Daily Routines

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." -Matthew 16:24-25

Lately, I have been really challenged by this verse. While I have read it numerous times, I honestly don't think I truly understood what it actually meant, until now. Living and working overseas is an amazing learning experience and I find myself being stretched daily. But if someone were to tell me a few months ago, that I would one day find myself living a "comfortable" life in Uganda...I would have thought that they were crazy! How could someone, ever find themselves comfortable...when you are so far out of our comfort zone??

However, recently I have found just that. It is easy, no matter where you live, to fall into the daily routines of life: Get up, go to work, go home, and go to sleep. When you work in ministry, it is especially easy, to just focus on pouring into the people you work for or with. But somewhere down the line, I believe that we have forgotten that God has called our lives to be a ministry. We need to be open and receptive to what the Lord has in store for us each day...even if it means not accomplishing everything on OUR "lists." We need to completely die to ourselves and be fully surrendered to what Lord has in store.

This is not always easy and so each day I find myself asking God to help me walk in everything He is calling me to do....and each day I am blown away by things that are happening. I am so blessed for this amazing opportunity and I can't wait to see what Lord is going to do over the coming months!

A Much Needed Update!

I don't have to much time but I wanted to post a quick update...

As many of you know, last week a pretty crazy but I am doing much better! Work is amazing...I absolutely love these girls and I am blessed beyond words to work with them. A few weeks ago the staff at Purse of Hope began meeting every Monday morning to pray and intercede for the girls...and we are already seeing huge breakthroughs in their lives. It amazes me how we will pray for things, and literally that same day, those things will already come into fruition. The Lord is incredibly faithful and I know that these visible changes in the girls, are only possible in and through HIM!!

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." Matthew 7:7-8

But as we rejoice in God's faithfulness, I ask that you all continue to pray for these girls! I know the Lord has big plans in store for Purse of Hope and that this is just the beginning! Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Assurance of the Lord's Help

“But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My friend.
You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,

‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

“Behold, all those who were incensed against you
Shall be ashamed and disgraced;
They shall be as nothing,
And those who strive with you shall perish.
You shall seek them and not find them—
Those who contended with you.
Those who war against you
Shall be as nothing,
As a nonexistent thing.
For I, the LORD your God, will hold your right hand,
Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’

“Fear not, you worm Jacob,
You men of Israel!
I will help you,” says the LORD
And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
“Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;
You shall thresh the mountains and beat them small,
And make the hills like chaff.
You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away,
And the whirlwind shall scatter them;
You shall rejoice in the LORD,
And glory in the Holy One of Israel.

"The poor and needy seek water, but there is none,
Their tongues fail for thirst.
I, the LORD, will hear them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
I will open rivers in desolate heights,
And fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
And the dry land springs of water.
I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree,
The myrtle and the oil tree;
I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine
And the box tree together,
That they may see and know,
And consider and understand together,
That the hand of the LORD has done this,
And the Holy One of Israel has created it."

-Isaiah 41:8-20

Gulu University Field Trip

I have officially started my job and...I LOVE IT!!! Last Saturday we took the girls from the Total Impact House on a field trip to Gulu University. Our tour guide, Nelson, gave us a wonderful tour of the campus and told the girls about all the different areas of study offered at the school. We had an amazing time and ended the day drinking sodas and discussing our dreams for the future!!

Apwoyo Matek!

Ever since the RH team left, I have been helping the Tabers watch their 3 amazing girls: Toby, Tristin, and Timory. During this transition period, Tracy and I thought that we would try to embrace the culture and become Acholi.

Step 1: Riding a Boda (side saddle): Check

Step 2: Balancing a jerrycan full of water on my head: Still haven't mastered this quite yet

Step 3: Learning Luo: Auntie Susan from Purse of Hope quizzes me every time I greet her but I still find myself saying "APWOYO" or "Rabbit" instead of "apwoyo" or "thank you"

Step 4: Trying to wash our clothes by hand in basins. Easier said than done! Word to the wise...before attempting...one should work on their upper body strength. Tracy and I took our 2 big bags of dirty clothes over to the 31 Bits compound to do laundry. After an hour and a half of scrubbing and washing and scrubbing and washing...we had only done 1/3 of laundry and we are pretty sure that the clothes were more dirty than before. However, we were a huge source of entertainment for the ladies.

Now all I have to do is kill a chicken and I am officially Acholi!

Kids of the Future!

I know it has been a while since I last blogged but...I am officially on the ground in Uganda! The team from Rock Harbor left a few days ago to head back to the states, after an AMAZING 2 week missions trip. (For more information on what we did visit: www.rockharbor.org/blog/uganda/)

I don't officially start my job until the end of July but I have already been over to the house and met all the girls from Purse of Hope! Words can not even express how excited I am for this wonderful opportunity. I am so blessed to be able to work with the these bright, caring, and motivated girls. (Plus I love that they call me "Auntie!!!") Just yesterday we took them on a field trip to tour Gulu University in hopes of inspiring them to work hard in school. All of the girls are incredibly talented and have aspirations, hopes, and dreams for their futures. Our mission is just to provide them with the tools to make those dreams a reality. Look out Gulu because here come the next lawyers, journalists, nurses and teachers!

Human trafficking Video

UGADA go to UGANDA

The day has finally come...I'm moving to Uganda!!! That’s right...you heard me....I'M MOVING TO UGANDA FOR 5 MONTHS!! As many of you know, I will be taking part in a missions trip with Rockharbor Church in Gulu from June 26th-July 11th. After the missions trip, I will be staying in Gulu to intern for a organization called "Purse of Hope." Everything was finalized this past week and it has been so amazing to just watch the Lord line everything up perfectly! Words can not express my excitement! God has been so faithful to answer my prayers to live and work in Northern Uganda. This internship has always been a dream of mine and I am SO excited for the opportunity to minister to these women and children, who have been through so much! I can't wait to play a role in what He is doing in the lives of many girls through Purse of Hope.

"Purse of Hope" is an amazing organization that provides two aftercare programs for women and children exploited in the commercial sex industry. The first program, via the Total Impact House, is located in Gulu (Northern Uganda). This program is comprehensive and provides ongoing support to meet the complex needs of the girls. Total Impact House provides a nurturing, family-like environment, counseling, bible-study and prayer, creative therapy, formal education, and/or vocational training. The goal of this program is to help these girls heal from the lingering wounds, of abuse, poverty, and sexual exploitation, as well as empower and equip them with the life skills necessary for self-sustainability. The second program is based in the slums of Kampala (the capital city of Uganda). Purse of Hope is working with a large group of women and girls that once had no hope for a life outside of prostitution. These women are now attending school and even starting their own micro-businesses!

More information about the organization can be found at purseofhope.org. The website also gives the link to the blog, which is purseofhope.blogspot.com Be sure to watch the videos!

But you have a part to play as well...as we are in DEFINITE need of prayer... Here are just some things to keep in mind when praying:

Health & Safety: pre-trip, in route , on the ground & post-trip

Openness & a sensitivity to the Spirit: So we may be used as He sees fit

Spiritual warfare: it has unfortunately already began...I have been experiencing difficulties, stresses & trials that seem utterly unexpected, and at times utterly overwhelming. So please pray for the protection!

Internship: As I step into this new role, I am having to completely rely on the Lord. So please pray for strength, boldness, creativity, and patience! Lastly, please pray that God would bless our efforts as we continue to pour into these young girls!

The Purse of Hope Girls: Pray that God would provide comfort, healing and new means of employment for the girls during this time. It is my prayer that they would see themselves, as God sees them, and that they would know that they are worthy of being loved!

Throughout the next 5 months I will also be posting updates here on my blog! Thank you all for your continued support and encouragement! I am so excited to see what the Lord is going to do!

Love,

Bammer