The Crazy Adventures of an American Mzungu

Partnership development. Support raising. Fundraising. Three terms with the same basic definition, as they also define my life since August. From my point of view, every day brings a number of separate feelings, sometimes at one time. Fear of the unknown, worry funds will not come together in time (again), joy for being called to such an amazing opportunity, and awe of all my Savior has done for me. I find myself often going through these emotions in a matter of seconds.  In January, I needed all my outgoing costs covered, as well as enough people committed to monthly donations to cover my monthly expenses. I fell short in both areas. Fear and worry began to dominate my feelings. I began to doubt if I were truly following God's will, or if I chose to follow this path to the Karimojong for me, not for Him.  This past week, God spoke directly to my fears and worries. I received two large financial gifts from people I never met. These people do not know me, but they see the im...

I stood with my church family, as we sang praises to our King. Yet, I struggled through the song. My heart was troubled as I thought of the song I blared through my speakers on my way to church. As I jammed, the words resonated deeply with my attitude for the past few weeks. The chorus simply says, "you wait so long" (over and over). Oh, how I feel I have waited so long for a promise from God to become a reality -- the promise that He will use me as a full time missionary. Now, I am so close to fulfilling this reality, I feel I could reach out and touch it. But I still have this giant, named Finances, blocking my way. My financial deadline is a number of days away, and I feel he is too great to overcome.  Listening to a song about the frustrations of waiting, my heart felt an odd sense of comfort. But with my family, we sang a song completely opposite of the song that brought me comfort. I could not bring myself to sing the words, "I don't mind waiting on you, Lord...

I fought the bitter cold at o'dark-thirty to enthusiastically torture myself in my crossfit class. I conquered another class, and came home (still in the dark). Longing to crawl back under my blankets, I made the proper hygienic choice and showered before doing so. Just before my head hit the pillow for my early morning nap (when you wake up at 4AM, you take morning naps), I noticed I had a voicemail. This could only mean one thing -- I am being summoned for work! Forget the nap, it's time to kick it into high gear and get ready for the day like a sub (I really wanted to write "boss" but I'm a sub...). "Ah! You know that light green scarf would go so great with this outfit," as I rummaged through my scarf drawer, I began a rather lengthy conversation with myself. I generally feel entitled to such conversations when I am up many hours before the sun, and yet to have the proper amount of coffee. "Where is it?!" I began to panic as my super cute...

She gripped my hands with such urgency, as she begged me to bring a package to her husband in Uganda, whom she had been separated from for a year. I was headed to Redeemer House, and she saw her opportunity. How could I say no? I explained I had small space, but would love to help in any way I could. Now, this package was not as small as I hoped -- plus so heavy! With some creativity, every piece made it's way to Uganda. However, the real challenge would be finding a man whose name I did not know, nor which refugee camp he lived. I carried on with my work as I assisted my first team at the house. I drove them all over Jinja, gathering supplies for their project when my phone rang, "Auntie Mary," Mercy started, "you have a guest," "I have a guest?!" At this point, I had been in country for three weeks, and made very few friends. "He said you have something from his wife in America," "Mama Mupendo's husband! I will be there as soon ...

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 ...

"Are you fully engaged and running to the front lines to do battle with the enemy? Is your goal to be, and do, and spend whatever it takes to win this war? Enrolling in His army means Jesus Christ is our commanding officer, and 'making disciples of all nations' our marching orders. It means we will let vision pull or train, not budget, and trust God to supply everything we could possibly need to get the job done." -- The God Ask by Steve Shadrach. As I read these words, I never felt more like an author somehow looked into my life, and wrote directly to me for this very moment in time... especially in a support raising book, not one that would generally pierce the heart and make you stop and praise the Lord. Here. Let me explain. When I first began looking into AIM, I was informed on the final step in the application process called Connect Week. I was told I should begin to come up with around $1,000 for a trip to Georgia. If invited, I would be meeting people at th...

January 2015 -- Upon arrival back in Boise, I began to pray God guide me as I transition back into my life in Boise. He impressed on my heart to take a year and seek after Him. My world had just been rocked in the most beautiful way imaginable, leaving me drained physically, emotionally, and spiritually. He knew I needed this time to remember who I am in Him. Although all I wanted was to jump on the next flight back to Uganda, I listened to His impressions. March 2015 -- The passions God ignited in my heart while I was in Uganda earnestly began to take root. In Uganda, I came to realize many things I don't want to do. Those things such as working in an orphanage. Although a noble calling, I saw my life going in a different direction. Now, after having the time to slow down and reflect, I was able to see what I wanted to do. I want to keep kids in families. I want to walk along families and give them the tools they need to watch their children succeed. I want to tech children about...