Days 10-16: Into the jam

27.9.09: DAY SIXTEEN
Hello again. Unfortunately a good selection of the things which I was grateful hadn’t happened last week, have happened this week. I’m filling tissues as I type and squeezing green oranges from outside my window into hot water. I had a couple days home alone Thursday/Friday which were also tough in parts. Lonely, and aware of how little I have done for the folks here in contrast with how they have looked after me at great (unadmitted) cost to themselves.
Still, I’m okay. There have been some good times of meeting Jesus and going on adventures, as well. Also I noticed a school sign down the road, proudly bearing the official school motto, ‘No Pain, No Gain.’ Fair enough, but probably not the place I’d send my kids...

21.9.09: DAY TEN (In the back of the Landrover, on the farm, Kiboga)
I just turned down the chance to go back out for a walk with the cows. Sure, my shorts, shoes, socks are still soaking wet, from the downpour that caught us on our last trip. But I wonder about myself; am I wussing out? I feel quite uncomfortable being out here; not physically, but being worried about thirst and needing the loo and all the rest of it; how I’d deal with all that stuff and being a pain to everyone else; not being in control of the situation.

I was talking to Brian about it, and he said: ‘what’s all this about being in control? You’re born again, aren’t you?’

Do I have a problem about control? Always got to be on top of circumstances, or else paralysed with fear? God’s been showing me I’m not in control of my work, and to not let that stop me doing it; to enter into and stick with work I’m not in control of. Which is kind of important – how else can you ever achieve great things?

Of course, Africans are pretty okay with not being in control. They don’t worry too much about forward planning – Emmanuel waited until we were totally stuck in the swamp before he decided to jump out and engage the four wheel drive. But maybe forward planning is a bit of a killer. Maybe if I had taken an umbrella and my mac out on that little walk I wouldn’t have got wet. But I wouldn’t have got to run through the scrub after the shepherd, bounding between tussocks to keep out of the thickening mud, as my glasses fogged and my shirt stuck to my shoulders, knowing there was no way I’d get back to the huts before I was completely soaked. Wonderful. Being exposed to life is so much more fun than controlling it.

24.9.09: DAY FOURTEEN
Last night I took another adventure step – taking the taxi home from Namuwongo at night – changing at the massive jam of the main taxi park: which I’d never been to. It was fantastic. I absolutely love the feel of a big city centre in the evening – thousands of people all trying to get home, rammed together and shaken about; driving over traffic islands; shouting destinations; music blaring from all sides; neon lights everywhere; friendly advice; different languages and dress; mess; street sellers; horns blaring; not knowing where you’re going or how things are done, whether to get off when the taxi you’re on splutters out every few seconds and has to be started again, slipping back down the hill each time… Sitting there, I thought again about white water rafting down Bujagali falls and bungee jumping into the Nile. I could do that. It would be brilliant. I wonder how much they charge?

So I’m encouraged something’s coming loose in me. Africa’s making a man of me again. I pray so. I pray it lasts. I pray for more of the same.

27.9.09: DAY SIXTEEN
Turned up Friday for the all night prayer meeting - mainly as a way to see people – but no power in Namuwongo so it was off. Actually a real gift: got to spend the evening with Jacob, Joel and Emma(nuel) at their epic bachelor pad (Eric, Isaac, Ezekiel and possibly a couple of others also stay there, in what is probably a three bedroom house). Proper christian bachelor pads may be the best thing ever. Can’t wait to get into another one.

We had some interesting chat about Bible stuff, and I held forth on a few topics. Then I got my mind blown off by hearing the guys talk about the things God is doing in Uganda. The CU at Makerere University, for example, has 15,000 members, carrying out a thousand mission trips a term, helping 250,000 people a year be saved by Jesus! That’s almost unbelievable. I’ve seen all the desperately uncool ‘God is good’ slogans on roadside shops and Matatus (public taxis; a driver, conductor and 14 passengers in a Toyota Hiace), but had no idea what was behind it. All the ways of doing mission are so offensive to my western sensibility (even calling public evangelistic events, ‘crusades’), but they are having wonderful results for the country. I might have just stumbled into the middle of a revival.

The dedication of Christians is there as well as the fruit: Jacob let slip he used to lead the CU, and for that whole year got no more than 2 hours of sleep a night! Now I know in the UK people aren’t anything like as open to hearing the good news about Jesus, but I do wonder why we couldn’t put as much effort into mission as Ugandans clearly do. Weekly overnight prayer meetings & weeks of fasting seem to be a matter of course, where to me they sound virtually impossible. Maybe it’s because we just don’t believe it would do any good. I certainly can’t comprehend doing all that myself. But this is definitely one of the reasons I’m here – to taste some stuff that takes the lid off my walk with God. The guys have promised to expose me to some stuff that’s going on. Can’t wait. I’ve always burned to live a great story – I hope this will be another chapter greater than the one before.

Please pray for:
- My cold to go by tomorrow so I can go in and put together the drama we are supposed to be doing for the ‘crusade’ in Namuwongo every night this week.
- The crusade in general - lots of people to turn to Jesus and be welcomed into the church family.
- The drama to be quality & the team to get better through it.
- Me preaching on Friday!
- Picking up my friend Steph from the airport & her first days here – all to go smoothly.
- My friendships to keep growing.
- Capacity to do everything this week well.
- Joy!

I love and miss you all. Be great to hear from you.
Tim : )