I
have just over a month before I leave. The flights have been
purchased(finally), my paperwork is all filled out, I've read everything. The
semester just needs to be finished, well - I hope, packing needs to happen,
then it's off to Mukono, Uganda!
Just
about six years ago, I was preparing for the adventure of a lifetime. Nov. 30,
2006 I left for Accra, Ghana, an unbeliever thinking I could change the world!
I still have relatively high hopes :) but that was the trip that changed me.
Seeing the real need in people, people just like you and me, who had
experienced extreme trauma, poverty and displacement, led me to want to do
something with my life to try and make the world a better place, even if just
for one person.
To
be honest, I blamed God for all the hurt in the world. How could God allow
people to hide in the bush and shoot their own countrymen as they waited to get
their rice rations? How could God allow people to live in a strange place
without the ability to return home? There were a lot of things that could make
a person bitter. The constant begging for money wears you out so easily. I
remember being at the clinic and seeing a girl with her sick daughter (who was
probably between 6-12 months and extremely tiny), I had never seen so much
sadness in the eyes of a child and often wonder if she survived. Whatever she
had was probably easily curable, so how could God allow that family (and most
families living in Buduburam) to not afford medication that could save her
life?
It
wasn't as difficult as I had thought to be re-immersed in American Culture,
although I was never the same. God eventually brought me into a relationship
with Him and showed me that the injustices in the world were never His
intention, but through the pride, greed and hate of man these wrongs continued
to take place. True peace can only come from knowing Christ, who said “’Love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the
second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law
and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Mat. 22:37-40). These are
some of my favorite verses and ones that I try to hold to the most. When we
truly love God, then we must remember that ALL man is made in His image. And
when we truly love all people, we treat them with justice and respect and do
things like encourage and support them in their need, not pursue our own ends using others as a means.
I
feel so blessed to have been brought to this place, to be pursuing God full
time. Whether he eventually brings me overseas to do work in some remote
village in Africa, or whether I can better serve Him and his people from some
other location, my biggest desire is to show the love of Christ to those
hurting. To show them that true peace and freedom comes from knowing Him.
Having
the ability to continue my education in Uganda is such an amazing opportunity.
As the days get closer to departure I get more excited and more nervous. I know
that God has this incredible opportunity for me there, and I am so thankful for
that. But I will still miss my family, my friends, and possibly even the
classes at Cairn. 6 months away is quickly approaching; washing laundry by
hand, having cold showers (we DO have running water!!!), living in dorms is
quickly approaching. The sad part is the end of those 6 months will come just
as quickly. I may or may not be prepared, but I’m ready! J
So
much goes on with the Christian community getting blamed (sometimes rightfully
so) for acts of injustice and hate. Yes, God calls us to live righteously and be holy, but He
calls us to love first. Remember to truly love the people around you and you
will be a light to the world. People see how we love before they see the
righteous things we do.
Proverbs
3:6 “in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”
