James 1:27
Monday, June 27, 2011
Well, the team is still stranded. I can't help but wonder what God is having them do in Amsterdam. Please pray for them. They are getting out of the airport though, which is a major improvement over yesterday. Tuesday is the fastest they are going to be able to get out of Amsterdam. Everyone but Chris, Traci, Jonathan, Cheryl and Randi will arrive at XNA at 3:05 Tuesday. The names I just listed will arrive at 5:42. Today they are filling their time with some site seeing through the canals, Anne Frank House and a Van Gogh Museum (my husband's favorite artist). Please continue to pray for them to be encouraged and to be an encouragement. Let us be the same. Kysia
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Ok, some changes in plans. If your family member was traveling with Tim, I think you are on regular schedule. If your family member is with the CUMC group we will find out more information in the morning for sure. This is what we know right now. Their flight has been cancelled from Amsterdam to Detroit. They are supposed to be on a new flight that will head out on their time morning tomorrow (not sure of the time differences between Amsterdam and Arkansas- I'm assuming we may know later tonight on our time-but no promises) Everyone is doing fine, just ready to see their families. Please, thank God that he has provided safety for the team as they didn't travel on a broken plane. Please continue to pray for the team members to travel safely home. Romans 12:11 "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." I guess God isn't finished with these missionaries yet. Please pray strength for them as their "spiritual fervor" is turning to exhaustion.
Greetings from Amsterdam!
If you are thinking that doesn't seem right you are correct! Our plane was scheduled to leave Holland at 10:25am local time. It is now 2:04pm. We have been sitting on the plane for 2 hours.
The word from the pilot is a maintenance issue that has to be repaired. We are waiting to be towed back to a gate to de-plane. Estimated time to fix is 2 hours. Obviously we are not making our flight in Detroit. Not sure of our ETA, but I will keep you updated.
Please pray for us as we wait and hopefully make our way home. God is with us!
Thank you
Chris Thornton
If you are thinking that doesn't seem right you are correct! Our plane was scheduled to leave Holland at 10:25am local time. It is now 2:04pm. We have been sitting on the plane for 2 hours.
The word from the pilot is a maintenance issue that has to be repaired. We are waiting to be towed back to a gate to de-plane. Estimated time to fix is 2 hours. Obviously we are not making our flight in Detroit. Not sure of our ETA, but I will keep you updated.
Please pray for us as we wait and hopefully make our way home. God is with us!
Thank you
Chris Thornton
Hello Amsterdam!!
Well the team has arrived in Amsterdam after a lovely 8 hour flight. I slept 6.5 hours of the flight.... I guess I was tired!
We have a 5 hour layover since our flight to Detroit has been delayed till 11:45.... We will need some prayers when we hit Detroit to make our next flight and clear customs.
Right now I am enjoying a cup of cafe au lait with MIke, Tony, and Traci at the airport. I will probably wander around a bit as will the rest of the team. This is a pretty cool airport. I will stay out of the casino though. They don't take Ugandan Shillings.
Part of our team are On another flight to Detroit. Tim, Dottie, Richard, and Emily have already boarded a plane to Detroit, but we will all be on the same plane to XNA.
The team is doing well. We are tired and ready to see our families. The coffee is good and we all need to wash our face and brush our teeth and freshen up, nut we have plenty of time to do that! And hey, we have endured each other and our sweat and smells o a crowded bus for 2 weeks! What's another few hours!
Thank you all for your prayers and support. We cannot wait to see you and have a Chick Fil A sandwich or Mexican food or a nice steak or a Huge Salad full of green things!!!
See you soon. We will check in once we hit Detroit.
God bless,
Chris
We have a 5 hour layover since our flight to Detroit has been delayed till 11:45.... We will need some prayers when we hit Detroit to make our next flight and clear customs.
Right now I am enjoying a cup of cafe au lait with MIke, Tony, and Traci at the airport. I will probably wander around a bit as will the rest of the team. This is a pretty cool airport. I will stay out of the casino though. They don't take Ugandan Shillings.
Part of our team are On another flight to Detroit. Tim, Dottie, Richard, and Emily have already boarded a plane to Detroit, but we will all be on the same plane to XNA.
The team is doing well. We are tired and ready to see our families. The coffee is good and we all need to wash our face and brush our teeth and freshen up, nut we have plenty of time to do that! And hey, we have endured each other and our sweat and smells o a crowded bus for 2 weeks! What's another few hours!
Thank you all for your prayers and support. We cannot wait to see you and have a Chick Fil A sandwich or Mexican food or a nice steak or a Huge Salad full of green things!!!
See you soon. We will check in once we hit Detroit.
God bless,
Chris
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Well we have arrived safely at the airport in Entebbe and have cleared security. The team is spread out in the airport... some eating and some shopping. We are tired and ready to begin the long trip home.
I am filled with a flood of emotions as I have been in the past. I am ready to see my family, but I have been blessed during my time here. To serve with our brothers and sisters is an honor. They inspire me with the faith and passion to serve Christ. I miss them already. But my home is in Arkansas. The flight home will see many of the team, including myself, shed tears. But they are tears of joy at what we have experienced and tears of joy to see our families. I am not saying good bye Uganda. I shall be back! Once again I am leaving a small piece of my heart here. Till I see you again Uganda.
I will post when we arrive in Amsterdam and Detroit for our family followers.
We are ready to see all of you! Thank you for your prayers. I am ready to see my wife and kids!
See you soon!
Chris Thornton
I am filled with a flood of emotions as I have been in the past. I am ready to see my family, but I have been blessed during my time here. To serve with our brothers and sisters is an honor. They inspire me with the faith and passion to serve Christ. I miss them already. But my home is in Arkansas. The flight home will see many of the team, including myself, shed tears. But they are tears of joy at what we have experienced and tears of joy to see our families. I am not saying good bye Uganda. I shall be back! Once again I am leaving a small piece of my heart here. Till I see you again Uganda.
I will post when we arrive in Amsterdam and Detroit for our family followers.
We are ready to see all of you! Thank you for your prayers. I am ready to see my wife and kids!
See you soon!
Chris Thornton
Post from Friday...
Well we are back in Jinja after another bus ride, which is just a tough way to travel. The trip is better than it was 2 years ago, but it is still long (6 hours) and windy, and bumpy, and hot. I will say that we had no baboon experiences this time and it was fairly uneventful. We did stop for lunch at the drive thru and had stick meat and chapatti. Stick meat is an African experience you have to try!
Thursday night we had our final team dinner with our Gulu hosts; it was a great time. We nominated team members for awards such as most joyful, funniest, etc. It was a night full of memories and laughs. I am so impressed with the team and my new friends. Wonderful people who have given of themselves and served with God's love.
We started out this morning by stopping by Gabriel and Pauline's home. Pauline served in the prayer room with us in Koch Chorom and Gabriel has worked with us in the past. They run a school for kindergarteners, as well as, a bakery. I must say they have a great operation. We got to go to the classrooms and greet the children. We also got to see the Bakery which provided us homemade cinnamon rolls. They were fantastic! It was wonderful to see these people of God serve their small village outside Gulu with love and grace. Les and Sue have helped raise funds to build up the bakery and provide a kitchen for the school. This was an amazing place off the main road, down a dirt road that was horrible. It is small and not fancy, but it is making a difference in children's lives in the name of Christ. Gabriel and Pauline are just incredible.
We also ate dinner tonight at Surjio's in Jinja. Pizza was ordered and it tasted like home! We also had ice cream. Once again it was a great evening of team fellowship.
Tomorrow begins our long journey home to our families. Our time here has once again been wonderful, a blessing both to the people of Uganda and to us. I know we are all ready to see our families, but I think everyone of us will be a bit sad as the plane leaves Entebbe. We have seen the face of God in it's most distressing disguise here. We have held the hand of the sick. We have prayed with the hungry. We have clothed the naked. We have provided a gentle touch of grace. We have let people in the middle of the jungle know that they matter and are not forgotten. Let me change those last few sentences. God has done all these things through us. We are the hands and feet of Christ and we do nothing without Him. I love to be here and serve. I experience God in ways I don't back home. That is the challenge to all of us. To experience God back home like this. This trip is not an event in time. It is a part of our faith journey.
We will miss our friends. We have some wonderful hosts. In Jinja I have a brother in Pastor Edward and his family Julie and Isaiah. Joseph. Mondi. Pastor Jacob. Pastor Michael. Florence. Viola. James. These are my friends and my brothers and sisters.
In the North. Love Dr. Moses. What a funny and warm and loving man of God. Sam Mdune. Pastors Solomon, Titus, Peter, Margaret, and Christine.Dennis and Geoffrey. We have seen some of these people grow up and mature over the years. These are my friends and brothers and sisters.
Our hosts take their time and serve along side of us. They explain the culture to us. They ask questions about America. We have developed friendships and we are a community. I will miss them as we fly home.
I want to say that as your team member arrives home and begins to fall into their normal life, please, give them some time process. It will be difficult to explain for a time what they saw, felt, heard, and experienced. But the stories they will tell you! The people they will introduce you to! They are stories filled with God's love ad it is beautiful.
And the red dirt and grim that they leave in the shower will eventually go away. Don't worry. It will go away. According to thousands of people in Uganda I am a doctor, so you can trust me!
Talk to you tomorrow! Please keep the prayers coming for safe travels. Tomorrow a group of Tim, Erica, Emily, Randi, Richard, and Jonathan are going on a half day float on the river Nile. That is a fantastic adventure and if the rapids don't get them the crocs and hippos might! The rest of us will spend the day strolling in Jinja town with Edward and Julie. I plan to drink a cup of Ugandan coffee at the Source Cafe!
I will post tomorrow as we move toward the airport and head home. Our flight leaves at midnight Sunday morning and Uganda is 8 hours ahead of Arkansas.
Good night my friends. The mix of Chicago and Phil Collins tunes playing in the hotel bar is lulling me to sleep!
CRT
Thursday night we had our final team dinner with our Gulu hosts; it was a great time. We nominated team members for awards such as most joyful, funniest, etc. It was a night full of memories and laughs. I am so impressed with the team and my new friends. Wonderful people who have given of themselves and served with God's love.
We started out this morning by stopping by Gabriel and Pauline's home. Pauline served in the prayer room with us in Koch Chorom and Gabriel has worked with us in the past. They run a school for kindergarteners, as well as, a bakery. I must say they have a great operation. We got to go to the classrooms and greet the children. We also got to see the Bakery which provided us homemade cinnamon rolls. They were fantastic! It was wonderful to see these people of God serve their small village outside Gulu with love and grace. Les and Sue have helped raise funds to build up the bakery and provide a kitchen for the school. This was an amazing place off the main road, down a dirt road that was horrible. It is small and not fancy, but it is making a difference in children's lives in the name of Christ. Gabriel and Pauline are just incredible.
We also ate dinner tonight at Surjio's in Jinja. Pizza was ordered and it tasted like home! We also had ice cream. Once again it was a great evening of team fellowship.
Tomorrow begins our long journey home to our families. Our time here has once again been wonderful, a blessing both to the people of Uganda and to us. I know we are all ready to see our families, but I think everyone of us will be a bit sad as the plane leaves Entebbe. We have seen the face of God in it's most distressing disguise here. We have held the hand of the sick. We have prayed with the hungry. We have clothed the naked. We have provided a gentle touch of grace. We have let people in the middle of the jungle know that they matter and are not forgotten. Let me change those last few sentences. God has done all these things through us. We are the hands and feet of Christ and we do nothing without Him. I love to be here and serve. I experience God in ways I don't back home. That is the challenge to all of us. To experience God back home like this. This trip is not an event in time. It is a part of our faith journey.
We will miss our friends. We have some wonderful hosts. In Jinja I have a brother in Pastor Edward and his family Julie and Isaiah. Joseph. Mondi. Pastor Jacob. Pastor Michael. Florence. Viola. James. These are my friends and my brothers and sisters.
In the North. Love Dr. Moses. What a funny and warm and loving man of God. Sam Mdune. Pastors Solomon, Titus, Peter, Margaret, and Christine.Dennis and Geoffrey. We have seen some of these people grow up and mature over the years. These are my friends and brothers and sisters.
Our hosts take their time and serve along side of us. They explain the culture to us. They ask questions about America. We have developed friendships and we are a community. I will miss them as we fly home.
I want to say that as your team member arrives home and begins to fall into their normal life, please, give them some time process. It will be difficult to explain for a time what they saw, felt, heard, and experienced. But the stories they will tell you! The people they will introduce you to! They are stories filled with God's love ad it is beautiful.
And the red dirt and grim that they leave in the shower will eventually go away. Don't worry. It will go away. According to thousands of people in Uganda I am a doctor, so you can trust me!
Talk to you tomorrow! Please keep the prayers coming for safe travels. Tomorrow a group of Tim, Erica, Emily, Randi, Richard, and Jonathan are going on a half day float on the river Nile. That is a fantastic adventure and if the rapids don't get them the crocs and hippos might! The rest of us will spend the day strolling in Jinja town with Edward and Julie. I plan to drink a cup of Ugandan coffee at the Source Cafe!
I will post tomorrow as we move toward the airport and head home. Our flight leaves at midnight Sunday morning and Uganda is 8 hours ahead of Arkansas.
Good night my friends. The mix of Chicago and Phil Collins tunes playing in the hotel bar is lulling me to sleep!
CRT
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