Now I am going to go back in time and fill in the details as to what was happening on a day to day basis! Once I finish all the updates, I will be posting photos on the blog on our website.
Our days were filled from morning until night working on one of the three major events. But there was so much more happening on a daily basis! I am going to highlight by specific activities.
FAMILY
In-between the three main events, we squeezed in a lot of quality family time! We had permission to take our students out of school for the first weekend for the Send-Off. Even Vivian had special permission to take the whole weekend off of work. Sylvia now lives in Kampala where she works. She was able to take the full three weeks off so she could stay in Jinja while I was there. But as soon as Monday came, the students had to return back to school. We still have some in boarding school so they had to return back as they were preparing for end of term exams.
Our students go to school from about 8:00 am - 6:00 pm, Monday through Saturday. They absolutely LOVE school. They loved telling me about their courses. Henry even brought the computer out and tried to explain in detail about a computer program he had developed! Even though it was like a foreign language to me, I was completely impressed!
All of our meals are cooked outside in the newly constructed kitchen. One of the requirements of the first compliance in 2018 was to have a more structured area to cook. Before they just cooked outdoors over charcoal or firewood. It is still pretty much the same but now under a covered area. It is still opened because firewood and charcoal are still used. We have no electrical appliances like stoves or ovens. I love the food that emerges from this humble kitchen!
Each evening Raining Hope has devotion and prayer time from 8:00 pm-9:00 pm (except Fridays & Sundays because of church activities). While I was there the times were different each night but we didn’t finish the day unless we had that time of prayer together. Normally, when I am there we use that time for a short term Bible study. But this time things were different because of the preparation for the three events. We were actually having dinner after 10 pm a lot of evenings. I would lead a short devotion and we would end evenings in prayer. Most nights I was returning to the hotel close to midnight.
The other thing that was significant was the time I spent just talking to the students. They are all so much older now. The only ones who are elementary school age are Godfrey and Irene’s children. Most of them are now in their late teens and 20’s. So the conversations are drawn towards their courses, dreams and futures. We laughed hysterically around the dinner table about so many various stories. We had serious talks about dating, which is a huge shift since I was here last! Because of the wedding and challenges with the Introduction and budgets, it was a perfect time to help them BEFORE they fall in love! Hilary & Florence’s wedding helped to set a strong precedence as to having simple and meaningful weddings in the future!
What really warmed my heart was seeing how much they have grown in their faith and their walk with the Lord. These young adults LOVE the Lord. They are influencing their friends and family with the Gospel of Christ. Their dreams all include wanting to make a difference in the world for Jesus.
Our desire for Raining Hope to go “deep before wide” was always about investing in the few who we call family. It has never been about numbers. We wanted to pour our hearts into discipling the 25-30 family members first. Then in time, they are going to be the ones to reach out and make lasting change as authentic followers of Jesus Christ who stand for truth.
It is happening.
These students are solid, humble individuals who shine with the love of Jesus inside and out. I couldn’t be a prouder mum!
I took MANY PHOTOS that will be posted after I am done with the updates. Since I have been gone for so long, I needed updated photos…and they LOVE POSING! We went up on the roof of the main building which is a large flat service. We has many impromptu and fun photo sessions! The joy you see in their faces is contagious!
Just before I left for Uganda , I discovered my regular SLR camera had a broken lens. We ordered another one and I thought it was going to work. When I arrived, I was disappointed that the new lens also wasn’t connecting right. I was left with just the telephoto lens. So I used my iPhone for most of my photos and videos and now have to get them transferred.
BUT, the house actually has a camera now that Godfrey received from one of the families of one of the pastors who had passed away last year. So I gave Sylvia one of my SD cards and asked if she would take photos during the time I was there and just give me back the SD card. That camera also has only one working lens and it was also a telephoto one. I gave Sophia my camera with the telephoto lens and had her do the same. So, it will be like Christmas for me! I have no idea what photos are on those two cameras!
We also had a photographer for the Send-Off Celebration. He puts all the photos he took on a flash drive. So I was able to give him extra shillings to make an additional flash drive for me to take home. So photos will be coming! It will be worth the wait from what I have already seen!
Kale,
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