All Things Uganda

When I signed up to go serve in Kisoro, Uganda last year, I can honestly say I had zero clue what that would look like. I didn't know if I would be speaking, building, cleaning, hugging, teaching, playing, or serving in some other way, shape or form. I didn't know who I would be spending the majority of my time with. I had no expectations going in, besides the fact that I wanted to serve God. 

I got there, and the first couple days were a whirl wind. I saw so much. And I saw so many people serving in so many different ways. I saw doctors and nurses treating patients. I saw people helping to pass out medicine, and directing people from one station to the other. I saw people playing with children, sharing the gospel with little eyes and little ears. I saw people sharing the gospel with not-so-little eyes, and not-so-little ears. I saw people teaching on HIV/AIDS, and Malaria. I saw people helping with heavy lifting, and organization. 

My eyes kind of glazed over, to be honest. It was so beautifully overwhelming, and I would silently ask the Lord to show me where He wanted me, and to give me a heart humble enough to obey. 

Guess what. 

He did. 

It was about half way through our third day on the mountain when I felt it, the click of confirmation. We were eating lunch when I asked if they needed any help in sports ministry, and was happily accepted on board. 

There are a handful of highlight moments etched into my mind from this trip, and they all involve those faces up there. Racing along dirt roads, and then being laughed at when I would lose my breath. Chasing the boys through the medical clinics, and having them want to be chased each and every time they spotted me afterwards. Allowing them to help me clean up, and then seeing the radiating joy result from a simple task of rolling up tape. The smiles that came from using the same rolled up tape as a pretend drum during worship.  

I don't think I can ever look at orange tape in the same way, again. 

My absolute favorite moment? Hearing one little boy share the gospel with his friends. There's nothing quite like that, and I couldn't even understand the language. 

I left Africa with a desire to return. But wanna know the truth? I didn't expect to be returning this soon. I had no intentions of signing up for the 2015 trip. 

Until one day, I was driving in my car, and my heart flashed back to those boys. Something inside of me knew, if I had even the slightest chance of seeing them again, I had to take it. 

And then the following day, I decided to check the e3 website, and lo and behold, a Kisoro 2015 trip was listed. 

And that's when I knew I was going. 

Only God knows if I will privileged enough to see those particular boys again, but I know that regardless, He has good things in store. Great things. 

I can't wait to see what those are. 

Many of you have asked how you can get involved. The most direct need right now is financially, I have just over 100 days to raise $3700 more dollars. Is that number daunting to me? You bet. But is it daunting to God? No way. 

You can support financially right here, if you feel led. 

Prayer is another way to partner in this. You can pray for our team, that God would be preparing our hearts and raising the necessary support for this trip. You can pray for those that are in full-time mission over in Kisoro, that they would be blessed and encouraged by witnessing the work God is doing in that city. You can pray that ultimately, His will would be done, and His name would get all the glory.  

Today, I'm thankful for a God who calls us into His story, and for all of the wonderful people like you that He's placed in mine. 

Happy Monday, friends! If you've made it this far, thanks for reading a piece of my heart today. ;)

I've Got News

I interrupt this unplanned blogging break to share some news. 

Big news, I would say. 

News I've been wanting to share for a while. And am so excited to fill you all in on. 

Yupp, you read that right. I'm going back. 

Back to this:

And back for them:

You can read all about it here. And if you have it on your heart, you can help kick off fundraising. 

But really, I am just beyond thrilled to share this news that's been brewing in my heart for a while now. I'll be heading back to Kisoro, Uganda in January 2015, and I'm truly thankful, and excited to begin #amyinuganda round 2. 

{insert happy dance}

Him, not Me

We had four church planting teams, and one medical team. The medical team rotated between the four church planting locations, and because our team was up on the mountain near multiple villages, we were blessed to host two different medical clinics. 

As we set up for that first clinic, I just about lost it. I was so overwhelmed, in every sense of the word. I walked around the entire time with tiny tears welled up in my eyes. 

I was overwhelmed with watching God work in a mighty and powerful way right before my very eyes. Overwhelmed with His goodness, and the massive weight of how much He loved these people. 

In that picture above, you can see people lining up in the background. As I tried to process all that was about to happen, the amount of people who were going to tangibly experience the provision and love of Christ, my heart couldn't handle it. And apparently, my tear ducts couldn't hold it together either. 

But you know what else I was overwhelmed with? Me. On this day, I became incredibly aware of my own sin. I couldn't ignore my own self centered nature that was staring me in the face. 

I became aware of this because of how many times I thought of myself on this day. 

"I want to do something important."

"I want to do something radical."

"I want to serve."

"I want to be used."

You may read that and think "But those are good things to think, right?" And to a certain extent, I would agree with you. But the thing is, we have to look deeper than the actions. We have to look at the heart, the motivation, what's beneath the surface. And on that morning, setting up for that medical clinic, I became extremely aware of what can be underneath my surface. 

I became aware of my competitive nature. I became aware of my insecurity, and my jealousy. 

But guess what? There was purpose for that. 

My competitive nature could have won. My insecurity could have won. My jealousy could have won. Heck, the enemy could have won. 

But none of those things did. Because I took those nasty feelings, and I owned up to them. I acknowledged them, I confessed them. I opened my hands with all of my sin, and the Lord graciously washed them with His mercy and grace. 

On that day, I learned a valuable lesson. I felt His powerful voice whisper to me, "Amy, what is the purpose here?"

For people to experience the love of Christ. 

Did it matter who was used in that? Did it matter if they experienced Jesus through a nurse, or through our amazing Ugandan evangelism team, or through a different member of my ministry team? Did it matter if I was used in that, or if someone else was? No. 

Because it's all about Him! It's not about me. 

The second I recognized that, peace fell over me. I was free to serve where the Lord led me to, without needing to compare myself to where others were serving. I was free to rejoice in what God was doing through my team members, without feeling insecure if I hadn't been a part of it. 

I was overwhelmed that day, all right. Overwhelmed by an incredible God, and His incredible grace. I hope to never stop being overwhelmed by that. 

A special note to those who financially supported this trip: 

You helped give those wheelchairs away. You helped give those crutches away. You helped give those reading glasses away. You helped give that medicine away. 

And every single person who came through those medical clinics made their way through an evangelism station afterwards. The station was filled with native Ugandan believers sharing the gospel with their fellow Ugandan brothers and sisters. 

So yeah, you helped with that too. Thank you for letting God work through you!

Same Love, Different Place

Hey, remember that time I went to Africa, and it took me nearly 2 weeks to actually sit down and write about the part where I was in Africa? 

Yeah, about that. 

Time to start writing. 

***

I love the world of blogging. I love that I can meet someone for the first time in a Washington DC airport, hop on a plane to Africa, and spend nearly 2 solid weeks sharing every awake and asleep moment together, and it feels totally normal. 

I love that Christ can bring someone into my life from across the country, and somehow, despite many differences in our lives and our testimonies, we just get each other. Our friendship just effortlessly flows over gchat or texting or phone conversations, and the first time we hug feels like any other reunion between long time friends. 

I love Diana. And I'm thankful that she allowed me to share in this amazing adventure that God cooked up. 

{Also, it's her birthday today. So wish her the happiest of birthdays!}

I wore that outfit for a lot longer than I'd care to admit. And luckily, I couldn't admit it if I tried. Going between so many different time zones, your guess is as good as mine. 

Getting off that plane in Ethiopia was beyond surreal. For a girl who has never gone out of the country (besides Mexico and Canada, and I don't remember either trip very well so that totally doesn't count), just being in a place where English wasn't the primary language was a big deal. 

Add in the fact that I was heading off to share the gospel in Uganda and mind = blown. Why God chose to bless me with this opportunity, I will only be able to ask Him in heaven. Lord knows He didn't need me to accomplish anything that He accomplished on this trip. 

I so wish I could time travel back to myself. Not to change anything, there's God's glory written in every detail of my testimony. But I wish I could just go back and look that girl in the eye, smile, and say I know what you're looking for. In that drink, or that man, or your friendships. I know what your heart is yearning for, and you just wait. You're going to find it, and so much more. 

We drove from Rwanda to Uganda, ate a quick dinner, packed up some medical supplies, and went to bed. I think all of us were praising the Lord for a bed and a pillow after all of that traveling. 

The next day, we spent time together as an entire team before breaking off into smaller ministry groups. That day was devoted to experiencing Fuel Uganda's pygmy project. Just the other day, I watched the video on their website. Tears fell from my eyes as the gravity of what I witnessed came back to me, and more importantly, the reminder of what an incredible blessing it was to see this in person. I don't think words can truly capture what God is doing here, but that won't stop me from trying. 

The pygmies were living in the forest until the government relocated them to create a gorilla refuge in the 90s. They're currently living in the slums of Kisoro, understandably struggling to adapt to their new home. If you watch the video on Fuel Uganda's webpage (link above), you can see the conditions.

The relocation effort is completely changing the lives of these people. We were able to visit some of the families that are in the transition process, and we were blessed to hear them share.

As I listened to this man share, the world felt a whole lot smaller. Sure, he was beyond thankful for Fuel Uganda, and for the help of everyone involved with the relocation efforts. But you know who he was mainly thankful for? God. 

Not only are homes being built, but scripture is being shared. These people are not just given a new home, they're given Living Water from the King of kings to run in that new home. They know who is responsible for the transformation that they're experiencing, and it's no organization. It's Jesus Christ. 

Hearing about how Jesus is transforming these lives, I couldn't help but reminisce over how He has transformed mine. It may be a different continent, but it's the same love having the same crazy, life changing, powerful impact. 

My restoration process might look different than theirs, but restoration is restoration.

Transformation is transformation. 

And freedom is freedom. 

And on that day, standing in Kisoro, Uganda, I was thankful for all three. 

The Prayer Night

Two days before I left, I held a prayer night at our brand spankin' new house. Friends from all different areas of my life piled in, first divided into sub groups of who-knows-who, and eventually settling into one giant circle in our living room. I started setting the tone for prayer, when a dear friend politely interjected. She had heard a word from God as she walked up to our door, a word that led her to suggest that before we pray, the group took the opportunity to fill me up. To fill me up full of love and affirmation, so that I could take it with me to pour out all over Kisoro, Uganda. 

And so it began, each person took some time to share how I have impacted their lives. Some who I have known for years now, and others for just a few months. There were some of the kindest, most meaningful compliments ever given to me said in that circle. And some of the most beautiful, genuine tears shed. 

I can't quite explain the feeling that came over me. Not a single tear fell from this cry baby over here, and I think it was because a significant part of me was quite literally in shock. All I could do was praise God, because I knew that only He was responsible for everything that was taking place. 

I have never felt more full of love than on that night. And my friends, that is what life was made for. We were created to live in fellowship with God, and in fellowship with other people. It even says so in the Bible, "The Lord God said 'It is not good for the man to be alone.'" {Genesis 2:18}. 

We were made to fill each other up, to love each other, to support each other, to push each other closer to Christ. And on that Monday night, surrounded by some very dear friends, that is exactly what happened. They filled me up, they loved me, they supported me, and they pushed me closer to Christ. Oh, did they push me closer to Christ. I went to sleep that night praising Him so, so much. 

I am so grateful for that friend who spoke up and boldly proclaimed that she had word from God. Because of her and every single person in that room, my heart was exploding from love before I even set foot on a plane. 

And it's a good thing too, because boy, did He have work coming for that thing. 

Today is the Day

I'm sitting here at a Starbucks, putting together thoughts to capture this moment. Today is the day, the day that I hop on a plane to Africa.

Let's just sit with that for a second. I hop on a plane, to Africa. 

This is a dream come true on so many levels. And how often do you approach a situation, and really know that it's going to change your life? Most of the time, the gravity of something doesn't hit until it's over. You end up looking back in hindsight, and thinking "wow, that was a big game changer!"

But this is different. This, I can walk into knowing that it will be something that I remember for the rest of my life. I want to appreciate every single moment knowing that it may never happen again, because for all I know, it won't. I want to soak up every part of Africa, and tuck it somewhere special in my heart to keep for long after I leave the soil. 

It's crazy to think that all of this is happening as a result of a gchat conversation {thank you, Google!}. 6 months ago, Diana told me she was thinking of going on this trip. I did what any normal person would do, and asked if I could come too. I don't think either of us thought I was serious, and yet, here we are, 12 hours away from getting on our journey to go serve in Africa. 

We serve a crazy amazing and creative God, that's for sure. 

Thank you for being a part of this journey. Thank you for loving me, and supporting me, and encouraging me. Thank you for inspiring me, and motivating me to live with reckless abandon for Jesus.

I won't be updating my blog, but I will be updating Facebook, Instagram (@sweethomesb) and Twitter. 

I love you, and I'm thankful for you. Every single one of you. <3

See you on the other side!

4 More Days...

December 16th is my fundraising deadline. 4 more days until this phase is over, the phase that almost kept me from going to Uganda in the first place. The idea of raising support for a mission trip scared the heck out of me. But God did what He always does, and ever so gently, took my hand to guide me through that fear. 

I want to pour out my heart one last time in regards to this fundraising effort. I'm gonna be real, and say it's probably taken about 20 minutes to get this far. A lot of typing, and a lot of erasing. So I'm just gonna call this an introduction, and get started with it. Ready, set, go. 

I'm all for keeping it real here. So here's the deal:

I have 4 more days to raise $945. Considering I started at $3,700 (now $3,800 due to some final budget changes), that number makes me shout praise to the Lord already. That number makes me tear up at the thought of the names that comprise that $2,855 already raised. And that's not an exaggeration, you should have seen the tears at small group this week.

The honest to God truth is that come December 16th, I will be putting the remaining amount on my credit card. So, yes, if not a single dollar was raised beyond this point, I would still be going to Africa come January. 

So why am I writing to you right now? Why am I sharing my heart, and asking for your help, if I'll be going regardless?

 Because I truly believe that God is calling people to be a part of this. 

When I look back on moments where I know without a doubt that I heard from the Lord, most of those moments were when He led me to give to others. I truly believe that God blesses our giving, and that He uses it more than we know. I am happy to pay the remaining $945, but what if God wants to use you in this? 

What if He was whispering in your ear to give to this trip, and seeing this post is serving as confirmation? 
(It's happened to me, huh Annie?) 

What if God wants to use you in the lives of the pygmies that we are going to serve? 

What if He wants to use you to spread the gospel, and plant churches so that everyone in Kisoro, Uganda will have a church within walking distance? 

What if He wants to use you to help teach about AIDS in a part of the world where education on this disease is desperately needed?

I wish you could hear the sincerity in my voice when I say that I don't ask these questions to guilt you into giving. If you don't feel a pull to support this particular mission field, then please follow the Lord's leading and give where you do feel a pull! Allow me to say that you are off the hook! No guilt necessary. I love you all the same!

That being said, I genuinely believe that there are those out there who are feeling called to support this. Whether you feel called to support what God is doing in my life, or in these pygmies' lives, or in Uganda in general, I pray that you would be blessed by following that leading. I pray that your giving would be returned to you ten fold, and that your faith would strengthen as a result of your obedience. 

I am thankful for each one of you, did you know that? I hope you do. Your support from day 1 of this exciting adventure means more to me than I could ever tell you in a blog post. 

4 days. $945. If anyone can do it, God can. 

{If you would like to donate, you can do so here} <3

Uganda - What am I doing there?

Good question! Now that you know how this happened, let's get into the good stuff. How will I be serving in Kisoro, Uganda?

Kisoro is in South Western Uganda, as is the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park:

Source: www.africatravelresource.com

Source: www.touchuganda.org

The Bwindi National Park is home to half of the world's population of mountain gorillas.

Source: www.bluevistatravel.com

Up until the 1990's, this forest was also home to an unreached people group called the Batwa (the pygmies, or "short people"). 

Source: www.ugandatouristguide.com

In the 1990's, the Batwa people were evicted from their homes by the government to provide refuge for the mountain gorillas. They moved from the jungle to Kisoro, where they have been struggling to adapt ever since. 

I will be partnering with local Ugandan believers to share the gospel, and serve the Batwa people. Our goal is to establish new churches where this group can enjoy fellowship, worship and community. I firmly believe that while on this trip, we will all come into a deeper understanding of who our amazing God truly is, and who He intended us to be. "We" includes the Batwa people, the existing Ugandan believers, and those of us traveling from the United States to serve. 

Because the fact of the matter is, no matter where we stand in our walk with the Lord, we all have a lot  to learn. 

I have no doubts that this will be a life changing experience for me, and it is my hope, that the people I am privileged to serve and serve with will also experience the life changing Spirit of our Heavenly Father. 

So how can you get involved?

If you feel it on your heart to get involved with what the Lord is doing in Kisoro and with the Batwa people, there are many ways for you to be a part of this!

First and foremost, you can pray. You can pray that the Lord's will would be done in these lives, that His incredible, powerful, unfailing love would become more real to these people each and every day. Starting today. 

Should you feel led to get involved with what the Lord is doing in my heart for Uganda, there are multiple ways that you can do this, as well. 

You can share. You can spread the word about what's going on in Kisoro, and how the Lord has called me there. You can blog it, tweet it, instagram it, facebook it, whatever your social media method of choice is, feel free to put this on blast. 

Go ahead and steal the button, if you want. I know we're told not to steal, but I think this is alright in God's book :)

<a href="http://www.e3partners.org/amyinuganda/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/amyreed22/601e5070-58f0-45b1-a820-b843767ff462_zpscd70ce8b.jpg" alt="Amy in Uganda" width="200" height="200" /></a>

And finally, if you are feeling called to give, then I will be blessed to receive whatever amount is on your heart. Every dollar counts, every dollar matters, and a dollar given in obedience to the Lord will bless you just as much as giving $100 will. 

If you're reading that thinking "Shoot dang, I am called to give!" then you can do so on my fundraising page. 

I want to take a moment to truly thank you all for how incredible you have been on this journey so far. You have been some of my biggest supporters, and I know it's because you see the Lord working in my life. It's not because you want Amy to go to Uganda, it's because you want Jesus to go to Uganda, and bring Amy along for the ride. 

Thank you for the encouragement. Thank you for the support. And really, just thank you for the love. 

I love you guys. I really, really do. 

Uganda - How did this happen?

This is my verse for Uganda. And it actually could not be more perfect, because we will literally be working with people in exile. We'll be spending time with Batwa people who have been relocated to Kisoro, Uganda in order to provide refuge for the mountain gorillas. 

So how in the world did I get myself signed up for a mission trip to Kisoro, Uganda, you ask? 

Well, allow me to tell you. 

***

It all started way back towards the beginning of this year. I had just joined the Influence Network, and was diving into the discussion forum. My eye caught a thread that was looking for 20-something bloggers who were interested in guest posting. Ding, ding, ding!

An e-mail here, and an e-mail there, and I find myself quickly realizing just how much in common I have with this girl looking for guest bloggers. Our conversations effortlessly flowed from family, to running, to relationships, always coming back to the reoccurring theme of how amazing our God is.  Yupp, Diana was destined to become one of my great friends from the get go. 

We made plans to swap blogs for the day, and both shared all about the post-college lessons that we have learned. Things could have stopped there, but lucky for me, they did not. 

You know those friends that can give the best advice, never get tired of hearing about what's going on in your life, and don't think you're crazy for overanalyzing every detail until it can't possibly be analyzed any more? And you know the kind of friends who do all of those things, and point you back to Christ while doing it? 

Well, that's Diana in my life. Whether I am messaging her on gchat, or shooting her a text message for advice and prayer, she has quickly become one of my go-to friends for any and all situations that come my way. 

And now that you understand the extent of the epic-ness of this blog-indused friendship, cue to a few weeks ago. Diana and I were doing our typical gchat routine, when she mentioned that she was applying to go on her first mission trip to Uganda. The Lord had already put Africa on my heart, so this immediately grabbed my interest. I asked her if this was with her church, or an outside organization, and when she said that it was the later of the two, I knew exactly what my next question would be. 

I asked if I could apply, too. 

She said of course! And the two of us immediately got goose bumps (sounding like a proposal story, huh?) realizing that the first time we'd meet could very well be on a plane to Uganda. Uganda!

I asked her how much the trip cost. You see, I knew that I wanted to go on a mission trip in the near future. But, I expected to pay for it myself. The idea of fundraising was downright frightening to me. 

So when she replied $3,700, I figured that my dreams of the most epic blogger date/mission trip of all time were flying out the window. That was just way more than my measly savings account could afford right now. 

I went for a walk outside, and thought to myself. Why am I so afraid of fundraising? I love supporting others when they are on mission for Christ, so why do I have a hard time playing the reverse role? 

The only things that came to mind were pride, difficulty asking for help, and the fear of what others would think of me. What would they think when I ask for support? Would they think I'm worthy? Would my non-Christian friends think I'm crazy? 

I suddenly realized that I had to do this, I had to face this fear. Because none of those items listed above are valid reasons for turning down an opportunity to raise money 

to bring glory to God's name. 

The fact of the matter is, if God puts something on my heart, who am I to say no? I want to say yes! No matter how scary or daunting it might be. 

And I quickly became very aware that not only does God want to change me on this trip, He wants to change me before it even begins. He's ready to teach me how to accept support and blessings from others, and it's time for Him to help me let go of my fear of what others think. 

So I did the craziest thing I could think of, and I applied. 

Let the journey of Amy in Uganda begin. 

The fundraising has officially started. Check out my support page here!