This is Eric. He's around 4 years old and in the Baby Class at my school. I'm so thankful that he is in school and more than that, he's sponsored. You see he lost his dad last night to AIDS. He may grow up never knowing the answer as to why his dad had to die, why he had to grow up without him. But, he has comfort. He hears comfort every day in the Bible lesson at school. He gets comfort every morning and midday when he receives breakfast and lunch. He gets comfort in knowing that he does have a sponsor willing to stand in the gap and make sure that he receives an education, a sponsor willing to extend a father's love.
The last few weeks have been really hard. I wonder if it is ok for a missionary to admit that. I've really struggled. Disappointment, hurt, feeling down etc. I guess that is all normal. In my last post I wrote, that through it all God is still God. And He is STILL God. Yesterday, during the sermon at church, the pastor made a statement that struck me and stuck with me. It's kept playing over and over in my head. He said, "We may not always get the answer, but there is always comfort." We can go to God. We can cry out to Him. We can ask questions. We can search the Bible. He hears. He listens. He may not give us the answer. Or He may answer but not the answer we want to hear. But, even without an answer, He still gives comfort.In the situation I've faced over the last few weeks, there have been many questions. I will never have an answer to them. But, in it, I've been able to pour out my tears to God. He has given me comfort. He won't leave me or forsake me. He's put people in my life that have stood with me and in their own way brought tremendous amounts of comfort.
Disappointments come in life. I've recently been faced with probably one of the biggest disappointments in my life. About three weeks ago, I received some devastating news. Totally disappointing news. I was told to wait three weeks for another test and a definite answer. Great! Three weeks of waiting. Three weeks of going back and forth from resignation to the fact things weren't going to go as hoped to accepting it. Loss of hope is shattering so I kept clinging to whatever little hope I could find.Finally, the three weeks ended and the news hadn't changed. The results were the same. At this point, I cried. Cried because now there seemed to be no more hope. Dreams were lost. I began to question God. Why? How could You let this happen? Weren't You there? Why didn't You fix it? But, in all, God is still God. He allowed it to happen because He knows what He has planned for me. He was there all the time. He will always be at my side. The why I may never know. I just have to trust that my life is in His hands. His timing is best. He knows what is best for me. He loves me. I am His child. HE IS STILL GOD AND HE IS STILL IN CONTROL.
This is Vicky! Vicky is a really funny character. She's one of the younger kids in the school. She only recently turned 3. Needless to say, she wasn't quite ready to be stuck in a classroom all morning. So, she would walk all over the compound visiting the rest of the staff (cook and guard). She's gotten better about staying in class and actually is really smart. She's also really funny. She understands everything said in English but will only answer back in Luganda. She also regularly "drops" her shoes into the pit latrine where they can never be recovered from, meaning her mom is constantly looking for ways to cheaply replace her shoes. Vicky is the youngest of three girls. The other two are equally as smart and funny. None of them are in the least bit shy. Both of Vicky's parents as well as one of her older sisters are HIV+. Thankfully, her mom found out while pregnant with Vicky and prevented transmitting the virus to her.
I had a goal of blogging at least 10 times per month this year. Needless to say, I've failed miserably. Most of the time I feel like there's just not much to say. My life is pretty boring or at the least, mundane. It's pretty much take care of kids, play with kids, work on school stuff, work on sponsorship stuff. Nothing really interesting or philosophical to report. I read some friends' blogs and am amazed at the stuff they are able to write. Not that it's always what is going on in their lives. But, some extraordinary thought.Anyway, this is just another post with not a lot to say.I did get to entertain at my new house for the first time last night. We invited our old neighbors over for dinner. They are a couple (with no children yet) from Tanzania. They love my kiddos and always bless me with some supplies each month- toilet paper, bread, sugar. You know, the necessities. Plus, the wife volunteers just about every day at the school. And every once in a while they will decide to buy the food necessities for the school for an entire month!So, they came over for dinner and I baked in my brand new oven for the first time. Guess it was a night of firsts. I had no idea how the chicken was going to turn out since I've never actually cooked in an oven where you can't control the temperature. I threw some veggies in a pan, seasoned them, added the seasoned chicken, put in a little water and dumped some barbecue sauce on the chicken and let it bake. People devoured it. Jackie was even scraping her plate for any last drop she could find!And we had an enjoyable evening just chatting away. The husband never has a shortage of what to say....... so we had quite a few laughs. So, that was the enjoyable evening in my otherwise uneventful life.
This is Kaushara, one of the friendliest kids int he school. She's always grinning with a smile from ear to ear.That wasn't always the case. Kaushara started school a bit scared. She's a total orphan and had just lost her second parent to AIDS. She's also HIV+. Now, you would never know that she is an orphan. Her aunt, who is also HIV+, takes very good care for her. She is in Baby Class at Vision of Destiny International School and enjoys every minute of it.Thanks to her sponsors for making it possible for her to be there.
This is Eric. He's around 4 years old and in the Baby Class at my school. I'm so thankful that he is in school and more than that, he's sponsored. 
