Hello my family and friends! I have a spare moment here and want to bring you up to speed on what is going on here. We have started teaching every day instead of every other day, which I love! Last Friday, as I was preparing to start bible class, we found that we were entirely without a translator! I was pretty sure that the next hour would be a disaster, but prayed that the Lord would take over and miraculously bridge the language gap. Of course, our God is faithful and he provided more than I could have asked for and when I sat down to begin teaching, a 12 year old girl named Brenda sat down next to me and just started translating! She did such a great job too, and engaged the other kids and answered my questions in such a way to let me know that she had heard and understood the previous lessons as well! I was so encouraged and praised Jesus in my heart for the big blessing he had provided! If that had been the end of the big blessings for the day it would have been enough, but our greater-than-life God showed His providence again that same afternoon! Some of the older girls, including Brenda, came up to me and asked if I had any bibles to give them. I answered that I didn’t but that they could come early on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and we could have big girl bible study. They were excited about that idea and have been so excited to be set apart! Then Sunday morning at the little missionary church that we attend, the pastor announced that they were in need of someone to teach the children’s church starting next Sunday! I was more than happy to volunteer my Sunday mornings while I’m in Uganda and was so encouraged by the opportunity to plug in here! To say the least, God has been at work this weekend in showing me exactly where he plans on using me this semester, and I am so thankful for the clarity of his direction and leading!
As I lay in bed last night, entirely exhausted and yet unable to sleep, I began to sort through the many events of the long day. I am always surprised how the Lord uses the quiet moments to speak to my heart and remind me of what He’s done through the not so quiet times! I’ve found that our God does not waste time, and He has a purpose in every moment if I’ll pay attention enough to see what it is and what He is doing!
This week we’ve had big success as the Lord has shown himself through the willingness of the older children to help not only with bible study, but also with the feeding program! Its so encouraging to see them get excited about helping their own community! I know that it is because of the grace of God that we have had a positive reaction, and am continuing to pray that the hearts of people in Masesse will be open to Serving His Children as a whole so that we can continue to build meaningful relationships that will honor Christ and show his love in real practical ways here, and ultimately draw them to himself!
I continue to thank God for you and your prayers! You cannot know how powerful and encouraging they are to me. I was reminded by my dad on the phone even this morning that God uses His body of believers to fortify and comfort each other, and that His power can be seen in the way He works in and among His people! Thank you for being an encouragement and comfort to me, my family!