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!

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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!