March 10, 2014

Lyle here,

I can't believe February has passed us by already. We have been in Moroto just a little over three weeks and there has not been a dull moment. I think the biggest thing for me has been the emotional adjustment. Since December of 2012 we have been looking towards Moroto, feeling God's tug on our hearts. In early 2013 the Lord really led us to apply with African Inland Mission; the rest is history, and here we are.

I don't know how many of you have seen "Finding Nemo," but one of the very last scenes, as the credits were rolling, was the culmination of the successful escape of the all the fish in the fish tank, back to the "Big Blue," the ocean. Throughout the whole movie they had been scheming how to pull this off and they finally succeeded. Then the realization. They are floating in their plastic baggies in the bay and the question is asked, "Now what?" This really described what I was feeling. We are finally here, in Moroto, and there is no real set program. We are not going to a job where our days are laid out before us and we have a preset schedule to keep. We have some general guidelines of what we will be doing the next six month. We will be learning language, learning about the Karimojong culture, and we will meet the local people. From there we will begin to identify potential needs. For me, as someone who has worked in a very structured environment all his life, this is a real challenge. I felt a lot like the fish in the bags asking the question, "Now what?" Praise God, He is faithful to answer our questions. As the Lord had been speaking to Ingrid in her quiet times, He really impressed the word "abide" in her heart and as we shared, it was clear the Lord was speaking the same to me. What a wonderful thing it is to abide in the Lord, but what did that mean for me? When I went to John 15 and read through the parable of the vine, verses 4 and 5 really stuck out. "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." I was feeling lost, directionless, and powerless. I was looking for things, a program, a schedule, a plan, whatever, to feel productive. What these verses were telling me though, was that if I am looking to those things to be productive, then I am missing it completely and there will be no real fruit. It is only in abiding in the Lord that fruit comes. So this time is a time of abiding and should always remain a time of abiding. The Lord also showed me that this is not a time of inactivity. Abiding is active and intentional. I still struggle with the, "Now what," but God continues to bring me back to abiding in Him. 

As Ingrid has been "abiding," the Lord has brought the following verses to her. 1 Peter 1:6, "So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while." 1 Peter 4:1-2, "So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won't spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God." 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." These verses really put abiding into perspective. It is a practical thing; a time of rejoicing, even in trials; Christ suffered, as will we, and as a result our longings will change from human passions to passions for the will of God; and that regardless of our circumstances, we thank our Lord!! Our circumstances are the will of God. He uses them to mold us more and more into His character. 

Something else we have had to do is to put things into perspective. What is difficult for us, because of where we came from, would be a blessing for others; no water from a tap, no power, but a well within walking distance and a secure clean space to live in, would be a dream for the majority of people living in Moroto. These struggles seem strange, considering we are living better then we did when we were at New Hope Uganda, at their Institute for Child and Family Care. I think the difference is that now we are not with a group of others and there we had a set schedule and it ended after 5 months, this is now our lives. 

On the other side of things we will have a permanent place to live, hopefully by May! The owner of the hotel we are living at is the one building the home. He is renting it at a price well below the market rate. This is a miracle and we are rejoicing in the Lord! Please rejoice with us. The beginning price was much higher and he has continued to reduce the price until it fit within AIM's budget. Not only is he building the home, but he has involved us in the entire design process, to ensure it met our needs and more. He is as excited about our ministry potential as we are! We are so excited to see where God takes this relationship. Here are a couple of pictures:

On the  lighter side (this does fit into abiding as well) we went grocery shopping. You have to understand what that means. Locally in town, we can purchase tomatoes, carrots (sometimes) and a few things like that. If we want meat, it comes from a goat or a cow that has been butchered and has been hanging out in the open, flies included. If we want chicken, it means we buy a live chicken and well, you get the drift. We get to turn it into a meal. Grocery shopping means we go to a store that has frozen meats and a selection of other items. For us, the closest such place is almost a three hour drive. For those of you in Frenchtown you will be able to get a good visual of this if you think of Broncs as the ultimate destination. For the rest of you, imagine a mom and pop store, with the basics. Now imagine driving for three hours to get there. May I tell you, it was worth the trip!

Goats trying to find shade

Continuing on the lighter side, as Ingrid has been learning NgaKarimojong, one word has been disturbing her greatly. She remembers much, but the word for "goat" has been driving her crazy because there are goats everywhere! Now image hot nights, struggling to fall asleep. The electricity is "somehow" lost and has not managed to find its way to Moroto most of the time, just enough to tease us. Lying in a pool of sweat, I'm not asleep, but trying, and what do I hear? Ingrid's tape recorder playing back the NgaKarimojong word for goat, "akine" (ah-key-neh). We both had quite a laugh, since neither of us were sleeping.

On the more serious side of things. As we have been walking and talking there have been many things we have observed, heard, or read. FGM is still being practiced among the Tepeth people, who live in the mountains around us. People are not accepted at the hospital unless they are able to bathe first. Think of that. You are living in utter poverty. You don't have money to buy food, let alone soap. You are so sick that you finally go to the hospital and you are turned away because you are dirty, and everyone is because of the dirt here. Another belief is that you cannot mix traditional medicine and western medicine. If you do you will die. This means if you first went to the "witch doctor," then it automatically precludes you from going to the clinic. Where do you go first when you have no soap. To the traditional healer (witch doctor), of course. Traditional culture is strong here, which means traditional practices are followed. Goats and cows are prestige, not food. A family will starve before slaughtering a cow or goat happens (meat at market is from another tribe). Frankly, it is overwhelming and we truly need your prayers for wisdom as they feel God doesn't answer their prayers for food and they have cows and goats. We cannot do this alone. God has us here for His purpose, we know that. We know that He will be sending others, but the needs are so vast and so spiritual. It is really hard to describe. It can only be experienced. It is visceral. Please pray that we do not lose sight of God's Kingdom, abiding in Him and His passion for the human soul. He is teaching us this lesson early on. If we lose sight of His Kingdom and begin focusing on tasks rather then abiding, there will be no real fruit. Pray that we seek God's wisdom in all things. The dynamics here in Moroto are politically and relationally charged. We need to be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves. This can only be done in His wisdom.

Thanks for being part of God's Kingdom work in Karamoja.

Love,

Lyle and Ingrid