restoration

This little story happened a few weeks ago in the regular all-staff meeting; it's not necessarily unique to Uganda but I found it encouraging. 

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. -Romans 8.1

As Uncle L. stood in front of the room, his face expressed some hesitation and fear. Whatever he was preparing to say would not be a simple confession of bad judgment or poor choices; this speech was life-changing, and he seemed almost to be re-thinking his decision to share. Still, he was there, in front of the crowd, after an attention-riveting introduction from Uncle Simon, and it was too late now.

The tale was short, though it had been developing for a few years. After his time in the New Hope Institute of Childcare and Family, Uncle L. had joined NHU as a Primary 7 teacher. The spiritual searching and insights he had received at the Institute continued to impact his life, yet something still niggled in his mind, a hidden sin that continued to fester until this past weekend, at the NHICF reunion.

Side note: I think NHICF might need a flashing sign on their webpage. It would say “Warning: Attend at Your Own Risk. Life-Changing Lessons Ahead.”

It turns out that Uncle L. had falsified his teaching credentials; his papers were a lie. Despite his obvious gift for teaching (both sets of his P7 students had excelled in their exams), he had misrepresented his qualifications and that lie was beginning to chafe his soul. The Holy Spirit continually pointed him back to his unacknowledged sin: How can I teach these kids about integrity if I am not a man of full integrity? The NHICF reunion was the breaking point; he went to his supervisor and confessed, valuing a restored relationship with God over a superior reputation among men.

Fully expecting anger and expulsion from NHU and the school, he was instead receiving with compassion, tears, and forgiveness. His humility and courage in repenting to his superiors, along with his willingness to leave his position immediately, brought restoration. He was commended for his honesty, prayed over by the ‘big men,’ and allowed to remain in his position as P7 teacher.

As he stood before his fellow staff, his story complete, forgiveness sought and received, Uncle Simon rose again. “I would like to read from Psalm 32.

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,

Whose sin is covered.

Blessed in the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity,

And in whose spirit there is no deceit.”

Another leader rose and spoke of how much more he respected Uncle L. for this confession. A third read from 3 John 4: I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

Watching the scene, I was impressed with the joy of Romans 8.1. The lack of condemnation that stems from Christ’s extreme forgiveness is a solemn thing…but it is also a JOYFUL thing! May we always remember the joy that comes from confessing our sins to a God who continually delights to welcome us back into His presence though the blood of Jesus.   

Life in Uganda: Rural Driving

Today, I'm starting a little series I like to call "life as we know it in Uganda." I'll attempt to make it a weekly series, but "life as we know it in Uganda" isn't always predictable, so the sporadicity shall be part of your introduction to Ugandan life. 

We'll start with driving, as that is generally a visitor's first truly Ugandan experience upon exiting the airport (hmm, I forgot about visas and customs and baggage claim...oh well, driving is more common). 

Driving in Uganda is always an interesting experience. 

On the road between Jinja and Kampala

 In Entebbe and Kampala, the roads are generally tarmac. Driving in Kampala is a completely different experience that may be covered sometime in the future. For now, we're just talking about driving in the rest of Uganda. Once you leave Kampala, you'll find tarmac on major highways...but otherwise, dirt roads and potholes are the new normal. 

A "shortcut" from Jinja to avoid Kampala traffic

It's common to find all sorts of transportation occurring on Ugandan roads: cars, lorries (trucks), coasters (mini-buses), taxis (which look more like 15-passenger vans), boda-bodas (motorcycles carrying passengers or goods), bicycles, and pedestrians. 

The roads are very narrow for the amount of traffic they contain!

What would be simple two-lane roads in America are in fact 6+ lane roads in Uganda: a pedestrian lane, a bike/boda lane, an eastbound car/taxi/lorry lane, a passing lane (sometimes), a westbound car/taxi/lorry lane, another bike/boda lane, and a final pedestrian lane. 

Bicycle with...something??

The below scene is quite common, almost un-noteworthy, despite the rather hazardous driving situation:

Roads in Uganda are a lifeline, so finding people chatting with pedestrians, bicycles, bodas, or taxis on the side of the road is another thing to beware of. 

Finally, you can't forget the livestock. Many families keep their goats/pigs/cows tied up on the side of the road for grazing, though sometimes drivers (and passengers) have a freak-out moment when the livestock starts ambling toward the road, seemingly untied! 

And then there's the occasional cow herd walking down the road.

Chickens, unfortunately, are never tied up, but they seem smart enough to stay out of the road. 

Another complication in Ugandan driving is the sun; it can be quite bright, especially if you are driving toward the sunset, rushing to be home before dark!

Ah, equatorial sunshine

Plus, dirt roads and little rain means much dust...making the pedestrians, bicycles, bodas, livestock, and other vehicles rather difficult to see until the last minute!

see the dust on our windshield?

So, there's a small introduction to driving in Uganda. 

note bene: If daylight driving simply isn't exciting enough, then night driving will surely give you that adrenaline rush. I wouldn't recommend night driving in Uganda--or even night passengering--for the faint of heart. Imagine the darkest night, on the most potholey, narrowest, unlit dirt road you can fathom...and then add other vehicles and bodas also dodging the unlit pedestrians, bicycles, and livestock. Ai-yai-yai!

why men were created

I strolled into my room tonight to find the following scene:

I was extremely flustered by this situation. What does one do for a mouse in the house??? 

The irony of the situation struck me later. I've coped well with pretty much whatever Uganda has thrown at me thus far, only to be stupefied by a mouse...which could very easily have happened in America, as evidenced by my parent's stories of trapping rats in the backyard shed.

Back to my flusteration.

The mouse seemed injured, though still alive, so I took a moment to ponder my options. I could smoosh it...but mouse guts on my floor would creep me out for a week. I could pick it up by its' tail...but what if the tail fell off like on lizards? I could try to chase it out the door...but it wasn't really moving and what if it lunged into the closet or the bathroom or some cranny along the way??? I was stumped. So I told the cat to keep an eye on the mouse and ran to get my phone. There was only one solution: call my housemate and ask her what on earth I should do. She very wisely suggested  sweeping it up with a dustpan and throwing it as far into the yard as possible. 

I threw the thing so hard that I think I pulled a muscle in my arm.

unexpected

"So, Chrissy, was this something you thought you'd be doing in Uganda?"

The question came with a laugh just before midnight on Friday. My housemates and I were in the midst of a veritable flower utopia, which had overtaken our kitchen and dining area. We were busy cutting, trimming, arranging, and watering a total of 13 bouquets, 15 boutineers, and 3 centerpieces for the next day's wedding.

roses! so many roses!

"Honestly," I answered, "This isn't something I'd expect to be doing in America!"

Flowers are not my specialty. Yet I managed to contribute to the evening by wrapping boutineers and taking out the rubbish. 

Boutineers by Chrissy...

When we finally went to bed at 1am Saturday morning, it was with a sense of accomplishment...and trepidation about how we would stay awake through the 2+ hour ceremony the next day!

Allison's beautiful centerpiece

 I can now add "flowers" to my list of random wedding skills...

the mere living

I started the first book of C.S. Lewis's space trilogy, Out of the Silent Planet, during my trip to Uganda and finished it within a week. I found it strangely appropriate to read about the main character, Elwin Ransom, his culture shock upon landing on Mars, and his subsequent adjustment to the hrossa (Martian, for the uninitiated) culture. 

"Ever since he awoke on the spaceship Ransom had been thinking about the amazing adventure of going to another planet, and about his chances of returning from it. What he had not thought about was being on it. It was with a kind of stupefaction each morning that he found himself neither arriving in, nor escaping from, but simply living on, Malacandra; waking, sleeping, eating, swimming, and even, as the days passed, talking."

In Random's own words: 

"Those quiet weeks, the mere living..., are to me the main thing that happened."

Quite often, I feel as if I have nothing to blog. My life here has become almost normal: I wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, come home, make dinner, chat with my housemates, do chores, and go to bed, just like my life in America. At points, I have to remind myself that stepping outside to fill a jerrycan with water so we can have drinking water isn't "normal." But at other points, I have to remind myself that sitting with a Kindle on a sofa in the evening isn't "normal" either. 

"Mere living" here is a conglomeration of paradoxes. 

For example...who would have thought that in Africa, of all places, I would learn to enjoy having a cat sleep on my lap while reading a book? 

Those who know my family's most recent cat will understand the irony of this picture...

music for your ears

here's a brief sound of what happens in my house quite regularly.

living with NHU's music teacher/worship leader/budding-artist-mentor has it perks, mainly being that I'm learning Luganda songs more quickly than if I only heard them once a week. 

this is a really awful recording, but hopefully it gives you a taste of some Ugandan music. Webale Jesu means "Thank you Jesus". This group is practicing for Saturday's wedding.