Skip to main content

With Only Two More Months

The past ten months brought me through some of the most difficult challenges I ever faced. As I served in Uganda, I witnessed life far different than I ever experienced. Death became a reality. Poverty surrounded me. I became accustomed to dirt, trash, and an abundant lack of garbage cans (seriously, I miss sidewalk trashcans!). True, I still found joy in what I witnessed. Nothing brings greater warmth to a heart than serving the Maker. Even though I seemed to battle more sickness than I ever dealt with before and had to quickly become accustomed to a whole new culture, I loved the life I was made to live. With such a choice, came a great desire to stop the gospel from spreading to people who needed such a hope. I was knocked down to my knees more times than I can count during the most challenging spiritual battles I have yet to face. So many times, I felt like just staying down and giving up. But I stood up once more because my Savior never gave up on me. With His nudge, I came to my feet once more. Only to find myself being swung at once more. Time and time again, I walked away beat up and bruised, but confident I fought the good fight.
But, oh! I still have two months to soak in. Two months of love to pour out on children who changed my heart forever. Two months of growing friendships with those many do not even realize exist. A chance to strengthen and encourage them in the hope they found in Christ. Two more months to soak in the beauty of serving my Savior in a land foreign to me. These next two months I plan to live every moment to the hilt. I do not want to take this life I have been given for granted. I am choosing to cherish every person God puts in my path; to share His love for them in all I do. Nothing could be worse than boarding that plane in December, knowing I did not accomplish these things. To waist my time by living for myself would only leave me with regrets, and I refuse to do such.

Although the future holds the great unknown, I refuse to take my eyes off the now. I eagerly wait for the lessons God plans to teach me in my last leg of this amazing Ugandan race. The past ten have brought more to my heart than I could ever say, and I know God is not finished yet. So here is to serving an awesome Savior, and His mighty works in His children.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Encouragement

I am overwhelmed with the reactions of people who hear about my heart for missions, and my upcoming opportunity to work with Redeemer House Orphanage. All warm my heart, and fill my soul with joy. Most reactions are filled with squeals of joy, tears, and enormous hugs. I hold them deep in my heart, and I am blessed. When I first was wrestling with the idea of applying for this position, I took a day trip to my home church in Powell Butte, Oregon. I did not share with many about what I was praying about because I didn't want to make a great big scene, and then not follow through. I hope that church will be behind me through whatever missions I do, but something in me told me to wait to share with everyone. I did share with some, and when I did, each one was ecstatic for me! Each one encouraged me to pursue this route, because if God wants me there He will open the door, and if He doesn't then He will close it, but let Him do it. Their words of encouragement blessed me more than...
3 comments
Read more

Emboko

Here is a Luganda lesson. In fact, this was one of the first words I learned (first in the few that I know...). Emboko. Emboko means 'beautiful'. So many times, the children will be going around saying, “You are emboko!” And then they will go to each person, and state that they are “Emboko”. Talk about a confidence boost! Not only is it encouraging, but they say it with all sincerity! Over the past few days, we had a large team of Americans here at Redeemer House. I will be honest... I was nervous at first to have so many adults around. I have a tendency to shut down in large crowds of adults. I am so much better with large groups of kids. But these guys bonded with the kids quickly! And I felt like my personality fit in some way with all of theirs, making it easy to stay connected. Friendships were made, and relationships were established. I believe they will last a lifetime. One night, we were waiting for the team to come and join us in prayer. The kids kept coming to me,...
2 comments
Read more

25 Years of Broken Dreams (Although This Is An Uplifting Post)

On my twenty-fifth birthday, I looked back on a high school goal of mine. In one of my classes, we had to make those “by this point in my life I will (fill in the blank)” and make tangible goals to reach the dream. Mine? By age twenty-five, I would own my own hair salon in Newport, Oregon. My plan was to move to the Coast and have my hair license by age twenty so I could begin building a clientele that would sustain my own salon, as I saved to make this dream possible. This July, I hit that birthday. Let me tell you, not a single one of those goals or ambitions were accomplished! Yet, not a single part of me regrets not following my dream. First of all, it was my stubborn personality that kept that dream going for so long. The dream really should have stated, “Prove to others I can do what they said I couldn’t” because if I were to boil down a very long story, that was at the heart of this dream. I pretty much refuse to spend more than five minutes on my own hair. I don’t know what ...
3 comments
Read more