yak fruit

tastes like candy, but is in fact a fruit.  Probably the stickiest thing I've ever consumed.  Culture shock died hard today.  I was to the point of simply counting down the time that i could come home.  But I came to an understanding of a culture that has grown in spite of inconvenience.

  True love is not found in places or in hearts that are first comfortable.  God peeled back the layers of my depravity the past 3 days to reveal that my love was being expressed with prerequisites, namely my own comfort.  There are few things comfortable about Uganda when you compare it to the US, but it is teaching me more about true untainted love than any other place I have ever been:  the love that comes only from the Holy Spirit. 

interesting occurrences for today:

met an american army group in the middle of nowhere
hiked through the african bush looking for a new orphanage site
saw what appeared to be a man who had just died in a motorcycle accident
tried my third new style of peanut butter in 3 days

Mangos

Today is the first time that I have experienced culture shock in a very long time.  Africa holds its reputation well.  Both by being incredibly heart-gripping and simple. 

Iraq Update

Good Morning from Iraq! We've been here for three days now and things are going so so well. We've been able to accomplish so much in so little time. Things have changed so much here in the past two years since I was here last. The church that I am connected with has grown from about 15 to about 100-120. With this new spiritual life, I have also noted a great shift and awakening in the environment around us. Things seem greener brighter and more alive. The city is calm and peaceful, not like the tenseness that I experienced last time. We have been ensured that if we can raise the money, we can start a school here. I've consulted with many of the authorities here and they agree that to best benefit the population here, we should aim not only to build an english school, but combining it with a school that teaches basic computer skills as well as a daycare. There are so many jobs that require an english/computer skills set but so few ways to gain access to that education. The daycare idea came from a woman leader in the church that brought to my attention that there are so many women who have lost their husbands to the war and to sickness and are trying to provide for their families but need affordable childcare to do so. This would also provide jobs for women to be able to run the daycare




I have been to 30 countries now but have never wanted to stay somewhere so bad. I feel like I have finally found my starting point. I love the people here so so much. I asked God for His heart for the Iraqis and He is faithfully teaching me to love them like He loves them. I am so amazed by the progress being made. I can't wait to see what is next!

iraq church

Iraqi Catholic church attacked today.  Pray for our brothers and sisters in Iraq as forgottensong prepares to go to Iraq in 8 days.  We are trying to raise 2500 more bucks so that Abby can come to Uganda with the team after Iraq.