Days 3-5 (Friday thru Sunday)
Friday was another busy day of taking care of logistics. I met with several men about vehicles that they have for sale. An example of the cost is that a 1997 Toyota van with 157,000 km, diesel, in average condition is 11,000 US dollars. A mid-90s model Toyota Landcruiser with similar mileage and condition would be around $25,000. We are trusting God to provide and to give us wisdom in making a purchase. I just keep thinking about my 2000 Toyota Tundra that I sold for $9200, which would probably be worth twice that here. We are also in the process of opening a banking account, which is not simple either and a checking account is $20/month. We looked at 4 more houses on Friday, but none of them are suitable. We did see one Saturday morning that was closer to what we need, but the family room was much too small and it had no yard. It was very clean and had a great kitchen. We know that there are houses here that will fit our needs and asking God to lead us to them/it. Friday evening we had a meeting at the Kampala Sheraton (a very nice hotel), where we had several interesting and unplanned introductions. I met the mayor of Kampala, a retired Army Colonel, a preacher from Phoenix who is doing marriage conferences in Uganda, and many other influential people from Uganda.
Saturday was a day of new things. We went to an African wedding and reception. It was very festive and celebratory. The vows and exchanging of rings was very similar to America, but nothing else was. There was much singing, dancing, and shouting, and it was a great introduction to our new culture. The wedding party was dressed exquisitely with matching jewelry and very nice dresses and tuxedos. It was our first opportunity to begin meeting many members of the church and we feel most welcome, especially since they tell us “to feel most welcome to Uganda!”
Sunday was our first day at Makerere Community Church (MCC) and what an incredible day it was! Church started at 10:30 and ended at about 1:15. We then went to a baptismal service at the campus pool where they baptized about 40 students, which did not end until 4:00. As could be expected, the worship was dynamic and expressive. Some of the music was familiar but most was not. However, the Sprit in worship was obvious and captivating. It was truly a time of celebration and declaration of victory. It reminded me of where I had been a week earlier…at the University of Tennessee football game when they beat Cal. The stadium was loud and grew louder as UT increased their lead up to 35-0. I actually wondered during the game why it is so easy to get excited and caught up in the intensity of the celebration of something as temporal as a football game. I thought during that game how great it would be to be as excited about worship. Well, we experienced that intensity of worship today. It was loud, but not due to amplification and instruments. Rather, it was loud due to the heartfelt and expressive singing of 500 college students. They showed tremendous love and appreciation toward us for coming to Uganda. We are able to share briefly and I felt that God was leading me to Psalm 145, and specifically the portion where it states, “one generation shall declare thy mighty works to another”. This generation of college students is changing Uganda already and will continue to do so for this generation and the one to follow as God raises up Godly leaders for East Africa’s future.
I really believe that God was speaking to me in today’s service about how important it is for the church to possess land and buildings of their own. The church service we attended was the second service of two, and it was packed to overflowing with students in the hallways outside and unable to see and barely hear. They are meeting in a lecture hall on the campus and have to set up each week. They are using an older house (the White House) for Bible studies during the week and have the same space problems there. For Friday prayer meeting and Saturday night PrimeTime (with 5,000 students!) they have to set up each time. Set up involves bringing all of the musical equipment, speakers, microphones, overhead projection, and sometimes a generator. All of these things are huge logistical challenges in Uganda, especially given the unpredictable nature of electricity here. They are crowded everywhere they go and have nothing to call their own. It is still a church because God has made the Bride of Christ the church body and doesn’t require a building. However, it is very obvious that the work and energy being spent on difficult logistics when combined with the current limitations is making growth of the church difficult. The entire time we were singing I kept thinking of the verse in Joshua Chapter 1 where it states, “wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you.” God promised His people that He would provide a place for them, that they could call home. I believe that God wants Makerere Community Church to have a place to call home, where they can minister daily to more people and with easier logistics. Guess what text Pastor Ssempa preached from today? Joshua 1:1-9, which contains the promise that I was thinking on. He was not talking about possessing land and did not emphasize that verse (he was preaching about being strong and courageous under the leadership of Joshua). I am requesting that you pray that God will provide the resources for land for MCC. They have identified 4 acres on campus that can be purchased for $300,000. That is actually a good deal here, as land is very hard to find and is usually more than $100,000 per acre near the university. The man who owns it and has offered it at this price is old and near death, and if he dies, it will go to his son who is unlikely to sell it to the church. Please pray that it will stay available until God provides the resources. I clearly saw the need today and already know that it is urgent. They are impacting the campus with the gospel of Jesus Christ, which was demonstrated abundantly today during the baptismal service at the campus swimming pool and in testimonies that we have heard all weekend long.
Monday, Sep 11, 2006 (Day 6)
We saw some nice houses today, but we are also trying not to be discouraged about one that we missed. We were supposed to see a house Saturday morning, but the appt was canceled at the last moment. We went to see the house this morning, and we were so encouraged as approached the gated entrance (all houses here have walls and gates for security). The house was on a nice street, very close to the Ssempas, and had a beautiful view of the lake. However, as soon as we arrived, the person keeping the house informed us that it had been taken the previous day (Sunday). It was exactly what we had hoped for, and we are trying not to think about having missed the Saturday appt. God is in control of this and it is only a small test that we hope to pass successfully. We saw two other nice houses today, but they were a bit more expensive than we hoped to pay and not where we desire to be. We are getting closer to finding a home and trust that God is going to provide exactly what we need. Car shopping today was quite an experience, but that went better as well. I am praying that we will be able to get two vehicles for $20,000 or less that will meet our needs.
We registered the three youngest boys for school today and hope to enroll Christian today as well. I met two boys who are the same grade as Addison and Blake and am encouraged that they will be good friends with our sons. They are from Kenya but have spent time in Florida training since their parents run the school. Though they are African, they have been exposed to American culture and like skateboarding, basketball, Playstation, and are interested in baseball.
Friday was another busy day of taking care of logistics. I met with several men about vehicles that they have for sale. An example of the cost is that a 1997 Toyota van with 157,000 km, diesel, in average condition is 11,000 US dollars. A mid-90s model Toyota Landcruiser with similar mileage and condition would be around $25,000. We are trusting God to provide and to give us wisdom in making a purchase. I just keep thinking about my 2000 Toyota Tundra that I sold for $9200, which would probably be worth twice that here. We are also in the process of opening a banking account, which is not simple either and a checking account is $20/month. We looked at 4 more houses on Friday, but none of them are suitable. We did see one Saturday morning that was closer to what we need, but the family room was much too small and it had no yard. It was very clean and had a great kitchen. We know that there are houses here that will fit our needs and asking God to lead us to them/it. Friday evening we had a meeting at the Kampala Sheraton (a very nice hotel), where we had several interesting and unplanned introductions. I met the mayor of Kampala, a retired Army Colonel, a preacher from Phoenix who is doing marriage conferences in Uganda, and many other influential people from Uganda.
Saturday was a day of new things. We went to an African wedding and reception. It was very festive and celebratory. The vows and exchanging of rings was very similar to America, but nothing else was. There was much singing, dancing, and shouting, and it was a great introduction to our new culture. The wedding party was dressed exquisitely with matching jewelry and very nice dresses and tuxedos. It was our first opportunity to begin meeting many members of the church and we feel most welcome, especially since they tell us “to feel most welcome to Uganda!”
Sunday was our first day at Makerere Community Church (MCC) and what an incredible day it was! Church started at 10:30 and ended at about 1:15. We then went to a baptismal service at the campus pool where they baptized about 40 students, which did not end until 4:00. As could be expected, the worship was dynamic and expressive. Some of the music was familiar but most was not. However, the Sprit in worship was obvious and captivating. It was truly a time of celebration and declaration of victory. It reminded me of where I had been a week earlier…at the University of Tennessee football game when they beat Cal. The stadium was loud and grew louder as UT increased their lead up to 35-0. I actually wondered during the game why it is so easy to get excited and caught up in the intensity of the celebration of something as temporal as a football game. I thought during that game how great it would be to be as excited about worship. Well, we experienced that intensity of worship today. It was loud, but not due to amplification and instruments. Rather, it was loud due to the heartfelt and expressive singing of 500 college students. They showed tremendous love and appreciation toward us for coming to Uganda. We are able to share briefly and I felt that God was leading me to Psalm 145, and specifically the portion where it states, “one generation shall declare thy mighty works to another”. This generation of college students is changing Uganda already and will continue to do so for this generation and the one to follow as God raises up Godly leaders for East Africa’s future.
I really believe that God was speaking to me in today’s service about how important it is for the church to possess land and buildings of their own. The church service we attended was the second service of two, and it was packed to overflowing with students in the hallways outside and unable to see and barely hear. They are meeting in a lecture hall on the campus and have to set up each week. They are using an older house (the White House) for Bible studies during the week and have the same space problems there. For Friday prayer meeting and Saturday night PrimeTime (with 5,000 students!) they have to set up each time. Set up involves bringing all of the musical equipment, speakers, microphones, overhead projection, and sometimes a generator. All of these things are huge logistical challenges in Uganda, especially given the unpredictable nature of electricity here. They are crowded everywhere they go and have nothing to call their own. It is still a church because God has made the Bride of Christ the church body and doesn’t require a building. However, it is very obvious that the work and energy being spent on difficult logistics when combined with the current limitations is making growth of the church difficult. The entire time we were singing I kept thinking of the verse in Joshua Chapter 1 where it states, “wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you.” God promised His people that He would provide a place for them, that they could call home. I believe that God wants Makerere Community Church to have a place to call home, where they can minister daily to more people and with easier logistics. Guess what text Pastor Ssempa preached from today? Joshua 1:1-9, which contains the promise that I was thinking on. He was not talking about possessing land and did not emphasize that verse (he was preaching about being strong and courageous under the leadership of Joshua). I am requesting that you pray that God will provide the resources for land for MCC. They have identified 4 acres on campus that can be purchased for $300,000. That is actually a good deal here, as land is very hard to find and is usually more than $100,000 per acre near the university. The man who owns it and has offered it at this price is old and near death, and if he dies, it will go to his son who is unlikely to sell it to the church. Please pray that it will stay available until God provides the resources. I clearly saw the need today and already know that it is urgent. They are impacting the campus with the gospel of Jesus Christ, which was demonstrated abundantly today during the baptismal service at the campus swimming pool and in testimonies that we have heard all weekend long.
Monday, Sep 11, 2006 (Day 6)
We saw some nice houses today, but we are also trying not to be discouraged about one that we missed. We were supposed to see a house Saturday morning, but the appt was canceled at the last moment. We went to see the house this morning, and we were so encouraged as approached the gated entrance (all houses here have walls and gates for security). The house was on a nice street, very close to the Ssempas, and had a beautiful view of the lake. However, as soon as we arrived, the person keeping the house informed us that it had been taken the previous day (Sunday). It was exactly what we had hoped for, and we are trying not to think about having missed the Saturday appt. God is in control of this and it is only a small test that we hope to pass successfully. We saw two other nice houses today, but they were a bit more expensive than we hoped to pay and not where we desire to be. We are getting closer to finding a home and trust that God is going to provide exactly what we need. Car shopping today was quite an experience, but that went better as well. I am praying that we will be able to get two vehicles for $20,000 or less that will meet our needs.
We registered the three youngest boys for school today and hope to enroll Christian today as well. I met two boys who are the same grade as Addison and Blake and am encouraged that they will be good friends with our sons. They are from Kenya but have spent time in Florida training since their parents run the school. Though they are African, they have been exposed to American culture and like skateboarding, basketball, Playstation, and are interested in baseball.
posted by Ironside Tribe at 11:56 PM
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