Day by Day

These posts will hopefully stay a little bit shorter now that I am settling into daily life in Kampala. Not to say that I am an old pro- but those first few days everything is so different and new that I have to tell you about it! Now, some of those things feel normal. Some, mind you, not all.

This week was full again of great things! At the Engineering Ministries International (EMI) office, projects are kicking into gear. This week I did some CM work with cost and quantity for the African Children's Choir campus in Entebbe. The CM project is a rainwater catchment system and pump. Also there this week we had a programming meeting for their next campus phase! They are planning on moving their "training" component to the same campus as their primary school, and eMi is updating their campus master plan and designing the training facility on the campus. I am on this team with Daniel Iya, Paul, and John Sauder is our project leader. The programming meeting was so fun! We went out to their campus and walked around with the ministry directors, learning about the ministry, the vision, and the land. The primary school is back in session, so we saw the children running around during lunch and between classes. They were so sweet! Almost every child came up and said "Hello, Auntie!" or some derivative. Many accompanied this kind greeting with handshakes and hugs. They had such precious attitudes. You could see the impact on their lives from being a part of the African Children's Choir ministry. I loved seeing that.

See those precious kiddos in their uniforms? Also, I wore white pants in Africa. I was pretty proud of how white they still were at the end of the day.

It was also a tough week to be away from home, and the Lord has been teaching me (since like October...) that his timing is best. I need to trust that his timing is good even if it doesn't seem like it to me. A little excerpt from my devotional (thanks Jan!) is a great picture of this:

"Your part is to yield to My creative work in you, neither resisting it nor trying to speed it up. Enjoy the tempo of a God-breathed life by letting Me set the pace. Hold My hand in childlike trust, and the way before you will open up step by step." (From Jesus Calling by Sarah Young, on January 25th)

I think I'm going to learn this more and more, especially as I approach July. Not having a set plan months in advance is not a comfortable place for me. I think I will need to focus on not trying to speed everything up!

Some other random tidbits from this week:

We had an eMi girls night on Friday. The eMi women welcomed us newbies into the club with necklaces, desserts, and fun games. It was a good time!

I babysat for the Austins, a staff family. They have 3 kids, and the youngest is 2 named Isaac. I had a blast with all of them, but especially Isaac because I pictured little Saxton running around in a year.

Also, Daniel Iya got engaged this weekend! His fiance has been working in Jinja for I think a year or so with Good Shepherd's Fold Orphanage. He visited her this weekend, and popped the question! We are so excited for him!

Prayer Requests:
-An eMi project team is currently in Burundi! Meggie, and David (interns) are both on this trip, as well as Sarah (my eMi mentor). Pray for their work and relationships with the ministry and volunteers!
-Again, please continue to pray for the Nsambya Babies Home! I know the Lord has a good work to do there!
-God is teaching me about HIS timing. And I'm thick-headed. Pray for a teachable spirit.

Praises:
-My iphone works here now! I feel superficial being so excited- but it is a blessing of more consistent contact with my friends and family. And I love that!
-I am still very healthy! I haven't been sick at all since we arrived!
-Sundays. As a day of rest, this is a blessing and a joy. I get to spend my time talking with family, the Lord, and taking naps! (photos from my lazy Sunday are below...)

       

You May be in Kampala if:

-Cereal is a great treat! It's all imported and thus super expensive. It's also "mzungu" food so they know they can charge more for it...

-You buy a piece of land, but can't do anything with it because of squatters living there. So you maybe have to buy them off, to pay again for your own land...

-Avocados are the size of a softball, or bigger. and delicious.

-You show up for a meeting scheduled at 9. The meeting starts at 10, which is when you needed to leave by.

-Gorgeous views surround you and you almost start to forget about them because of how frequent they are!

Miss you all! 

SForbes

(This is my desk at the office! I'm still working on the bulletin board, so don't worry if you don't see yourself up there! )