Giving Hope Through Water

The website below is a website dedicated to documenting the work God is doing around the world.  The website is called Naming the World.  Two men, Ryan and Andrew, are working with an missionary-sending organization called International Teams.  They are going around the world for 15 months and documenting how people's lives and communities are being transformed by the power of God.  They are visiting the different areas of the world where International Teams has missionaries.  They were in Soroti, Uganda awhile back and we were able to spend some time with them.  They spent a day with us in Pingire and witnessed the drilling of a well for a young HIV-AIDS widow.  They were able to come to a day of Farming God's Way teaching in Obulle.  They also spent some time just hanging out and talking with us about how we are witnessing God at work here - how He is using the water ministry, the farming, and how He is working in the lives of our Ugandan friends.

The story below is about Ajesu Salapina, an 80-year old widow, who we were blessed to be able to drill a well for.  Salapina was sharing with our pastor a few weeks ago and she told him that before she had a well at her house she used to go out in the road after rains and collect water from the puddles.  You might think the hard life Salapina has lived would make her bitter, but it is the exact opposite.  She is so full of joy and doesn't stop praising God for His goodness.  Salapina looks at her suffering and sees it as God's invitation to trust in Him and His hope for a better world to come.

Please pray that the water well drilling ministry in Uganda can continue unhindered so many more Ugandans like Salapina can have access to clean water.  Pray for those who are physically drilling the wells and for the recipients of those wells.

http://namingtheworld.org/2013/03/07/giving-hope-through-water/

The link below is of some of Andrew, Ryan , and Marianne's pictures.  They were able to document a well being drilled in Pingire by members of our local church.  It is beautiful to see the local church going out into their community and loving and serving as Christ first loved them.

http://namingtheworld.org/2013/03/07/portraits-well-drilling/

You can see the rest of Andrew and Ryan's work at

http://namingtheworld.org/

Mother's Day Part 2...The final part

We went to the Zoo in Entebbe and here are a bunch of pictures from our final outing.

Rachel doing the "stork"...

These are lake Flies...this picture doesn't even do the amount any justice.  

At the Red Chili, monkeys steal bananas!  Silas is still upset about it.  They just swing right out of the trees and come running up to ya and take your breakfast!  The nerve!

Mother's Day part 1...

I've done it!  I've really done it!  I can now make tortillas like a pro!  My friend Marissa would be so proud of me.  This has nothing to do with Mother's day, I am just really excited about these puppies.  

Our first night in Kampala and we wore this guy out!  VICTORY!!!

When I found out that my friend Rachel was also a horse rider, I enlisted her to be my riding buddy for Mother's Day.  

We took the option of going out on the "trail" for an hour. 

After the minor adjustments we were off!

After a year and a half of not not riding I was thrilled to be back in the saddle 

I was even allowed to do a few laps around the arena just for fun!

I'm a bit out of practice and this was a very stubborn schooling horse that refused to lower her head...

...but alas, around and around we went.

And I was overjoyed just to be on her back.

And we finished with a laugh!

Dan goes drilling for water

We have been stuck in Kampala for the last week or so as we attended to some health issues.  In the meantime Dan, Emma, and crew began drilling a new hole near where they live and attend church.  Colin was not able to be there to help transport the materials to the new well site, pick the location, ensure everything was present and accounted for, etc., so the responsibility rested on Dan.  For all previous wells Colin has been able to organize the crew and materials, select the site, work alongside everyone else, and smooth everything out, and solve problems as they arise.   However Colin was not able to be there for the start of this new well and Dan got his chance to step up.  If you know Dan you know he is a quiet man who leads by action.  Dan heads up the drilling efforts in Obulle and is well respected in the area.  Dan is a leader in his community and people look to him for guidance and counsel and help, but he can come across as somewhat timid at times.  Often in social settings Dan remains quiet and reserved. He is one of those folks who is always at work behind the scenes humbly serving others.  Many times Dan takes the quiet almost timid approach  but it is in well drilling that we get to see a different side of him.  Dan truly feels like God has given him the water well drilling as his personal ministry.  He happily says that God gifted some for preaching, some with musical ability, others for this particular work, some for this thing or that thing, but God has given him drilling as his way of preaching.  Dan uses the well drilling work as his platform to allow him to share Christ with others.  Dan loves drilling and is quite good at it - he has a gift for drilling.  It is through the water well drilling ministry that Dan is able to fully shine and share with others how wonderful his God is.

He called Colin after the first day of drilling to inform him they had gotten down to four meters the first day.  That is quite a feat considering they are drilling through hard marrum rock by hand.  Some days they can pound away on the marrum and only get a meter or two, so four was pretty impressive We feel very blessed that God led us to Dan and that Dan feels drilling is his calling.  We are so excited to be a part of what God is doing here and to be a part of what God is going to do in the community of Obulle through men like Dan.

Dan and family

Dan during a day of drilling

End of April Pictures

Colin's new "pet"...Silas isn't so sure.

We borrowed a cat carrier so we could take Bro to the vet Silas thought he could get in.  Well he got in and couldn't get out.  

He was NOT happy about being stuck!

I really don't know how much he ate, but he made a fantastic mess!

"MOM!!! Please!"

Colin and Emma getting ready to spray for a new garden plot.

We have been doing Farming God's Way and now we are still using those teachings, but trying some new techniques to go along with those teachings.  This is how Terry farmed while in Bolivia and we are going to try to mix it with FGW. 

Jumping rope.  Silas really wants to join in!fs

Too much fun for one day..