I'm giving all back to Him!

Spending time with & unconditionally loving on these same kids everyday for the last three months, we have formed an attachment to them or a sort of ownership over them. You’ll here us refer to the 12 boys that we work with everyday as “my boys” or we refer to that one child we develop a very special bond with as “my baby”. So, the thought of having to leave my boys has been weighing very heavy on my heart and has raised a lot of questions that were unsettled within me, like who’s going to take my place and make sure my boys get enough love everyday when I’m gone. Or how will I ever be at peace not knowing how each and every one of those kids is doing everyday? Then, I was reminded of this verse in the bible, John 14:18, which says this, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” God made it very clear to me in that verse that they are not “my boys”, they are His children. He called us here to love on and take care of His boys for some time and He will be there when we are no longer. Now that our time here is nearing the end, I’m preparing to give it all back to Him, to turn it back over to the Almighty God who called us here and who has a plan for each and everyone of the children here, just like He has a plan for you and me.  And to think that I thought God didn’t have it all under control, ha! Our pastor said this about God during one of his sermons, “God doesn’t ever need to hire a consultant.” This is so true. God knows everything, e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. There is nothing that God cannot handle and through God all things are possible. How incredible is that! God never ceases to amaze me.

There is no doubt that our hearts will be breaking when we have to say goodbye to the kids, but we know that God will take care of and provide for each and every child that is brought here, just like he has faithfully provided for us. It will take time for our hearts to heal and recover, but God will be there every step of the way, helping us heal.

Prayer Requests:

-Emotionally: please, continue to pray for us as we prepare our hearts for leaving. We are down to only two weeks now! Please, keep us in your prayers even after we have returned home, and are adjusting back to life at home.

-Health: please, pray that we continue to stay healthy for the rest of our stay here and during our travels back home.
-Travel: we leave here on December 9^th, in just two weeks! Please, pray for a safe journey back home.


We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving ,surrounded by friends and family! We had a great Thanksgiving here in Uganda. It made us miss our family back home a lot, but we were so thankful to have such a wonderful family of volunteers and other missionaries here to spend it with and the food tasted just like home too!

Many blessings to you,

Melanie

 This is the sweet boy that I have formed an extra special relationship with. He makes my heart happy, I just adore him! He's my favorite snuggle bug. Photo taken by: Hannah Coen.

Here is the cute boy Megan has formed a very special relationship with since we've been here. He is too cute for his own good! He's always making us laugh.

Trusting Him

We started a piece of paper with "God is..." on it & then each of us volunteers would write one word each day that represented who God is to us. We thought it turned out so cool that we had paintings made out of them. So, we had the backgrounds painted by a local painter in town and then I painted all the words we had written on the paper, onto each one of our paintings.
 


As I lay here awake listening to babies scream, and dogs howl at each other I start really thinking about what God has taught me while being here, and this may sound so cliché and scripted but the biggest lesson learned has been trusting in Him with anything and everything I do. I am reading this book called Extraordinary by John Bevere and one chapter talks about how instead of fearing man we should be in fear of God. Meaning we should fear life without God. How amazing is that, God just is that awesome that no matter what, he is Abba Father, Healer, Protector and the list can go on and on! But being in a different country, at times can be scary, and uncomfortable. Being away from your normal everyday life can put you out of your comfort zone. God has given me so much peace and comfort being here. When I first arrived, I was praying constantly that God would keep my family back home safe and healthy while I was gone. It was so hard for me to trust God with that, like I thought He couldn’t handle it, ha! Finally, He got it through my thick head, I am not in control and never had any control over that in the first place. He is in control! Man, what was I thinking!?

I have gotten sick while being here, I feel like I am never this sick at home. Satan is attacking me in that way for sure. Being sick is bringing me down and I have found myself really discouraged. Before coming over, I felt God was being very clear that he was calling me back to Uganda. When we got here I was thinking, maybe I was hearing God wrong, surely I shouldn't be here. But after two months being here, and seeing how God has used me in so many different ways, the biggest way, showing His love to my 12 boys I have been placed with at Amani. Being sick or not, God wanted me here. I couldn't be more thrilled that this is where I ended up!

So, please pray for us, we are down to only three weeks left, it is so bittersweet! Imagining life at home right now breaks our hearts. We have both gotten really attached to our families here, but at the same time we are starting to miss everything back home.

This is what we do on a typical afternoon, spending time, loving on & playing with all the kids!

We need prayer for:

-Mostly, for God to prepare our hearts for what kind of emotions we are going to experience after we leave this place and return home, after all the excitement of seeing everyone and eating all the food we have missed is over!

-Staying as healthy as can be! Mel really hasn’t gotten sick, Pray she doesn’t!!:)

-Safe travels home in only three weeks!

Blessings,

Megan

"Family Night"

When people hear that this is my second time here I quite often get asked what’s been different about my experience this time as opposed to the last time I was here. There are some obvious reasons, like the fact that we’re here for three months instead of only three weeks, but the one thing that has stood out the most is the friendships we have made with the other volunteers here. The last time we were here there were so many volunteers at the time, that we had to stay with one of the Amani staff members, who was a long-term volunteer, serving as their nurse at the time. So, sure, we met and got to know the other volunteers somewhat, but we didn’t live with them; therefore we didn’t really get to know them that well. We all know that when you’re living with someone and sharing the same bedroom and bathroom, that you get to know that person pretty well and on a very different level. We started doing family meals once a week, where all the volunteers gather together and choose a meal to cook together and then sit down and eat as a family, which ends up being tacos most of the time because one of the mamas here makes fabulous homemade tortillas and someone was nice enough to send us a bunch of taco seasoning packets. And with fresh avocados for guacamole, what could go wrong? It’s become an awesome time to fellowship with the other volunteers and we have all become a family here, which makes us feel at home. Coming here, I never thought that I would make friendships I would want to maintain even when I’m home. It’s crazy to think that I have met and become good friends with people from the states, who may not actually live that far away from me, but yet I met them in Africa of all places.

Now one of our fellow volunteers has returned home, but at one time there were six girls in one room and one of them was a 62 year old woman. She was definitely a trooper, having to live with 5 others girls, all in their twenties. But, even so, she became like a grandma to all of us during her two months stay here. We all called her “Jaaja”, which means grandmother in Lugandan.  When she left we were all full of tears and we all felt like a part of us was missing. I think all of us got a little homesick after she left as well because it all made us miss our mothers without her here. With other volunteers starting to leave and knowing that we only have a month left here the reality of leaving is really starting to sink in. It’s a hard concept to grasp as we ponder the thought of leaving these kids that we have loved on for the past two months and have completely fallen in love with. I can’t imagine waking up in the morning or going to bed at night knowing that I can’t tuck my boys into bed or give them a hug and kiss when I want to. It will be a very bittersweet goodbye because I will be happy to see my family and be home for Christmas, but a part of me will always be here. And we’re so very excited to keep in touch with the fellow volunteers we have met here once we’re home and we know that they’re friendships we have made to last for a lifetime because we have shared such an awesome experience with them, in Africa! It’s been such a blessing!

So, please, pray for us as we start preparing our hearts and minds for the reality of leaving in a month. Please, pray for the volunteers, kids, and the mamas as well. There has been a lot of sickness going around here, so pray for health! Thank you for all your support and prayers!

Blessings,

Melanie

Spring of Hope

Last week Melanie, Sandra (another volunteer at Amani), and I had the opportunity to work along side an organization called Spring of Hope Uganda. The day started out pretty rough. Sandra and I have been sick with a bad cold for the past week or so, which is called the “flu” here. When we woke up that morning it was pouring rain, so we called and asked if it was still okay that we came along to help even though we were sick and we wanted to make sure that we were still going because of the rain. Here in Uganda, everything stops when it rains. It’s like people are allergic to the rain, so we knew finding a boda to take us to where we needed to go was going to be difficult. But, her answer was yes. We were still going rain or shine and it didn’t matter if we had a cold. So, we waterproofed everything. Mel and Sandra got their rain coats on, however, I only had a poncho to wear, so I slipped it on and over the backpack I was wearing. You can only imagine how ridiculous I looked! So, we were like great it is going to be a long walk to the taxi park if we can’t find a boda driver to take us there. Luckily, Joseph, our groundskeeper, pulled up on a boda, so we asked his driver if we could have a ride. Thankfully, he said yes! So, Sandra, Mel and I all piled on one boda. Keeping in mind that I have a poncho on, so going fast on a boda my poncho was flying in the wind like a cape. Needless to say we were all soaking wet when we got to the place we were supposed to meet. We got there and called the lady who was supposed to be meeting us there to let her know that we had made it there. When we arrived we were supposed to meet her there and then take a taxi to the final destination.  There ended up being a miscommunication between us and the lady we were going with. They weren’t planning leaving until the rain had stopped. So, when I called to see where she was I was told to find shelter and wait for her because they weren’t going to be leaving until it stopped raining. After an hour and a half went by we decided to call again, and say “Sorry, we’re going back”. Because with two of us already being sick we thought it wasn’t the best idea to be standing out in the rain. But, she was just around the corner with a private car instead of a busy taxi. So, we decided to go still. We got in the car and drove for a while to her office. We then got out of our private car and got into a private taxi, which was very nice because a taxi here is a 15 passenger van, but they cram as many people as possible into one. They will even pile live chickens in the taxi as well. We arrived at the clinic late because of the rain delays. We would normally arrive around 9 or 10AM, but we didn’t arrive until almost 12:30PM. We pulled up and hundreds of patients were waiting to be seen by the doctor and receive the medications they needed. So, we got started right away. We spent the next 5 hours counting multiples of 33 pills of various different medications into separate baggies for the patients. After seeing the doctor, the patients would, one by one, pick up the proper medications that they needed. We handed out medications to about 150 people that day. Most of the medications we were handing out were for patients with Epilepsy. It was a very humbling experience to be able to hand a child medications that would potentially save their life and prevent deadly seizures. At the end of the day we were so happy that we did not back out at the last minute because despite the rough start to our day we thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity of working with SOH and with the amount of people that came to the clinic, they really needed our help. SOH is such a wonderful ministry and we can’t wait to work with them again!

Above is a picture of the clinic.

Above is a picture of us getting to be pharmacists for a day!

Please, pray a blessing on this ministry. It has blessed us and blessed so many others and saved so many lives! Also, please, pray that God will bring a car to SOH. They are in desperate need of a car to better meet the needs of their ministry.

A little background info on S.O.H:

Spring of Hope is a community-based rehabilitation non- profit organization for children with disabilities in local communities of Uganda. We currently work with 500 children and their families in the areas of education, physiotherapy, medical, sensitization and income generating projects. Our aim is to see that these children are able to reach their true potential. Before the work of Spring of Hope began disabled children were being abused, locked away and tied up due to the stigma of having a child who is disabled.

Blessings,

Megan & Melanie

Unconditional Love

The one thing that seems to be sticking out to me since I have been here is the kind of love that is unlike any love you have ever seen or felt before. Unconditional love. That’s the kind of love that God has for me and you. Before I came here two years ago, I had no idea what unconditional love really meant, but God was able to teach me. Now, making this trip for the second time, I noticed that when people heard that I was coming here to work with these kids, many people would ask “ Well, what about the kids who have AIDS or HIV? Do you still hug and kiss them like you do the other kids, who are completely healthy?” Hearing this question made me angry, I thought to myself, ‘Why would you even ask that question, that’s terrible! Of course I would love on them just the same as any other child who is completely healthy’, because God has shown me what unconditional love is and has taught me to love as He loves me and you. It saddens me to think that people don’t know or understand what unconditional love is because that means you have no idea how much God truly loves and adores you. As I work with these adorable African children of God everyday, I see the kids who have no family and are waiting to be adopted, but are HIV positive and the years keep going by and they’re still not adopted because no one is willing to give that child a “forever family” because of the risks and responsibility that comes with caring for a child with HIV. It breaks my heart knowing that this child I love dearly, who is beautiful and perfect will, perhaps, never be adopted because they’re HIV positive.

Since I have been here, I have been reading the book called Extraordinary by John Bevere and I have been doing a bible study that coincides with the book. It’s been a fantastic read and spiritually challenging for me. In the book, John devotes a whole chapter to making sure you understand how much you are loved by God. In the book he gives this passage of scripture to study, “(God’s) love bears under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. (God’s) love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]…” 1 Corinthians 13:7-8 AMP. I think God’s love for us is pretty well explained there. Then, John goes on to say that “we can’t do one thing to make God love us any more than He already does, and conversely, we can’t do anything to make Him love us any less.” Think about that for a minute. Do you understand how much He really loves you? His love for you is unconditional and unchanging. John also explains that “God’s love for us is so all-encompassing that we simply cannot comprehend its scope.” God is truly amazing and He adores you.

So, with that, I pray that we would learn to love as Christ first loved us and I pray that the children who are HIV positive, with no family, will be adopted by a loving family someday soon.

-Melanie

Isn't it funny how selfish we can be?

Earlier this week we had the opportunity to go to a hospital and work with a ministry that gives a bag of food to mothers with small children who are in desperate need of food. As we handed out the bags of food to the mothers, we got to know some of them. One mother is 15 years old and her baby is just a week old. When she was asked what her baby's name was, she wouldn't tell us and she tried to tell us that the baby was not hers, that it was her sister's. We later learned that she was too embarrassed to admit it was her child, because she is only 15. We would try talking to her and she wouldn't respond or even look at us. It broke our hearts to see her like that. Can you imagine that? Her life as a teenager is over, she has to care for a newborn baby. She now has to take on the huge responsibility of keeping her baby boy healthy and, most importantly, safe at the age of 15. I can't even imagine that. Another mother had a baby with a slim chance at living a long life because she didn't have the resources to keep her baby healthy, so he became very sick, with many illnesses when he was born & he came very close to death. Thankfully, with lots of prayer and God's blessing on this ministry, the boy is a healthy one year old now because of proper nutrition. In America we rely on all the fancy machines to keep us alive if we become ill, but most places here, if you can find a doctor that has a little bit of schooling is a huge blessing. I find myself so often taking things in my life for granted. It saddens me to think of how much I complain about when I have so much. When kids all over the world would give up anything and everything to have a life the way I live. God has opened my eyes before to things like this, but it is so easy to push it all in the back of my mind. It is so hard to grasp the idea of people living in a tiny, one room hut, with dirt floors, and if they are lucky, a mat for everyone to sleep on. When I sleep in a big comfy bed all to myself, in my own room, in a secure home. So I just ignore it, how selfish of me. So, now I ask you, is there something going on in your life that God has been putting on your heart for some time now, but you just ignore it because that's the easy thing to do? I encourage you to pray that God will work with you to make it a priority in your life.

-Megan

With a quick stop in London we made it to Amani!

Well I am very happy to say that we made it to Amani with out any unexpected delays and all our luggage is with us, praise God! We arrived early in the morning and had about a four hour ride to the baby home because of traffic. With us both being dead tired it probably was very comical to watch as we were trying to stay awake but couldn't keep our eyes open, all mixed with crazy Ugandan driving. Mel and I arrived along with one other volunteer, who happened to be on the same flight. We were greeted by four other volunteers who have been here about a month. There are about 45 kids at the baby home right now, and there's word on the street three more might be coming! Yesterday and today have been pretty low key for us, so we could get on the right time zone. So tomorrow will be our first official full day as a volunteer! Pease be praying for safety and for the health of all of the children and staff!

Blessings,
Megan