Seeing the world through the eyes of Jesus

I feel as though I have a very big responsibility to communicate a clear picture of life here in Africa. I know there are so many of you that have committed to praying for us, helped financially to get us here, and given generously so we can bless the people of Uganda. I have a deep desire to capture the essence of the people, the culture and their lives here. I want you to understand and to know how much you have blessed this community. I want you to see the huge smiles, the tears in the eyes, the bowing out of respect, their response of sincere gratefulness. I honestly feel guilty or humbled that I get to be the messenger of these gifts, that I get to be a part of blessing these people. It is so much fun. Thank you to all of you that have given so graciously of yourselves, of your time, and of your money. As many people have said to us...may God return the blessing to you tenfold.

As Lacey and I have blogged and looked through our pictures, we realize the stories and pictures do not do justice for what we are experiencing. There is the context of the culture, the smells, and the sounds that are missing. All these pieces put together make a beautiful, awe-inspiring experience. It is truly life changing.

We have given out coloring books to children while getting down on the ground with them to show them how to use the markers. We have blown so many bubbles that last time, I about hyperventilated. We have given supplies to adults...lastnight at Danida village, all the women (about 30 of them) excitedly looked through their bag of goodies--filled with soap, shampoo, lotions, paper, pens and pencils, scissors, bouncy balls, devotionals, Bible activity books, toothbrushes, hair rubberbands, etc. One woman took out a box of Irish Spring soap and opened it. She kept smelling the soap over and over. She was telling all the women around her how good the soap smelled. She kept looking at me and saying thank you. She had an entire bag filled with things and she was enjoying each item. She was so excited about a box of soap. This is Jesus ministering through you. You made someone's day lastnight, and people were brought to Christ.

Last week we gave care packages to all the mamas at Amani. We had them all gather on the lawn with the children and told them how much they are loved and prayed for. These bags were filled with items for each mama's entire family. These bags were put together from an assortment of donations from Grace Bible Church, Adelphi Christian Academy, J.J., Randi, and their children, the Wilson's, Hurt's, and many other families. We also learned that one of the greatest ongoing needs at Amani is formula for the little babies. So with the blessing of the Clough's, Lacey and I got to buy 13 cans of formula. We have distributed many magazines to the mama's and have been told by several that they want to make necklaces from these magazines before I leave. J.J. and Randi and their children, along with the Power's family, blessed Amani with brand new pajamas! The list goes on and on. We still have a stash of goods to hand out and are continuing to pray about who should receive them. Thank you, thank you, thank you! You are making a difference! And we are having a blast!

An update on Katie...she is hanging in there. She is very weak and tires easily. She is very clingy and it is apparent that she is constantly in pain. She moans and groans a lot, sleeps restlessly, and appears irritable. We were able to see a British doctor who said her ear was very, very red and said she had been on the wrong medicine, so he immediately put her on amoxicillin. Her white blood cells were high which I am expecting that to be from the ear infection. Her hemoglobin level is very low, around 6.6. Todd is doing research to find which children's hospital will be the best for her. There is no pediatric hematologist in Billings, so we will have to travel to one. This will need to be done within the first month of bringing her home...and the sooner the better. I am fearing that she is close to going into crisis. Please continue to lift her in prayer. And that God would give me the strength to love her the way she needs to be loved.

Christopher is doing great. He is full of smiles and loves to be cuddled. Did I mention how much he and Katie like to eat?! If you have food, you can pretty much gurantee that you will gain two little friends!

Looking forward to seeing you all soon!