MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 04-15-2012

Greetings from sunny Uganda! Things are progressing well here in Africa. We baptized 12 at our Easter service last week. We have 4 preaching points going, divided between the Bassetts and us. Construction is nearly finished on the Juru building. Classes at Sangano are going well. I am continuing Genesis, Jeff has finished Biblical Leadership, and we'll be commencing Bible Study Methods next.

We said our goodbyes to our good friends the Trachts last week. They are going back to the US for furlough, so we have to make do without our friends for nine months. It was awfully hard on the kids. The Tracht kids are over so much they're practically Huckabees by now. Shortly before their departure, we had them over to spend the night, and the whole gang camped outside. They had a blast. Our prayers are with them as they visit America, check in with their churches, and raise some more support.

Good news, unless a tornado destroys our house at the last minute, we now have a tenant! The last of the repairs were completed and we changed to a different property manager. Our new renter moves in next month. This will GREATLY ease our financial burden, and free up funds for other more useful things, rather than a house we cannot sell and are not using.

Today was high adventure. The actual church service and Sunday School went great. We took some time to visit with some of the church folks afterwards. It had been raining all night and all morning, so the roads were pretty sloppy going out to Nakivale. They were worse coming home. The road crews have been making excellent progress, but the construction has disturbed the road surface temporarily, which results in swampy conditions. The worst choke point is on the pass crossing the mountain. A truck had gotten stuck in the road, leaving a narrow section barely greater than a car's width to get by. Another small car had gotten stuck in the middle of the road on the approach, so I was going to pass him and go on by. That's when my four-wheel drive beast got well and truly stuck. What's worse, I was dangerously near to the edge of a six foot embankment, which would have tumbled the car down the mountainside had we gone over it. Every time I tried to go forward or backwards, the car would start sliding sideways towards the drop-off. I had everybody get out of the car and go stand on the other side of the road. I figure pneumonia is way easier to cure than death-from-rolling-down-the-mountain-in-a-car. 

Needless to say, I parked it 'til I could get a crew to help dig us out. Fortunately, there was a bunch of guys busy earning money digging out stuck taxis, so they agreed to help us for a nominal fee. They very industriously dug down to drier soil under all the tires, and then gathered around to push, from the side near the embankment and from the rear. After a couple times of moving forward, getting stuck again, and dug out, we finally went skidding and sliding around the truck and on to more stable ground.Praise the LORD, we made it home alive! The driver of the truck that was causing the blockage very generously allowed the children to come sit in the cab so they wouldn't have to stand in the rain. Anna was outside taking pictures. Apart from getting wet, cold, and quite muddy, we are none the worse for wear.

Tomorrow I will be heading to Rwanda for four or five days with Jeff Bassett and Matt Stensaas. We are taking a survey trip on behalf of BIMI to commence the paperwork necessary to establish an NGO in the country. This will open the country to BIMI missionaries to Rwanda. It's a two-and-a-half hour drive from Mbarara to the border, so it's not a terribly long drive for us here. We are also going to be getting the lay of the land for any future ministry opportunities. Some of our people in Nakivale are from Rwanda, and may return some day to start churches, and we would be helping them get established. Pray for our safety on the road and away from home. Pray for the safety of our families.