Day 11: Relaxation at Last

Day 11

Day 11 was the first "slow day" of the trip all week. We were woken shortly after 8 O'clock so it was a late start for us. We stumbled outside glad that we had no need for the generator or sound system to lug about.

Our first stop was Watoto Church (Formerly KPC) to pick up our guide for the day. He took us to Baby Watoto, also known as The Bulrush's because the first baby taken in was called Moses. This was a beautiful house that previously belonged to a wealthy Asian. The building was converted to accommodate the orphans. There were 70 orphans at the place to take care of and the staff did a brilliant job in looking after the kids.

We left for The Watoto Village of Bbire which was to a very high standard. Our guide was really enthusiastic about the work being done. The surroundings were idyllic and the accommodation incomparable to what was seen in the slums where much of the children came from.

We then proceeded to the Craft Market where some damage was done. All the people at home can look forward to seeing our purchases.

Overall its been a tiring day and we'll all be glad of a good rest.

Moley (very tired)

DAY 10 Uganda



Day 10 began bright and early as usual, .............maybe just early. We travelled for approximately 1 hour in the direction of Entebbe from our base in Kampala to the school at Kitala , Kitala Grammer Primary School. Our journey was interupted on 3 occasions when we were pulled over by police patrols. On each occasion we were briefly questioned, but allowed to proceed.



We arrived at Kitala School to a rapturous welcome. The children were obviously delighted to see us by their screams of delight on our arrival. This is a private primary school of 150 pupils which is run on a very commited christian basis. The nine teachers all emphasised their faith and appreciation of our visit.The facilities were basic beyond comprehension and it was soon apparent they had spent many weeks preparing for our visit.



The LFL childrens programme, Kids Club were both delivered to the children. The team errected Netball posts and swings and supplied footballs and sports equipment. We also left a set of football posts as the headteacher has a vision of expanding the school at a new site if funding became avaliable. Teaching resources and books were also left.



Before we left each class presented either a song or a dance to us which was very moving. We were also presented with small gifts made by the children and staff of the school.



We returned to Kampala in the afternoon, loaded up the bus again and headed to Hands for Hope project. We were met by Joe Commisky the founder who outlined the work that they do in Kampala's Namuwongo slums where they provide education, support and develop self help and aid projects to the residents of these slums. We went on a short tour of the slum area where over 8 thousand people live on the edge of the swamp next to the railway line in conditions that are so horrific that it is almost impossible to describe. Their home's are rough wooden shacks clustered together on mud banks with open sewers throughout and families of 6 and more live in a hut of about 6 foot square with nothing more than a few rags and and pots to live on.



We all found this an extremely moving and challenging experience and more can be read at the website http://www.handsofhope/ . Some photos of our experiences will follow in due course.





Good night from us all until tomorrow



Uganda Crew

Day 9 in Uganda

After our daily wake up call – kindly provided by Wenford, we stocked up on breakfast for the day, gathered all our resources and embarked on our next adventure with Antony (our typically Ugandan driver!!)

Our first port-of-call, the first of three schools scheduled for the day, was Nasbwe Primary School in Mukono. We were led to the school through a guard of honour – a very humbling experience; we were treated like kings and queens to rapturous rounds of applause! This was a school that took a lot of pride in their pupils and buildings and their motto was ‘Education is the key to success!’ We all gathered in the local church, pupils and all, for the customary welcome and introductions. As we have come to expect this is a real show of the pupil’s talents for singing, dancing and drumming. We were even treated this morning to a rather energetic, vibrant, spontaneous dance performed by their teacher. This was the beginning of what turned out to be an excellent day of ministering to not just the pupils and teachers, but also members of the local community. As a one-off experience, Janice and a small team had the opportunity to visit local humble homes and pray with local residents alongside the pastor. They even met a sprightly man of 102, who was delighted to receive a pair of zebra print glasses to help his failing sight. We spent lunch at this school which was kindly provided for us – water melon, banana, pineapple and egg. As part of the mercy ministry we were able to distribute 27 loaves of bread to feed the children who were unable to pay for the rice lunch provided by school – one of the loaves was received by an elderly lady, who upon receiving the loaf danced and sang outside the bus. Yet another sobering and powerful experience.
The afternoon saw another two schools visited with Hannah and the “Kids Clubbers” heading to Neezinnkrie Primary and the Love for Lifers presenting in Central View Secondary school. Both teams had challenging yet fulfilling afternoons with many children receiving the messages and small gifts. The primary headmistress looks after her school but also has over 80 orphans living at her home that she takes care of. There was a great emphasis in the school of being born again. They were very excited to learn new games and songs and promised to use them again in school the next day. The secondary school started off a little dubiously with the staff members being unaware of our visit. However, after a short prayer and a quick set up, the team went on to deliver the programme with an excellent response. Although the students were typical teenagers – lively and chatty, the headmistress was delighted at their attentiveness to the programme and certainly the vast number of questions put to the team at the end confirmed that the pupils had been listening and indeed needed to listen!!
So here we are, sitting in our room, drinking tea, writing this blog at the end of another exhausting yet fulfilling day. Tomorrow is Friday, and although we are looking forward to having a rest at the weekend, no one would swop the experiences and blessings we’ve encountered throughout this week.

Katunda Aquakee Omiskisa (God Bless)

Sula Bilungi (Good Night)

… on behalf of ‘Love for Life Uganda 2009’ … Family ‘VIP!’(Hannah, Jessica and Rebecca)

Day 5, 6, + 7

Day 5

We traveled to the "Let There be Healing" church were we led parts of the Sunday service, the whole group sang two songs, and a smaller group of girls sang a song (Natalie, Rebecca, Hannah and Tracey)
Paster Paul gave us a warm welcome and it was very evident that the complete congregation were very joyful for us to be part of the worship .
Keith and Jessica both gave their testaimonies, and Basil did the talk, a group also led the Sunday school class by presenting the kids club.
The congregation of the church kindly prepared a lovely meal for us.
The whole service went very well and the members were super!
The service did last all in all from 10 until 4 o'clock - that is including lunch.,but the Church members were so happy to spend the time in worship and prayer.

Day 6


The team was strenghtened and encouraged by the safe arrival of Rebecca Barr and John Haw.

Nambongo Memorial Primary School is another very special place. It has around 400 pupils who are taught by a team of seven very dedicated teachers . They were extremely grateful to be given the Love for Life teaching materials as they operate with very limited resources for all their work . Their Schools wee strap line is " God is good " -- " All the time" -- "All the Time God is good "-- " and that is His nature ". Head Master Patrick was in tears as he expressed his heart felt thanks for the play ground equipment that we installed.
In the afternoon we had five programmes going at one time as part of the team moved onto " Victor Hill Secondary School " It was very encouraging to learn that this secondary school has decided to open a Love for Life club..
Every day has many special moments and when two teachers in a primary school were given reading glasses there were more tears of joy . Meeting Arnold the little boy with a heart illness along with his mother Joy was a very emotional moment , their humble gratefulness for all the prayers and financial support were extremely evident . Arnold still needs your prayers as he has breathing problems .

Day 7

St Daniel’s Primary School and St Levis Secondary School were opened ten years ago, in a place that was very badly effected by the last war in Uganda. As a result of the war many of the pupils at the school are orphans and either stay at the school or are looked after by their grandmothers . Six different programmes were held in the school . Many mothers also found the medical consultations with Dr Dickie very helpful, again these revealled health issues that require much prayer.
Once again the the local paster and Head Master were very grateful for the playground equipment that was installed .

Day 2 and 3 - Luweero

Written by Andrew Mc Dowell

I'll try to be brief but trying to cover 2 very hectic days in one post is some task. Especially when you're this tired.

On Friday, after a very long bus ride through rural Uganda. Along dirt tracks which i dont think i can describe using the limitations of the English language. We eventually arrived at Kiwoko Primary School to the warmest possible welcome. The children poured from the classes and within minutes we were set upon by around 500 children. The children rushed to greet us by shaking and holding our hands (a sign of friendship). The children sang songs to welcome us to their school and danced. The school was a Fields of Life school and showed huge improvements over the non FOL school, but still i was shocked by just how little the teachers had to work with and the yet the good level of teaching the children received.

Alongside the Love for Life programmes, we performed an open air puppet show for the kids. We visited a family that lived beside the school and gave them sweets, teddies and clothing. They had so little and to see the parents putting the knitted outfits on the children and the children holding the teddies knitted by friends before we left would have melted the hardest heart.

We left the school to visit Kiwoko Hospital and got a tour along which we met a man who had a badly broken leg after a road accident and had no friends or family and no means of payment. The money was donated by ourselves to his treatment. The hospital though basic by our standards was very good by Ugandan standards.

We stayed overnight at Luweero with various members of the animal kingdom. Which Natalie did not enjoy. Enough said - the screams from some of the team were heard all the way back to Kampala.

Next day we went to Shammah Secondary School and got a tour which brought us through the schoos labs. Mainly provided by Irish schools. The library is also provided mainly by Irish schools as well. The Prinicpal, Daniel has done a tremendous job and the school is an example of what can be achieved in difficult circumstances.

We then went to the service at the associated church where we preformed both programmes with adults and children. It was a privelege to be able to pray for the folk in the little community and to have them pray for us.

We then went to Ruth's parents house where they run the Jesus Cares Project which looks after children with HIV/AIDS. As soon as i stepped off the bus a small girl stepped over to me and hugged me and said something in Lugandan. Even though I couldn't understand what she said it really affected me. We played with kids and then performed the program to the kids. Dickie and Keith noticed a wee girl with a tumour on her face. Both Tracy and I helped to feed the younger members of the Jesus Cares Project. They where some of the cutest most adorable children in the world. We then handed out bracelets and lollies. One of older children stole a bracelet from a younger one. The child started to cry and we gave out another bracelet to the child.

Sorry about any bad spelling.

Until next time! Andrew.

First Day

Written by Tracey (still getting added as a poster here): -

Day One with the whole team (minus Rebecca and John)

So after a 9 hour through the night flight we arrived safe and sound in Entebbe at 7am Wednesday morning. After convincing all the staff that we didn’t have swine flu and we gathered up all 36 suitcases we were on the bus to Shalom guesthouse. Arriving at Shalom around 11am we checked out our rooms in the fields of life new accommodation and we went for a half hour nap (that’s all Dickie would allow) but the twins decided to stretch it to an hour!!

From here we went down to Garden City, where we changed our money and bought some small treats (yes.. they do Cadburys in Uganda!!). Down there we also randomly met another team from Northern Ireland many some us even knowing a few of them! Then out for food we have all quickly come to learn that we all love to our food. This meal was an experience…we are used to going up to the counter and ordering what we want, but oh know here in Uganda things are rather different- you take a seat and ALL the different restaurants come to you with their menus trying to convince you to eat from them!!

Back up to Shalom where we practised through our presentations and kids programmes, and then eventually at 10pm Basil and Nan arrived and then of course the peace was broken with basil about as he arrived in very hyper while everyone else was ready for bed.

Eventually to bed and up and out for 8.30 am…but it was more like 9.15 (we’ll not blame anyone Janice!). Driving down the roads was an experience in itself, watching all the locals set up their stalls and sitting outside waving as we drive past. Although what they had was little their smiles oozed warmth. Our first school we went to was Kijabijjo, which had 12 teachers and around 300 kids. Here we received an amazing welcome with some of the older kids singing and sharing poems with us.

Then separated up, taking some kids for kids club while some of the older ones were given a love for life presentation. The kids listened so well and participated amazingly with the programmes. After all the programmes were finished we went outside onto the green and played loads of games which was interesting trying to explain when they don’t understand much English-but we succeeded.

The school was very poor, with little to no resources. However although they had very little this didn’t stop them from smiling and showing joy constantly. When I say they had very little this is no exaggeration, they didn’t even have lunch to feed the pupils. This is when we as a team decided that we would give them our bread and pineapple for lunch. It was amazing to see how grateful they were, they received the food with such joy and amazement. For us as a team this was the most amazing part of the day. We couldn’t help but be reminded of the story of Feeding the 5000. This was an incredibly humbling experience and left us all with strong thoughts about how fortunate we are, but also amazed at how much God blesses and cares for those in need. This really hit home Jesus’ message of caring for those who are less fortunate than us. But our richness is only in material things, for the joy and attitudes of all the children and teachers we encountered was truly humbling and a blessing to us all.

Boda Bodas and Prayer??!!

RAGE!!!! Just deleted everything as I was about to post. Frustration.......

Let me try again. Ok here goes :-)

This will be my last update I imagine, as from tomorrow people much wiser than me will hopefully be using this blog for what it is meant to be used for - telling the tale of Love for Life in Uganda this summer. I apologise for high jacking it, as well as rambling on for extended periods! I have never blogged before, maybe I will do it in the future, who knows, though I fear I have a tendancy to ramble and speel (as was apparant!!!). Regardless, from now on you will be hearing from others on the trip.

Just killed a misquito.

Anyway, I have been in Kampala from Friday 3rd July, which also marked the parting of the ways, with Luke and Mark remaining to work on in Rwanda and DRC, and Chris leaving to serve in Romania with a team from his church. My task has been researching for my dissertation - 'Does faith help or hinder HIV/AIDS prevention? - Uganda - A Case-Study'.

I have interviewed and spoken to a lot of very interesting people, from WHO representatives, the Muslim co-ordinator of HIV/AIDS policy, Medsin San Frontiers workers and youth workers involved in HIV/AIDS prevention. Still hoping to meet World Bank, Family Planning and UNAIDS by end of week - we shall see. People have been so good about agreeing to talk to me, and I have been very fortunate.

Being by myself here, I have had lots of random adventures. Having to make my own way round Kampala, I have been using the motorbikes or boda bodas, where you hitch a ride on the back of said bike for a small fee. Business oppurtunity for Belfast? Anyway, I have learnt a lot of things from these daily dances with death, for example, never get on a motorbike that has no wing mirrors or speedometer. Especially when the driver seems to get a twisted satisfaction of playing chicken with buses (and fortunately winning). Also never let a driver take you on 'shortcuts' down 'roads' that have bumps that make you wonder if you are ever going to be able to sit down again!

Biggest lesson? Don't be fooled by helmets. I approached a driver with a helmet, thinking that surely this guy is a pro? Well in a way he was. The helmet seemed to give him the incentive to attempt speeds I did not know, nor wanted to know, were possible for motorbikes. Fortunately his attempt at actually becoming airbourne failed and I got back to Fields of Life where I am staying in at least a semblance of one piece!

One thing to be said for this all is your prayer life improves immensely. When you are staring at the bonnet of an incoming car your prayers become much more serious and desperate!!!!!

Team Love for Life arrives tomorrow, and I am looking forward to seeing everyone. It has been good here, but as I have been on my own I have not really had a chance to talk to anyone except those I have been interviewing, so after a week of intense discussion of HIV/AIDS prevention, abstinence, condoms, sero-status and the role of faith in HIV/AIDS prevention, I will be glad to talk about other things!

I am especially looking forward to seeing my family, and I'm not going to deny I have missed them. It has been a while and it will be good to see all of them again. I am gutted Charlene is not going to be well enough to come, but I know that she will get another chance, and before very long she will be in Uganda again, and the poor country won't know what hit it! Shes a legend, and I am looking forward to seeing her when I get home. Continue to pray for her, especially as it must be hard for her not seeing me for so long (messing Charlene :-) ).

In terms of the interviews I made the mistake of bringing only 6 thirty minute tapes, and as some of the interviews have been close to an hour, I have been operating like a machine, trying to transcribe fast enough to keep going with the interviews. Bad call of mine with that one!

So now you are up to date. As for what has gone before, my head is still all over the place in regards to Rwanda and the Congo (see previous posts). I still trying to think through everything.

I guess one thing I am learning is that God is good. And He is at work, even when I refuse to see it or acknowledge Him. He knows what He is doing, even when everything looks a broken mess to us.

When I look at situations that appear desolate and hopeless I confess I find it hard to see. But one thing I do know is that our God is a God who heals, and who delights in taking broken lives and broken situations, and making a beautiful new creation. Sometimes the most beautiful things have to be broken first.

I am also acutely aware that we are not the answer - God is. Being honest, how could we ever heal a heart, restore a relationship, work in a situation or help a community? But God does. He is already ministering in these situations long before we appear on the scene, but by His Grace, He desires to use us.

I am aware I am rambling and repeating obvious truths, so I will say what I want to say and ask you to pray, pray for the people like Jaqueline, Davos, Zacchaeus and others I have mentioned before in previous posts.

We have to pray about such things. For one thing it can put things into perspective. I am fully aware that too much of my time I spend looking inwardly and getting down about things that really don't matter in the grand scheme of things. And my prayers can become so self-absorbed. But the world is bigger than the altar of 'I', and by praying for people and situations like this we can remember that, and gather some proper perspective, as well as bein to see things as He does. We all have knowledge of people and situations, whether it is a friend who feels overwhelmed and lost, a starving child in Africa, a Romanian driven out of their home or a co-worker who does not yet know Him, and by praying for them we can begin to look towards the things that matter. The change in our lives can begin even in what our hearts look at when we pray.

Also, how can we honestly say we love our brothers and sisters as we love ourselves, if we do not pray for them? I damn myself with many of these words, but I believe that there are sometimes certain things that are true regardless of our feeble attempts at living them.

God is big. And God is good. Even though I struggle and have struggled over the last month at times to see His Hand at work, it remains true that His Justice will flow like rivers, His Mercy will minister to the nations, His Love will light up the world and at His Name every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is LORD. All in His time, but He is at work. It will come to pass.

I have so much to learn. I need to trust Him like many of the people I have met do. And I need to remember most of all this story is not about me. God is working, and perhaps we have to wake up, open our eyes, cast off our bedclothes and ask and look to see what He is doing already, draw alongside Him and prepare to become the supporting characters in His Story. And that is when we come alive.

So I guess I am just asking for prayer. For prayer for the situations that have been laid on our hearts or minds. Even when we don't feel like praying for them.

So that is me, I bid you adiou (is that how it is spelt?). What shall follow is the story of Love for Life this summer (as long as someone actually is going to do the writing??!!). Thank you for your prayers, you are legends. Will see ye soon!

To finish, a quote from Philip Yancey, "God is already everywhere, no matter how dark the situation, how dark the life or how dark the path. Our job is simply to make Him more visible wherever and whenever we go." To serve Him right where we are, in everything we do, making the invisible visible and showing His Light in the darkness. It will come to pass.