HOME!

Landing in Entebbe (Uganda) was non-climatic as I was battling majorly with motion sickness...

SOOOO happy to be traveling with Rich! What a treat!!! He was such a help, too, when I couldn't even stand up and we had to stand in line for immigration for what it seemed like forever...

Gotta remember next time to take something for the motion sickness - especially after leaving Dubai (I also had it landing in Addis Ababa) - never had that before in all the years (Rich blamed it on age...)

Stepping off the plane I had the immediate feeling of "coming HOME" - the air that greeted us was very similar to when you step off the plane in Tahiti - a lil less humid.

It was a MOST WONDERFUL feeling!

Even the airport reminded us of Tahiti - (minus being greeted with a flower to put behind your ear and the musicians with guitars, ukuleles and beautiful singing)

One of the first thoughts that hit me: I AM WHITE!!! I know, I know I am white - whiter than many white people - but it was still funny, looking down at my legs and being struck of HOW VERY VERY WHITE I was - hehe! We sure stand out here!

I am ECSTATIC about being here! It is the strangest feeling - first time ever to set foot on East-Africa (we went to South Africa for our honeymoon) - and I feel like I am HOME!

Gotta tell you that 10 years ago (we lived in Maui for a year), when I was going through somewhat of an identity crisis, feeling that I didn't REALLY feel at home anywhere (not 100% in Tahiti, nor Germany, nor the US), God did something AMAZING in my heart.

One day, I just felt very strongly that my REAL HOME was with God in heaven! It was so real!
Since that time, I feel completely at home every single country I go to. I've got to admit that I wasn't so sure that this would be true for Africa, too (not too hard to feel at home in NZ or Fiji), but it totally is true for here, too!

We arrived late yesterday afternoon and just had a 10 min. drive to our guesthouse where we spent the night, but seeing the sights, the people, going to a store to get water - I was just LOVING every minute of it - LOVING the people I was seeing - and I haven't even seen any children, let alone orphans YET.

The night was so so - same sounds as in the islands - dogs barking, roosters, crickets, loud music...

The African people are BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are getting picked up any minute now by an African woman pastor - Pastor Lydia!
I can't imagine a better way to spend our first full day in Uganda - with a local person of maturity and integrity with a huge heart for her people, including the orphans!

It's amazing how we got in contact with her:

A week ago Sunday, as I was selling books after church (fundraiser), a man came up to me. He's a Kiwi living in China. He was in NZ for just one week - and he came up to me telling me that he'd been to Uganda and how you can't trust all the pastors, as some do their ministry just as a job.
But how there is this woman pastor that he met who was an incredible woman of God, full of the Holy Spirit, pouring out her life in church planting, for the orphans and building schools and how he would not hesitate to give her anything she'd ask for - as she has integrity and also a gift of administration.

Talking with my Pastor, he confirmed that a reference from this man would be valid - and I really felt that this was a "God-connection"!

He'd given us her phone# but when I tried calling, it said it was the wrong number.

I had really hoped that we could meet her on our first day (she lives around Entebbe) and be shown around by her but we had no way of contacting her - - - until last night, when I showed her phone# to somebody and they told me there was a number missing - long behold, we got a hold of her and she's happy to spend the day with us!

Juupppieeee Jesus!

So excited!

Rich got his back-pack full of medical supplies (just in case) and I've got a few goodies in my back-pack for kids we'll hopefully meet...

Let the fun begin!

Musings on Missions

Just a few minutes before we'll board the plane for Addis Abeba (Ethiopia) - - -

Thought I'd share some thoughts I had while in our last flight of 14 hours:

I was struck by the absolute luxury and comfort that flying internationally affords us these days as we travel the world in missions. And no- I'm not talking business or first class - just good ole regular economy.

• Individual entertainment systems with just about any option anybody could wish (still missing the live-webstream from IHOP, though...)

• The most amazing food (we're flying with Emirates) - WAY better than we eat at home!

• Non-smoking in the whole plane (I remember getting "smoked" on the flights from Europe to Tahiti)

• free internet at all the airports with instant access to facebook, blogs, emails - connecting us with friends and family all over the world in seconds.

AMAZING!!!

What a contrast to the old time missionaries that left on boats, using caskets instead of suitcases, as they knew they'd need them - rightfully so... (the Moravians)

Or the Hudson Taylor and company who took long strenuous trips on boats, not coming back home for years - with no other means of communication with people back home than very slow snail mail.

And even Rich and I ~ ~ ~ when we first got to Tahiti 21 years ago - there was no internet, no computers (at least not for us), we couldn't afford a phone and a 1-page fax cost US$30 - so, snail mail was all we had, too - homesick as we were (rather, I was) - - -
We felt very lonely and cut off - it was hard!

OK, we've got to pack up ~ just thinkin...

Missions has never been easier - LET's DO IT!!!! WE CAN finish the Great Commission in our generation - and .... how bout eradicating extreme poverty...

Gotta go.

On our way!

Amazing technology - internet at the airport! A quick sign of life for ya... 

GOD IS ~ ~ ~ can't find the words  ~ ~ ~ OUTSTANDINGLY WONDERFULLY AMAZINGLY FAITHFUL AND GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!

Rich and I are on our way to Uganda - my heart is already completely messed up and I can barely hold back all kinds of tears that are perking up.

Leaving the kids back, then flying over the stunning NZ countryside (first time ever flying within NZ - thanks to airpoints) - grateful that we get to live in this beautiful country - lots of emotions about finally going to see "our other kids"...

Bitter-sweet - and wonderful - gotta go - we're gonna meet some friends here before checking in later to fly out to Melbourne, Dubai, Ethiopia and Uganda!!!!

Between ache and adrenalin

I really SHOULD be going to bed, but the good ole' adrenalin is pumping away.

These are very exciting days for me and my heart is about to burst.
Too much to write about all the details but I am blown away by GOD!

All I can say is that HIS HEART is for the orphans, and I feel like there's a wind blowing in the sail of my deepest longings - to be a blessing to HIS "BABIES" that are suffering away unnoticed and seemingly forgotten - but NOT BY HIM!!!!

Last week, Rich and I got our last vaccinations - 4 more (total of 8 for me, Rich already had a few).

Seeing the travel doctor (who administers those vaccinations here) was a bit of a daunting experience.

Possible side-effects this - and that - gotta watch out for day-time mosquitoes cuz they cause this sickness, the night-time mozzies causing that, all these vaccines and medicines for this and that - no drinking any water except for bottled, even for tooth-brushing, no eating this, walking with closed shoes so we won't end up with jiggers in our feet etc etc - - -

I came away thinking:

As much as I don't enjoy all these precautions and meds etc, we are so very blessed to get them in the first place (and to be in a position to buy bottled water etc)

BUT - what about the people who live in the land???? Most of them don't have the luxury of any vaccines, clean water, bug repellent, mosquito nets, shoes, medication for this and that, doctors etc etc.

And it's not like they're immune to those things either ~ ~ ~ no wonder there's so much sickness ~ ~ ~ and people - especially little people - are dying away from these preventable diseases.
So unnecessary!

It's just NOT FAIR!!!!!!!!

My heart is ACHING - HURTING - for them...

Almost half of Ugandans don't have access to clean drinking water!

On the other hand I'm tickled and overjoyed for any extra dollar that comes in to help us provide clean drinking water and other blessings to the orphans.

We've already got one whole suitcase full of medical stuff that Rich has been able to secure - our bedroom is piling up with all the things we'd like to take.

But I'd better get some sleep now - there's loads and loads of stuff left to be done in the ONE WEEK...

Can't wait!

JOY!!!!

WOW!!! The last 24 hours have been AMAZING!!!
Last night at 11pm, Rich and I spent some time in contending prayer for the mountain of financial need for our Uganda-trip to be moved - soon!

I woke up this morning around 4:30am (not my usual wake-up-time).
When I get excited, I can't sleep very well. Even though I've been taking a natural sleep-help, it didn't really help (gotta go a bit stronger from now on so that I can get my sleep - hehe)

Shortly after 5am, the phone rang and a precious childhood-friend from Germany calls (she pretty much NEVER calls) and we have a wonderful catch-up for an hour - perfect timing, too! If she had called any later, we would not have been able to talk long at all. At the end of the conversation she tells me that her husband and her want to give us a large gifts towards our trip!

What an incredible way to start the day - I was SOOOOOOOOO enouraged!

Later today, we got news from some other dear friends in Germany giving us another large gift and our immediate needs for our trip are covered! WOW WOW WOW!!!

You should've seen me do the happy dance - BIG TIME - today!!!
Rich and I are so relieved for how God has come through - 11 days before our departure!!!!

Now the best was tonight at the Prayer Room where I heard that Jeremie and the team in Tahiti/Moorea are having an amazing time ministering God's love, salvation and healing to our beloved islanders!!! Seems like they received a word in prayer about a lady with a cane - they went out, found her, prayed for her and she was healed - running up and down the street...

Don't know details but it sure made me cry for joy - the kingdom of God in Tahiti - and our son a part of it! YAY GOD!!!!

testing - 1 2 3

A friend is lending us his video camera for our Uganda-trip. So I'm trying it out now. Already noticed that the lens needed cleaning (after taking this clip).

Getting excited!

Shayden LOVES to sing! His favourite at the moment is "Mary had a little lamb."
I've had to sing it to him every time he saw a lamb...
Notice the microphone!
Did I tell you that he got prophesied over that he'll be a worship leader one day?

Sitting on God's lap

I just LOVE the simple faith of children and how naturally they experience their relationship with God!
This morning, as I was driving Kylie to school, I prayed for her. One of the things I prayed was that God would give her a revelation of how much HE loves her (I pray this a lot for our children). I prayed for other things, too.

As she was getting out of the car, she just said: "I'm sitting on God's lap."
Awwww - I was sooo blessed! I don't think we've ever mentioned that image of sitting on God's lap to her. He obviously gave her that revelation right then and there. BEAUTIFUL!!!

The photo was taken at our church gala (instead of Halloween) on Saturday - with one of Nathalie and Lewis' puppies

Contrasts

I never thought that a 1-hour trip to Cambridge for a home schoolers' talent show would get me messed up to the point of crying almost through the entire morning (good thing lights were off!).

Already on the drive there I told Rich how I already see ourselves driving the roads of Uganda - looking at it's very different landscape, feeling the heat, the different feel etc.

Lately, I constantly have the beautiful black faces before me - young and older - it's as real as my present reality in NZ... my heart is already there and it is bursting with LOVE!!!
It actually feels a lot like it felt just before giving birth to my babies. You can't see them yet, but you are constantly thinking of them, imagining how they'll look like etc and longing to hold them in your arms and tangibly show them your love.

So back to this morning's talent show:
As I was watching the progression of AMAZING performances of one child/young person after the other - some solo, some in groups - I was overcome with the contrast of what I was seeing to what is happening in Africa to most children of the same ages - right now!

CHILDREN ARE any country's TREASURE!!!

The children we saw this morning were being loved WELL - it showed in the performances. Dedicated mothers (and fathers) raising their children, pouring out day after day in care, feeding them, clothing them, training them, giving them an education at home, driving them to endless music, singing, sports, ballet, hip-hop classes, giving them the opportunity to learn instruments and become skillful in many areas, spending their free time researching next year's curriculum and ever working on improving the school (and parenting) experience, guiding them to know THE ONE who loves them even more than the parents ever can...

There was such a RICHNESS and BEAUTY demonstrated!

And all the while my thoughts couldn't help but drift to Africa - and from what I've read, seen and heard from a distance, Africa's children are just as much her TREASURE!

YET - and that's why I got messed up - they are not being well loved, the way they deserve it. Most mothers don't have the luxury to feed their children 3 meals a day - plus morning and afternoon tea (snacks), nor clothe them, let alone spend their days nurturing them, training them, teaching them, giving them an education, fostering the talents that God's laid inside of them by having them take this or that lessons, sport, whatever.

From what I understand, for the majority of people in Africa, daily life is purely about SURVIVAL.

Will I be able to find SOME food for my children today?

Will they survive this sickness?

What will happen to them when I die cuz I've got AIDS?

And then there are the millions of children who don't have parents at all, roaming the streets in search for something to eat, a shelter for the night, vulnerable, lonely, with NO ONE at all to wrap their arms around them, tell them that they're precious, beautiful, loved.

SOMEHOW - SOME.HOW. there's GOT to be a way of sharing some of the richness we've got in NZ (and other Western nations) - like the one with the 2 coats giving away 1 to the one with no coat... dunno how... (and yes, I do realize that even in our nations there are children who aren't well loved)

My heart is just breaking. I have no idea what will happen when I will actually be there.
Will there be enough tears??? It's not that I want to cry - believe me.
But I've asked God to break my heart with what breaks HIS ~ ~ ~ and I think he's answering...

Inspiring!

I came across this article written by a fellow-YWAMer - just after coming back from a YWAM NZ staff gathering... and it really spoke to me...

By Tim Heathcote

In YWAM we rub shoulders with some courageous and heroic people. Earlier this year I sat alongside leaders from around the continent of Africa as they met in Bamako, Mali, for an annual time of prayer and decision-making. I heard stories of fantastic growth and beautiful fruit. It was inspiring. But I also heard of violence and enormous risk. Africa is changing fast; the world is changing.

How will I live in the face of the challenges resulting from this change?

Life is often difficult. This simple message was the theme of a time of devotion in Mali. It led to a long discussion and time of prayer – because in Africa over this last year, life has been really difficult for many of our YWAM staff. There’s been martyrdom and the death of several key leaders. Many of our workers face the risk of abduction and kidnapping; most face the daily struggle for finances. YWAM friends of ours have seen several hundred Christians murdered in recent months and scores of churches burnt in their city. Life is not getting easier. In fact it seems to be getting more difficult.

As part of that time of devotion, we heard a message originally spoken just over a year ago, by a true hero who was martyred soon afterwards. As we listened to his voice through the tinny laptop speaker, knowing how his life ended, we were shocked by the prophetic nature of his words.

He began by quoting Thomas Jefferson, who said, “only those who can see the invisible can do the impossible”. He also mentioned Moses, who “endured, seeing him who is invisible.” He then asked the simple question: “Is my life about this – He, who is invisible – or is it about what is visible? Will people write something about me one day? If so, my prayer is that they will say, ‘By faith he did this for the Lord.’ My concern is that instead they might say, ‘Because of fear he did not do this; because of complacency he did not do what he was called to do.’ Let’s live for Him who is invisible. Faith and fear cannot coexist… Let’s be strangers in this world, our citizenship is in heaven.”

Shortly after giving his message, this man was martyred in a nation far from his land of birth.

It is a sobering reality. Life is difficult and bad things happen, terrible things. So will I live for what is visible? Or will I live daily for what is invisible and eternal?

Uganda update

Taking the few quiet minutes in our household - and the little strength I've got (battling sickness again - argggh) to tell you some exciting things. In my mind, I would've already written a book here, but to actually get around writing ~ ~ ~ another story - hehe!

Last week, I woke up with a feeling of "panic" one morning (not really, but the closest word to describing it).

It hit me that we were already October and our planned trip to Uganda was "just next month"!!!!!!!

How in the world was everything going to come together - from all the arrangements for childcare etc at home - to actually having the necessary finances to jump on that plane (or let's say 8 planes total?) - to making arrangements for our 2 weeks there.

Most of the time, I've been in total faith and peace about the whole thing.

But last Friday - NOT!

On the way to the Prayer Room, I just shot a short prayer up, telling the Lord that he needed to quiet my heart, speak to me and in some way confirm that we are actually REALLY supposed to go.

The first thought that hit me as I sat down in the Prayer Room, a Scripture:

"And here they were - overwhelmed with dread - when there was nothing to dread"

BINGO!

Thank you Lord!

After THOP, I went by our church office to make arrangements for a second book sale fundraiser. While I waited to see the person I needed, I ran into a man I'd never met before.
We got talking, and - believe it or not - he was from Africa (white Zimbabwean).
Long story short, I shared about our vision to help orphans in Africa and he said he will help us get there!

I came away SOOO encouraged!!! Who knows if he actually will help us (many times people promise things and don't keep them), but it doesn't matter.

The Lord had heard my cry, quieted my soul and confirmed that YES, we ARE meant to go.
Just the faith-booster I needed!

Lord, this was YOUR idea - YOU are the father to the fatherless, defender of orphans and widows! You put this passion in my heart - and gave the word to GO there - this year!
And go we will! YOU make the way! YOU provide! I LOVE YOUUUU!!!!