Perspective

I never know what to expect here. The other day I got a call from our grounds keeper Andrew, "Mr. Brad you come this side. Four of your goats are dead." He seemed unwilling to give me any more information prior to me coming so I headed out to the village where the Amazima land is.

On the drive my mind went back and forth through possible ways that I could have lost four goats. I had just given them de-worming medication so I thought maybe it was that or maybe they had eaten some of the vegetation that had been sprayed around our tomato field. I really couldn't come up with any other solutions than these two.

As I drove I had the weirdest feeling. I was happy. I mean I was disappointed that I had lost 4 of my 12 goats and was hoping that it wasn't my big male, but overall I had a genuine feeling of happiness. It took me a bit to analyze and figure out how it could be. Finally, it hit me. I was overjoyed by the death of my goats because at least it wasn't a malnourished baby, or an HIV positive mother, or a young man in a car accident.

Over the past year my heart has broken for so many that have experienced death of a loved one. Just the other day before I had driven out to the land I was held up by a terrible looking accident. The young man was laying face down not moving in the middle of the road with blood coming from his head and mouth. I didn't get involved in this help effort cause there were many already working to get him to a hospital, but as I sat and watched I kept thinking about him getting up in the morning and sending his little ones off to school and kissing his wife goodbye. I sat wondering if he knew Jesus. I pray he did and it reminds me of our task.

The Harvest is now.



I didn't take this photo.

Upon arriving Andrew informed me that "wild animals" came and killed them. Nobody around knew what these animals were called in English, but I got enough information that I concluded that they were similar to dogs. That night I went home and looked up Ugandan wild dogs and printed off the photos. Sure enough these were the culprits. I guess there was a pack of 10 of them and boy did they do a number on the goats. A couple of them all that was left was 4 small hooves and a head. We butchered what was left and gave away the meat.




If you would have told me in high school that one day a pack of wild African dogs would eat 4 goats that I owned I would have told you that you were mad. Lucky for me I hadn't gotten around to naming most of my goats so it was easier to take. Unfotunately, one did have a name that a friend of mine had given it. Poor "Kisses"

Occupation or Ministry?

I have been thinking a lot about following Jesus. I am lucky that I have found a "job" where my specific goal is to share the love of Christ in all I do. Funny thing about what I do is that I don't plant churches or give sermons, yet it seems different than other work I have done.

I've realized that many people, myself included, have a hard time remembering that no matter what we do, we do it for the glory of God and his kingdom. I have it good cause I am now working a job that is classified as ministry which somehow makes it easier. I found it much harder to keep my focus when I was serving tables, or marshaling in airplanes, or driving tractors back in the states.

I wish our Savior had more influence on our job. I wish that our savior identified us better. For example: I wish that rather than a carpenter who is a Christian it would be a Christian carpenter and that people would understand the difference. So many people are identified by their work. We need to find our identity in Christ.

The point of all this is that I guess I am a farmer, businessman, construction worker, accountant, and teacher, but I only want to be a follower of Jesus.


I have recently been looking into posho mills. We buy 3,000 pounds of posho each week. Posho is basically flour made from maize. I have got really excited about the idea of starting our own mill. It must be in the blood. Anyway, I am hoping and dreaming that we could use this as both development and ministry. I think we could set it up like our women's circle that makes the bead necklaces. A group of men who work together and pray together.


I had my first "kid." So after Operation Christmas Goat I decided I wanted to raise some of my own and this little guy is my first addition (Since him I have had 2 more babies). I'm not really in it for the money so I think I will just use the babies I have as gifts, but it has been fun. I currently have 7 females, 1 male, and 3 babies. I still have not gotten around to naming them all, but it is on my to do list.



We also started to farm a small piece of our land. We have a bit of extra land behind where I built the playground. We hope someday to buy up a few more pieces and start a teaching farm. As for now I figured rather than it just sitting unused that we could plant some crops. I decided on tomatoes and onions after about 10 seconds of consideration. I'm thinking I should have done a bit of research. They are doing fine and everything, but they are a ton of work and I'm not exactly certain what we are going to do with all of them. My original thought process was that we could supplement our purchasing of these items with home grown ones, but it seems that we will have hundreds of times more than we could possibly ever use. I've been brainstorming and there is a woman with 4 kids that is staying with Katie currently because she got evicted from her home. I'm tossing around the idea of letting her set up a tomato and onion stand and sell our produce. It would give her an income and enable her to rent her own place and provide for her children (previously she would haul small bundles of firewood on her head into town).


We also have a chalkboard at our chapel now. This will be great for the Bible studies that we have each Saturday and will facilitate teaching a plethora of other things in the future. We also have been working on re-varnishing the entire playground and putting up a fence around our whole property. I am happy to have completed all three of these tasks.

So, that is a bit of what I've been working on recently. Well, at least the interesting stuff. I suppose I could get you some photos of me going through receipts and talking to government officials. Anyway, I have more to tell you, but I will save it for the next time. Hopefully at a much smaller interval than this time.

I encourage you all to come before the Lord and ask Him to help you turn your job into ministry. It is what we were made to do!

Downs and Ups

We will start with the downers and finish off on a high note.

Well, as some of you may know, Uganda is in a bit a turmoil recently. They had the elections a few months back and things have not been super great ever since. Compounding the problem of some disapproval of the President is the issue of inflation and oil prices increasing which drives up the prices of just about everything else. Anyway, this has led to some public uprisings and rioting.


Since getting back in November I've been the proud recipient of two separate tear gassings (yes I know gassings isn't a word). The first was following the election when they were counting votes and I decided to go to the bank which happened to be right across from the municiple building where they were doing said counting. The only details I know of what happened is that they shot the tear gas right near the edge of the road so it drifted right into my truck as I passed by. The second time I was just driving down Main St. and passed by the police station where they again shot the gas right near my truck and it drifted in. I tell you what, tear gas is very unpleasant. My eyes watered out of control, so much I couldn't see anything and you cough and your eyes burn and nose runs. All in all I wouldn't be disappointed if I have received my quota of tear gas.


Most of the rioting has been in the capital of Kampala, but Jinja has seen a bit. One day they brought out the military tanks and drove them around town to disperse crowds that were burning tires and participating in general riot shenanigans. We have also seen our fair share of military. It is weird seeing the sidewalk lined with 50 soldiers with AKs. I know that I am safe, but being in close proximity to such blatant death dealing forces is a feeling I don't like so much. Like I said earlier they had tanks. Real stinking military tanks with big canons and 50 cal machine guns mounted on top. Actually seeing them driving around town was bizarre and talking Christine (Amazima social worker) she said it reminds her of the wars from when she was younger up in northern Uganda. Different world over here.


I think as Americans we are so distant from any real war or even unrest that we don't even make the connection with what it really is. Scary to think that we feel like we (meaning the average American citizen) know enough or understand enough about warfare that we can have an opinion on if it is good or not or if we support it or not. I'm not making any stances for or against any war we have been involved in or saying I don't support our military and what they do, just saying being here and seeing the military face to face makes me realize I don't a clue about any of that stuff. As for me, I think I will stick to the pacifist route and focus on caring for, loving, and investing in others lives that they may know our mighty Savior and join me for eternity in heaven. Somebody else can figure out that other stuff.


Alright enough of that. Here are a few things I love about Uganda!

1) Little boys in suits. Man do I love this and you see it a decent amount. Ugandans enjoy looking sharp and they do it well. It might be an all of Africa thing cause my nephew Abra (Ethiopian) also an affinity towards suits.


2) I love the passport photo booth (errr passport photo alley). Here is seems you need passport photos quite often. The whole officialness of Uganda can get old, but the passport alley sure doesn't. I had to have 6 different ones taken because my ears were not visible enough for the bank. Finally I had to stuff paper behind my ears to make them stick out more. Who knows? I guess I will never be self-conscious about my ears sticking out. Well, I just love that the passport photos are taken in an alley behind the photo shop that they painted a block of the wall white for a backdrop. Excellent!


3) I love glucose biscuits! Not true, but I do love the name. Can you think of a more appealing name? I sure can't


4) I love having to slow or stop for cows on the road. Yeah it is an inconvenience, but they are sweet African bred cattle with sweet huge horns and they are being herded down the road! How can you complain about that?


5) I love the ice cream man. My love for the ice cream man pales in comparison for many Ugandans love for him, but I still love him. I love him more for the fact that he uses a cooler on the back of a bicycle or motorcycle to store his cold treat than the fact that I actually like his product. They also play the old ice cream truck song.


6) Finally I love my old security guard. I was only blessed with him for a few short months while I lived in an apartment, but they were good months that I will hold onto for as long as I live. Each time I would come home he would click his heels together and salute me. That sure makes a man feel special.


Well, I hope you enjoyed hearing a bit more about my time here. I am so thankful God has led me here. I am loving the adventure he has me on and I pray that I can continue to serve him wherever he leads. Until next time.

We left off with the completion of the chapel. This obviously calls for a party. I had a couple from my home church send me a donation to treat the boys and so I did. There is a hotel/resorty place in a nearby village that overlooks the Lake Victoria. We had stopped by there this past summer on our research field trip and the boys have talked about how they hope to one day go back. The day has arrived.



On my agenda for the night I had; pick up the boys, order food, eat food, go home. Unfortunately for me, Sam, Patrick, and the boys had a more Ugandan style gathering in mind. Ugandan parties, weddings, church services, funerals, and most any other sort of gathering are long drawn out events. I've heard stories of 6 sermons in one church service or weddings that just never end. I so far have not had many events of this sort so I am still in a bit of cultural rebellion. Anyway, their agenda went more like this; pick up the boys, Patrick gives an introduction speech, order food, Patrick give another longer speech, Sam gives a speech, several of the boys give speeches, Patrick does a question and answer session with the boys, I give a speech, eat food, they all decide that this was my gift to them so they want to have another gathering the next week that they plan, go home. Honestly it was great, but boy can Ugandans talk.



Fun story about the evening. I told them to go ahead and pick anything they wanted on the menu. Foolish foolish Brad. Of course every single one of the boys picks the highest priced item (lucky for me this was only $7.50 each). Each of the boys ends up with this big old fish. It comes out with a huge mound of rice as well. I was like "you guys really think you can finish all that?" Response from all of them "oh yeah, it isn't so much. We will finish." Guess how many finished. If you guessed zero you are correct. I took this prime opportunity to give them grief. "Can we get a round of doggie bags"


So, the next week they planned a dinner for Katie and I to thank us. We were also able to present them with their certificates of completion for the summer construction training program. They all chipped in and prepared for us rice and chicken. It was a generous gesture that I very much appreciated. I couldn't believe what they brought out next.



Side note-I have recently gone into the goat business. I have purchased 7 goats of my own and plan on raising them and breading them. Just for a hobby cause I really don't have much going on to keep me busy (that last comment is dripping with sarcasm).



Back to the story. They got me a goat! I couldn't believe it. Reminded me so much of the woman who gave the 2 copper coins. "Truly I tell you, these boys, gave more than I. I gave out of my wealth; but they, out of their poverty, gave everything."

It seems by the end of the day my brain is non-functioning which makes creative blogging difficult. I'm sure my brother will have some comment about how even fully rested my brain is only partially functioning so I'm going to preempt him.



We have completed the chapel! It took a bit longer than anticipated, but I should have learned by now to anticipate that my anticipations will be inaccurate. Ha what a horrible sentence.





A few details on the building process (not sure anybody will find any of this interesting, but here ya go):
-the slope of the land made the top side about 5 feet higher than the bottom which means filling which a ton of dirt. We had to bring in about 12 dump trucks full and wheelbarrow it all into the center, wetting it and packing as we went.
-We used 7,000 bundles of grass on the roof
-Each brick cost $0.04 and are homemade in the village; one of the boys we have been working with and teaching has saved his money and started his own brick making business where he rented a small plot of land and hired two others to make bricks for him.
-We used a final plaster coat of cement to make all the walls and floors nice and smooth. Basically it is cement without the gravel and applied at a thickness of about 1/2 inch.
-We didn't paint any of the walls cause we don't want to present ourselves as big and fancy. Perceptions to the locals is constantly on our mind.
-The poles used on the roof and for supports are eucalyptus poles, but we are not blessed with the cute Koala bears that most associate with the tree.
-We can fit over 400 children inside the building (probably closer to 600 if we seat them Ugandan style. By Ugandan style I mean on top of each other. Personal space doesn't exist here so much)
-We had the 10 young men (8 from the playground project and 2 new ones), 2 experienced construction workers, and my foreman Sam working on the project
-It took us about 2 and 1/2 months to complete the chapel construction





After finishing the roof we found that the span was a bit too far for the poles and the ones in the middle had been pushed out about 1/8 of an inch from the weight on the. This doesn't seem like much, but it is a major concern for the longevity of the building.

I had my trusted welder make us some beams with plates in the middle that we could bolt together to draw the poles back into position. We then reinforced the roof with poles running lengthwise to keep them from again pulling apart. Praise God it all worked out. I am now confident in the structural integrity of the building which is kinda important.




Here are some completed photos of the children enjoying the solace from the intense Ugandan sun. The project turned out marvelously and will open so many doors for future missions opportunities in the community. We are dreaming up so many different ways to use the building and excited to see how God is glorified through it.

Chapel Genesis

Update on the craziness that has been my life. One of our employees resigned 2 weeks back which has added to my duties as well as required me to learn many new sides and goings on of our organization. Although it has made things a bit hectic I have actually enjoyed getting more immersed in all the aspects of what we do here.

Added on top of all this we have just completed the election season here in Uganda. Due to the happenings in Egypt and several other countries in the past few months there was some concern about the peaceful proceedings of elections here in Uganda. So far it has been calm, which is an answer to prayer.

Anyway, we are nearing the completion of the chapel project that I started upon arriving back in Uganda, Nov 15th. Lets start at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start. When you read you begin with A, B, C. When you sing you begin with doe, re, mi. When you build you begin with research, drawings, and foundation. Sorry there was absolutely no possible way to make that rhyme.

We originally planned to make it 26' x 30', but after roughly calculating how much space a child fills when sitting, we realized that we needed it bigger to fit the 300 or so kids that come each Saturday. We decided to make it 26' x 45', which ends up being 1170 square feet.

We also decided that we want the same grass thatched roof we used on the gazebo for the playground. Even though they end up being a bit more expensive they have so many benefits to counterbalance. They keep the building cooler than a tin roof. It is somewhat a dying art, which we want to support. It is nice buying the materials from a village of local women who cut the grass themselves and bundle it (personally my favorite reason). Finally, it is absolutely gorgeous. Here are some photos of 3 of the 15 or so women who spent their days in the hot sun cutting grass to support their families. In the states seeing old school manual labor is a rarity and here you see it everywhere you look. I love it!




Now it was time to assemble the crew. We decided to work with all the boys from the playground project to further their learning and better prepare them for a job opportunity in the future. We also picked back up Sam my foreman from this summer and two older experienced builders that Sam had worked with in the past, Salim and Abu, that came with high praise. We also hired on another boy from the neighborhood who didn't work with us this summer, but in retrospect I wish he had. His name is James and he lives in the house next to the Amazima land. James doesn't speak a lick of English, but he is a work horse. It seems he volunteers for all the worst jobs and does them with a smile on his face. These are the type of guys I really like being around. Can't wait till I have a free second to take some Lugandan classes so I can talk to him. He is pictured below in the red shirt and bucket hat.



Everything here is done a bit different. Obviously we lack some of the equipment the more developed West uses, but there are still other differences. Foundations here are not poured with re-bar running through them. Rather, they dig the trenches and use a brick wall as the core. Then they are covered with cement. I'm assuming this is to save costs cause cement and metal are both expensive here. As for the equipment I know that a cement mixer would be nice. Luckily, I am the only one who knows the labor this would save and to all my workers mixing by hand is standard. For this project we mixed several hundred bags of cement. Yikes!!! Oh, and for those of you who followed the summer project, we still get to run to the well for water.


It was impressive to see the improvement the boys had made in just 3 months of work this past summer. They are no longer students, but fully capable construction workers. Obviously, there are times that they have questions or need correction, but they were confident and able to carry out most tasks easily after short explanations.

I can't tell you how much I love what I am doing here. Praise Jesus he has led me here and prepared and equipped me in a way that I can serve Him and His kingdom.