Kids Focus Team - Day 5

This is the dirt that matters:

What a fantastic day. We just made it back to the house and I am sitting in awe of how today played out. We got to see firsthand just how effective the child sponsorship program is and that we are all connected in this family between Cornerstone, these children, the sponsors, and ultimately the love of Christ.We spent the whole day at Buloba Community Church for what is called Center Day. This day is set aside for all of the children within the Ebenzer School who are sponsored. When we arrived at the school everyone was gathered in the church and everyone was singing, dancing, and worshipping. It was an honor to join in with them and was just a small taste of what we will experience tomorrow during the church service. After worship ended they split the children up into four groups and then we divided among them to teach the Bible lesson for that day. Again, another situation where we were completely unprepared for this, considering we were handed the lesson plan about three minutes before we were supposed to teach. Todd, Davis, and I all went with the oldest group which were teenagers between the ages of thirteen and seventeen. After we taught the lesson I wanted to get to know these teens a little bit better. I met some bright teenagers who have aspirations to be doctors, lawyers, and teachers! I sat there admiring how hopeful they were for the future and how grateful they were for the opportunity to be able to be sponsored and receive an education that can help them reach these goals. Most of these kids were in the P-7 class (equivalent to 8^th grade) and I immediately remembered that the girl I met the first day, Jalia, was their age. I asked of any of them knew Jalia and they all lit up and said they did. I remember Jalia asking me several times that day if we were coming back to their school while we were here and I could not ever give her an answer, I honestly was not sure. As the week progressed I knew that we would not be going back to that school and was sad knowing that Jalia was probably just as bummed as I was. After learning that these kids were friends were here I asked why she wasn’t, and it’s because she is not sponsored. Without hesitation I got up and found Esther, the woman in charge of the child sponsorship program and told her about Jalia and asked if it would be possible for me to sponsor her. She said that she would call for her to be at the church after lunch and I tell her the news myself. In looking back on how all of this just kind of fell into place, I am simply amazed. God had a reason for me making a connection with Jalia on that first day, meeting her friends, and for showing me the effect that sponsoring these children has on the whole community. In the matter of about two minutes I knew that sponsoring Jalia was exactly what I needed to be doing.After lunch we pulled up and sure enough, there she was. Her face lit up as we got off the bus and I was so excited to tell her the news. I asked her if she needed a sponsor and if it would be ok I could do that for her and I could tell that a huge weight was just lifted off her shoulders. It was such a sweet moment for both of us, to know that the God we serve had a perfect plan in crossing our paths. This amazing, strong, beautiful thirteen year old girl deserves more than just $30 dollars a month from me. She is currently living with her aunt and is separated from her mother and seven year old brother and her father who lived six hours away. She has one more year of primary school, six years of high school, and one day wants to become a doctor. She also wants to one day travel the world and explore all of the continents. Like I said, this girl is incredible. I am so excited to be able to get to know Jalia better via sending letters and pictures and to also be able to pray for her as she continues to grow into the woman that God has called her to be. I can’t wait to spend one more day with her at church tomorrow morning. Leaving will be extremely hard but I am so excited for this new journey we are about to start together.Myself and five other people on our team picked up children to sponsor over the course of this trip. Today was very special for everyone who already is sponsoring a child because they were able to give them things that they brought from home; backpacks, paper, pencils, dolls, crayons, or anything else that might have been on their child’s wish list. The joy on all these precious kid’s faces as they received these gifts or discovered they now had a sponsor were priceless and moments that we will never forget. We got to spend the rest of the day playing games, learning as many names as we could, and cherishing every minute we had with them. I have loved learning all of these fun Lugandan songs and dances, today I have got to learn their version of the game “Categories.” Kerri, one of the members of this team summed it up perfectly today, we got on the bus and as we wiped off all of the dust she said, “I am going to miss being dirty.” It’s true, by the end of the day we have turned a shade darker, but it’s not really from the sun. This dusty country has provided me with so much fulfillment and so many great experiences. I am indeed going to miss being dirty at the end of the day in this African way, but what I am asking myself how I can be “dirty” at the end of the day back home as well? Jesus has called us to love the people of Buloba, but He has also called us to love our next door neighbor. I know the heart of our team is to be able to bring the things we have learned here together back to our community.On top of all of wonderful things we experienced today I also got to buy my own bag of dark roast African coffee and Facetime my mom, dad, and sister via the coffee shop wifi. So really, it was a fantastic day.

“I sought the Lord and He answered me; he delivered me from all of my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.” Psalm 34:4-5

Kids Focus Team - Day 4

Today marked our fourth day on the ground in Uganda. We have laughed until our cheeks and stomachs hurt. We have shed tears over the joy of meeting our sponsor children for the first time. We have prayed for the lost. We have had meaningful morning devotions and nighttime wrap-up sessions. We have shared so much in so little time and we all feel as though God orchestrated the perfect team for this week in the Pearl of Africa. It has been a busy and emotional few days to say the least.

Thursday concluded with an absolutely amazing celebration of the wonderful teachers at Ebenezer Primary. God placed it on our hearts months ago that we should do something to honor the teachers at this school. Funny how God works because when the last team was in Uganda, they wrote back that they felt like something should be done for the teachers. We laughed at God’s sense of humor and said we were already on it. We were able to put together a small celebration with simple food and drink. Jill shared 1 Thessalonians 1:2–5 from The Message: Every time we think of you, we thank God for you. Day and night we call to mind your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our master, Jesus Christ before our Father. It is clear to us friends that not only He loves you very much but also has put his hand on you for something special.

We all felt that there is something very special happening in Buloba. Those teachers are top-notch, and those kids are smart, hard workers.  Each of us shared something special about each teacher, and then we gave each teacher a beautiful certificate of appreciation, a copy of the Jesus Calling devotional and a box of colored chalk and an eraser. It could not have been more perfect. You could look around that tiny classroom and see tears in eyes of many. We concluded Thursday on a Jesus high for sure! 

After spending three days at Ebenezer, we used Friday to visit Bethany Village, a home for orphans. If you’ve kept up with Cornerstone missions, you know this involves a boat ride across Lake Victoria. I was totally looking forward to this little excursion but when we got to the lake and many in our group saw the boat we would be taking, you could hear comments like: Where are the life vests? There were no life vests and since we had been talking about being bold, we all climbed aboard and went across the lake. The boat was safe and we had a great time laughing and simply enjoying the scenery that God created. We reached another shore where a group of boda boda drivers were waiting to take us the rest of the way to Bethany Village. I’m not sure any of us realized we would be riding boda bodas so while many of us were beyond excited, there were a few (maybe the same few who were looking for life vests) who were concerned about riding a boda boda. The comments that stood out were: Where are the helmets? Is there any other way to get there besides riding the boda boda?Regardless of our fears, we loaded up and took off and based on the smiles on everyone’s faces once we reached Bethany Village, I would say riding the boda boda would go down as one of the highlights of the trip.

We learned that the vision of Bethany Village is to be a model Christian village that produces self-sustaining adults capable of going out into the world to share the love of Christ.  After driving the streets of Kampala for a few days and seeing the harsh conditions under which these people work and live, it was nice to see the Lord blessing the children and leaders of Bethany Village and know that they will continue to contribute to the kingdom of God. We toured the village – homes, garden, and livestock and left with hope for the future of Uganda.

The remainder of the day consisted of low-key dining on pizza, shopping for shoes for some of the sponsor children and shopping in the market. We are full of good food and ready for bed anticipating an excitingSaturday at Buloba Community Church for Center Day where we will get to meet more of our sponsor children and just have fun interacting with everyone. Our hearts are connected to this place, and it will be difficult to leave on Sunday. Until then, we will take advantage of every opportunity God provides to use us as His hands and feet and to deepen our relationship with Him.

On behalf of the team, Ashley Belcher

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 7

Bethany by boat and bota bota, a taste of local flair, and farewells (with see you soons)

Greetings from Uganda!  Waking up this morning it did not really did not seem to really impress upon us that it was to be our last day in Uganda.  We woke up as we had all week, had breakfast and hit the road around 9 am.  Our plan for the day was to visit Bethany village, visit the market, and then return home for a meal and packing for our return journey. 

A little background on Bethany village is in order so I will take a quick moment to explain.  Bethany village is a school/home for children ranging from age 8 to 18 that have either been abandoned or their families to do not have the funds to send them to school.  The school is a Christian based institution and, with help from their sponsorship program, has a mission to see to it that all young people who come through the program leave with the skills to either find a job or continue on pursuing higher education.  By age 23 they expect for them to have grown into responsible adults capable of impacting the world in a positive way. 

So back to our day.  We left from the house and drove to the Gaba Community Church in downtown Kampala so that we could take a boat ride to Bethany Village.  Bethany village is located across the lake and it is much faster to reach it by boat than by vehicle.  After driving through a fish market with an “array of smells” we arrived at the dock and loaded up into a boat to cross Lake Victoria.  Upon loading up into the boat we shoved off and after riding for 30 minutes landed on the shore across the lake. 

When we landed on the shore there were a fleet of bota botas or small, 125cc motorcycles and their drivers who were to take us the 3 km to the village.  We each selected our drivers and held on as we took off down the dirt roads.  My driver, Bruce, was a particularly friendly fellow and we chatted the whole ride to the village.  We arrived at our destination and thanked our drivers for the transport and walked to the field that we assumed to be the one we would practice on for the next hour and a half. 

After a few minutes of waiting the young men of Bethany Village began to show up and we were able to split them up into around 4-6 person mission team member and teach them the fundamentals of throwing, catching, field a ground ball and a pop fly.  We realized very quickly that many of the children there were very gifted in their athleticism and that given more time and coaching, many would be very quick to play the game well.  After we learn those techniques we moved onto hitting and fielding while on the playing field.  All of them learned that while in the field, they should throw the ball to first when the ball is hit to the infield and they should throw to second when hit to the outfield.  This will set them up for learning the finer points of the game later.  After two rounds of hitting and a 40 yard dash competition at the end we prayed with the young men and they returned to class. 

When practice was over, we were given the opportunity to tour the village and see one of the homes for children.  The house  mother told us the typical day of her children and said that they begin the day with a morning devotion at 5:30, followed by breakfast, and then chores such as mopping the floor and cleaning the dishes.  When they returned from school they had evening programs at the village and then would have an evening devotion prior to bedtime at 9:30.  The discipline of the schedule impressed us greatly.  After this we toured the rest of the ground and were able to speak with the administrators about their vision for each child and how to bring that vision to life.  We then bid farewell to the people of Bethany village and loaded up into the boat to return to Kampala.

At the end of the 45 minute boat ride (we left from a different place on the lake than we landed), we loaded up into the van and rode to a downtown shopping center for some Italian pizza for lunch.  Since it is a trip of 7 men with 3 local Ugandan men as well, it should not be surprising at all that we were able to devour 7 pizzas in very little time.  Being fully satiated, we headed to market for some souvenir shopping.  After we had been there an hour and had bought some items to remember the trip, we loaded up into the van and returned to our home for the week for a last meal, devotion, and fellowshipping before leaving for the airport at 12:45 AM. 

After meal and a devotion where we recounted our memories to each other and what was most significant, we prayed and then prepared ourselves for leaving by packing and showering since we have roughly 26 hours of travel ahead of us.  Some decided to take a nap while others stayed up playing cards or reading to pass the time.  When the time came and our driver for the night, Eddie, arrived we loaded up, prayed with Patrick and thanked him for his hospitality, and then hit the road for the airport in Entebbe.  Once we had prayed and hit the road it really hit home for most of us that we were really leaving and I know that for me personally this made me very sad. 

And so now here we sit in the Entebbe airport waiting our flight and ready to bring more stories back home.  Our time here has been amazing and it has been more so because it is plain to see how God put our team together to accomplish all of the tasks that were set before us.  By His provision we never felt that we were lacking and we all feel very blessed to have been apart of this team.  We all spoke after the devotion about returning and, if the Lord wills it, then we all hope to return again someday soon.  So for those who sponsored us, Thank you!  For those who prayed for us, thank you! And for those of you who want to join us or come on a different trip, pray about it and if the Lord puts it on your heart, Come!!!! 

In closing, I hope you have enjoyed the blog and that God has somehow spoken to you, encouraged, or a combination of both.  So for the final one, God Bless, goodnight, and know Yesu Akwaagala! 

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore

Kids Focus Team - Day 3

Good morning, everyone!    As I write this, it's about 8:30 a.m. in Uganda and we are all getting ready for breakfast before we leave the guesthouse. Our trip so far has been such a mix of emotions, but it's those images of downtown Kampala and the ride to Ebenezer Primary School in Buloba each morning that really get you ready for the day. We see people working (sometimes until midnight as vendors or store owners on the streets) and lots of infants hanging out with their parents for the day (these children are usually too young for school, cannot afford to school, or are waiting to be sponsored or get a loan to receive an education.)    I've learned from our sweet team assistant and a native to Uganda, Betty, that education is on the rise for children in Uganda, but the problem of job shortages even for graduates is a frustrating process. In some way, like the USA, there are many high school and college educated students that graduate and will not find a job for a few years.    Our primary purpose for this trip was to build relationships, and through conversations like these with adults and children here in Buloba, it's eye opening and also humbling. The teachers we are working under in the schools are incredibly resourceful and sometimes we sit back and think how on earth can we really help them? Todd Myers, Jonathan Spurlin (my husband), and I have taught in Mrs. Sarah's room and we've seen how the methods of teaching, are very similar to the USA, but that these teachers mean business. The expectations for the children is very high academically and behaviorally, but you can also see the love that each teacher has for their children and their well-being.    Yesterday I experienced a very special moment, I got the chance to meet Neil and Laurie Waer's sponsor child, Mike, and a teacher called me aside later in the day. He walked me over to an elderly lady, Mike's grandmother, who was sitting on a bench. Before I knew it, the teacher was translated what she was saying and telling me that because I was a friend of the Waer's, the grandmother had walked to the school to tell me thank you on their behalf. She said she received all of their letters to him and because of their support, Mike was able to go to school each day. Needless to say, it was all I could do not to lose it in front of this sweet lady, but the gratitude I felt even in the words I couldn't understand from her was overwhelming! I wish I could take that feeling and transfer it to everyone who sponsors a child and those thinking about it. What God is doing through Cornerstone and so many other people to support these children, really is life changing for them.    Overall, it's impossible to sum up in words all that we are learning and experiencing here in Uganda, but the children at each school and on the road truly grip your heart. From the moment our bus pulled into Ebenezer Primary, for me, this overwhelming feeling of love, gratitude (on both sides) and a humbling equality hits you. It's not all utopia here, even for us, but experiencing the roots of humanity again and what a person truly "needs" is changing many of our hearts already. On behalf of the team, Keri Spurlin

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 6

A change of plan, obstacles overcome, and new life given
 Greetings from Uganda!  I pray this post finds you at peace, blessed, and learning more about our Lord and Savior.  Today was the day that God decided to show us why we came and what this whole trip, up to this point, has all been about.  But I will come to that as I recall the days events!
 This morning was to be a little different than the last few days have been in that we went to play baseball in the morning and construct two rain catches, one before lunch and one in the afternoon.   And so we awoke to another wonderful breakfast and prepared our gear for the trip to the primary school that we finished our practices at yesterday.  Over the past few days, God has shown us how rigid to a schedule we can become as Americans and when the van was a few minutes behind schedule we began to work on the lesson of patience.  And so we waited as patiently as possible, which has become easier as the days have passed, and made ourselves ready for when it came.   When it did arrive we saddled up and took off for the day.
 Upon arrival we were thrilled to have been given the largest field at the school for our practice.  Joy, the athletics director, had said she would do her best to have us on the field in the morning and she really came through for us.  This gave us the ability to set up four fields in a row and have 8 practice games going at once without worry of losing the tennis balls or having large crowds bearing down upon us as we taught.  The next hour flew past as each field 2 teams of 12 that rotated, or “exchanged” as my teams referred to the act, between batting and fielding.
 After an hour or so our time had run out so we gathered up the gloves, tennis balls, and bats so that we could give them to Ebenezer School.  We were then given the opportunity to talk to the children about how much Jesus loved them and pray with them.  Then we made the walk back to the vehicles saying goodbye to the children we had been blessed to be around for the last few days.  This was a tough moment because we had thoroughly enjoyed spending the time with them and were amazed daily at their eagerness to listen and play hard at a game that was completely foreign to them.  Our hope is that the next time that we come they will have been practicing with the equipment and have furthered developed their understanding of the game on their own.
 We left and traveled directly Ebenezer School where we dropped some of gloves, tennis balls, and bats to the teachers so that they could use them in the future.  From there our team traveled to pastor Eva’s house since it was closer to the house that we were going to be working on first.  After the short walk we arrived at the house.  The house we were to be working on was in rough shape and the joists for securing the guttering to was rotted and one joist in particular was too short for the overhang of the tin.  Since the house was in this state we consulted with the local carpenters for help with the project.  After a few minutes of debate we agreed to remove one of the mud bricks on the house and attach a new joist higher up on the existing support.  After doing this we enlisted the help of a few of our younger team members to mix a batch of mud to fill in the gaps around the new joist.
 As half of our team was working on the guttering the other half traveled with water jugs to the well to bring fresh water back to the house for the family.  Once the jugs had been filled half of the group returned the house while two of our members stayed behind with a translator after striking up a conversation with a woman at the well.  The group had previously been talking with a local Uganda Christian about faith and prayed with her before she left.  The other woman had sat there quietly and listened to the whole conversation.  She began to tell the group that she was a Muslim and that she wanted to know more about Jesus but that her family would kill her if she turned from the Islamic faith.  The two from our group who had stayed relayed to her that Jesus came and died for her sins and the sins of the world and that knowing Him is greater than death.  She then asked that they pray for her and so they led her in a prayer to receive Christ.  After this, since they were at the well, they baptized her in the name of Christ and told her that even at the moment there was a party in Heaven because she had now been washed by the blood of Christ and her name is now written in the Book of Life.  This moment was significant for the entire team because at the beginning of the trip Bubba had said a great truth about the entire mission: “if only one person comes to Christ on the whole trip then all of the money spent and the time taken was worth it”.  When the two who had met the woman at the well recounted the story to us later that night we were all moved and thankful that we had come on this trip.  Praise God that we came and we hope you rejoice with us at the newly added sister to the Church Body.  Blessings and God’s love on her as she pursues Christ in this life.
 After the rain catch had been completed we returned to pastor Eva’s we met the other team and had lunch together.  We fellowshipped for a while and thanked pastor Eva for her hospitality during the week and for the meals she had provided.  We walked to our last house to construct the rain catch and began working on the guttering.  Again this was a difficult project but working in conjunction with the locals we were able to complete the project.  It was great to see God’s provision of local people to work with us to complete the task.
 We said goodbye to our co-workers and after encouraging each other in Christ we departed.  We returned to our temporary home where we were to be hosting the other team for dinner.  We relaxed and cleaned a small amount.  Early that morning we had lost power and when we returned the power was still off to the block.  As night drew closer our hosts put up some smaller battery powered lights for better visibility while we ate.   The other team arrived and brought the food with them and as soon as it was on the table we gave thanks and ate.  Fellowshipping with the other team was great fun and as we ate we exchanged experiences from the day.  After we had finished eating the meal we realized that many people from each group did not know people from the other team so each team introduced themselves one by one.  We also had people say why he or she had come and/or what had already impacted them since coming to Uganda.  It was during this time that the two team members from our team told us about the experience at the well.  The moment was impactful to everyone there and brought back into focus the true meaning of missions for all present.
 After the introductions had been made the children’s team began to use the internet as the power had returned while we were speaking.  Soon after it was time for the other team to leave and so we said goodbye since it was the last time that we would be seeing them in Uganda.  After they departed our group settled in for the night with a devotion and prayer and then by playing cards until it was time to go to bed.
 Today was the day that in many ways defined for us why we came to Uganda.  In our minds it is no coincidence that it was a woman at a well that needed to hear about Jesus and that God used the two from our group to reach out to her in His name.  While the baseball has been fun and rain catches have been rewarding to build, nothing has compared to knowing that another soul will be welcomed into the Kingdom and that we were able to be a part of the plan for salvation.  And so, after a very long and hopefully not a monotonous blog post, God Bless, goodnight, and know Yesu Akwaagala!
 On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore

Kids Focus Team - Day 2

Today was our first full day at the Ebenezer Prepatory School. Our funniest moment of the day has to be the reaction on the kids faces and they saw Crystal (the comedian of the group) wearing a fake mustache. We have some pretty great pictures of the kids now with their very own fake mustaches. We then went to our classes and began to help teaching. I again taught a little bit of geometry and then Ashley taught about germs and sanitation. The teacher we are working with is Daniel, he is 24 and amazing at teaching these children. We can tell he genuinely loves them, wants them to learn, and also know the love of Christ. I am so thankful Ashley and I have been able to learn from him and also help out with his class. Walking around and helping the children draw geometric objects and count the number of edges was oddly very fun!We then of course had the chance to play and let these kids be kids. We pulled out some beach balls, bubbles, crafts, and even some nail polish. As I sat there painting the nails of these girls I immediately thought of Macey, my six year old sister from home. I love coming home from school, sitting with her on the couch, and painting her nails hot pink. Sitting on a bench half way around the world doing the same thing was such a sweet moment for me.Our team is healthy and doing well. We have successfully recovered from jet lag and are all having a great time with each other, we sure have shared lots of laughs over the course of this trip. Please pray that we would continue to be flexible and obedient to everything God is asking of us. Sorry this blog is super long but there was just too much to share with you all. Thanks for following along with us.

On behalf of the team, Kelsey Thomasson

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 5

Waterfalls, Long Walks, More Baseball, and More Friends

Greetings from Uganda!  Our team has officially passed the middle point of our time here and we are already beginning to realize the affect that being in Uganda has had on us.  Coming home each night thoroughly exhausted but very easily able to see the joy in children that Jesus intends for us all to have and seeing how situations God clearly orchestrated have happened in ways to teach us and show us His love has been incredible. 

Today we woke to an almost cool morning, which was refreshing to us.  We ate breakfast outside as we have been, which in the cool of the morning was a wonderful way to wake up.   After this we saddled up and rode to the house where the newly arrived children’s team from Cornerstone was staying.  We did this so that we could all ride out to the Ebenezer School together.  In a quick side note, I have failed to mention in the blog that Ebenezer School is where the sponsored children of our church go to school.

When we arrived at the school, our teams went their separate ways to accomplish the morning’s tasks.  Ours being to build two more rain catches and theirs being to acclimate to the school environment and finalize their plan for the week.  The curveball of the morning was that we were going to have to carry our tools (two ladders, a box of tools, and a backpack full of water) as we walked to our jobsites, which turned out to be close to a couple miles away.  This was tough but it gave us a taste of what the daily life of many Ugandans can be like. 

We arrived at the first jobsite and found that the way the house positioned offer us an ample location for the guttering and the barrel for water collection.  In roughly half an hour we had completed the construction, which we were very enthused about with the hope that the next would be just as simple.  We were able to pray with the family who was predominantly Christian but had some members who were Islamic and so we were joyful to be able to pray with them in the name of Jesus. 

After we prayed we picked up our tools and walked to our next jobsite, which was about a mile away.  Upon arrival we realized this job would be very difficult and at first we were afraid we would not be able to complete it.  An extended overhang of the tin roof and small joists prevented us from easily hanging the guttering.  God came through for us in the form of a local man who had been around when were working on the other houses and had helped in small ways.   He fashioned wooden extensions on which to place the wood for the fastening of the gutters, which made the second part of the job very simple and painless. 

During our conversations with those familiar with the area where the house was situated said that there were those in the area that worshipped the devil and the dark powers.  Upon completion of the rain catch Mark led the group in a prayer with the emphasis on Jesus coming into the area and pushing out the dark with His light.  I invite you to pray specifically for this area as well.

Bidding farewell to the residents of the house we began the trek to pastor Eva’s for our lunch.  Walking again we enjoyed the time to talk and fellowship and a few of our party helped those carrying water jugs to various destinations along the way.  When we arrived at the house we sat down and fully enjoyed the cool of the shade and comfort of a cushioned seat beneath us.  I know for myself personally, I have a new found respect for the Ugandan people to be able to with stand the heat in long pants and walking long distances during the heat of the day. 

When the children’s team arrived we shared our meal together and fellowshipped as we relaxed and prepared for the afternoon’s baseball camp.  Mark invited the other team to come with us if they felt up to it since they had arrived late the night prior.  They decided to join us at the primary school, which is different from Ebenezer School, and watch the practice and interact with the other kids.  So, when everyone’s food had digested we headed to the school to begin practice.

Initially upon arrival it was slightly chaotic because this school has around 2000 students, which attend it daily.  To complicate matters even more, the school was holding a regional soccer tournament for the younger children playing for a national tournament.  But after speaking with the school officials and waiting for a little while we were able to begin practice with a predetermined group of children of about 60, that grew to 120, on a spare field that the school had.  We split the children up and began to teach throwing, catching, and field groundballs/fly balls.  The children’s team accompanying us to the school was a huge blessing because when the number of children swelled for the practice, the men in the group were able to take teams while the ladies in the group were able to interact with the other children.  This allowed us to focus on teaching and not having to worry about crowd control.  God is good.

At the conclusion of the practice the children we gathered and Mark spoke with them about the love of Christ and how nothing can be more important than loving Him.  After this he prayed with them and we loaded the vehicles for the return trip to the house.  When we arrived back at the house we were able to split up and relax in our own ways.  Some played with Patrick’s children, another for a run to Lake Victoria, and the others throwing baseballs, the football, and then playing cards.  We had dinner and then concluded the day with our nightly devotion.  This is where it really hit us how much we have been and are being affected by being here.  God has revealed much of Himself to us in this trip and we are so thankful.  All of us are grateful for this opportunity and have already began talking about returning. 

Tomorrow may be different in that we may split up and have some construct rain catches while the others hold practice at the school where we were located today.  The afternoon should be the same format as most days depending on how the morning goes.  God only knows how it will turn out so we look forward to seeing what He has in store for us.  So until then, God Bless, Goodnight, and Know Yesu Akwaagala!

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore  

Kids Focus Team - Day 1

Safely in Uganda, minus some luggage...

After nearly two full days of traveling we have arrived to Uganda! Once arriving we went on a 45 minute ride in a van to the house. Windows down and enjoying the cool breeze was wonderful and it makes me even more excited to see the beauty of this place in the daylight. All travels went smoothly (minus the loss of one team members luggage) and we are all now settling into the house, taking showers, and getting ready for some much needed rest. We praise God for keeping us safe and are ready to see what He has in store for us this week. The plan is to have breakfast at the house and then get back in the van and travel to Buloba to visit Ebenezer Primary School, this is the school we will be woking with during our time here. It will be important for us to meet the teachers and the students so that we can have an idea of where they need our help. We are all very excited to meet the people of the Buloba community. Pray that we will rest well tonight so that we can be ready to interact with the people in this school.

On behalf of the team,

Kelsey Thomasson

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 4

Waterfalls and baseballs

Greetings from Uganda!  Whew today was a fun one!  It was a tough one for sure since it was our first day to construct rain catches and hold practice but we can all say that today was an incredible day.

We began the day as we have been with a delicious breakfast and a cup of coffee for some of us.  We felt much better today, our bodies seem to be falling into the rhythms of being in this time zone.  After the meal we loaded up into the vehicles and began the drive to Buloba.  We had been warned by Mark who had been there before and by Patrick our guide that Monday morning traffic would be an ordeal and just as promised the traffic was jam packed which gave us a few scares along the way.  But after a slightly longer car ride than we have been accustomed to we arrived in Buloba at the school.

When we arrived we immediately set out on the mission of the morning, to construct rain catches.  We walked from the school to the first house and found the materials for construction ready and waiting for us.  Our tasks were to paint the wood with the paint provided in order to seal the wood as best as possible.  But after layer of paint had been put on one side we realized that we were using enamel based paint which would take many hours to dry so we moved on to the next house while we allowed the paint to dry. 

Upon coming to the second house, we found out that the majority of residents in the house were Muslim and we grew excited with the opportunity to serve them in the name of Jesus.  We began to nail up the supporting wood for the guttering and when we realized that we had “too many hands in the kitchen” the young men on our trip volunteered to fill the water jugs for the people living in the house.  This was a trek of well over a mile so they were able to have their shoulder workout for the day!  While they were retrieving the water, the older men of the group and I worked on the rain catch and after many design discussions (between a building contractor, an engineer, a coach, and a real estate broker this became lengthy, ha), we finally secured the gutter to the roof.  But once we verified that the water would flow down to the hole and collect in the bucket we asked the family if we could pray for them in the name of Jesus and we were very surprised and happy when the 95 year old grandmother who was Muslin, requested that we pray for her.  After we prayed they thanked us for the rain catch and we thanked for the opportunity to serve them.  What a blessing, God is good!

We returned to the second house where we secured the other rain catch much faster than the first since we now had a little more experience with the process.  After putting the gutter up we prayed with the owner of the house and his wife.  We then re-filled his water supply and headed back to the school to depart for lunch.  Again we ate and pastor Eva’s and she and her family delivered again with a delicious meal.  After the meal we laid down for a minute to digest and quite quickly Mark fell asleep so we decided to try to have a little fun with him.  We pushed the cars out of view of the living room, asked pastor Eva’s daughter to wake him saying we had left, and hid to see if we could catch him off-guard.  Unfortunately, he never thought for a second we would leave him when he woke but it was still a fun moment for the team to attempt it.

When we returned to the school after lunch we immediately went to the local field at St. Paul’s Catholic school and set up for groups of children coming in 20’s.  We also included some of the children of St. Paul’s because they were interested in the game and because they were allowing us to use their field.  3 groups of 20 children came to the field in the age range around 10 years old.   We separated them into teams and placed some in the field and others went to bat.  The ones batting learned to hit and then to run the bases.  We had a few let go of the bat on the back end of their swing but they learned quickly not to do that and by God’s provision no one was hit except light tap to a teacher’s head.   The children in the field worked on fielding and throwing the ball to first once they had control of the ball.  As it was yesterday, there were a few that absolutely caught on and the rest, with a little practice, showed promise of being able to pick the game up quickly. 

After we concluded practice I was given the opportunity to share a piece of my testimony and encourage them as they grow up to pursue Christ and to find their own walk with him.  After this we prayed with the children and bid farewell to them for the day.  We ran into traffic again and after a long ride and slight bout for one of our number with motion sickness we made it home.  After rehydrating and relaxing for a moment we had a quick workout and then watched an online sermon that was on ministering to those around us which was a great thought for us to not only do that here in Africa while we have the chance but to also continue this work when we return home. 

We ate dinner and then soon after Mark and Bubba went to help the second cornerstone team as the arrived into the country.  Those of us remaining had our evening devotion and relaxed as we eventually went our separate ways to bed. 

After another great day we look forward to tomorrow as we will build two more rain catches and then, after our lunch break, head over to the primary school and practice with the older children in the afternoon.  God is really showing us the pure joy of children who do not have much but are still quick to smile and laugh when they are shown a new game that is sometimes confusing and a challenge to pick up new.  For this we are thankful.  We are also thankful for the opportunity to serve the people we did today and hope that God is able to use that moment to speak into their lives. 

And so, until tomorrow, God bless, goodnight, and know Yesu Akwaagala!

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore

Father, Son, & Woody Team - New Pictures

Enjoy...

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 3, part 2

Sunday service and more baseball

Greetings from Uganda!  Today we had another day full of baseball and children, all done in the name of Jesus.  But unlike the rest of the days that we will be here it began with going to church since it was Sunday.  Our first stop of the morning was to Gaba Community Church (GCC) in Gaba where we were able to stay for the opening worship and listen to the first few minutes of Pastor Peter’s sermon.  Unfortunately we needed to leave so that we could make the service at Buloba Community Church.  It was, however, incredible to see a dynamic church like the GCC that has planted many churches in Uganda and spread Jesus’ name to so many souls.  The worship was very much like the services that we are used to in the U.S., contemporary style.  So much so that we commented later that if we closed our eyes the singing felt like we were back home singing praises.

When we left GCC we headed out to the Buloba community to Buloba Community Church (BCC) and were blessed to be able to participate in the worship and service.  The church members there were very kind and welcoming to our team and allowed for us to sit on the front row.  They honored us very much by their actions.  After we sang, were given the opportunity to listen and see the singing and dancing of both the children’s choir and the adult choir.  We then watched as Lisa, daughter of pastor Eva the current head pastor at BCC, and her new fiancé were introduced to the community as engaged to be married.  Mark, who was asked to give the sermon for the day, was invited to pray for them as they prepared for their upcoming wedding in January.  After this Mark began the message and went through scripture in Matthew and Luke that detailed out the calling of Matthew and then Simon with James and John.  Using those stories he posed the question to everyone in the audience if they really knew Jesus and, if not, to know that Jesus said, “My burden is easy and my yoke is light” so do not fear coming and surrendering everything to Jesus.  The message was well received and all the people in the congregation, including myself, understood and were touched by the message.  

Soon after the service we headed to pastor Eva’s home where she fed us for the second day in a row.  We also found out that she will feed our team lunch for the rest of the time that we are in Uganda, which sat well with everyone since the food in her home has been consistently delicious.  After letting our meal digest we headed to a new field to teach baseball since we were expecting a very large group.

To be honest, the idea of a very large group worried us a bit.  We thought thisway mainly since there had been a rumor that the entire community would be coming out to watch and learn the game.  When we arrived at the field, however, there were only 25 children, which later grew to roughly 40.  This was a huge blessing and we thanked God because this gave us the opportunity to have a ratio of about 7 children to 2 of us on the mission team, which meant we could spend a greater amount of energy per child teaching.

After going through the basics of catching and throwing, we moved to how to field a ground ball.  This proved to be a little difficult to teach but after some repetition the kids caught on began to improve.  After this we then moved to batting and taught the children how to swing and then divided them up into four groups to hit off of the tees again.  When the children had practiced this skill we set them up for a make shift game with the goal being that one team would be batting and running the bases while the other team attempted to field the ball as they were hit.  This did not go as planned.  It ended up looking a little, or a little more than a little, disorganized but the children were able to practice hitting and chasing down the balls and most importantly they were having a good time and were smiling as they went.   

When we finished, we had to vacate the field quickly for a soccer match that was scheduled right after our practice.  Mark reviewed some of the techniques briefly with the children and then Austen Crook, one of our team members who is a collegiate baseball, shared a portion of his testimony and then prayed with the children to conclude practice.   We thoroughly enjoyed our time with the kids and told them that we hoped to see them tomorrow after they finish with school.  Afterwards we stayed a little while to watch a bit of the soccer match but quickly decided to head home to relax for the evening.  

Upon returning a few members of the team decided to attempt going for a run in the area around the house for some additional exercise.  We ran down to lake Victoria and were able to see the lake as the day waned towards night.  After a few sprints up the hill we settle down for dinner and devotion afterwards.  As we relaxed for a little while longer our team one by one faded and went to bed to prepare ourselves for tomorrow.  

Tomorrow will be a great day as we help the local community folks build rain catches in the morning and teach more baseball in the afternoon.  Today was such a blessing and we cannot wait to see what God has in store for us tomorrow.  Until then, from us in Uganda, God bless, goodnight, and know Yesu Akwaagala (I misspelled “love you” very badly in the last post!).

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 3, part 1

We're having some trouble with the text. In the meantime, here are a few pictures from Sunday morning.

Enjoy.

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 2

Greetings from Uganda!  After finally reaching a bed last night and catching a few hours of sleep we rose to see what the day held in store us.  We woke to a delicious breakfast and coffee to prepare us for the day.  Once we finished the meal we loaded up our vehicles and headed to Buloba  and to the school where we are and will be holding the baseball camps. 

Today we were blessed to meet our guide for the week, Gideon, and our new driver as well, Joshua.  Gideon is not only a Christ Follower, but also a smart young man who is taking a year between his college (Ugandan version of high school) and University.  Joshua is a father of twins now and was quick to joke about the little sleep he was receiving.  Even still he is  great driver and despite his lack of rest still manages to raise fewer hairs than our good friend Eddie. 

When we first arrived at the school the children were in a schooling session and so we were able to be given the experience of carrying clean water from the well and carrying it the long distance back to the school.  All of us struggled to some degree but we were all humbled as we saw children many times less our size carrying the same or similarly sized water jugs to their homes. 

After carrying the water, the children were let out of their classes for their breakfast of porridge and a roll of bread.  We were able to serve them and each one of the children were very polite and either said “Thank  you” or curtsied to show their appreciation.  This really struck me as they much gratitude for  a very simple act of service.

After this we were able to the take a group of the older children to a nearby field and begin teaching baseball.  After distributing gloves and balls and a few technique recommendations there were tennis balls flying through the air and laughter being heard as they learned to throw and catch.  After this we worked on batting and using Mark’s idea of an old water jug with a water bottle in the opening as a baseball tee the kinds were lining balls into the outfield. Many caught on quickly and a few were downright impressive but they all had fun and their eagerness to listen and learn was remarkable.

After this we went to a friend of the church’s home for a wonderful meal that just about put us down for the count for the rest of the afternoon.  But just before the second half of the group began to fall asleep (the first was out cold while their food digested) we headed back to the school for a second session of baseball.  This time around we had a younger group of the children 12 and up.  These children were full of energy, which occasionally translated to a short attention span, but again they were very interested in learning to catch, throw, and hit. 

After a few hours of batting practice, shagging balls, and a little instruction our team walked back to the school where we loaded up the van and headed back to the house.  We spent the remainder of the afternoon relaxing and recuperating from the trip yesterday.  After a meal, debrief session, and a devotion we fellowshipped a little more as a group and have finally all headed off to bed. 

Today was rollercoaster of a day as we learned on the fly how we were going to hold the baseball camps with such a large group of children but with a little teamwork and some patience from on High we all had a great time and look forward to the camps to come this week.

Tomorrow we are going to go to Gaba church and to the church next to the school in Buloba, which we are very excited about.  After a quick meal, we are going to resume baseball camps and hopefully start playing a few games as well.  We look forward to the opportunity to love on the kids more and to interact with them in the name of our Saviour. 

Today I was also taught “Jesu Aberanga” (forgive if I misspelled) which mean “Jesus loves you (plural of you)”.  So in closing it was awesome to have that be the first thing taught to me by one of the school children in Lugandan.  From all of us here in Uganda, God Bless, goodnight, and know Jesu Aberanga!

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore

Father, Son, & Woody Team - Day 1

Hello from Uganda!  I am happy to say that we are finally here!  The wheels of our final flight touched down in Entebbe around 10:45 pm local time and the 7 of us, in good spirits but a little weary from the roughly 25 hour trip, finally breathed our first breathe in the country of Uganda.  The travel was relatively uneventful with the only events/casualties being two neck pillows and the almost casualty of a cell phone in the back pocket of an airplane chair (thankfully the airlines graciously searched for and found the device, Praise the Lord PTL).  We also found ourselves in good company during the trip as we were traveling with teams from across the U.S.A. going to places in Uganda as well one going to Kiev, Ukraine.
When we exited the plane and passed through customs we were met by Patrick and later Eddie at the vehicles.  With introductions and smiles we loaded the vans and set out for the house and held on tight as we zipped through the night.  I was designated as the one to be first to ride in the front seat with Eddie who has developed a reputation with those who have gone to Uganda for being a very fast, sharp, and exhilarating driver.  In my own words I will say that he is all of those things and since there wasn’t much traffic on the roads, I look forward to seeing him in action tomorrowduring the day!

Upon arrival at Patrick's house we were shown our rooms and have settled down for the night.  After a quick debrief and a closing prayer by Patrick everyone has gone to bed.  Thankfullytomorrow will be a slower paced day with the opportunities to run a few errands and fully coordinate the methodology for running the camps with the school.  This will help us acclimate a little more since for the rest of our time here we will be building rain catches in the morning and holding baseball camps in the afternoon.
Thank you to everyone who has prayed over us to arrive safely and has supported us prior to our departure.  We know that God has brought us here for a reason and so we are expectantly looking forward to the upcoming week and cannot wait to see what is to come.  So with that being said, from us in Uganda, goodnight and God bless y’all!

On behalf of the team, Woody Parramore