Today we wrapped up our last day of the mission in Dokolo and had a record-breaking day. When we turned down the dirt road we saw lots of people heading in the direction we were going, they were all walking towards the church. We pulled up and saw a mass amount of people, already lined up and waiting. Doctors saw over 1,600 patients and we passed out 1,000 nets. It makes us feel accomplished that we did what we came to do, but at the same time we realize how much more help is needed. Malaria is still a major threat here and unfortunately we are unable to give assistance to everyone, which is heartbreaking. Tuberculosis is also heavily diagnosed and sickle cell in babies. Doctors were able to test for HIV and other infections that are crucial to containing in the population. Ulcers are common as many people can only afford one meal a day, usually eating a root called, cassava. Because people can not afford to finish their homes, they have to build huts which makes for unsanitary living conditions and introduces common illnesses. Mother’s who are widowed or abandoned are helpless and left to watch over the kids, often with no way to make a living. The situation is dire, but these people have a light in their eyes, a tender soul, and are filled with gratitude for any help. 

Even though it seems like we barely left a dent, we made a difference in many lives and we can still do more. This week we saw 9,000 people, gave out 6,000 nets and over 6,000 medications. The prayer tent was busy and God was definitely working through us. The six of us are fired up and already thinking of ways to make more of an impact next year. This mission can not be done without generous donations from you all and ask that you consider donating again for our next trip to Uganda. Little by little, we can make a difference, and it starts with funding, the rest we can handle. 

Thank you for following along on our journey. 

Today was our first day at our last church in Uganda.  The church was located in Dokolo and was almost an hour’s drive from the hotel.  The pastor is brand new to the church and Mama Aidah said he has absolutely nothing, so she is providing some food for his family and we are donating some of our clothes for his wife. 

Michael is having some major allergy problems so we let him slide on prayer duty today, but he did work nets all day.   We have had so many people come to Christ and/or recommit their lives to Christ this week that it is just amazing.   As usual we went out in teams of two and rotated off every few hours.  Natalie and Doug prayed for a young woman today whose husband abandoned her.  She has twins and no means of support, no food and soon, no place to live.   She has been staying with her sister who now wants her to leave. I would love to say that this scenario is the exception.  But unfortunately, it is not.  We hear this day after day.  Men leave their wives and children and go to live with a new “wife.”  We can only offer prayer that God will provide for and protect them.    

We woke up to a fresh morning after some heavy rainstorms last night.  A  “hearty” breakfast prepared us head to the second day at the Uganda Presbyterian in Basmindyran, about 20 minutes north of Lira.  First was Karen’s devotion out of Romans 8:26-28.  As we go out to pray this verse reminds us that we need not worry that we won’t have the word’s to pray correctly because the Holy Spirit will speak in harmony with God’s will and God will know what our needs are. 
 
 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

When we arrived at the Church the clinic was full (the inside of the church) and outside under the tents was packed registering for medical care.  By the end of the day we saw over 1100 people.  We gave out over 1050 nets so we were a few short but not too bad.  We also gave out over 150 pairs of reading glasses.  We had a few hiccups over the day.  We ran out of envelops to put the medicine in about halfway through the morning .  Fortunately, we were not too far from town, so we remedied the situation.  We ran short of an antibiotic I can’t pronounce but we substituted with another I can’t pronounce.  God had us covered.
 
We give thanks for the opportunity we had to send a 12-13 year-old girl to the city to have a growth on her throat that was closing off her airway.  Thank God the doctors were here to diagnose the growth and recommend the treatment.  The major tonsillectomy surgery, a week stay in the hospital and transportation will cost about $600. 

I think the big event today was the prayer team in action from about 10:30 am until 4pm nonstop.  I don’t think there was ever a gap in the line and everyone on the team took a turn under the prayer tent.  People needed prayers for aches and pains, widows in need, help in their marriage, relief from abusive relationships and healing of disease and broken bones.  We had many recommit their life to Christ and 6 people come to Christ.   The troubles people in this village face are not so different from the troubles we face at home in Houston but they don’t have all the support we do.  Most are trying to get one good meal a day while trying to figure out how to make their marriage work and recover from malaria.  God is their hope.  I get so overwhelmed by their problems and how trivial mine seem that I need God to put it in perspective.  Fortunately, the Holy Spirit was all over our prayer effort.  We saw many a fluttering eye.  Please keep the Churches we are visiting in your prayers.

Today I had a real feeling that the Holy Spirit was calling us to have a bigger team next year so we can really go out and be with our Ugandan friends.  The needs are so great and an outreach like our medical touches so many people and exposes them to the Love of God.  When combined with prayer it really draws people nearer to Christ.  Our newbies have mentioned several times how they did not realize how deep we reached into the community or how hard we worked.  There are so many opportunities to do even more.  I think the more new team members we have the more energy we have and the ability to do more of God’s work.  Please pray about going on this mission.  I know it is a sacrifice but I believe you will be rewarded many times over.  This year we went in October, but we often adjust the time so that its fits the schedules of those going.
 
We thank all our supporters for providing medicine, medical staff and mosquito nets.  We touched over 2000 lives in this community and hopefully if even for only a short time we brought them some respite from pain and sickness.  God Bless you and enjoy the pictures.

*A day late due to a technology challenged author,
Grace and Peace, Doug Eisele

​After a night of heavy thunderstorms, we woke up to clear skies and cooler temperatures. Everyone was back in action today, although the look of exhaustion from the week’s hard work was beginning to show. But alas, the show must go on, and we are here to do God’s work. Each day He provides the strength for us to continue doing the mission. 

After some coffee and breakfast, we were rejuvenated and Michael led us in an appropriate devotional for the day. 

Jeremiah 1: “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”

Sometimes it is difficult to know the right things to say to people who suffer so much, but God often puts the right words in our mouths, and sometimes just listening, giving a hug, praying together or looking someone straight in the eyes and letting them know that you see them, you feel them, is enough. 

After breakfast we all loaded up into the van, packed to the brim with our supplies for the day, and headed to a different church in a town called Kole, 30 minutes north of Lira. Being further from town, we expected to see more people in need and that was certainly the case. The morning started off slow, but as word got out, chairs filled up fast. Luckily, the rain brought in a brisk breeze which was much appreciated. It was as if God knew we needed a break and graced us with nicer weather. 

All of the stations were full until 5pm. We unfortunately saw more sick babies today, most stricken with sickle cell and malaria. Many concerned parents came to the prayer tent to ask for prayers for their children. There was also an increase in elderly, especially at the reading glasses line. It’s always so cute to see them trying on the glasses, then sheepishly smile in embarrassment each time they have to go up a strength. They are always filled with gratitude to be able to read clearly. 

Day two at the Lira Presbyterian Church. We really hit the ground running today -  patients were already waiting. We had barely set our backpacks down and needed to go instantly to our posts: medication counters, prayer teams, an eye glass attendant and a net distributor. 

        I think I should mention that this church furnished us with a couch and arm chairs to use for counting medicine. We usually have an unstable wooden bench! We felt very blessed and those who have made this trip before will understand.

        The crowd was denser today but everyone is so well mannered that it all seemed quite manageable. The people in Lira have been a joy to serve and serve alongside. 

          Natalie began our day beautifully by sharing with us that no one can take our joy away, John 16:22. We prayed with some very downcast and embittered people yesterday and it was a timely reminder.

            Our first mornings here began rather abruptly at 4:30 am by a crowing rooster - a very determined and full throated rooster. He was so loud that we mused jokingly that he might actually be in the hotel. Shortly after he was witnessed wandering about the lobby! I have heard that a complaint was made to management.... We ate him for dinner last night. Satisfaction.

           Today a family of four arrived for medical care and mosquito nets. They were notable in that the head of the family was a 12 year old orphan girl leading her three young sisters. It is sobering to see real life stories like these. We also had four people believe in Jesus for salvation. One of the four was a Muslim woman. Each day in Uganda there are joys and sorrows. 
​
          Tomorrow we are on to a new location and I for one will miss the sweet people of Lira. Pray for Amy as she stayed back half of today feeling under the weather. 

Karen Underwood

Good day COTHA.   Today was our first day out in the mission field.   The three churches we will be going to in the Lira region have never had a medical mission.   We are in northern Uganda and began our medical mission at the church in Lira.   It is really hot in Northern Uganda. 

We had a five minute drive to the church which is the shortest drive by far we have ever had.   As we arrived this morning shortly after 8:30am it was evident today would be different than previous trips.   When we got there everything had already been set up.  We met a whole new team of doctors and nurses from Lira mostly and we were not sure what to expect.   What we soon realized is that this day was going to run smoothly and at a reasonable pace.   Amy and Nathalie jumped right in like they had been doing this mission in Uganda for years instead of their first time.  Karen was healed from being sick as she traveled here to hitting the ground running. 

We then were called to teach the Sunday School.

Michael and Amy taught the children, they spoke about Nehemiah Chapter 5. Doug taught the men a lesson from Philippians Chapter 4 and Debbie and Nathalie taught the women about obedience.

After the classes, the service started again and everybody danced even more and the atmosphere was magical. Then pastor Morris preached a sermon. The service finished at 11h30, it was 2h30 mass and Sunday school.

We then spent time talking with the people, shaking hands, giving hugs, and taking pictures and videos with the children.  They were so excited! Those children are so amazing, it takes nothing to make they laugh and smile, their smile is contagious.

We then came back to the hotel, had some lunch, eating some goat stew again and getting some rest.

In the evening, we went for an hour walk in the city. There was a lot of people in the street and they were coming to speak to us, shaking hands, and always smiling. We saw a butchery, the meat was hanging outside, with flies on it. A man was selling live chickens from his moto bike. There is a lot of energy in this city, the population is young.
We walked around the market and went back to the hotel.

We then had diner with Pastor Morris and Aida. It was a wonderful day.

Greetings from Lira!

After two full days of travel, six weary missioners finally reached our home away from home in Lira, Uganda.  We’re staying at the Good News Inn Hotel.   Hotel is nice and clean, no air conditioning but the fans work pretty well at cooling the room down.    We do not have the large sweeping garden of Mt Elgon Hotel where we always congregate and sip our tea, but the spiced African tea here tastes just as good, albeit indoors in the dining room.

Uganda has entered the rainy season and there was a big storm while we were enjoying our breakfast this morning but it cleared up by the time we had loaded up the van for our drive to Lira, with only a few sporadic showers in route.  

We stopped for lunch halfway here at a restaurant in the middle of nowhere.  It obviously caters to Americans as the majority of the food on the menu were things we’d find at home:  pizza, grilled cheese, hamburgers etc. We did have an interesting “event” that occurred on our way to Lira.   A baboon was in the middle of the road so the van stopped to avoid hitting him and the baboon jumped up on the windshield – he was eyeing the bottle of orange soda that was sitting on the dashboard.   After several swerving maneuvers by our driver, Jimmy, he finally hopped down.   Unfortunately, we were all too stunned to pull out our cameras to snap a picture.  

Prayers please for Karen Underwood who has a bad cold that seems to be getting worse, instead of better. 
That’s all for now.  Time for showers and some much-needed rest.  

Debbie Blank

An open reflection as we anticipate Easter Sunday Morning,

Maundy Thursday:
From the opening processional, the sincerity and the seriousness of the service could be felt.   The music was sentimental and wonderful, and the message was serious and emotional. It was an evening of significant "S" words, especially concerning the sacrament we were there to remember...the very first Holy Communion.

Father Desmond reminded us of Jesus' command to "Love one another as I have loved you" through the washing of the Apostles' feet and the institution of communion. He stressed the meaning of a sacrament..."The outward and visible sign of an inward, invisible grace".

In order to prepare ourselves for this, he explained the significance of the foot-washing as a means of serving and being served with the love Jesus exemplified. Father Desmond demonstrated this and the experience was open to the congregation-so meaningful and significant.

This was followed by Holy Communion with the entire congregation going up to the steps to the altar and taking communion together while being reminded that we should eat the bread, His body, and drink the wine, His blood, in remembrance of Him  This was followed by the remembrance of the humiliation Jesus faced during His arrest and trial, as the altar was stripped. The service ended by everyone exiting in silence with the Holy Spirit in evidence during the entire service. Amen    

If you would like to share your story / reflection of Holy Week or Easter please email coveringcotha@cotha.org.

There's 8a sharp and there's Uganda 8a - vastly different time and appointment expectations.  For the past week I've still been under the Uganda time spell.  Call it jet lag, cultural shock, digging out, or the blissful state of returning from a mission trip with greater focus on what's really important than when you left.  Regardless of the reasons, these reflections were due last week and I'm just getting them out here...my apologies for the delay - DM

Every time you smile at someone, it's an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing. - Mother Teresa

More than ever, after being among the beautiful citizens of Uganda, I'm in awe of the power of the human spirit...and absolutely honored to have served with some amazing people in our time there. And while the needs remain great, there was great love shared in the forms of smiles and hope.

​Donna Matthews

​Every smile, prayer, medicine prescribed,  doctor visit,  and mosquito net were infused with the love and compassion of God. The love of Jesus was poured out in very practical ways and I was blessed to be allowed to participate. Even as we share with others God uses it as an opportunity to speak to and teach us as individuals. He renewed my faith.
 
Karen Underwood

We gave out 6000 mosquito nets and I think we probably saw around 4000 medical cases.

As always, God had the right nine people on this trip to make a huge difference. Not only did people get medicine and nets to prevent malaria, they got prayer, they played football (soccer), they learned baseball, they saw Christians have fun, the doctors were there at the right time to save a few lives by getting those patients to the hospital. Who says there are no miracles?

​Doug Eisele