The Iffymobile: Trip #9

Sunday, May 15th

Today we worshipped at the church on the compound known as Abaana’s Hope, which also houses the Pastoral Training Center which we serve in. Things were definitively livelier than I’m used to as over thirty pastors from our group joined the regulars. Without any sermons to preach or matters to be responsible over, they were able to enjoy themselves. One of our Lead Trainers did the teaching. He not only asked for input but gave us permission to do a feedback session with the other trainees, so they could better understand what type of sermons would result from our nine weeklong sessions over four years (counting COVID). His humility is the type of leadership we hope will mark the future network we envision.  

In the afternoon we finished a lesson we started the day before, which included a one-hour presentation/discussion by 1/3 of our group. It went well, with the four participants displaying good ability to apply what they have learned. It is good to see the fruit of their efforts (and to be honest, ours) played out in this arena. 

We went out for dinner at an Indian restaurant in town (Gulu), which is 45 minutes away. The eighteen of us made our way into town in three different vehicles, leaving at different intervals, because you never waste a trip into town. We preordered the meals and they came out quickly-but it would have been worth it a bit of a wait. Good food with people you enjoy is more than worth it. We were celebrating the 40th birthday of Jessica, one of the three couples who have made the move to Uganda. She spoke of having a desire for the nations since age nine and after securing a Ph.D. in microbiology, getting married, and five kids (all girls) later, she and David have hopes of long-term service here. 

The early dinner discussion was about one of the three vehicles they didn’t dare drive home and one that was suspect. Every “check” light was on, and the power steering goes out when in reverse. The picture included here is during the time we were trying to figure out how to get eighteen people home, making sure all the kids were in the “good” cars and the rest of us in the “iffymobile”. We made it home without incident, with one day of teaching left. Tomorrow our teaching commitment is over, but Mike Evans and I will stay around for a while longer. Stay tuned for future posts.

It’s nice to watch FCC online from here.

Larry Szyman

Pastor for Missional Life