Moving Pictures with Sounds! (i.e. Videos!)

There's just a way a video can convey so much more than words and photos even combined.

My friend and fellow missionary, Melody Warford of Stone Soup Media, visited the island earlier this year, spending several days at Shepherd's Heart and filming the various missionaries and projects. What she did with the information and footage is truly amazing!

The mission field requires many people of diverse skills and I feel blessed that Melody shared her gifts to help proclaim the incredible things God is doing on the islands.

The first video focuses more on what I am involved in on the island, and the second is more about the overall ministry of Shepherd's Heart, the ministry I am privileged to serve in.

Island Life, Part 3 - "Dos and Don'ts"

(This is the third in an occasional series about life on Lingira Island. For part 1, click here. For part 2, click here.)

Life on an island can be an interesting experience. But maybe you have already figured that out if you read the first two posts in this series. This post is about the "dos and don'ts" of life on Lingira.

• We do not have vehicles on the island, perhaps because there aren't roads, only paths. There is one motorcycle, which was given to the police, but they wondered what to do with it without roads to run it on. So someone is using it to ferry people and loads, for a profit, on one of the more level paths that runs between two villages. SHIM has its trusty "car," an orange wheelbarrow, which comes in very handy for transporting things around our property, or down to the school or boat. On Wednesdays, I would frequently load up the wheelbarrow with several computers, the generator, extension cord, power cord, and my teaching materials and wheel it all down to the school for classes.

 David and Andrew enjoying some time in SHIM's island "car."

• You do not pass someone without offering at least a simply greeting. You do say something like "Oli otya," a combination of "Good afternoon and how are you," or "wee bali" ("thank you"), or "jee bali," which means "well done." You say the latter no matter what the person you pass is doing, even if they are just sitting there. : )

• As noted in other posts, we do not have running water here. We do have three water tanks, however, which hold rain water caught off the roofs. Whether you are washing dishes, bathing, washing clothes, mopping, etc., you must first get your rainwater, putting it in a bucket or basin. No indoor plumbing also equals no flushing toilets. We have some nice pit latrines (outhouses) though. ; )

Workers last year building our 7,000-gallon tank for catching rainwater off the roof of the admin. building.

• Though we don't have running water, we do have Internet. There are priorities, you know. : )

• There are no electrical instruments or equipment used in our island church, but honestly I don't think we need them. In a recent conversation with one of the island teachers, he commented that those things were missing, therefore I might also miss them. No, I said, if I had to choose where to worship in Uganda, I would choose our simple, but exuberant island church. I love the combination of the traditional drums, the rythmic clapping, the deafening shouting, the joyous dancing and the overall enthusiasm of the people to be in God's house. A keyboard or mics maybe would add something, but in my opinion they would only detract from the island people's wholehearted gift of worship and praise to their God.

This video is actually of another island church, but the exuberant praise and worship is much the same as my own church.

• We do not have supermarkets on the island, but we do have simple island shops where you can buy the basic items - flour, soap, sugar, soda, biscuits (cookies), etc. By the way, soda and biscuits are necessary items, especially if visitors land on your doorstep. It is customary to give them something to eat or drink.

• We don't have apples or grapes, but we do have pineapple, mangos, papaya, oranges, lemons, as well as tomatoes, eggplant, lettuce, maize (corn), pumpkins, watermelon, passion fruit, sweet potatoes, millet, sesame seed, cassava (a root, like a potato) - all grown on this island! Much of these things I mentioned are grown in the SHIM gardens. It is like living in a fruit basket!

A glimpse of SHIM's flourishing gardens. They are under the oversight of the visionary and talented Julius Twali - our "agriculture man." He is shown in the top and lower middle photos. Justus, a helper, is shown on the left in the lower photo.

There are other island "dos and don'ts," but they will have to wait for a future post. I do have other work to get done, so I don't get behind. :)

From Busia to Bujagali

 Hi My Faithful Followers,

  Sorry I haven't written in awhile, but I have not had consistent Internet or computer access. But, I received my new laptop this week!

With my new laptop, which my church, Westport Community, graciously purchased for me!

  The past week has been a busy one. Last Tuesday I came from the island and then on Wednesday joined a group of six SHIM members in traveling to the district of Busia, to a small village area, where we held a three-day youth seminar. Our theme verses were 2 Timothy 2:20-21.

 "Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work."

  We centered our messages around this theme and although we didn't coordinate our messages, God did. : )  I shared about Joseph and the journey God took him on to mold him into an honorable vessel. The youth seemed to receive and be encouraged by what we shared with them. We were graciously and warmly hosted in the home of the pastor and welcomed by those of the village and church.

The church where we held the youth seminar. As you can see, it is not yet completed.

  We were near the border with Kenya and at one point, saw some of its hills. The three of us girls on the team returned to Jinja Saturday afternoon, via a dusty, hot and crowded taxi. These particular taxis remind of a Volkswagen bus, except smaller. On the side they say, "Licensed to carry 14 passengers," though they often carry 18-20 people.

 This past week we welcomed Andy, Karina and David Smith. Everyone was so excited to have the SHIM family reunited again! : )

Everyone is amazed at how David has grown. Of course, he is a charmer with his sweet personality and three-toothed grin. : )

David Andrew Smith - almost 8 months old.

  On Wednesday, I and a friend, Katie from America, ventured to one of my favorite scenic spots in Uganda - Bujagali Falls. It is not far from Jinja and is a beautiful spot as the Nile River rushes down rocks on its journey to Lake Victoria. It is a favorite recreation spot for kayakers and whitewater rafters. I went here three times on my last trip and took so many pictures that my family became tired of them. : )

Me at Bujagali Falls

  I am now back on Lingira Island with most of the SHIM team and a couple of American visitors, including Katie from South Carolina who is doing a two-month internship to earn her master's degree in public health, and Shanna Sullivan, from my hometown of Oregon. Shanna will also be staying until March and has been doing a variety of things since she arrived at SHIM. We discovered her talent for mending and have been paying her for her work with "special food items" (like Rice Krispie treats) not normally found in Uganda. : )

 I am excited to begin my work with SHIM's child development program and will be dedicating my time in the coming months to better linking sponsors with their students and helping organize the program's other aspects.

 I wish you all could see the beauty of Uganda. Pictures don't do it justice, but I will close with this sunset photo, taken from the nearby camp of Kyoya. Blessings from Uganda!

Sunset on Lingira Island

From Uganda

 Wow, this is exciting for me as this is my first post from Uganda! It seems like it has been quite a journey just preparing to come here. And, now I can hardly believe I am actually here. I was thinking yesterday, that I may need to pinch myself. : )

 I have had a good first few days - with both joys and challenges. I arrived in Uganda at about 9:30 p.m. Sunday night and then it took several hours to drive to Jinja where I have been staying for the time being at the office of Shepherd's Heart International Ministry, the ministry I am working with this year.

 Memories came back as I smelled familiar smells, saw familiar sites, and saw the dear folks who I had met on my first visit.

 I began feeling really at home the second day. Interestingly enough, God used a difficult circumstance to confirm to my heart that I am right where He wants me to be.

 We awoke Tuesday morning to find that the Shepherd's Heart office had been broken into. Several things were taken, including my laptop. At first I was rather disheartened and discouraged, but then God began showing us that there were even good things to be found in this situation.

 Thankfully no one was hurt or threatened as six of us were sleeping in the same building where the office is located. Our bedroom door was unlocked and could have easily been accessed. And, also we believe my friend Amanda was up at the time, at the other end of the house. The thieves entered through a window, but could not get back out through our tricky front entrance, otherwise, they could have taken more things. We recalled yesterday that both my computer and that of the accountant's, which was also taken, are both protected by passwords. We know of only one place in Jinja that could help someone bypass the passwords, and the police have asked them to be watching for our computers.

 Shepherd's Heart has already experienced some difficult things in this new year, with Karina's miscarriage and other serious complications, other thefts and now the break-in at the office. But we believe that Satan is trying to get us down and attack us because God has good things in store. So, we are looking in hope to what this year holds. And, we are thankful for a faithful God who is our Protector.

 While the theft of my computer might have had a negative impact on my outlook here, it actually had the opposite effect. I had been struggling with some doubts when I first arrived, but God gave such a peace and comfort after Tuesday morning's incident, that I knew I was in the right place.

 I have been so blessed to become reacquainted with those of the SHIM staff who I met on my first office, and to meet the others. God has truly put together a remarkable team, one that is diverse in gifts and personalities, yet united in spirit and vision. I will be introducing these great people in future posts.

 Well, I am going to sign off for now. BTW, Flex sends his greetings. He seems to be really enjoying himself. : )