Uganda – 22, 2009 (Lina Sibert)

Fast forward to today:

The Parable of the Sower keeps invading my mind. Our trip to Uganda was a blessing. Many seeds were scattered by our ultimate sower. What kind of soil are we? I feel as we reenter the world of luxury, convenience, disposable everything and demands on our time, and energy, that thorns are already clambering to choke the good plants. This morning I washed away the last mud stains from my feet, but those stains are the only ones I wish to wash away. In my heart, joyous
engraved images refuse to stop popping up into consciousness.

God’s glory in the beautiful sunsets and sunrises over the hills surrounding Kaihura; the lush land; kids walking along ,no shoes and torn shirts but wearing a smile, wanting to hold our hands; Stella-5 years old- Home Again-ready smiling eyes with curled up long lashes;
Vincent and Victor also 5, helping one another, holding hands; Yousef, painting alongside me using the brush like I showed him, cleaning the spots on the floor as he went along, as I return half an
hour later, Yousef was still alone, painting with great concentration that great big room; The handsome face of one of the Home Again kids spotted with yellow dots as he took on the rolling of the highest walls in the hallway with yellow paint; The singing as the girls from the Dorcas Vocational school were helping with the painting; Baby Paige amazing smile as she stops crying after being picked up; Mary’s (Mary is my name for her) gentle, peaceful face, she is new at Dorcas
and is deaf and mute. In spite of her deafness she danced perfectly to the rhythm of music during the celebration where the community gathered to thank our team for building the fence around their primary school; Edwin, an orphan at Agape, who humbly and expectantly stood
10 feet away from where we sat waiting to be invited in the conversation. Edwin’s peaceful patient spirit shone and was visible on the outside.

I wish I could paint from memory the kaleidoscope of beautiful faces and memories. I wish I could paint the delight of one of the older ladies in the village when I asked to see her house, or the
indescribable grateful expression on the 70 year old lady, the “Mayor”, when Sarah Beth and Becca cleaned and put a bandaid on her hand, she had simply volunteered to help at the fence project and was sharpening stakes that we would use for locating the posts with her machete, she slightly cut her palm. We gave her a work glove. The next morning she was walking around town wearing her work gloves.

I wish I could somehow give a picture of gentle, beautiful ,content Eva, who took care of about 25 orphans alone. Or paint or describe Marguerite servant heart, who worked in the closed smokey kitchen all day to produce feasts for us every day. I wish I could paint confidant, beautiful Esther, she knew who she was, a Princess. I wish I could capture in all its nuances Brenda’s beauty and gentle, caring spirit. I wish I could describe Faith’s powerful prayers or repaint the picture of Faith kneeling and washing my son’s Andrew’s feet when he was sick. I wish I could come close to giving a picture of Hannington’s loving care. I think if I could with a sanctified imagination combine those faces together, I could come close to seeing the face of Jesus!

We were captured by blessings. Blessings surrounded us. Katie and Chris, with their two boys, Logan and Colby, closed every evening with amazing praise and worship music. Their worship moved us from exhaustion to surrender and filled and empowered us for the next day; There is so much more… Our kids organizing the older boys room in the orphanage after painting it and leaving chewing gum on every pillow; Our kids extending themselves beyond the point of exhaustion
to finish the day’s job; kindness shown and received; The 4 hours short church service; Emma’s beautiful sermon prepared an hour before the service; our kids amazingly mature testimonies; the responses from the young kids in the congregation. I could write on and on…

We were simply captured by Joy. Much Laughter and tears were shared. What we left behind in Africa was a fence that has become a bridge, and a better home for the orphans with cheerfully colored walls, what we carried back with us is an eternal perspective of our interconnectedness as one creation in christ; a humility that teaches us when we think we may teach; A glimpse of the face of Jesus clearly visible in our Ugandan friends’ faces. These are the treasures we
brought home!

My prayer is that this kaleidoscope of memories will not fade away but stay as bright as it is today, and somehow act as a weed killer as the present and its cares tries to choke what may blossom.

Lina Sibert