Getting Packed and Ready to Go...

“If you say go, we will go. If you say wait, we will wait. If you say step out on the water, and they say it can’t be done, we will fix out eyes upon you, and we will go.”

Yesterday I had a birthday lunch with my family. This was a really special day as my whole family was together for the first time in quite awhile. I had the chance to spend time with those I love the most and share some much needed time. My daughter and her husband had come to SA to participate in the wedding of a friend and so they were here on the weekend before I depart on my trip. As a result we decided to celebrate early as I will be in Uganda for the "real" occasion, which as many of you can relate, I'd just as soon pass by unnoticed. The irony is, that for the most part, in Uganda those we will be going to serve have no idea when their birthday is. This is not something they celebrate or even really know. They will, however, view the letters I am taking as a gift so special they will treasure them for ever. My experience from the past tells me they value the most simple things in life. As I’ve been gone a year, I am ready to return and be reminded once again, how true this is.

 For those of you who don’t know, I am going with a different group this year; a group from Boerne, Texas who have a mission called “Tree of Life”. Amazingly, they serve in the same small town as the orphanage I have visited for the past two years; Iganga, Uganga. I will have the opportunity to visit with the children I have come to love and hope to spend at least a day with them. I can’t imagine traveling half way around the world and not stopping in to give out the hugs and love they so deserve to get. As for the rest of the trip, I am part of a team that has been there before and is familiar with their mission. I will go, or I will wait, but I will fix my eyes upon the Lord to see where he leads me. I am hoping to make eight new friends with those I am traveling with; I am hoping to be touched in ways I can’t imagine; but, most of all, I am hoping to give all that I have to give. Please pray for safe travels; for the children and people of Uganda that we will be encountering; for the kids at the orphanage we have been a part of; for my family back home and that we DO follow God’s will. I love all of you and thankful you are in my life.