Frusterations

I dont know if i told you all... but Henrys parents died because of the lords resistance up north... his job is also to work with boys who escaped or were part of the whole child soldier thing...we were talking this weekend and he told us that all the money and effort put forth in the US for "child soldiers"...was all to make awareness... none of it got back here to Africa... he says that is the case with most campaigns like that.... this frustrated me a lot... another thing that frustrated me is all the things we are learning about... all of the white missionaries that come here and bring their "culture"... they forget to detaching their culture from their religion and end up ruining tribes and people and traditions here... or churches like the one i went to that just want money to bring western buildings and teach these people that being a Christian is being a number and bringing in numbers and forgetting the relationship... FORGETTING CHRIST... I feel frustrated... and i am wondering if i should really be another American coming to a foreign land to screw things up... i have felt this deep pull twards missions till now.. where i dont know what God has for me... does he want me in a forgin land that i dont know bringing the gospel and possibly messing it up as so many have.... or should i be on the other side of things? working in my country and in my culture... perhaps helping others see the mistakes i have seen?? These questions have been weighing on my heart a lot lately... I am not sure my place in this culture... im not sure i have one...

Rural Visit

How can i write a blog about this weekend?? there is just so much information...We went to a house in the village and stayed with the Family... it was a broken family... not the traditional african family (a man with many wives) these were three generations of women who were rejected by their husbands and their kids. The brother of the middle lady came and stayed with us. His name was edward.. he was the person that showed us around the most... it is hard for me to digest everything i experienced. To live in poverty like that and then really understand and own the poverty i saw. Or to really understand the way they treat the women. They are basically glorified servants. They do dont come out when we eat... they spend all day cooking. They do not have the rights most do, and the only reason why i did was becuase i was white... that is a hard concept for me to come to grips with. So i guess i will just lay out the weekend.
We got there and immidietly were served food (matoke (smashed bananas), beef, and rice)... i am pretty sure i chewed on one piece of beef for a good 20 minutes... i almost threw up. HA... And then we went on a walk... saw there water well where they get all their water, we also went on a monkey hunt. After that we came back and had tea and bread. We then sat for a long time, and then we had dinner and went to bed. The next morning we woke up and had tea, and we went out and killed a chicken. We watched them pluck all the feathers off, and cut its throat. And then we picked potatoes for dinner, and got the yams. After that we went to a funeral. It was really weird being at a funeral that we didn't know who died. We also kinda stole the show because we were white. I felt a little weird about it. And then they had us eat inside because we were guests for the meal that proceeded. which was weird too, because only special guests got to do that. After that we came home and rested, and then went on a hike up a mountain. It was a really fun hike. There were aunt hills up their bigger then me (picture of me and edward standing on a hill is of us STANDING ON A AUNT HILL)... it was nuts. We then came back... had tea...and dinner... and then went to bed. This morning we went to church... which started 1 hour and 10 minutes late (welcome to Africa)... the matatus tried to rip us off (we ended up getting in one with 20 people!! WOW...they are supposed to fit 14) as well because we were white...After that we went back.. had lunch... gave presents.. received presents.. and then waited for the matatu to come... it took about an hour to finally get a matatu to pick us up... so now i am home... trying to process the poverty i was in... the dirt home... with a hole in the ground for a toilet... no electricity...no running water... i crazy experience that i would never take back... but one that i defiantly need to process...

Feild Trip!

er


Today was a fun day! Field trip day! we went to the shrines of Martyrs. There was about 10 men who were trying to share Christ, and they were killed. They tortured them and then bound them up with sticks and burned them from the feet up (the picture here is of the shrine made of the men). They died singing praise songs. It is amazing what these men went through for the sake of the Gospel... should make us all wonder if we are that willing to go as far as death for the sake of the Gospel.
After that we went to these waterfalls. They were beautiful. We got to climb up to the top of them and then go around to all sides of it so we could see every angle! it was one of the most amazing views ever! God really is an amazing creator!! These waterfalls are more then just falls to the people though. They come and there are shrines all around the waterfall, and they give money and gifts to these shrines so that they can get power, good luck, or other gifts from the falls. People really believe in this stuff... There are Gods in almost everything, every natural thing (mountain, hill, waterfall, ect. ) is worshiped because it is believe to be a God. After that we walked around and visited with some of the people in the community. We also got stampeded by wild cows! ha...
When we were walking, me and leah went off by our selves, and we walked by this family. They all started at us, and when we walked back they all were hitting this one girl. So this girl came up to us, her chest was hanging out of her shirt, and she looked as if she might have had some sort of mental disability, it looked like she wanted to shake Leah's hand. But we were wrong. She grabbed leahs water bottle and started yelling MAMMA MAMMA... we we didn't know what to do...so we said ok... you cane have it, and ran away! haha... it was quite humorous, and also the first time i have gotten robbed (knock on wood)...
African culture is so interesting. And i love being able to see all the things we are learning about!
We go on Rural Visit this weekend and have a meeting tonight on what to expect! it should be fun to be living in a rural area and get to experience life as an african in a rural setting for a weekend!
This last picture was just something funny i saw at the mechanic. They love Saddam Husain here, so... here is a humorous picture for all of you :)

A Mzungu in Uganda....

Life continues and i am getting more used to everything and i am able to get around on my own now. I can officially get a mutatu down town... find places and get one back...all by myself... this is a feat not many of my teammates have achieved. This weekend we went with out internet, and as annoying as that was, it was refreshing to be away from everything and fully submerged in Africa. This weekend was really fun, i went down town as i said, and then we went to a play that evening. The pay was really good, it was about a family in a village and all their beliefs in Gods and stuff. It was at the international play house though, and the props probably were as good as a elementary school play. But it was still really fun! After the play we got to watch a complimentary concert....I have NEVER laughed harder in my life. I couldn't believe what was happening and the only reason i believe it now is because i have video of it. the lady's of the play came out, there was a foil back ground, and they had ridiculous outfits on and they were basically Brittney spears dancing. And they were dead serious about it. It was sad in the sense that it was obvious that it was totally western culture that brought this on. In a culture that is very modest, they are looked down upon alot, but at the same time... it was really funny.
Sunday i went to a pentecostal church. I was appalled by it. It was a church of about a thousand. they had more high tech technology then my church does. And to top it all off they are raising money to build a more western church with a coffee shop in front. In a country that 8% is using electricity, and that is suffering from poverty... a westernized church with a coffee shop is the last thing they need. It was also sad because it was completely a numbers game. They guilt ed the people the whole time to come to Christ using hell, and then guilt ed them to bring more people. I saw about 40 people claim to accept Christ. It breaks my heart that people come down here with good intentions and all they give these people is a church to go to.... this is not stopping poverty, spiritually or physically.
That night we went to a dance. It was a dinner theater type thing where we got to see dances from a lot of different cultures. It was really cool, and a complete contrast to the concert we went to the day before.
I am beginning to like some Ugandan food. Samosas are delicious, and so is Matoke (their banana dish).... although i still appreciate Graces cooking and look forward to her westernized cooking every night as lame as that is.
We started Economics today. We went to the university which was really cool to be in a university in Uganda. It was pretty interesting. We then went to about 7 different little businesses to see how the Majority of Ugandans get their money. Most of them are in the automotive industry. It is actually amazing what they do. They take beat up cars, and using very little tools, pound out all the bends, weld all the cracks, and paint the thing and it looks basically new. This provides a lot of income for the city of Uganda.

Ok last thing... we applied for our Practicums, the one i want is a job doing photography and getting stories to send back to the states to raise awareness and support to the communities in Rwanda. It sounds like a Rad Job, so pray that i would get it... and if Not that God would send me where he wants me!

I have learned more in the past two days then i learned all last semester... i am exhausted from taking in a different culture... tons of information, getting to know different people, food, etc...But it is all so great! i really think it is going to be hard to leave! I am growing quite attached to my team, and i seriously love this culture and people!
Yesterday we did two really cool things... first we went to the tombs of the dead kings, also the biggest hut in the WORLD!... it seriously was a LEGIT hut... i would want to live in it! Our tour guide was the next inline to the throne, and he knew so much about the kinds, and all of the strange beliefs that when people die they are still alive.... They have the 85 wifes of the king still taking care of the tomb and no one is allowed past this line, because they believe you will disappear. It was an amazing experience.
After that we went to the US embassy and spent about 2 hours talking to a rep who had so much knowledge, i wish that i knew all that he knew about all of the things going on in our world!! i learned so much about conflicts going on, and all of the misplaced peoples, and what is going on to get them a home... it really is amazing, and it was really refreshing to hear someone in a political position who actually gives a rip about what is going on and trying to do something about it!
Today we Had religion again and learned about how most of Africa really believes in one God... they just believe that there are other deities that are closer to God so they pray to them so they can intercede on behalf of the person to Get to God.... Our teacher was telling us that we get caught up in the fact that they are wrong, and sometimes forget to look at their culture, and maybe like in Acts with the people with the unknown God, they do believe in God, they just don't know how to correctly worship him.... These are things missionaries need to bring to the people, instead of telling them that all their culture and religion is wrong... you need to be relate able, being all things to all people in order to minister effectively.... it is a really good concept to think about!
We have more Lugandan tonight... i am really picking up on the language i think... and it is fun to use it out side...
we are a little spoiled here in Uganda... almost everyone knows English...
but it is still fun to use Lugandan and have the people point and laugh at the Muzungu trying to speak Lugandan!
tomorrow we pick our practicum sights... Pray that the Lord would place me in the right place... a place where i can minister effectively, and just learn the Most!

I love and Miss you all!!

becca

(the picture is me and Leah.... she is pretty much amazing!)

Taxi cabs and Orphanages

Oli Otya? (Hi how are you)
Our Assistant is teaching us to use the Mutatus (The taxi cabs). So we went on an adventure to the City where there is a taxi park with thousands of taxi's going to thousands of different places, and they want us to learn how to do this on our own! it is a little overwhelming, but i think i could get from our house to the Taxi park, downtown, and home. There are quite a few legit places in town, for coffee, and stuff... a little piece of home if we start missing it. I constantly feel like i am going to be hit by a Boda (motorcycle) or a Mutatu... they drive like crazy men, and we cross the street all the time and its like playing frogger, but we are the frogs. They are a little more gracious to us though becuase we are Muzungus (white men) which means we dont know the rules "Muzungu Muzungu". We stick out like sore thumbs.
Our First class today was on African religions. It was very interesting. unlike alot of cultures in Africa, Uganda actually praises and thinks Twins are a blessing. Our teacher, who actually wrote one of the books we are reading, and is a native Ugandan, is teaching us about how Christianity's has come to Uganda, and how in a lot of cases it has failed. It all comes back to not rejecting their culture and way of life and trading it for western Christianity, but embracing them and who they are, and bringing Jesus without being caught up in legalism.
After that we went to the Jordan House Orphanage. They were more then happy to see us, and all hugged us and gave us the tour around. There are about 25 kids to one room, and two bathrooms between all of the kids. They eat beans and chunky potatoes, and yet they were some of the happiest kids you would ever see. They sang us about 15 songs, and then begged us to sing back to them, which of course we were terrible at, because White people just cant sing and dance the way Africans can! we are pretty lame :)
We hope to continue a relationship with this orphanage the whole time we are here and just go back and love on these Children!
Tonight we have language class and then we go to bed early because we are visiting the tomb of the kings of Uganda to help us put images with the things we are learning in religion! so that should be a very interesting trip!I am really excited to really dig deap into these peoples lives and culture yet i feel like it is already going by so fast.

Getting integrated

Well, we have been here a few days, and i am falling in love with the culture one day at a time. The team keeps growing closer, and we continue to get more used to being here. We met yesterday with our cornerstone advisers (who are the people who help us get integrated with African society, as well as the people we stay with on our rural visit). My adviser is Henry, and he is great. My group is me kelly, and chris. (The pictures are of the City and of our Group). I think it is a pretty fun group and i have enjoyed being with them! I have learned much about the culture, a few things that stuck out is that if one is under dressed in the city, like wearing to skanky of cloths, the people will just rip off there cloths till they are naked to shame them so that they wont ever wear cloths like that again! I thought that was pretty interesting. Henry tells us we are going to catch, cook and eat squirrel when we go on our rural visit, i am pretty excited about that! Another of the groups are going to see a 19 year olds circumcision in which the adviser is a little animate about Justin participating.... is it a Joke? not sure... but we hope so!! haha! i have really appreciated the humor and the sarcasm of every one here, it has made things way fun, and every one seems to jell better with it. We went to the Hospital yesterday to see the place we would go and also to get some advice on how to stay alive, and the doctor was hilarious....

I have loved my time here SO much, and i am glad i get to spend four months here!
my first class on African Religion starts today at 8:30, so i am excited to see how that Goes!

i miss you all so much!
Praise God that the Luggage came yesterday! so we officially have it all!!

Keep praying for our relationships, and pray that we will continue to serve the best we can!

Finally there

So i am here, in Uganda Africa, after almost 3 days of traveling. We are all Exhausted and not adjusting to the time quite yet, but we will get there! The guest house is Fabulous, i am rooming with 3 other girls, and we have a bathroom to ourselves with 2 showers....we are not yet roughing it. The team is gelling quite well also, we are all getting along, and ready to spend this semester together. It has not yet hit that we are going to be here for so long... but i am ready for it, i am ready for the adventure.

We ended up getting all of our bags but two, which was a lot better then last year, unfortunately it was all of one girls luggage, so you can be praying for her and her sitch.... we have all been willing to share with her though.

So far all we have done is move in and exchange money, and eat a few meals...We are going out to ice cream tonight together, so i am excited about that! Tomorrow we are going to a pentecostal church in town, so that will be an interesting experience!

i appreciate all your prayers! I love and miss you all! make sure to write me and keep in touch!

Departure

I am in the airport.... this adventure is real... this trip that has been in the planning for so long is finally happening. I am excited, and yet also a little nervous... i never thought about the classes and training has hard, but word on the street from orientation that learning African Economics is going to kick my butt.... so i am a little nervous about it. But i am excited for the adventure, i am excited for my new friends! i am already getting along with them so well and it is day too! I have loved meeting the people that participate in the Food for the Hungry things, we are all so like minded, in the passion and will to help and stop social justice, and to spread the gospel to the nations!
PLEASE pray that all our luggage gets there, Teresa has told us there has never been a trip where all the luggage has gotten there, so please please please pray for that!... what an easier trip it will be if all our supplies are there!
also pray we will make the most of our time there, we will love on each other and the community and have the most amazing semester of our lives!
i love and miss you all!!
i will up date you soon!

A New Adventure

In one week from today i will be leaving for Uganda. Four months away from home, four months in Africa. Four months of crazy food, and a crazy culture, and a ton of people i have never met before. I am excited for the amazing things the lord is going to do through and in me... i am going to learn so much and hopefully come home a changed person for the best! So here starts my blog.... let this amazing adventure begin!