First read these verses:
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Matthew 13:44-46
Matthew 13:1-23 (The Parable of the Sower)
David led us in an incredible devotional; it was both thought provoking and encouraging. He spoke a lot about the Kingdom of Heaven and how it affects our role here and now on earth. It basically boiled down to the fact that we are citizens of Heaven, and earth is not our home; rather we are here serving God, all the time, everywhere we go. God allows us to choose to be obedient to what He has called us to do, so that when we are obedient, it is out of love. Because of this, our choices matter very much to God! Every time we obey Him and serve Him, we show our love for Him!
It was a really beautiful lesson, and it applies so much to life in Uganda and in America. We can go on mission trips overseas to serve God, but we are always on mission for God. I hope this challenges you, like it does me! How are you on mission for God in your town?
Now, on to the rest of the day!
We drove all the way from Kampala to Lira, which is a 6 hour drive. Usually, I don't like to travel very much; however, I felt very different about this trip, because we got to see so much of the country! Uganda is the most beautiful place I have ever been! Here are some pictures I took on the road (with my disposable camera, pardon the poor quality of the pictures)!
This picture shows a lot! You can see mango trees, which it seems like communities are built around in Uganda! You can see several huts, which were one of the main housing forms that we saw. You can see a boda-boda, which is basically a motorcycle taxi, those things are everywhere!
Here are some more beautiful mango trees. The mangoes in Uganda are just about the most delicious fruit I have ever tasted!! The people sitting under the tree sell mangoes to the people who drive past on the road. Side note, if you stop next to people who are selling things by the road, they all flock to your car to try and get you to buy stuff! It is a little intimidating! We once had about twenty people trying to sell us their mangoes! The rectangular building you see is a shop, and you can see some more huts in the background.
This is a lady with something crazy balanced on her head. I swear, they can carry anything on their heads!! We saw them carrying things that are strange shapes and things that way as much as 50lbs! It is amazing to watch, but unfortunately back problems are common because of it.
Here is another roadside mango shop. I think we bought mangoes here to feed the monkeys! There were tons of kids here, and when they saw us they all shouted, "Mzungu!" Which basically means, "White people!" I thought at first it must be an insult, like they were laughing at us for being different or foreign or something, but it is really just because that is what we are and they are excited to see us. Almost every kid, and even a few adults, shouted it at our vans as we drove past! Which reminds me of another thing I loved about Uganda, everyone greets everyone (even people who drive past in their vans)! It is incredible to me how much these people value relationship!
The beautiful, amazing, powerful Nile river! I have never seen water that strong before! It sounded incredible and it was very wide.
More of the Nile.
There were monkeys and baboons all along the roads, especially in the more forested parts of the roads. We fed these guys (and several other primate friends) mangoes from our vans.
We arrived at our hotel and it was very nice! We had guards at our gate with AK-47s, so we all felt very safe! The food was pretty typical for what we usually ate while in Uganda, chicken and potatoes and fruit. It was all good, except I noticed that Ugandans like their food dryer than we usually eat food in America; this was true of chicken and cakes, that I noticed. Despite the dryness, I was very grateful for chicken and not beef, because we saw beef that was for sale on the side of the road just hanging out in the open. I would much rather eat the chicken that I know got killed in the back of the hotel somewhere than the beef that has been hanging outside for who knows how long!
At dinner, we met Jane. She is one of the most incredible, God-fearing women I have ever met. At twenty, she decided she needed to do something about the damage done by the LRA, and now at 32 she has an organization, Children of Peace Uganda, which provides education to children affected by the war and empowers women affected to provide for themselves. I will explain much more about CoPU in later posts, don't worry!
We wrapped up the day with some more mafia before bed time. This was a great day; I felt like a lot of community developed within my team on the trip and I really began to acknowledge the ways that everyone was so beautifully unique and perfectly chosen and placed by God to be on this trip, and the next day revealed this to me even more clearly!
