Life

Jesus has provided new LIFE!!! Our dear friend Jane gave birth to a baby boy on Friday! He was born in her home in an area outside of Arua called Ombachi. They are both healthy and beautiful!!! Rejoice with us and with Jane that God has been so kind to her!!!

Also, in a very different way we are celebrating the life of Beatrice's father. He went to be with Jesus last week on Wednesday night. Billy had the honor on Thursday to carry (in our truck) the man's body to an area toward Sudan called Maracha. I was telling my friend where Billy had been on Thursday afternoon and she asked me..."Did they give him the chicken?" I was surprised she knew what his thank you gift for driving had been. It seems among the Lugbara, where we live this is the required gift for the one who transports the body to the place of burial.

So, in very extreme ways we have been celebrating life these days. Billy was able to be in pastoral training in Nebbi on Friday all day! He heard our pastors we have been with the last three years, plus two more who have joined the training while we were in the USA share ten stories each from the Gospel of Mark. While at times that was REALLY hot and tiring...the overwhelming reality is that there is LIFE in Nebbi district. The Word is being proclaimed! The story of WHO Jesus is and who He wants us to be is getting out!!! LIFE has come!!!

Reunions

Some quick pictures this morning of reunions in the last week.

What a blessing to have already established relationships this time and not be merely strangers in a strange land!!

Sunday we worshiped at Nebbi Town Africa Gospel Church.

Here Billy and the girls are with Pastor Cosmas, our friend and great translator Geoffrey and Pastor Benson, holding Lucy.

Here Elsie Jayne and Lucy sit inside Cosmas' home with Pastor Benson.


This sweet girl spoke NO English, so I didn't even get her name in my limited Alur, but she was determined to carry Lucy who was her equal or greater weight, but at least four years younger! Oh the joys of food in America!!!


One of my dearest friends in Nebbi is Jane. She is seated behind the table that is her shop. She is giving Elsie Jayne a chapati. EJ is already eatting one you can see, but Jane was so excited that she was enjoying them...i think we went away with about 8 between the two girls!!!

Our precious watchman and friend, Simon was DELIGHTED to have his friend Billy back around! The place was lonely without us he says. He has faithfully been here daily the 8 months we were away. His father-in-law is dying of throat cancer...there is no treatment for him and he has been sent home to die. Will you pray for Beatrice, Simon's wife? She is a good friend and it is her dad who is dying. Thanks.

One of the greatest joys since being back is finding my friends Jennifer and Eva are both back in Arua. They had gone to Kampala to study and find work, but Eva has graduated and work wasn't to be found down there. They asked right away to begin bible study this week!!! What fun to get to study God's Word together as sisters-in-Christ seeking Him!

My friend Alice had a baby girl while we were away, so it has been fun to get to know Sarah this week as well!!!

The Long Journey Home-Home

The newest memory verse for our family is Zephaniah 3:17.

For the LORD your God has arrived to live among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will rejoice over you with great gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.
He will exalt over you by singing a happy song.

We feel like this is a testimony of our last year.
Over and over we sense that He has saved us.
We journeyed over 30,000 miles while in the states.
We reached 30 different states and had the blessing of seeing so many
dear friends and loved ones.
Hallelujah! Praise God Forever!
We sensed the saving, rejoicing, love, and exaltation of our God throughout.
He was faithful and carried us.

We have been without internet access for a while now, so please forgive our silence. We would be excited if we could get on line at home soon.

It has been a long journey the fifth of September when we left the states. We had a full day in London and the girls did remarkably well. We came into the country and fought with jet lag one night and embaced it fully the next two nights with mid-night showings of Curious George! We were delayed in Kampala a few days as our landlord began the list of repairs our home needed that we wrote together 8 months ago the day our plane landed and he was sure we were back! It was nice to be in the city a bit for some shopping anyway!

Then we were delayed even more as Lucy fell while playing and cut her forehead open.
We took her to the big International Hospital in Kampala. They wanted to glue it, but the glue was "finished." Billy ran to the pharmacy to try and find some...all "finished" there too! So, we went with the next best things and used a big bandage. She is healing nicely but we stayed an extra couple of days to have a follow up visit there.

We got to visit our dear friends Imam and Tina and their little two year old Angela in Kampala and had great time with our WGM colleagues there too.

Finally last Tuesday we began our journey north! The road has improved quite a bit since we left and we made the trip in just over seven hours. Hallelujah! Praise God Forever!

Some pictures from the journey...

The journey has been long, but the view was great at certain points!

The tembo (elephants) that we stopped to enjoy along the road from Kampala.

The view from on top of the "new" vehicle!

THANK YOU Indian Springs and Ooltewah UMC!!!

The girls this morning at breakfast.
Thankful to be Home-home, but still not sleeping so great through the night...a prayer request for sure!


With our dear friend Angela in Kampala.




Jesus has really blessed our families. When we first met Imam and Tina there were only four of us...now we are seven!!! Imam excitedly testified to all Jesus has continued teaching them in our time away! We praise God His word is ALIVE.

The cousins just before leaving America!

The girls saying good-bye at WGM in Marion, IN.

As Far As Kampala

Hallelujah! Praise God Forever! We reach Kampala, Uganda safely early Tuesday morning. The flights were long but the girls did great and we survived. We almost haven't survived the jetlag:) but last night, being our third night, was definitely better.

This is a quick note but just to say thank you again for all of you who have been praying so faithfully for us. We are grateful. We are in Kampala until probably Monday and then we'll drive up to Arua.

Couple of Prayer Items:
1.) SLEEP for all four of us, specifically at night (we are seven hours ahead of EST)
2.) Transition - Elsie Jayne keeps asking if we are home yet... almost but not quite.
3.) Health - We praise Jesus we have all stayed healthy so far. We'd ask specifically for protection from tummy weirdness (a lot of new germs) and malaria.
4.) Culture Readjustment - We are not in Wilmore anymore.

Thank you all for carrying us in prayer. We'll try to get pictures up as soon as possible.

Jesus has been good to us. We praise Him.