Some Photos From the Field



The below pictures are from a legal education clinic the department I work in put on. We do several of these throughout the year and they prove quite integral to the work we do at IJM in Uganda. Namely because it is at these legal education clinics and will writing clinics in which we do case intake and thus, receive new clients, those being widows and orphans being victimized by property grabbing (otherwise known as illegal property seizure). After receiving their case, we pass it over to IJM investigators who collect evidence (depending on what kind of case it is) and allow the lawyers to proceed in court from there.

Introducing IJM and why we're there to teach the law.



Our department's fearless leader and my boss rendering some introductory words as well.



Explaining what property grabbing is and defining who is a victim, who is a perpatrator.

We rarely ever go hungry in the work we do. Matoke hits the spot every time!

Getting the word out!

Contentment

Hebrews 13:5

Be content with what you have. Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you."

Lately God has been teaching me a lot about contentment.

The dictionary defines content as: satisfied with what one is or has; not wanting more or anything else.

I wish I could be more content.

We have had a wonderful time in Uganda but since we have been here we have had some things happen that could cause us to feel discontent. We've lost two houses we wanted to rent, Drew has a 2 1/2 hour drive to work each day and back (which doesn't allow me and Isaiah to see him much), we are still living out of suitcases (which gets old after more than 2 months), we have yet to find a house and start feeling settled, and in light of moving overseas, money has been tight in some areas of our budget.

Luke 12:15

Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

Proverbs 14:30

A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body;
jealousy is like cancer in the bones.

I want so many things...

I want to be settled.
I want to move into our new place and begin figuring out what our "normal" is going to look like here.
I want to unpack all of our boxes that have been packed up for more than 2 months now.
I want to have our new baby in our arms.
I want to see Drew more often.
I want...
I want...
I want...

I wish God would drill into me the secret of being content no matter what my circumstances. I try to focus on the all the things I do have. I have a wonderful marriage, an amazing son, a free place to stay while we look for a house, the ability to rent a house, some exciting leads on our adoption, and a healthy family. I am blessed!!!

Being content means fully trusting Christ with whatever he desires to give or not to give me. As I grow closer to Christ I am slowly learning to trust more and more in HIS sovereignty and submit to HIS will and plan for my life. I'm seeing progress but, I think I'll always be learning this better!

God, you are good and you do all things well. I trust in you!

1 Timothy 6:6-7

But godliness actually is a means of great gain, when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.

An Update on Our Financial Support



Out for a Saturday afternoon walk by the Nile River.

As we are adjusting to life here in Uganda, we are also adapting to prices of items here. Having lived here for roughly a month, we can already conclude that certain items are far more expensive than back in the US and others are not.

As we continue to modify our budget accordingly, we thought it would be helpful to post an update on our support raising for anyone interested in supporting us or anyone who has questions. We cannot be more thankful for the ways God has provided for us financially through our friends and family, as well as those we don't even know, but who have given in light of seeing the work we're a part of!



Through gracious support, we can purchase typical items such as these mattresses we bought for our new home.

Current Finance Report
Many of you know we have raised 100% of the support which IJM budgeted for us to raise. What may not be known is the amount raised through IJM is not quite enough for us being in Uganda as a family of 3, soon to be 4.

The amount we were allowed to raise is the same amount budgeted for IJM personnel whether single or with a family. Hence, for a single person this amount will suffice. For a family, it is doable, but it is very tight.

In light of this, we began a while back raising additional support through our home church in Jacksonville, FL for out going expenses and the purchase of a vehicle. In the time we have been here we have come to realize that we need to continue raising additional support in order to help offset additional start-up expenses and regular budgetary items which exceed the amount of support raised through IJM.

We would be humbled and honored to have you financially support us during this next year either regularly and/or through special occasional gifts. If you feel led to do so, please visit the Start up & Support page of our blog for more details.

For those of you who have been supporting us monthly or through special gifts, we cannot thank you enough for you gracious offering. Words cannot describe what it means to us to have such wonderful people in God's economy giving so faithfully. Truly, God's love and provision is being experienced in our lives through you.

Fish Lips for Dinner!

Tonight Isaiah had fish for dinner. Not frozen fish fillets that you buy at Meijer. Fresh Nile River Tilapia that just last night was swimming around happily until today they met their doom! We wanted Isaiah to kiss the fish before chowing down on it but instead he decided to bite the lips off! And he preceded to eat them...and loved them! This boy was made for Africa!

Posing for the camera!

"Mom, I'll smile for you but I really want to start eating my fish lips!"

"Ok, this is the last smile guys. I'm starving!"

Isaiah started moving in to kiss the fishy.

But wait! His mouth starts to open and.....

Yuck! He bites the lips right off and starts munching away on them!!

Mommy's reaction was quite dramatic.

The lipless fish.

"What, mom? Did I do something wrong? Them fishy lips tasted goooooood!!"

Madness At Mandela Stadium!

This past Saturday, my father-in-law (dad), and Janae (one of Amber's little sisters) had an incredible experience: We went to a 2014 World Cup qualifier match at Mandela Stadium and watch the Uganda Cranes battle against the Senegal Lions! Some of my IJM colleagues joined us and we had an unforgettable time as it would be quite hard to forget an atmosphere as loud and electric as the below videos portray.

Jump Mzungu, jump!

*This is the penalty kick from dad's view*

This was the video taken by dad (my father-in-law), Mark. Feel free to laugh as much as I do each time I watch this video.

*This is the same penalty kick, but from my view*

I get a kick (pun, pun) out of this video each time I watch it.

One ticket was 25,000 UGX, which is a little less than $10 USD. Wow, a professional sports event where the seating is first come, first served and tickets are $10 - can't beat that!

IJM Colleagues

Colleagues and loyal Cranes fans reacting to a bad call.

At first I thought this was the team and I came to watch radical rugby.

Final score! A draw is always better than a loss.

Driving Drew's Drive

Wowzers - Google Earth is pretty amazing! Here's an interactive map of the route I take each morning in from Jinja to Kampala: http://goo.gl/maps/HMal (You'll need to zoom out once you open this page to see the route in its entirety.)

The drive is quite long. Okay, it's ridiculously long; about 2 1/2 hours. With having to be in the office by 8 each morning, I'm either arising quite early, or driving really fast each morning. Perhaps a little of both! At the same time, though, it's a beautiful drive and one I'd take any day over sitting in Chicago-style bumper to bumper traffic on the Dan Ryan Expressway.

*For security purposes, the IJM office location is not exact.*

We are still looking for a place to live and have not been having too much luck in finding one. Until we find a place, we will be staying with Amber's parents (who live in Jinja) to help cut down on living expenses. This has been such a blessing.

Would you join in praying with us that we'll find a place soon?

First Week in the IJM Office = Amazing + Inspiring

It's a little past 9 AM and as I look behind me all I can see is the sun projecting heavenly rays off the Nile River. It's gorgeous! We're temporarily staying in Jinja, a little more than 2 hours away from Kampala, where the IJM office is.

A glimpse of the Nile River

Although this was just my first week working with IJM, it has been an amazing one! My first week began during what is called Justice Week. Justice Week is a mobilization of one of our partner churches to help them learn what the gospel says about justice, teach what the Ugandan law is and what rights people have, and also enact justice within a village or surrounding community of the church we're working with.

Helping pour fresh water into bottles being used to wash the clothes of the man we went to care for.

IJM greatly prioritizes both individual and corporate times of devotion and worship. Thus, as part of office protocol, each day begins with a time of individual devotion from 8:30-9. Following this, we have corporate devotions each day from 9-9:30. During this time we sing together, have a devotion, and bring prayer requests for ongoing cases to the Lord. Who ever heard of working at a place that equates to a law firm where you begin your day in corporate worship and devotions!?

On Monday, I mainly had meetings all day: meeting with Heads of Departments, learning how I and the department I work in fit into the greater picture of IJM and our objectives. I am being priviledged with the opportunity to work amongst some unbelievably talented and passionate people. Whether they're a clinical psychologist, a lawyer, accountant, investigator, social worker, or pastor, each of them have an inspiring nature about them. This not merely makes the intense and demanding work all the more enjoyable, but it also makes it incredibly joyful.

These jerry-cans were light when they were empty, then quite heavy once full of water. We had to go quite a ways to fill them.

Tuesday was incredible. I spent the whole daye in the field at a legal education clinic. I saw incredibly devoted Ugandan believers, my colleagues for the next year, teach the law to others who more than likely would never be able to afford a lawyer. This legal education clinic was open to the general public and nearly a hundred people participated it.

On the way to a second site where the church will continue to minister the following weekend. Justice isn't a one-time event, it's an ongoing part of the Christian life; so encouraging to see the church take on this task on their own!

Teaching the law to the general public is crucial to seeing that property grabbing - the main form of injustice we focus on here in Uganda - is extinguished. As it is the case even in America, if people do not know their legal rights, how could they know when those rights have been criminally violated? All of this took place at a church which also was ever encouraging to see. Imagine the church becoming society's avenue for public protection? This is what is taking place in Uganda through IJM, and this is causing the churches to take action in a new and beautifully effective way.

Wednesday involved more time in the office. Most of my afternoon was spent with my boss. My boss is a great guy, a Ugandan lawyer, and the head of my department.

These were the gentleman's clothes that we helped wash on Saturday... all of them.

Thursday took me to the field again. This time, it was a will writing clinic. Many of those we met with while raising support have heard me speak about the importance of wills in Uganda. Simply put, property grabbing happens far more easily when there's no legal document showing who the land belongs to or who is to receive the land upon the preceding owner's death. The importance of widow's having a will to aid in ending property grabbing in Uganda cannot be overstated.

Friday was a shorter day in the office. Why was this? Well, the office slogan is We Measure By Results. So, to bring about office unity and fellowship, we have what's called monthly WMBR games wherein everyone is divided into teams and we play some pretty wild and competitive games. Imagine seeing all of these Christian professionals of differing ethnic background leave their little offices to go try and learn a game no one has ever played before. Calling it entertaining to watch would probably be an understatement. It was both hillarious and loads of fun. Just in case anyone from the office reads this post, I should mention that the team I was placed on dominated the first WMBR game I've participated in.

This amazing woman hand-washed these clothes for hours under the quite hot Sub-Saharan sun.

Saturday brought closure to my first week. This was a very special day. Not merely because we were in the field again, working hands on with one of our partner churches and helping meet someone's physical needs, but also because Amber was able to come along with me. IJM is very friendly to spouses serving at events such as this, and my day could not have been better due to her being there. It's already awesome to be serving the Lord in some way. But to have your spouse in the gospel trenches next to you is even better!

She makes this team of two look pretty good.

The church we worked with on Saturday selected a member of their community who was in great need. This particular individual was an 86 year old man who was blind and was in need of having his clothes washed, food, and having the brush around his living area slashed (trimmed down). I watched th church body take their time in caring for a man who didn't even attend their church. Talk about a true and inspiring testimony to the gospel and love of God. IJM personnel asked the man if he knew Christ, to which the man replied that he had trusted Jesus several years ago. When I stood before the man and reached out to grab his arm letting him know I was there and greeting him in English, he replied with one of the few English words he knew - "Hallelujah!"

My week was full of seeing what I and others have often talked and dreamed about the Christian church doing. Only this week, it was a reality.

There's no doubt my first week with IJM can only be summed up in the words amazing and inspiring! All the glory to GOD!!