From Juliet

This comes from our missionary we partnered with in Uganda please take the time to read

19 July 2012

Greetings in the name of our Lord! 

I had wanted to write a blog for the mission team but was having trouble with the internet.  As is turns out, it was a problem with the network or the server and not my internet stick.

It has truly been a blessing having the youth group from Lizella Baptist Church here in Uganda.  They have been a great blessing to many around them and to me.  The songs they taught still echo in my heart in particular the song for Romans 16:19.  Thank you so much for your open hearts to come and minister in Uganda.  I look forward to you coming again.  I will even arrange for you to minister at some orphanages.

It was wonderful getting to know the girls Ashli, Stephanie, Morgan and Faith whom are sweet wonderful young ladies with tender hearts for Christ.  I know that God is going to use them in many mighty ways.  He has given them a special heart for children. 

Tylor was awesome!  Such a gentle hearted young man, eager to serve and humble in so many ways.  He kept telling me “Mama J, you don’t know me” and I would say, “Yes I do, you shine right through”.  Tylor led a child to Christ for the first time while at Mpigi.  He was so humbled that he lay on the ground to thank and praise God.

Bart is a sweet and gentle man.  It was a blessing getting to know him.  He has such an open generous and grateful heart.  The love of God shines right through him.  He may not say much but when he does he ministers directly from the throne room of God.

Will was also awesome.  He ministered messages that we all needed to hear.  A humble man with wisdom and understanding.  A wonderful leader.

The Seeds of Hope children send love and their greetings.  They thank you again and again for all you have done for them.  They said they will never forget those two days they spent with you.  NEVER!

Update: Esther Naizuli the one who came down with malaria is doing better but has not yet fully recovered.  She has not returned to class yet but is expected to on Friday.

Thank you again for coming.  May God richly bless you.

Love in Christ,

Juliet Ofwono-Miles

Seeds of Hope International 

Last but not least please come to Lizella Baptist Sunday night at 6:30 to come and hear the team share their thoughts and feelings about Uganda. 
 

Take me home tonight... or back to Uganda!

Ashli- So I guess this is more of a reflection of the week and what happened on Sunday. Sunday we woke up and went to church at Pastor Paul. Pastor Paul is one of the sweetest men I have ever met, and is truly a man of God. Stephanie and I led a small children's worship outside. We taught them the lesson of Daniel and the Lion's den. We sang songs and colored pictures. After church we had an authentic African meal that is served to privileged guests. It was very yummy and filled us up!! After lunch we returned to the Mission House to play with the kids and pack. After we had some play time we went to the city of Kampala to the Ndere Center to watch African tribes preform the ritual dances. It was very neat to watch all of the different tribes and how they all work. After leaving the Ndere Center we we said our good byes to the sweet Seeds of Hope children. We all hugged and cried, but are looking forward to see them again next year. I have enjoyed my mission to Uganda so much. I cannot believe the things I have seen and experienced from seeing Monkeys in my front yard to feeding a starving child. From learning how to play soccer to holding sweet children. From praying for healing for a sick child to watching a child eat a marshmallow for the first time. I am so grateful that God has given me this opportunity and I cannot wait to sit down and share it with you. I am so richly blessed.
Love,
Ashli 

Stephanie- So we leave Uganda with full and sad hearts. I absolutely love the people of Uganda. I have never met kinder more caring people in my life. These people are so giving and loving. Spending quality time with the Seeds of Hope children touched my heart. Getting to know these kids are times that I'll cherish for the rest of my life. I was like a giddy little girl getting ready to go back to Pastor Paul church to see my Ugandan church family. I was able to spend more time with my sweet children one last time and hug and kiss their faces before we head back to the States. I have absolutely enjoyed every last minute of this trip and it really is going to be "hard to drag me away from it". God has taught me so much through this trip, His love and understanding has no limit. I am looking forward to coming back next year. Thanks for continually praying for each and every one of us. We love you all and can't wait to tell you all that God has shown us. 

Faith- I just wanted to share with each of you what I wrote in my journal the last day in Uganda so here we go, "As I sit I write with a breaking heart! I can't believe the time has come to leave this beautiful place!! Peru was great, God blessed me in Honduras, but Africa- AFRICA it satisfied my soul! There are so many things that I will miss; breathing in dust as we bump down the dry roads, red stained feet, having to shower off chacos every night, fresh sweet fruit, warm welcomes, overwhelming love, but most of all the smiling faces of the African children and the overwhelming Spirit of our risen Lord.  I can't believe this time has come but I am so glad the Lord brought me here to teach me how to serve Him better while ministering to the kids back home!!" That is just a small glimpse of my heart and the greatness of Africa.  And yes, there is talk of going back (SWEEET)

Morgan- Africa. Kids overwhelmed with joy to see white people, red dirt roads with bumps everywhere you turn, and lizards in your house everywhere you look. Africa brought sparks to my heart and to my soul. i cant believe we have to leave these wonderful people who we became so close with in one short week. i love them like i have known them all my life. The joy you get of holding those   children in your arms is wonderful. i have fallen in love with Uganda. i KNOW that next year i am going back  to love on those kids! God is our Maker and he wants all of his children to know that he loves them! The extravagant love of Our God is breathtaking. Seeing the African sun set over the horizon each day reminds me of how beautiful and how gracious He is. I cant wait to return to this sweet land of paradise to love and to show Gods love to every person i see.  

Bart - Homeward Bound...It has been an awesome week and I am overwhelmed with the blessings I have received this week. ALL of the people we have had the pleasure to meet have treated us so kindly. I look forward to returning to this great country and seeing my friends again and meeting even more new ones. We have new brothers and sisters in Christ but there is still much work to be done. I look forward to returning to love on more kids and share the love of Christ with many more people. Will you join me? 

Tyler- I had a great time. This team was amazing during the trip and it was great getting to serve with them.The people of Uganda have showed me how to have Humility and Love towards everyone. Even though this trip was draining and at times tough I am coming back next year. Please pray for Pastor Paul and his church in Uganda and all the children who need help. One of my favorite things to do was to pray with the people at the all the churches we went to.. They have worries that I can't imagine and their faith was amazing to see. I made some amazing friends and I learned a lot from my brothers and sisters in Uganda. Please keep Seeds of Hope kids in your prayers and their leader Juliet.

Will- Right now I'm not really in the proper frame of mind to adequately share about our trip--tired, a little sick, and brain dead. But our team did so great! No complaints, no bad attitudes, amazing flexibility, ready to love everyone, seriously the best team ever! I am humbled to be a part of this team and thankful for each of them! Peace and Blessings!

But I don't wanna say goodbye

Ashli- Sorry about not blogging yesterday. We had some issues with our internet connection, but not to worry we are back at it. So now I have to comment on what has happened for 2 days, it will probably be alot. On Saturday we began our day with the Seeds of Hope Children. They oldest ones were picked up from their school and brought to our Mission House where we are staying. There are 10 of them, 7 girls and 3 boys. They children are very sweet and just want our love, which we have freely given. We took them to lunch at a chicken restaurant. After visiting a school, the school we went to was on Lake Victoria. The school was probably the poorest school we had been to. The school was made up of children ages from 4-10. They loved signing with us and we made trail mix packages for them to eat while we read them the bible story. They also colored pictures and we sang songs with them. We also gave them soccer balls and ping pong balls to play with. They squealed with delight when we showed them what we were given them to play with. Our driver who has been very awesome all week, had been on my heart. I wasn't sure if he was saved or not and I was praying for the appropriate time to ask him. God finally created that time. Juliet and I were going to exchange money and get gas for our other van, he rode with us in the back. Juliet asked him if he was saved or not and he said no, I knew that was my chance. I asked him if he wanted to be and he said yes, but he would pray when we got back to the church. I told him no we can do it write here. So in the back of a small van on a small Uganda rode our sweet sweet driver accepted Jesus into his heart. We are all so happy for him and he is part of our team. He has a wife and a 2 year old daughter at home. Make sure you pray for them and him as he starts his new journey in Christ. Yesterday at church was a very emotional day, it was our last time with the people at Pastor Paul's church. They were so sweet and we were sad to say goodbye. We had a great time at tea at Pastor Paul's house. We had children and adults join us. Now when I say tea that doesn't mean just a cup of tea and sugar, this includes tea, pineapple, potatoes, rice, bread, and lots of other fruit. They would fill our plates with food and our cups with tea. So if anyone was worried about us losing weight that has not been an issue at all!! We began to eat and then the children joined us in eating also. Pastor Paul asked that Americans would sit with Ugandans and that Ugandans would sit with Americans. I chose to sit with a group of children. The little boy who sat beside me, had potatoes and cucumbers. I watched him quickly eat the food and then his sister shared her tea with him, which he also quickly drank. I was getting rather full and decided to share my meal with him and once again he quickly ate and drink. My heart was broken, and the tears flowed. I just can't find the right words to use to describe these moments, other then you need to experience. It will be an experience that changes your life forever. After we had tea at Pastor Paul's we returned to the Mission House for a slumber party with the Seeds of Hope children. We all had so much fun, staying up late, eating popcorn, painting nails (just the girls) braiding my hair and taking pictures. These children are so sweet and loving. I will blog more tonight after we get back from spending more time with the children and right about today. I'm not sure if we will be able to update in London or not. We will see you all on Tuesday! This is a sad time. So please pray for our good byes.

We would also like to share with you some questions from Uganda
1. When do you harvest your ants? 

2. Why are people so big in America?

3. How much does it cost to propose in America? 

4. IT'S FREE?! 

5. How many tribes are in America?

6. How many seasons are there in America?
7. What is your favorite grasshopper to eat? 

8. How many children do Americans have? 

9. What is "ya'll"?

10. Have you seen Maria(Sound of Music)?

Brotha Balalalala or Bat

Ashli- So we will let you try and figure out who the title of our blog is about! I love the way the Ugandan's pronounce our names, Faith's name is probably their favorite then Morgans. Faith is a common name in Uganda also. We had a blast today with no car troubles!! Yay!! We went back to Mpigi to visit another school with about 450 children. When we arrived they had a poster for us with our names on it, here is the picture of it. Not to worry Stephanie wasn't a boy for long she got ordained in a couple of hours and was then named Pastor Stephanie! Here we played games and had a bible study and crafts. I was able to play football (soccer) with the boys. They have taught me a lot about soccer, and I have really enjoyed it! We also had a conference at a church today, it was very welcoming here we served food again, and had tea at the owner of the school's house. We got to try sugar cane and a fruit called Jack fruit. At the church Mr. Bart and Stephanie both shared their testimonies, we sang songs and made crosses for them. With our supplies that have been donated like the soap, toothpaste, and tooth brushes we gave away in a small village we also shared the gospel and several excepted Christ into their hearts. I am so grateful for the chance to come here and share the love of Jesus with others. Please pray for the ending of our trip as its coming faster than we like. Pray that we finish out strong. Pray that we keep the fire that we have for the Ugandans in America for the American children. We love you!  Below is a little boy we say eating a boiled egg and drinking porridge. 

Morgan: Today as we arrived at the school the kids were jumping up and down with huge smiles on their faces!!! what JOY!!! After having tea and a special lunch at the church we stop to buy some potatoes and we decided to pass out the soap, toothbrushes, and school supplies. a little girl came up and as i put her on a new pair of shoes you could see she had worms in her stomach. its sad, but then again it reminds me with what i'm supposed to do with the rest of my life. SERVE MY GOD WITH ALL THAT I AM! Today i told the bibles stories for a group of children with Will. We told Noah's ark, creation, and the fall of man. The kids love to be interactive with us!!! As we left the school the kids just ran and ran to try and catch up with us. all i can say is that i have fallen in love with Uganda and its people. Gods doing great things over here. I cant wait to share with everyone when we return!! Yall probably remember Ivan, the little boy at our mission house? He finally left with his new daddy to go home to America. Please pray for a safe journey home and that he adjust well to his new family. :) 

Faith- I just wanted to share a little piece of God's heart and how He chose to bless me today :) I still can't believe that He chooses to use me. Tonight, at the church we prayed over everyone that came forward and asked.  I prayed for many things such as wisdom, school fees, health, to pass and exams, etc... but then this young girl came up and I needed a translator.  When the translator asked her what she needed prayer for she said that she wanted to be born again, as soon as those words came out of the translators mouth I had to do a double take.  I asked, "you mean she wants to be saved???" the translator told me yes she wants to be born again.  So of course I was filled with excitement, joy, and i was a little nervous.  But of course God knew what He was doing and all went well :) I gained a new sister tonight and it was beautiful!! It was bittersweet letting Ivan go tonight but we are so excited he gets to see his mommy and brother and sisters.  As the trip winds down we are all getting a little sad and of course already planning for Uganda next year :) Thank you for the prayers, support, and love each of you is appreciated!! I love you :)

Will- When preparing for this mission I had everyone prepare their personal testimonies, a short message, and a team devotion. We don't plan who will share beforehand; I just go with what The Spirit is telling me. This afternoon at the church He promoted me to have Bart and Stephanie share their testimonies--obviously that was the right choice! Knocked it out of the park! The Spirit was powerful today. We also stopped at a small, roadside stand so Pastor Paul could buy Irish potatoes on our way back to the mission house. While there we handed out toothbrushes, soap, small toys, shoes, and school supplies. All the students jumped right to it and showed such love and passion! I stood in the background enjoying their service in the joy of the Lord. It is wonderful watching God move through His children. I would also like to give a shout out to Tia Young. She packed a different encouraging gift for each day of our trip--fishing poles, flashlights, pillows, sponges. Way to go, Tia! I asked for the opportunity to share with just the adults during our time here, and tomorrow from 4-6pm that's what I'll be doing--please pray for me. God has a special message for them. He keeps impressing them upon my heart--seriously.

Balalalala - I never knew how happy three strings of yarn and two popsicle sticks could make a child. But then again, I never knew how happy three strings of yarn and two popsicle sticks could make a grown man. I sat with child after child making a craft with these items and just loving on them. Then when we were done, they gave us gifts!! These are sweet, sweet children who simply want to be loved. It is a blessing to be able to share just a little love with them. My heart is full of joy over what we have experienced and heavy there is so little time left in the week. There is so much to be done here. Thanks for your prayers!

Stephanie- Today was so abundantly rewarding. My emotions finally caught up with today while we were leaving the Source of Hope Primary School. There were 450 eager children waiting for us to arrive. I've never felt so welcomed and appreciated in my life. We were greeted with warm sweet smiles from all 450 children. They performed little skits and songs for us, which were absolutely precious. I was so overwhelmed with how much I was already in love with each and every child there. I helped with craft time and seeing there faces light up with even a simple compliment warmed my heart to the core. When it was time to leave to go to a children's conference, the goodbyes were really hard. Touching and kissing their sweet faces and telling them how much I love them crushed my heart to have to tell them goodbye. It reminded my of how much Jesus cherishes me. He absolutely loves to hold me in His arms and confirm over and over again how precious and loved I am to Him. As we were leaving, I was saying goodbye to a little girl and she handed me a little purse. She had kept little trinkets in the purse and I told her how pretty it was. When we were leaving she told me she wanted me to have it to remember her. I have never met so many people who are so willing to give when they have so little. These children have touched my heart in so many ways. I love them so much and this country. Thank you for continually praying for all of us!

Tyler-Today I got to pray with two kids to receive CHRIST!!! It was an amazing experience and I was blessed to do it. Another blessing that happened today was that Ivan got to head home to America with his adoptive family. I'm sad to see him go but so happy he will be safe. I still can not get over how kind the people are in Uganda. They really know how to pour out blessings on you and make a stranger feel welcome. Just pray for the people of Uganda and Gabe and Ivan Jensen and pray that our ministries tomorrow go great.  

Muzungu - White People!!!!

Ashli- So today we went into Mpigi (M-pee-gee) but first I will talk about our car Satan attacks then I will tell you what went on in Mpigi. We had lots and lots of car troubles on the way in and out. We broke down twice on the way due to our car over heating. After getting another van to ride in on the way home, we discovered that we did not have the correct battery and had to push the car down the hill to get it going. Next we got a flat tire and our driver (who is awesome!!) put on the spare at a gas station that we were not too far from. The last car attack we had was a fender bender with someone trying to pull out. I felt so bad for our driver that he had to go through these attacks with us. Satan just will not stop!!! PRAY PEOPLE PRAY!! Now for today and how awesome it was!!! I see these car attacks as blessings. We were able to witness to a Muslim family, we gave them underwear, tooth brushes, toothpaste, dolls, and soap. We were able to say the name of Jesus and pray over the family. We got to stop at the Equator today, just as a side note, it was cool. The End. Back to the awesomeness. We went into Mpigi, and went to a small school, this school was one room with 25 kids. The school was made of mud and bricks. I want you to think of Africa. What do you think of? Huts with thatch roofs? Starving children? Children with no clothes? Well that, that is what we experienced today. I'm sorry if my post is not making much sense, I just have so much to share tonight, so forgive me if I confuse you or jump around too much. These children welcomed us with songs as we entered the school. Then we did tie-dye bandannas with them and  taught them duck duck goose and red light, green light (which they loved). Some smaller children were scared of us and cried haha! We sang songs, all of them seem to love Pharaoh Pharaoh, it's a crowd favorite. After we spent time at the school we walked down to the church that's a part of the school.  Here we sang songs with the adults and children that were there. Most of the people spoke Luganda, which is one of the languages spoken here, and a lot did not understand our English so we had to translate quite a bit. We also shared the gospel with everyone and the had a time to pray over them for anything they might need. After that we served them lunch of rice and a bean mix. We then where going to lunch, but some boys caught my attention I asked our pastor, that is serving with us, to ask them if they had eaten and they had not. These boys had no shirts or shoes. Their bellies were big and arms and legs tiny. I wanted to feed them the whole pot of rice we had. I cannot begin to tell you they way my heart felt, sad, blessed, frustrated. We fed them as much rice as they would take, I watched their eyes they just seemed to be thankful for what they had been given as they chewed their rice and they also seemed unsure of what else to do other than just eat. I just hope I am able to make you understand how grateful I am if I could shout it to you I would. Not to yell at you because I'm angry but because I want you to understand THE CHILDREN OF AFRICA NEED GOD!! THEY NEED FOOD!! THEY NEED WATER!!! AND THANK YOU. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT SO THAT I AM CAN BE HERE AND HELP GIVE THEM WHAT THEY NEED!!! Also praise God from whom all blessings flow for Coke!!! Finally had one today!! Love all of you!!-Ashli! 

Will- Today I want to share the openness of the Ugandan Christians. I offered to pray for anyone who needed it at the church yesterday while teaching and afterward many came to me with very specific prayer requests. I prayed for school fees, health, children, ministries, anything! Why don't we do this in America? Why don't I as a minister offer to pray for people more? Their faith is much stronger, AND much simpler, than ours. I thank God for the messages He is speaking into my spirit for certain ones I have prayed for. One example is Moses. He is deaf. We prayed for God to heal his ears last night. God did not heal Moses' ears but He did speak a special message into my spirit for Moses, just for Moses; and it was clear as day. Even though I couldn't tell him with my mouth, God let me use my arms and hands. I also asked God why He didn't heal Moses, and God answered me: "I am with Moses, love him dearly, and am glorifying myself through his deafness." And you know what, that is very true! God has given me these special messages for others also, including each person on our team. God also blessed me with an encouraging message for Irene, one of the young ladies helping us at Pastor Paul's church. My prayer entering this mission was for God to grow my faith. He has begun that process. All I do is ask for insight and wisdom, and He gives it. I/We are so arrogant in the West. I am so thankful for these humble people I can learn from, but also amazed at how much God is using us to bless these wonderful people! And who would have thought that Pharaoh Pharaoh would steal the show everywhere!? The 80's are back baby!

Faith- I have so much to tell you but I just can't seem to find words for all of it.  As you saw earlier Satan decided now was the time to attack but I have good news...by the power of God's risen son, our Savior, SATAN HAS NO POWER!!! God speaks into me everyday a spirit of truth, peace, and love and that Satan CAN NOT take away!! I am so humbled, not by the poverty but by the lives of the Uganda people.  They are so welcoming, I mentioned today that I feel as if they have ministered to us way more than we have ministered to them.  They have encouraged me in so many ways, I wish my heart desired the things that theirs do, I wish I treated guests and new people I meet the way that they do.  Today, we were served a special meal and tea just because they viewed us so highly.  When we strolled up to a strangers hut after we broke down they laid out mats for us to sit on, remember all they knew was that we were strange white people.  I pray that God will bless me with that welcoming spirit.  Next, when you think of Africa what do you think?? Dirt roads, small thatched roof mud huts, green big-leafed trees scattered, half naked children?? Well...you nailed it, that is the village we rode to today but what a blessing it was!! As the children received things that they may have never seen their grateful hearts shattered my prideful, jealous, spoiled heart.I will end by saying that God absolutely works all things to good for those that he called according to His purpose, He is using these sweet sweet people to change my life.  I pray that when I get home my heart will permanently be changed and I can love on the kids at camp the way I love these African children.

Morgan- Africa is not like America, at all. I want yall to think about that. Today I saw kids completely naked.   But yet they still are the happiest kids when they are playing with their toys made from anything they can find. The kids just want to see smiles. They want our arms to embrace them. They want love. When I was preparing to go on this mission trip I thought to myself that i was going to have to have all this "stuff" memorized to bless these people. But you know what? That's not true at all. Love comes naturally to me and the rest of the team. During church the kids are basically pulling my bracelets that are just made of string off my arms. Each day we are treated as royalty. Nice tea and special meals, and as we are given these meals you can look out the door and see starving children looking at you. It's heartbreaking. Today as we finished serving food to the church, 3 boys came up who had not eaten and you could see that their stomachs were bloated and sticking out from not eating. Stephanie, Ashli, and I broke off pieces of rice and fed them. They had rice all over their faces, from mouth to ears!!! Please keep Africa and its people in your prayers they need it. They need to be reached with Gods love, mercy, and grace. This trip has moved me with compassion for the people of this world. 

Tyler-Today we experienced the real true Africa that most Americans hear about. Naked kids, huts, and long dirt roads filled our day. We also had a very interesting car ride (2 hours) to Mpigi. We stopped at the equator and that was an experience, especially using the bathroom there. I really love this team and this country. We are crazy, wacky, and hilarious. This country is full of love and humility and that's something I need to bring home to the states. One of today's most amazing adventures was meeting a family after our car broke down. It wasn't a coincidence that this happened  but it was truly GOD!!!I hope I remember all that I'm learning here and I pray I bring it home.

Pastor Willie(This is what everyone in Uganda calls Will) Bring Us Knowledge..

Ashli- Today. Was. AWWWWEEEEESSSOOOOMMEEEEEEEEE!!!!! That's probably the best word I can use to describe today, but it still doesn't come close. For the start of our day we went to a school that had high school age children. I taught them ultimate Frisbee, this was the first time I was actually athletic and I was able to win, but only because they had never seen the game. Not to worry though they loved it and we left Frisbee's for them to play with. For the afternoon we held our last conference at the church in Garuga. We were able to serve the children lunch again and worship with them. I enjoyed serving them so much. We then had a service of songs and bible stories, but my favorite part of this conference was when we were able to pray for the people. We had them line up and we walked down and prayed for each and everyone for their specific needs. I am so grateful that God allowed me to be apart of this experience and blessed me in a very personal way. I am so grateful that I am here in Africa, in Uganda and with children that allow me just to hold them and love on them. Thank you for the support and prayers that you have given that have allowed me to come here. I love you all very much. Tomorrow we are going to Mpigi; this town is about 2 hours away, pray for the children's hearts we will encounter. Pray for our family that is here adopting that they will be able to get home soon!! They are waiting to buy a plane ticket! Please pray for safe travels and for great rest and a lot of energy. Thank you for all you do. 
Will - So I am super proud of our team! There has been no complaining, the ultimate amount of flexibility, and everyone has been serving with energy and humility. This is not a mission trip hype or emotional high either. God is working deeply within each of us, answering prayers and growing faith permanently. Thank you for your prayers!
Bart - I have been overwhelmed by the love these folks have for Jesus. They are not concerned with appearances, not concerned with time, not concerned with anything but worshiping our God. Many friends have been made. The children continue to amaze me. I am so blessed to be able to love on them. And yes, I want to bring them home.Thanks for the prayers. Please continue praying as we head toward the end of the week. 
Tyler - This trip has been truly amazing!!! Today alone I played football (soccer), danced an African Tribal Dance (not very well), and prayed for about 20 people. The people in Uganda are so humble and so kind. They have so little but they will give it all to JESUS in a heartbeat. The team has gotten very close to Ivan and his adoptive Dad, Gabe. It is so amazing to see GOD provide for his people and to see the HOLY SPIRIT move at Pastor Paul's Church. That's all I have right now cya!!!
MORGAN- there are so many words that could have described today. Breathtaking, amazing, but most of all a blessing. As different people sang on stage i held a sleeping 5 year old in my arms as she sucked her thumb. It was wonderful. We also danced with the people of the church. Well at least tried to dance. (: i cant not wait to see what else god has in store for the rest of the trip. Tomorrow we go to another school so continue to pray that hearts will be reached. thanks for everything back home, i love yall dearly. 

Stephanie- This trip has blown every expectation I had out of the water. God was really moving tonight at Pastor Paul's church. It still blows my mind at how appreciative these people are. They truly are joyful in the Lord and so super excited that we came to visit them. Serving these people is one of the biggest blessings I've ever had the pleasure of doing. It's so humbling that these people have no money, but yet they have taken the time to make us gifts of gratitude such as dolls, bracelets, and necklaces. I love these people and I love Uganda! Thanks for all of your prayers! I appreciate them more than you know! Love ya'll!

Mosquito Nets Are Great, but Tanglely

Ashli- So today has just been overwhelming... not in a bad way at all, but just overwhelming. Overwhelming in the sense that I'm in Africa, in Uganda,with small dirt "roads", with children that do not get but one meal a day, with children that wear clothes with holes and broken shoes, with children who are grateful for just a simple high five,with children that barley have food to eat but have such a servants heart they want to serve me with a meal, with children that think a piece of yarn is the best gift they have been given, children that cry for sponsors, but there's nothing you can do but pray for their needs. So those are the things that have overwhelmed this small heart that has so much love and wants to do everything but can't. I love this country so much and I know some of yall think "Oh this "high" will be gone once she returns", but it's not just a high this is something I live for. To share the love of God that he has given me that I do NOT deserve by no means and I want to share it, I want people to know this ever lasting love that so unconditional we cannot even comprehend. That is what I'm here for, and that is what overwhelms this heart. 

Faith- Above you see a picture of us serving lunch to the kids attending the children's conference.  It was such a blessing to see the manners that these kids displayed.  They would bow and thank us, it was beautiful and touched each of our hearts.  I just wanted to share a little something that God revealed to me: So, we met a man last night, Gabe, and his new son Ivin.  Gabe has been here for 3 weeks waiting on Ivin to get his passport so that he can take him back home to New Mexico because they just adopted Ivin.  Not only did this remind me how passionate I am about adoption but also God reminded me that when we are saved He adopts us into His family.  God desires for every child to have a family but also He desires to adopt each of us into His family.  He loves us so very much, He loves each of these children in Uganda so much and it touches my heart!! Tonight, as I sat with a sleeping Ugandan in my lap God spoke to me.  Just as I desired to hold that child forever and take him home, in that same way God desires to hold us when we are tired or need comfort.  WOW, what wonderful news.  Children in Africa are pushed to the side or they are treated badly because their parents are angry at the situation they are living in so even though these children may have heard the name of God, they probably have never seen His love, that is what we are trying to do.  Thank you for all your support, I love all of yall!! 

Morgan- Well today we started out by going to a school with about 250 kids. I cant even describe how excited those kids were to see us. Its kinda crazy how every little thing over here, whether we think it significant or not, matters to them. The kids are so loving to each and everyone of us and every time we start to leave they cling to us like crazy. This mission trip has already been a blessing to me in so many ways. God has provided in so many ways imaginable! Acts 20:24 says, "I don't care about my own life. The only thing that matters is that i finish the work God gave me; to share the Good News of Gods grace." I love this verse because it makes everything seem so real. As I see these childrens' face all i can think about is loving them. These kids are so special to me. God is so good!!!! We have to keep telling the children that God can only satisfy their needs not people. We tell them there is hope. Thank you for all the prayers back home. Honestly, i could stay here forever. Love yall!

Sweet Thoughts and Sounds

Ashli- So right this very moment I'm listening to a sweet baby Uganda boy seeing songs to us. He is being adopted by an American family from New Mexico and he is visiting us in the Mission House. I just can't believe that I am here right now in Uganda. I have been overwhelmed since I've been here. The children here  are so sweet and loving. Tonight we went to a church and gave a preview of what we are going to be doing all week with the children in the cities of Uganda. We sang songs with them, Faith shared her testimony, and acted out the story of the wise and foolish men and played a small game of Simon Says(Ashli Says). They also shared songs with us, which I will post on here. Many headmasters of the schools are also pastors and they shared short messages with us. It was all so overwhelming sitting there with Ugandans and worshiping. One woman even let me hold her baby this evening, if you know anything about me then you know I was in pure Heaven. I really do love this place. I'm so glad God has given me this opportunity to be in the wonderful Country. Please continue to pray for us during this week for lots of rest and energy. Also pray that we have many opportunity to share Jesus with others. We love all of you very much!

Stephanie- We almost got run over by the presidential motorcade while on our way into Mission House. I also almost lost my passport at the airport and my finger prints almost did not registrar into the data base, but not to worry I am here safe and sound :)

Will- So all of us had a hard time holding it together at the church tonight. I was personally overcome with gratitude to God for giving us this opportunity to worship with our Ugandan brothers and sisters in Christ. We go to foreign countries ready to teach and give, but tonight I was intimately hit with this fact: the Ugandans know far more about worship than I do. Seriously, they love loving on and receiving love from our God. I pray for God to teach us all humility, real humility--not just words that make us sound "holy".

Tyler- I had a great game of passport stealing on the plane into Uganda. I almost became British! Hip Hip, Cheerio!

African Showers external warfare

Ashli again!! So today is our first day in Uganda!! Yesterday we spent all day in the London airport and played games sorry for not updating but we did not have Internet access but as you can see we have arrived safely in both places. So your probably wondering what is up with our title? Well we have already encountered several external warfare likehaving to take extra bags and not having to pay for them or not being able to communicate with Juliet yesterday once we arrived. You know what? God already had that covered! As we walked up stairs to get some lunch there she was coming out of security. Then today we planed on getting a shower after we arrived, but we ran out of water and the water truck wasn't coming for 2 hours. So we did it African style!! Big water basins and pouring water over us and very cold water. The point of this blog isn't to complain or make you feel sorry for us but to show you how God is already providing!! We are so happy to be here and meeting everyone! I will update later on tonight after we have had our first ministry. Keep on praying for us we need it!! We are all pretty tired, so pray for energy and rest. That we will not be nervous tonight as we share and minister and wisdom as we speak. Pray that God uses us as his vessels and not to be prideful and get in his way. We love all of you so very much and thank you for your support.

Love the Uganda Team

Reality is So Real Sometimes

What up homo sapiens?!
 It's Ashli again we only have one more week!!! This reality is bringing so many emotions along with it, such as, excitement, nervousness, and if I'm being honest even a little fear. I want to start out asking for lots and lots of prayer I was talking with Faith about our trip and how her week was going we both discovered that Satan is already trying to attack us with a great force, but we already know who has succeeded for us on our behalf and with that we are holding on strong. Pray that the use of our time this week and that we are good stewards of our time. That we get our testimonies written out and that they will be used for God's purpose. Pray that we do not get frustrated with the packing process or stressed with our families.Pray that we will remember that Uganda is not our only mission field and to be prepared while we are still in the US and in London. Pray that we will be alert of the attacks that the Devil may throw our way and that we will be ready to fight back, and finally pray for our emotions before we go on this trip and while we are there and that we will remember that God has control and has predetermined everything so we do not need to fear anything!!! Now here is a detailed out line of our flight times and what you can be praying for while we are in Uganda.

London is 5 hours ahead and Uganda is 7 hours ahead of the US 

Saturday July 7th depart ATL @ 9:20PM
Sunday July 8th arrive in London @10:25AM (5:25 AM GA time)
Sunday July 8th depart London @ 9:15AM (4:15 PM GA time)
Monday July 9th arrive in Entebbe, Uganda @ 7:45 AM (12:45 AM GA time)

Then when we come back our flight times will be 

Monday July 16th depart Entebbe, Uganda @ 9:10 AM (2:10 AM GA time)
Monday July 16th arrive in London @ 3:55 PM (10:55 AM GA time)
Tuesday depart London @ 3:05 PM (10:05 AM GA time)
Tuesday arrive in ATL @ 7:10 PM GA time

Things you can pray for while we are there in Uganda 
During the mornings we will be ministering in local schools with music, testimonies, games, stories, discipleship, etc. During most afternoons/evenings we will be leading youth conferences in local churches and communities. Pray that God will use this time for his glory and that everyone will be safe. Pray for the hearts that we will be reaching and pray for our hearts to be touched and God will show us some amazing things through the people of Uganda.
Pray for our health, our engergy levels, for us to have great attitudes! Spiritual Warfare, in that we are able to have Victory through Jesus. Pray for lots of opportunities to share the gospel where ever we are!

Now we have some smiling faces to put with the names I gave you last time!!
In the back, starting on the left we have Morgan, Tyler, Bart and Ashli then in front starting on the left again we have Stephanie, Faith and Will.

We are all so very excited and so thankful for your support and prayers for this Mission Trip! Stay tuned for more updates!! 

Love,

The Uganda Team  

Mission to Uganda? We Accept!!

Hi everyone Ashli here!

Well we are 2 weeks out from leaving the US to head to the great country of Uganda. I am just one of 7 people that will be going on this awesome trip. We will be updating our blog as we prepare to leave and we will do our best to update while we are in Uganda. I want to start out by saying that God has been involved with this Mission Trip since day one, and we can definitely see him all over this Mission that He has granted us to go on. I also want to say THANK YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH! Thank you for your prayers that you have been praying and will continue to be praying for our team and the people of Uganda that we will be in contact with. Thank you for your support that you have also given, we all appreciate it so much!! Now as for our team, there are seven of us total. Will Turner, Bart Marsh, Ashli Banks, Stephanie Meeks, Tyler Logue, Faith Young, and Morgan Marsh.. Our Missionary that we are partnering with is Juliet Ofwono and Seeds of HOPE International. For more information on Juliet and Seeds of HOPE you can go here http://www.sohi.org/about_us.html. We have been preparing for this trip for months, we are so excited that God has granted this wonderful opportunity to share his love with the people of Uganda. Please stay tuned for a daily prayer guide that I will post with in the next few days. We love you all and are so grateful for your prayers during this Mission Trip

Love, 

                            Team Uganda