MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 02-24-2021

Greetings! It has been an eventful few months, in so many ways.

Our Pastor’s procedure went well. Thank you for praying. Pastor Spilger was cleared by his doctor, and it appears there was no permanent damage to his heart. God was very gracious.

Shortly before Christmas, everybody in our church, Pastor included, contracted China Virus. It swept through the whole church in about a week. Pastor Spilger got very sick, and had to be hospitalized. He has recovered and come home, but his illness, in juxtaposition with his heart attack, has made him very weak. So we and others are sharing the ministry duties while he works on getting his strength, and his voice, back.

He has asked me to stay in America until the end of May while he recovers. I have agreed. We are very anxious to get back to the field, but our church needs us for a bit longer. I will be teaching Sunday School, visiting the families of some of our Victory Club kids, and providing pulpit fill as necessary. We are also preparing material to teach our church people in Uganda when we return. 

Additionally, during the lengthy lockdown, we observed that some of our children were having a much harder time adapting to America than we realized. Some things happened to us on the mission field that had lasting effects on them, greater than any of us knew. We have been working with them to get them counseling. Our Pastor has advised us to use this time to continue working with our children, so when we return to Uganda in May, they are better established and settled.

I made a promise before I ever became a missionary that I would never sacrifice my children for the ministry. I have seen too many preacher’s and missionary’s kids utterly self destruct because their parents were focused on ministry to their detriment. Missionary kids seem to have a particular problem with this. Our Pastor does not want this to happen to us or our children.

So in addition to needing me to remain and assist, our Pastor is counseling us to remain and make sure our kids are okay before we go back. They are making good progress. Pray for them.

We are staying through this semester, which they are again doing remotely while Covid restrictions at PCC remain in effect. Pray for us. This has been a very unusual interlude in our ministry, but I am confident it will all work out for the best. Our desire is longevity on the mission field and we are confident the steps we are taking with our children will contribute toward this goal. Thank you for your patience with us.