share the Gospel. JB, Apollo and I went our way and as we passed the nearby borehole we saw some women and teenage girls getting water. JB and I decided to speak with them. Asking if I could share a story with them the said yes so with JB translating the three of us started pumping the water for the women as I told them about Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well at Sychar. It was an amazing thing as I shared how Jesus had told the woman to go get her husband and her reply that she had no husband. At this point I looked at one woman and said “Jesus said, ’You are right when you say you have no husband. You have had 5 husbands and the one you have now is not your husband .’” As I continued pumping the borehole I turned and spoke to the others as well. After 15 minutes all nine women wanted to give their lives to Jesus! Praise the Lord!

But what I had missed was that the woman I had pointed at had broken into tears at what Jesus said because she was in the same situation as the Samaritan woman. The women all wanted to know this Jesus who had revealed this about their friend to us. God is good and knows just what people need to hear.

The other teams had success as well as God used Mukisa and Opio to lead some drunken young men to Christ. They even poured out all their booze! Then the men lead Paul and Opio over to their grandmothers to tell her that they had just been born again like her. JB, Apollo and I were talking to her when they came. It was very great time!

It started to rain so we said goodbye to the McCourtneys had headed back to Pajule. We really are seeing the fields white for harvest. And JB and Grace are right in the heart of it.

Pajule in a Nutshell

Our time in Pajule was split between door to door evangelism and teaching in schools and just visiting old friends. And trying to stay cool! Pajule is a lot warmer with a little less humidity than Jinja. In Pajule, unlike Jinja, sweat evaporates but the heat is draining you all day long. With no power or fans, there is no escape.

By afternoon on Wednesday, Kelli and Anne Rose had wilted and were in need of a shower. We had spent the morning and early afternoon going door to door in three groups. We were blessed to spend time sharing our faith in Jesus Christ with JB’s neighbors. The response was good and after a few hours in the heat the ladies were ready to cool off. JB doesn’t have a Mzungu shower (he has the African bathing basin where you have a jug of water and you pour it out and bathe in handfuls) so the ladies went to the guest house. Good thing too! Since the guest house had no water for the next two days.

We then spoke to the students of Pajule College. Anne Rose and I shared with the kids and then Kelli taught. God is so good that He made our separate, independent ideas and Scriptures come together as one. The kids were well mannered and happy to hear about Jesus and His sacrifice for them. It was AWESOME!

The next day was more door to door witnessing and then we walked to a trade school just 300 meters from JB’s house. Having been warned that it was a tough school we had a short time of prayer for the gospel to be well received and off we went with our spiritual guns loaded. I felt like a gunslinger in a western as we walked down the dusty road six men abreast with the womenfolk behind. The teachers came out of the office one by one and I fully expected them to line up opposite us and say. “Make your move, strangers.” Then, nothing happened!

They sat us under a tree and we waited. And waited. We had been told that these kids were the worst behaved youth in the district and would not be interested in hearing about Jesus. The joinery students were under these trees, the tailoring students were under those trees and the masonry kids were elsewhere building walls. JB & I decided to go see what the joinery students were doing. They stayed away from us in droves. Undaunted we kept asking questions and admiring their work until they started to crowd around us. We told them we came to share the gospel and would they come join us and they did! Mukisa gave his testimony, Opio shared from Genesis and I taught from Ecclesiastes. The Holy Spirit was convicting hearts and by the end many kids prayed for Jesus to enter into their lives and change them. The teachers said that this was the first time they could remember the Gospel being shared there. They were so excited that they asked JB to come every Thursday.

Imagine the impact it will have on the church and the community when these 300 “worst cases” truly follow Jesus . We are excited as Jesus opens His peoples hearts to Him.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Road to Pajule Pt.3

We had opted to go by way of Gulu to check on Pastor Samuel Olara and the church in Kabaedo’pong (pronounced kabaedo’pong). They were building permanent temporary walls. Permanent since they were using baked bricks, temporary since the mortar was mud with no cement. To build permanent structures you need site plans drawings and all that kind of stuff. But temporary buildings, which can remain indefinitely, don’t need them.
It was looking very good. We had lunch with Samuel and Concy, then hit the road for Pajule. Two hours later we arrived at JB’s.

It was a joyful arrival as we were excited to leave the car and even more excited to see the family. JB looked his normal happy self but a few pounds lighter. Grace is even more hospitable and gracious then she was in Jinja. Aryana, the world’s youngest teenager at the age of three, threw herself into Kelli’s arms and then proceeded to speak nonstop for about 116 hours. And Zaphenath-Paneah just sat and watched. His name means ‘the man who knows things,’ and he acts it too. Always observing and seeming to say “I knew that.”

Sleeping arrangements were soon worked out with Kelli, Anne Rose and Jacob staying with the Toolits and Apollo, Paul and I staying in the nearby guest house. Grace prepared food and we all retired fairly early to be ready to minister the next day. We were looking forward to visiting Pajule College and going door to door visiting and sharing the gospel.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Road to Pajule Pt.2

About 20 minutes out of Jinja is Mabira Forest. The thick vegetation, which comes right up to the roadway, makes it a haven for armed robbers. Not to make it sound too dangerous but you do not want to have car trouble there. Naturally, just as we enter the forest the car starts making a new noise.

Being a hardheaded driver (read that male driver) who conquers the road and never turns back I said a silent prayer and kept going. Speed seemed to lessen the noise so we went faster. Much better! I could almost imagine the noise being gone 15 min. later as we flew out of the forest. But as we slowed for the town of Lugazi the noise was definitely there! I asked God to soften my head enough to stop and He did.

You should know that the day before I had used my new tire plug repair kit to fix a slow leak. Having never used a tire plugger before I managed to get it plugged and hoped it held. Bev was doubtful of my new abilities and begged me to go to the tire shop. (Tire shop in Jinja is three old men with a bottle of rubber cement, an old inner tube, two pry bars and a bicycle pump.) I refused. Being old myself with old tools but a new tire plugger and an electric pump I figured I was almost 59% better qualified than the tire shop.

As I silently prayed Paul walked alongside listening for the noise. After listening to the first three wheels he said it was definitely the fourth. The very one I worked on! Images of Achan being found guilty by Joshua as tribe by tribe then clan by clan and family by family came forward flashed through my head. Rats! My wife was right! Thankfully Bev is not the kind to say I told you so! But upon closer inspection the tire wasn’t flat it was simply that the village idiot (me) hadn’t tightened the lug nuts properly. So Paul cinched them down and off we went.

Having been found as a qualified tire plugger was good but the reproach of not being strong enough to cinch the nuts put me in a somber mood. But that was ok. Bev even sent an SMS saying well done.

I thought it said well done. Since it was still dark and the message was long and I didn’t have my glasses I asked Paul to read it and he mumbled something about Bev said “Well done!”

Shortly after that I received another message but being under the same conditions as before I chose to read it later when we would get fuel.

When I finally read it, it said “Oops that message was supposed to go to Kelli!” At first I didn’t understand, then I remembered the first message I couldn’t read that Paul had said it said “Well done!” What it actually said was, “Don’t tell Jesse I said ’I told you so!’ but I begged him to have a real tire guy fix that tire!”

Rodney Dangerfield said it best. “I get no respect.”

THE ROAD TO PAJULE Part 1

Last week I went to visit the new ministry that God is starting through JB in Pajule, Pader District. This is JB and Grace’s home town so they are very happy to be back home.

I had planned to go by myself but JB asked that I bring a team for evangelism, so six of us went. First to sign up was Mukisa Paul, he is an elder of Calvary Chapel Jinja and has been a friend of mine since 1998. He and JB have worked together a lot and he was eager to go. The added advantage is that Paul is a mechanic and drives. Now we had two drivers to share the road and the load in case of breakdown.

Then Pastor Apollo from Iguluibi agreed to go. He works with us to help oversee the village ministries and keep their pastors on the right path. He is warm, funny and wise and will speak up when he sees someone doing wrong. He doesn’t drive but he doesn’t eat much so we brought him along.

Next Kelli O’Hea volunteered to go. An extraordinary youth teacher and organizer she had a great desire to see JB and Grace’s kids who she had been whipping into shape over the past two plus years. Her involvement was good so that she could help JB get a youth ministry started.

Opio Jacob, a student from last year’s SOM and a pastoral intern in Jinja was invited to go since we needed someone to tell us where JB lived. He had helped in moving the Toolits back home so to keep us going in the right direction, he was added to the team. Plus he can be quite funny.

Finally Anne Rose joined us. She is a Ugandan who has spent the better part of her life in London. She has zeal to serve and has been asking for an opportunity to serve in the church so we figured this would be good timing to see what she can do.

The day before we left we met to discuss our purpose and plans. Scheduled for 2:00pm Anne Rose called at 5 minutes to 2:00 to say she was on her way. When she arrived Kelli and I were the only ones there (only because it was on our compound) and she asked how late the others would be. “African late?” Which means anytime after the scheduled time. “No, Mzungu late.” I responded. This means twenty minutes late. Sure enough Paul and Opio arrived at 2:18, right on time. Apollo however was village late. He showed up that night!

At the meeting we arranged to leave by 5:00am the next morning everyone would come to the church except Anne Rose who we would pick on the way. Worked out just like planned when Paul showed up 18 minutes late. However by this time we had left to pick up Anne Rose then met Paul halfway there and since we were late I didn’t get to kiss Bev goodbye.

That is how the trip started.

Monday, April 4, 2011

When does Faith need medicine?

This past Saturday Moro Steven and I took Jonathan, the new nurse, to Ogongora to reopen the clinic. It was another whirlwind trip. Five hours there, unload, eat lunch, drive home. I've got to admit that we are getting lots of practice.

So we have the clinic reopening which is good for the community but I wonder where to draw the line. One of the things that strikes me about living here is how dependent we are on Jesus. When most people here fall sick their only hope is to pray. They don't have the option of modern medicine. Jesus is the answer. The only answer. I have seen Jesus heal so many here that I could almost see fit to not open the C.C.Medical Centre in order to let people live by faith not by medicine. I know that I'd never do that but a friend asked me last week when does intervening in the life of a sick child turn from helping to playing God. If that child needs a kidney transplant but that is not available here, is my friend doing more harm than good? No way! I told her to always opt for life, hope and love. That is what Jesus always gives. Life and hope and love. Three things you can't go wrong giving people. If life, hope and love come through Jesus by way of the clinic that is good enough for me. As long as people know that all healing at the clinic is by God's wisdom and plan, I'll just keep sharing the truth about our awesome Savior. And all the ways He saves.

Now it is off to Pajule for a week of evangelism. I'm Sorry I have to leave my lovely bride at home. But she doesn't like stay out for the week in the village, plus somebody needs to stick around to run the place. Lord keep her safe and our evangelism team as well.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

In my need to do things, I've taken on a new project, painting the truck rack. Jay had it made several years ago and it has served us very well. But Steven pointed out the other day that it was getting rusty. (Speaking of getting rusty, our dear friend Janie Carlock turned 40 today) So I decided to have the tired old thing painted.
(that's the rack, not Janie) So Monday I got out my trusty mini grinder and put on a wire wheel and began stripping paint. Well mostly rust, really. Then it started to rain so it had to wait until Tuesday. I put a nice coat of red oxide paint on it yesterday afternoon and went back today for a second coat. Now the rack is in the fenced yard out of the way of everything. But at dinner we noticed that our friend Nick had a red stripe across his rear end. Somehow he managed to sit on the rack and ruin his shorts. That led me to wonder if others might get into the act. Sure enough we now have a red striped German shepherd. Nick's best color is probably not red but it sure suits the dog well!

But the story didn't start with the rack. It actually started with a flat tire. Sunday Morning the van we take to prison had a flat tire. The van has a special rear end with 13 inch dual wheels. Sunday being our busiest day of the week I waited to change the tire until Monday.

The day dawned bright and clear but by the time I got started it was threatening to rain. I should have been warned by the ominous gloom.

After gathering a jack and tools I proceeded to attempt to change the tire. I could not break the nuts loose. WD-40, lug wrenches, cheater bars and every tool I could gather was soon employed to try to remove the offending tire. "It has refused!"

Then I got serious! I got out my favorite 1/2" drive ratchet with a 12" extension plus heavy duty 7/8" socket and proceeded to work on it. Me and my trusted D-J Tools ratchet. No frozen nut has ever defeated this combination. I put the socket on the extension then the extension on the ratchet and the whole thing on the first nut. I pulled and pushed nothing. Then I stood on the ratchet. Nothing. Then I bounced on the ratchet. Wait! I felt it start to give. Then the unthinkable happened. My trusted friend who has worked with me for 24 years, whose faithfulness is only exceeded by my wife, broke. D-J my favorite wrench snapped in two! Twenty four years! Ronald Reagan was president when I bought that wrench. Granted 24 years isn't as old as our friend Janie, who is forty today, but it is still a long time. I did finally get the nuts removed but it was a hollow victory.

D-J Now occupies a place of in honor on my desk. It is my newest paper weight. I'm hoping it lasts another 24 years.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Stunned Silence

As we watched live footage of the Japan earthquake and tsunami, I found myself speechless. I usually have lots of bad jokes about tragedy and death. I'm sorry to be that way but it has always been how I coped with things. Say something funny and move on with life. But these days there are just not funny words to say.

Here in Uganda things are stable although we still have threats from al-Shabab to target flights in and out of Entebbe. Makes picking up or taking people to the airport more time consuming but that is all.

The protests (riots) that have been sparked by the national elections here seem so tame compared to elsewhere in Africa. The call for "spontaneous" protests the day before the scheduled riot gives you plenty of time to shop early and clear off the streets. Even during the demonstration if you stay away from Main Street and the tear gas it isn't too bad. Some people have been injured but not as many as was expected.

But then Japan is rocked. And what is my reaction? Stunned silence. We, Christians, have been expecting the wars and rumours of war, earthquakes, famine and every other type of disaster as the beginning of birth pains. I should be ready to speak up, not grow quiet. I need to open my mouth and tell of God's plan of salvation more boldly than I ever have, but I am stunned instead. Has my heart grown cold so that there is no love for those who are perishing.

Matthew 24:4-8 tells us that Jesus wants us to be ready when this time comes, for if we do not speak up with the Gospel now, the next step is persecution and hatred toward believers(v.9-10). Is that hatred aimed at us for speaking against sin and offending people? Yes. But is it also possible that the hatred toward believers will be the result of our hardened hearts toward the world and the dying. Do we sit in stunned silence knowing what is to come, eager to see Jesus but not saying a word to the unbelieving world? Is our love for people, the lost, growing cold. Stand firm (v.13-14) and be saved. Stand firm in the full armor of God. Love to the end so the Gospel of the kingdom will preached as a testimony to the whole world. Then the end will come!

Lord, let my heart, our hearts, love as you love. To a world that sits in stunned slience, let us show those around us how to live eternally in you. Break our silence!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Philippians 4:13

When I first came to faith in Jesus Christ Bev gave me a little plaque that quoted Philippians 4:13, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." NIV

But I prefer the NKJV, "I can do all things throuh Christ who strengthens me."

At the end of a very difficult week, both physically and emotionally, I know that this verse is true. At times when I had to face the things that are toughest for me to do, Jesus gave me strength. But more importantly He gave us strength.

Saying good bye to one of my dearest friends but having to show others that his moving to his own ministry is all good, Jesus gave us strength. Me to say goodbye, JB to move.

Having to go console a dear friend, the adoptive mother of a child who lived seven years longer than anyone thought was possible because of her unconditional love, He strengthened us. Me to pray for and console Julie through a pain that I can't even imagine and Julie to face a day she had hoped would never come.

Having to help my wife endure two very painful weeks as children she loved left our home for good (either for school or heaven) plus the shifting of two of her biggest confidantes and friends. Jesus strengthened us. Me to be strong for her so she could let down and grieve, Bev to be a strong shoulder for everyone else to cry on.

Finding words of comfort and wisdom for a young woman who has learned how painful it is to give your heart away to a family that you never expected to have and yet knowing in her heart that it is the only way to live. He strengthened us. Me to look at God's love displayed in ny life and Kelli to go right on loving the kids here in Jinja regardless of the hurt and pain it may bring.

Having to encourage a young man to make a decision based on what God's will is for his life and not on any half promises made to me. Jesus is strengthening us. Me to encourage and genuinely forgive and Jonah to truly seek to please God wherever that may lead Him.

When Bev gave me that framed plague in 1992 I had no idea it would be the truth I hold on to everyday for 19 years now. From America to Africa, "We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength."

Monday, February 28, 2011

For Naziwa Harriet

As we gather together mourning our loss at the death of Naziwa Harriet we need to keep death in the proper perspective. For Christians that perspective is love not fear.

1Corithians 13:4-11 tell us that love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection come the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways be hind me. Now we see but a poor reflection in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then we shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Because of God's love for us through Jesus Christ we have courage to see the future that is unseen and strength to face the most difficult painful troubles, like the death of Harriet. Prophecy reveals God's plan for us but when we fully receive God's love at death, we need prophecy no longer. We enter into His final plan. Our earthly knowledge becomes inadequate when we are in His presence. All our imperfections disappear and we now see and know all the truth of God that we could not grasp before.

As a child, like Harriet, we try to understand life through imperfect hearts and minds. But on becoming a man, Paul said the childish things are behind him. When do we become spiritual adults? Are we there yet? Do we see clearly? Not yet! We only see dimly like a dull mirror, in the half light of the fading world. Fading because of the sin that has taken so much of our lives.

But when we are made perfect, with our sin nature removed at death, then we will know and understand the pain and sorrows that we faced on Earth, God's eternal purpose and plan. For now we are still kids but Harriet is now a spiritual adult in the presence of Jesus Christ. She knows the very things we long for through faith.

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." We have faith that Jesus is the Savior of men, hope that the call to glory will one day be sounded for us, and love for each other that builds us up together in Christ.

1Corinthians 15:32 "If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead in Christ are not raised, "Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die." If we go through this life with the only purpose of this life being to please ourselves then we should just get drunk and eat ourselves to death. But that doesn't work! The glutton can never get enough food nor the drunkard enough beer! So where do we find our hope? In the Love of Jesus Christ!

1Corinthians 15:54-55 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying is that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?" By knowing the love of God through Jesus Christ, Naziwa has not been stung or defeated by death. She has conquered death. That is how she could live such a joyful life even with all her health problems. She smiled through the most severe pain because she knew that death was not a sting but a hoped for release into the new light and knowledge of God.

If you have been stung by the death of our little sister, turn to Christ! There is no fear in Him! Only Faith, Hope and Love.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Of Mites and Men

The other day Bev was sitting on the sofa when she complained that she felt like she was being eaten alive. But we couldn't see any bugs so we sprayed some Doom (that's the East Africa version of Raid) and left it at that. Bev sat back down some few minutes later and the itching was much less but still there. Being your typical missionary couple we did what any right thinking missionary would, do we went to bed. Things always look better after a good night's rest.

Next morning before we could check the situation out more thouroughly JB came in and sat on the couch. Now you may not realize it by looking at him but JB can dance! I know because after about two minutes he was up on his feet doing all kinds of moves. Then we noticed he looked kinda fuzzy. And paler than usual. On closer inspection he was covered in mites. Not termites that you eat but mites that bite and eat you. Bev suspected (and was right as usual)that the cause was a bird's nest in the vent bricks above the couch. Turns out the attic was a mite full of the little critters and the over flow was coming down through the windows. Apparently mites are smaller than the spacing in our window screens. So after getting some mitey strong insecticide we hauled all the furniture out into the yard and prayed and sprayed for the end to the infestation. God is good and the problem is over. But the funny thing is we couldn't see the mites on Bev because of her light skin but JB's skin showed them quite well.

Personally I'm more afraid of getting red lung disease. This is a condition that affects taxi and lorry drivers, touts(the money takers on taxis), turnboys (the young men who ride in the lorries and tell the driver to "Turn just there."
Apparently there is a law here that says you can't say turn left at the corner. You must be as vague as possible and say, turn just there) and all other frequent upcountry drivers during dry season. It is like the blacklung of coal miners but is brought on by the red dust that is forever hanging like a pall of crimson death over the roads here. At times it is so thick that head on collisions happen. Or rear enders. The latter are caused by those trying to overtake the vehicle ahead so as to not breathe fresh dust. This desire for fresher air causes people to race up behind the offending vehicle and attempt to pass at the worst possible time and place. Blind curves, crests of a hill, bridges, sidewalks (actually that is a path next to the road) or anyplace you choose just as long as you don't have to stay behind that dust maker any longer!

I have been trying to get our clinic in Ogongera running and have been making many trips back and forth. My gray hair is now red and I am beginning to look sunburned from the dust that seems to be penetrating into my pores. Good news is we should have the clinic functioning on a limited basis with a Registered Nurse and a Nursing Assistant by mid March. Then we will add a lab tech and then see where God leads us. Please pray for the staffing at the clinic as this is the primary medical facility for about 8,000 people. We also have to put new ceilings in one of the buildings as the old ceilings have collapsed. Termites don't you know! Makes me hungry just thinking about it.

Monday, February 14, 2011

How do you rebuild?

It is a rebuilding period for us. Rebuilding the ministry in Jinja and the clinic in Ogongera.
The Jinja ministry is getting a new pastor. Moro Steven, who has been our prisons pastor for the last four years is going to take over the Sunday teaching duties when Jb and Grace depart for their new old home, Pajule, at the end of the month.

God has a way of getting things in place before we realise it and He is doing it in our ministry again. When Ryan left we never thought we could get a group to replace him but God has given us Otim, Aaron, Morris, Joseph, Anna, the harmony sisters Neema and Loyce, the harmony brother Patrick and it all just gets better. No, you can't replace Ryan, but God brings along a whole new wind to breathe back life into His church.

We can't replace JB but God doesn't want to replace him only move him. To try and fill JB's shoes would be tough. He wears a 71/2 and I wear a 13 so that doesn't work. But Steven has his own shoes and fills them quite comfortably. So God will use Steven in the way God intended and use JB in the place that was intended for him to be.

This past week I had another meeting at the clinic in Ogongora. This time the District Health Officer and the District Drug Inspector attended and gave us guidelines to get the clinic running again. Upon my return home the next day a very close brother in Christ calls from the States and wants to come with a team to do some work. Well I may not be a rocket scientist but I do know when God is working. So God is already making preparations to physically rebuild the clinic structure. And today I met with a registered nurse who wants to go and run the clinic. God is good!

How do you rebuild? Apparently you don't. You just trust God to do what He does best. And that would be completing the good work He has begun in Jinja, Ogongora, Pajule, you and me. If you are in the midst of a God project in your life, take heart. There is no one as faithful as Jesus.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

What year is this?

Now that we are firmly into February it is time once again to visit. Not friends but offices. Every year the paper chase gets going in February. Now some with a Western mindset would think that the best time to start a year is at the start of the year. That makes sense but it just doesn't work here. Schools are out in January so anyone with a government job is at home from early December to just after Groundhog's Day. Which just happens to be my older brother Rob's birthday. (Happy Birthday Rob!) But that is not important. It's also the day that those government workers start filtering back to the offices, so it is my day to start the hunt again for the elusive land lease.

The lease, like the animal mentioned above, will burrow to the bottom of any pile of papers it can find(the groundhog, not my brother Rob). Must be true since no living person in any office has seen my lease application. Not just since last year but ever! Even the gentleman who greeted me so warmly "Ah, my friend, how have you been? Has it been a year already?" When asked about the lease that I put in his hands last year says he has never seen it. I didn't believe him until I saw a pile of papers scurry out the door. Now I don't know what to think.

Walking away feeling discouraged but strangely upbeat at the idea of kicking back and waiting for Rob's birthday 2012, I bumped into a friend at the Resident District Commissioner's office. He is not the RDC but knows him well enough to throw his weight around, a little. Mr Nyanzi escorted me from office to office trying to track the lease. I had to laugh when the young lady in one office said,"Pastor, stop your friend, he is being harsh on me." This young woman had earlier made me stand in her office for over an hour as she leafed through the entry book looking for my filing date. I tried to help her but she got huffy and said that people were not allowed to touch the "BOOK". I watched in amazement as every time she came near my entry date she turned two pages not just one. Now my friend made her turn one page at a time and low and behold there it was. NO, not the lease but the entry date. Now with that and a simple fee of 2,500 shilings I can get a cup of coffee but the lease is still lost.

In one office they asked me if all my fees had been paid. I told them, yes, but only up to last time I saw the lease in 2010. Not to worry, they assured me. You are ahead. You don't pay for this year until next year and last year wasn't supposed to be paid until the end of this year. And because this is an election year nobody is paying until they know who the boss will be!

But I have been assured that the lease will be found by next week. Something to do with Equatorial Vermin Day. Or the president's brother's birthday whichever comes first.


Do not fear however. I have been assured that the lease will be found by Monday. That is bittersweet news as I would love to get our lease officially but then I wouldn't have any excuse to visit all my friends.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

God's Pain

The School of Ministry has started Old Testament Survey and naturally we start at the beginning. Today as we were exploring Genesis, I was surprised at the thought of God's pain. How does God feel pain? If you know everything that is to happen and that causes you pain would that pain lessen or deepen? If there is no effect of time on you do the things that cause pain ever get better?

I started thinking about this while looking at the sacrifice of Isaac. On their journey to Mt. Moriah Isaac asks Abraham, "The fire and the wood are here but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham replied "God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son."

When God heard those words, what did He feel? Joy at Abraham's faith in Him? Love for Abraham knowing that He would provide a substitute for Isaac? All these are good but what does our Father feel when He knows there will be no substitute for Jesus His Son?

There must be great love for us there knowing that we put our faith in God, trusting the Lamb He sends as our sacrifice.

There must be great joy there knowing that we live and are saved by the substitute He provides.

But I can't imagine the pain God must have felt when He knew His only begotten Son would die for all the evil, sinful things I have done. The hurt must have been terrible, when Abraham said "God Himself will provide the Lamb."

Later when Abraham raised the knife to sacrifice Isaac and he is stopped by the angel of the Lord, what did God feel? Joy at Abe's obedience? Love for the man who was willingly going to give up the person he cherished most for the sake of knowing God? Or pain at knowing that there would be no last second substitute for His own Son?

For two thousand years what was God's pain every time He promised Israel a Messiah, a saviour for sinful man.

But that's not the whole story. Don't forget God's joy when He said, "This is my Son. In Him I am well pleased!"

What was His joy when Jesus finished His work by resurrecting from the dead and then ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of His Father?

If that joy could ever be equalled it must come from us! That is the enrivaled joy we should and must have in our Savior. That is the love we must have for Him who showed us what love truly is, while we were still sinners Christ died for us. That is the faith we must have in God through Jesus. That He would willing lay down His life for us.

Pain should be there when we sin but it will always be overcome by the joy of forgiveness.

I guess I can't imagine the joy of truly forgiving someone to the point that I can't even find a trace or mark of the offense. That is the joy of forgiveness that the Father knows.

May we know it too. Teach us Lord how to avoid the pain of sin and the embrace the joy of forgiving.