The university supplies students their meals from its own livestock and garden. We got to see the ducks, goats, rabbits, and chickens wandering this BEAUTIFUL property.
The university is growing quickly, so Julian showed us the areas where new buildings will be built. They are in the process of adding a business program, though they have many degrees already offered. Dr. MacGregor met with leaders of the university to discuss partnership with Baylor in the future while we interacted with many of the expats from the UK, US, and Australia who play a part in ARU's operations.
We had a delicious snack of African tea and the BEST chipati (bread, but a cross between a tortilla and the dough of a crepe) before assembling for the students' first chapel of the summer term. Dan, the seminary student on our team, gave the sermon after some worship led by Julian and her colleagues.
After chapel the university graciously provided us lunch made up of more traditional Ugandan dishes--lots of matooke and peanuts and rice. Dr. MacGregor, Richmond, and Arthur finished up their meetings before we got on the bus to go see where Sseko shoes are made.
This company was begun by a woman and her husband from Seattle. Their mission is to provide women with both an income and an education. Local women from Uganda make the shoes, and most of them are part of a scholarship program in which half of their earnings are distributed to them and the other half are saved for six months in a fund for their education. At the end of that six months, the company will match the amount saved for the woman to attend university and pursue a degree.
We were met by Emily, a fellow American, who gave us a tour of the small warehouse where the women make the shoes. Due to copyright issues and yet unreleased shoes, picture opportunities were limited, but I loved the environment they had created within the factory.
After our tour, Emily had a few samples set up that we could purchase. The girls were all quick to jump on that, and the guys even made several purchases for family members and girlfriends. I just loved the mission of this organization, the way they are seeking to make a lasting, real impact on the community and the economy in Uganda. Their other products, handbags and accessories, are made on the same principle out of other African nations.
By the time all our shillings were spent and we had entirely worn the boys out of shopping, it was time to load up the bus for Kireka. This is the area where New Life Baptist is, Richmond's church which we had attended on Sunday. Our event for the evening was an all-out movie night called "We Love Kireka."
We arrived at the church and unloaded drinks and Skittles to be distributed later. Richmond sent out teams of Baylor students and Go Fellowship students (the church's youth who we met at our game night earlier in the week) to pass out flyers in the community and invite the residents to the event. I stayed behind and chatted with a man who wanted to start a money lending business. Once again I was a little caught off guard when asked for business advice because hello I have a whopping 3 months of real world corporate experience, but our prayer for this evening was that we would be humbled and used by God, just by showing up. So we showed up and we let Him speak.
As the sun set, people emerged from their surrounding homes and filled the plastic lawn chairs set up in front of the projector and screen. There was worship music playing over the speakers while we distributed glow sticks to the children. Side story: when I was 4, my parents took me to Disney World and, traumatized by fireworks at a night time parade, I chewed a hole through the glow stick around my neck. The inside exploded in my mouth and all over my own clothes and those of my parents. So prior to Wednesday night, probably wouldn't have referred to glow sticks as a blessing, per se. But tonight I had to laugh at the realization that we serve a Father and Creator who brings about enormous grins and squeals of joy even through something as ridiculous as glowing plastic.
I saw one precious little guy, probably 18 months old, standing to the side of the chair set-up, looking a little overwhelmed but curious. I danced with him until Richmond turned the music off to begin speaking, then scooped him up and held him for a while. If I'm being honest, my attitude for most of the day had been on the sucky side. I was tired and cranky, letting my diva creep in a little more than I should have. But holding that sweet baby was a complete shift in perspective and purpose. As Richmond shared the Gospel and encouraged the crowd to explore a relationship with Christ, all I could do was pray that God would protect and preserve his little life, that he would know the Savior someday, some how, some way. I felt some of the sadness I had felt in the slums, knowing that this baby was going to experience suffering in entirely different ways than my team or me or the baby boy who came into our forever family eight and a half years ago. I've been reading Job this week, along with the Watermark devotional "Join the Journey" which offers perspective on the suffering that Job experienced. So often we believe that suffering is a result of our actions, and it's true that there are naturlal consequences as a result of sin that occur. But if that were the only type of suffering, that would put us entirely in control of mending our circumstances. There is such a thing as suffering that God allows. We can try to make sense of it, but the Bible reminds us that His ways and His thoughts are far higher than ours. The families, the children in these slums experience suffering beyond what I can even imagine, but they serve the same Protector and Provider that I do, and He has a purpose even for that little life that I got to hold for just a short time. Not to ruin the sentimentality, but I do have to note that after about an hour and a half of sleeping on my shoulder, Baby Martin just had to pee. So he did. On me. Luckily I was wearing a hideous Baylor Missions shirt that was required for the whole team that day, so I was grateful for the opportunity to put on an extra shirt someone had on the bus. My skirt, however, had to just remain as was through the last hour of the movie. All for the Kingdom, you know?
Dr. MacGregor had talked Richmond down from Bravehart or Saving Private Ryan and we settled on The End of the Spear to show for the evening. People trickled out throughout the movie, shuffling kiddos off to bed once they came down off their sugar high from Skittles and Fanta. Arthur translated the entire movie live, which, in Lugandan, also involves interpreting plot points in addition to translating dialogue. When the movie ended and chairs were picked up, Richmond gathered us to tell us that 18 people had stood up to proclaim their commitment to Christ for the first time that night, and each had received a Bible from NLBC, as well as information about church services in the same location on Sunday. He promised to keep us posted on their stories in the weeks to come.
I think that night might have been a highlight of the trip for me, and, ironically, it came when I was exhausted, hungry, and covered in baby pee. When we are weak, He is strong. Indeed.
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