Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
James 1:2-4 NLT
Here is the latest from Uganda
Victory House
We have a roof on Victory House! The trusses are up and the metal sheeting was just completed last night. This means we are one step closer to our dream of having a dormitory for boys! Hallelujah! Our construction team is working diligently and they have had some awesome additional help lately. Some of our older boys, who live nearby, joined the workers after they were sent home from school due to the lockdown! They are working on Victory House during the day and their studies at night. This includes Pasco, Alan, Julius, Jeremiah, Joel, Samuel, & Alvin. They are gaining valuable experience & we are so grateful for their help! Thank you to those of you who are faithfully supporting this project.
Schools
After all of our children were sent home from their schools in the lockdown, our team worked feverishly to copy and print curriculum for each of our kids to finish the last six weeks of the school year at home. You can imagine the many challenges involved in our kids being home to do their work (no electricity, minimal space, lack of support, etc), but our team is doing all they can to help them succeed. Pictured below are Hannah & Hadassah Daniels (top), Rebecca Nanyonjo & Emmanuel Ssemanda (middle/left), and Derick Akampulira.
COVID-19
COVID cases were surging as our children were sent home from school in the lockdown. Many of them came home sick, and then infected other family members. Our own Pastor Herbert and his wife Deborah have also battled COVID. They are doing much better and we are so grateful, but they were very sick and it is only by God’s grace that they are not one of the statistics. Many have lost their lives in this wave of the virus. Herbert told me that they lost 15 pastors in two weeks. Herbert also lost his brother-in-law and an uncle to COVID. He said that in a place with few ambulances, you could hear them going by every five minutes, and there wasn’t a family who hasn’t been affected in some way. Please continue to pray for your child, & for all of our children & families during this difficult time.
Lockdown
Shortly after my last email the lockdown became more strict, and our rice and beans contribution has literally sustained many families. Our team was able to purchase and then distribute rice, beans, flour, etc, as well as bar soap and they are so so grateful for our help.
Herbert has been one of the few who has been able to get around during this lockdown, because his vehicle is considered a service truck and as long as he has a good reason, they are allowing him to travel a few places. He said “Me and the Lord’s truck…not any one person can stop us moving by God’s grace!” 🙂 He is purchasing and delivering the food himself, since no one else is allowed in his vehicle. Thank you so much for all of your help with Rice and Beans!
As you can see, the challenges our Ugandan friends are facing are many, but they are seeing God’s faithfulness in living color. They are literally depending on Him for their every meal, and for their very lives. That dependence brings a joy and faith that will weather any storm. I love the lyrics of this song by Bethel Music…
“Remember how our God has never failed, never failed us
Remember that his name will make a way, He’ll make a way.
From the cross to the grave, He is risen and He reigns.
O praise the Lord, and sing his praise again”
We will continue to sing and praise our faithful God, and pray for our Ugandan friends who have become so dear to our hearts.
“I see joy rising, I hear hope calling, I see fear hiding, I hear chains falling, I see walls shaking, I hear doubt running, cause my God’s on his way. Yes He is coming!”
(“Now Here” by Red Rocks Worship)
Much Love,
Jan