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
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