Uganda Trip #13 | Post 3
It is football playoff time. I have found myself frustrated with the NFL’s moving some of their playoff games to Prime as opposed to stations that are open to all. Except…when you can’t pick up your normal stations in Uganda and Amazon Prime is available at 3:30 am. I Caught the third quarter until I felt sleep beckoning me and I responded with 2.5 hours of sleep.
Today, Sunday, is the calm before the storm. We do a fair amount of sitting around and studying as we await the arrival of our trainees tonight in order to start classes tomorrow. We went to church today at Living Stones Community Church which is part of the 100-acre compound we are living on. The church is quite young and is a unique mix of music done mostly in Acholi (the local language) and the rest of the service is translated between English and Acholi. With my body in full revolt, I had to work really hard when seated to stay awake. Lack of sleep is a lot harder to deal with when you are in a passive role (seated during a sermon) rather than teaching. I am very encouraged by what I see happening and do not want to send a message that I find what they are doing boring (It’s quite encouraging) or below me (which it certainly is not). I know I spend a lot of time talking about sleep and lack thereof, but it really is a big deal. My hope is that I have enough energy to deliver solid instruction when the time comes. I made it through the service and took my first of two naps today, hoping I did not destroy my chance for sleep tonight.
What I need to trust God for at this point is that He will supply the strength, attitude and presence of mind for me to serve the trainees well. While it is certainly draining going through this process, it is so worth it.
The Pastoral Training Center (PTC) we are teaching in is part of Living Stones Community Church, which is heavily influenced by Four Corners Ministries (FCM), a US-based missions organization. It is a sometimes tricky relationship, as FCM is in partnership with the church. The value they are trying to uphold, which is consistent with Faith Community Church, is that the local church should be the driver and that “para” church ministries (such as FCM) and Training Leaders International (TLI-the group that I am part of here) come alongside the local church to help them fulfill their mission on the ground here in Uganda. The church created the PTC in order to see an abiding network of Gospel Centered, Bible Saturated African Lead Churches. TLI, FCM and the PTC (that’s a lot of letters!) are all coming alongside the church to help them pursue this dream.
It helps that I am doing this task with Mike Evans and Stu Dix. We have probably worked together in this cause, making 15 or so trips to Uganda together. Our friendship and comfort level with one another makes these times much more enjoyable.
Please pray that we serve the trainees well. We want to strengthen the church here and see her become more effective to their villages.