Uganda 2018: Reunited! (and Getting to Work)
Hello City Church family.
I am writing to you all today to let you know that the Uganda team is safely here in Uganda. Sorry for the late notice of our arrival. The schedule has been a bit hectic and we’ve hit a few speed bumps that have prevented access for sending this update. But we are here and since we landed on Sunday afternoon (Uganda time), our experiences have been great.
First off, Jenna is doing very well. As we finally got all our bags through customs at the Entebbe airport, we noticed a woman with a big smile waiting on the other side of the window. It was such a joy to finally see her.
Our first night we stayed in the capital Kampala before making our five-hour journey to her village in Fort Portal on Monday. Even though all of us on the team have traveled many places, it was an amazing feeling that first night to know that we were all here, together in Africa.
Upon arriving in Fort Portal Monday morning, we were introduced to some of the women that Jenna works with as well as the people she knows throughout the village. It didn’t take long to notice that she is enjoyed by the people here and has built many healthy relationships. Whoever she greets, they respond with a big smile once knowing it’s her.
Yesterday (Tuesday) we began our talks with the people of the village, which is called Bosoro. Dorsey and Katie spent the day at the shop where Jenna works to meet her coworkers, have a Bible study and share testimonies, as well as learn the sowing and artisanal skills they use each day. Jamie and I spent our day at the primary school of the village sharing our testimonies with the teachers, playing a game of soccer with the students and sitting on an English exam. Yes, we even have homework to do.
After just one day here in the Bosoro village, it’s been amazing for us to see the joy that these people have and their love for the Lord. It was expected that there may have been some shyness towards our talks and testimonies, but we’ve experienced the opposite. The women at Jenna’s shop were very much engaged with Dorsey and Katie during their Bible study. Then the teachers at the school provided great responses to Jamie and my testimonies, saying that they were a great encouragement to things they are experiencing in their lives. God truly has a place here and is doing wonderful things in these people’s lives through people such as Jenna.
Today we will be spending another day here in the village to engage in more talks with new people as well as those who we spent time with yesterday. Dorsey and Katie will return to the workshop for more work with the women and to share a new talk on what it means to be a Christian. Jamie and I will be at one of the local churches helping slash the high grass in their fields (their version of grass-cutting).
We want to thank all of you back home for your prayers during this trip. We’ve seen how God is truly with us through times when satan has given us unexpected occurrences to try and get in our heads. We’ve lost water and electricity, but they both have been turned back on. We’ve lost keys to one of the houses, but they were returned to us. We even grabbed the wrong bag at the airport but we got in touch with the person who has our bag and we’ll be making the swap later today. We are working through Psalm 120-134 for our daily devotion and just as Psalm 121:7-8 states:
The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
All of us would like to ask that you keep praying for our team and more successful more experiences with the people here in Fort Portal. Please continue to pray for Jenna as well. She is doing such great work for the Lord here, but there are many things she is still learning and adjusting to. Again, thank you for the support and Happy 4th of July to you all!
With Much Love and Thankfulness,
Jake Evans