Isaiah 43

This week, this chapter has popped up several times. On Monday at the hospital, a patient's sister read it to us, then at LT Warriors, one of the guys read it to end the session. It also came up in devotions, so I think God is trying to remind me of something! I thought I would share it with you...

"Israel, the Lord who created you says,

"Do not be afraid - I will save you,

I have called you by name - you are mine.

When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you;

your troubles will not overwhelm you.

When you pass through fire, you will not be burnt;

the hard trials that come will not hurt you.

For I am the Lord your God, the holy God of Israel, who saves you...

you are precious to me and I love you and give you honour.

Do not be afraid - I am with you!" 

Isaiah 43: 1-5

I also had a look at the Message version...

But now, God’s Message,

    the God who made you in the first place, Jacob,
    the One who got you started, Israel:
“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.
    I’ve called your name. You’re mine.
When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.
    When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.
When you’re between a rock and a hard place,
    it won’t be a dead end—
Because I am God, your personal God,
    The Holy of Israel, your Savior.
I paid a huge price for you:
    all of Egypt, with rich Cush and Seba thrown in!
That’s how much you mean to me!
    That’s how much I love you!
I’d sell off the whole world to get you back,
    trade the creation just for you.

I think this is pretty apt for me at the moment and a lot of my family and friends back home. God encourages us, He will not leave us.

(can't believe i'm saying this...) The Beginning of the End...

1st June
We kicked off June with a little lady's birthday. Berindah is the daughter of one of the local volunteers and she was turning 3! We gave her a little dress which she was so excited about and showed it off with her 'model walk' round the house! We love being her honorary Aunties and Uncle. 

3rd June

It was Martyrs Day here in Uganda so we all got a much needed day off. Susie, Anna, Kathryn, Olivia and I went into Kampala for a touch of retail therapy. The four of us girls then went to Cafe Javas for (very, very, very) big slices of cake! It was nice to spend some time together where we weren't thinking about work. It made me realise how grateful I was for my team and how God has blessed us with such close friendships.

 5th June
Thursday brought along community outreach. We love this time of the week. This Thursday we had chosen some families to bless with aid so we split into two groups and went to their homes. I was with Nic, Kathryn and Anna and we firstly visited Fatumah, Hadijah and Letifa. Fatumah and Hadijah are two little girls who come along to children's club every week and are so full of smiles and giggles. Letifa was born only a month or two ago and she's very tiny! They had their cousin, Gaddafi, staying with them. We gave them each a new pair of shoes and a tshirt. We thank God that he gave us this opportunity. 

We were due to visit Michael, Evas and Vicky's family next. As we were walking towards their house all the children started telling us that they weren't there anymore. We asked around and found out that their Mum had taken them to the village. I was sad to hear this as Michael has a special little place in my heart (I wrote a blog about him previously) but I know it's for his best interest. Please hold this family in your prayers as they are going through a tough time. 

4th, 10th, 11th June

School! We are thoroughly enjoying our time at Ruth Mother Care and can't bear to think that we only have 4 days left there. Susie and I are still working in Nursery class and are making our way through the phonics. Over these two weeks we have tackled 'z' 'q' 'v' 'x' 'ch' and 'sh'... with some interesting results! We are only there two days a week but we can always see evidence that Teacher Monica and Ruth are revising what we have done during the rest of the week and using the phonics in other lessons. I still get bemused when one of the children brings me their work and they've filled the gap of "_ _ eep" with "xr" instead of "sh". Just HOW did you get that answer? The A-Z of animals is as popular as ever (as you can see with the photo of Teacher Susannah). We're now working out what to prioritise in our last four days at the school :(

12th June

We had picked out a few more families to bless this week. Susie and I went with Moses to visit George and Innocent to give them some new shoes. We then went to see Tina who has become my little shadow over the past few months! Her mum is 8 months pregnant so we pray for her safety in her final month and delivery! We love spending time in the FBC community.

 We may be in another continent, but that didn't stop us from supporting England last night in the World Cup! Due to the time difference, the match didnt start until 1am here and we eventually went to bed just after 3! Unfortunately, England were beaten by Italy which made getting up at 7am for church that bit more difficult! 

I cannot believe how quickly the last few months have flown by. It absolutely breaks my heart to think about leaving this wonderful country. 2 weeks of work left... can we go back to October?