It's Monday morning and a time for reflection back on our worship yesterday.  I am really enjoying the current series called "Stay Calm and Follow Me."  When I say "enjoy" I mean that is challenging me.  It may be hard to believe but I do listen to my own messages!  I am trying to help us all understand that following Jesus isn't what we think it is.  It's not a religious call where we have to change our lives in order to join the movement.  Instead, Jesus calls us to follow him first, and then he's the one who changes our lives.
I encourage you to keep coming as we get deeper into what it means to truly follow Jesus.  Since this Sunday is our "Kick-Off Sunday," it would be a great Sunday to invite a friend, a family member or neighbor.  We will be looking at what the benefits of following Jesus are... and it's not what you think!   See you Sunday, if not before!

The last day of our mission trip brings surprise that it is almost over. Everyone is a bit weary but so satisfied to have participated in this God opportunity to have a real spiritual and physical impact on the people of Uganda.


This was the second day of our third and last church this week. We found an impressive sized crowd when we arrived. We entered the building to find a young child laying on the dirt floor beneath a thin blanket and she was soon joined by a young women laying prone on the floor on the opposite side of the room. It was a sobering reminder of the great need for medical care in these Ugandan villages.


The Entebbe airport finally brought Debbie's errant suitcase to the hotel last night. It was filled with interpreters gifts and over 100 pair of reading glasses. It has been so rewarding to fit eye glasses for so many. The recipients are extremely grateful and so pleased to be able to read.


We prayed in teams of two and found so many to be under severe spiritual attack. This time we spend with them is some of the most rewarding moments because we are able to really speak to, learn about, and minister personally.


We continued to count and package pills today and gave out nearly 2,000 mosquito nets. In addition to that, 1407 people were able to be seen by the doctors. God has truly blessed and multiplied the work here.


Morris and Aida came to the hotel to share dinner tonight. We put together interpreter gifts and packed our bags tonight as well. It has been a long but satisfying day. Tomorrow we begin our long trek home.


Karen Underwood

Today we were off to Totokidwe to have the medical outreach at the third and last Church on this year’s mission.  We were blessed with a smooth road all the way.  An answer to the morning devotional prayer.
We had a great peaceful day with a nice breeze.  Everyone seemed calm (also an answered prayer).   We saw somewhere around 1200 people over the day which was interrupted by a torrential 20 minute downpour.  Great for the crops not so good for people standing in line.  Everyone scampered for cover so we went off to have a lunch of beans and rice.  It all worked out.
Our prayer teams were fully engaged today after a couple of days where it seemed hard to find customers.   We had people who needed to be protected from demons at night (this is very real)  and we also had several women come to Christ and one come back to Christ (think prodigal daughter).


Over the last few days we have had 4 cases that needed to go to the hospital.  Today we got the update.  One was a potential broken elbow that turned out to be a tendon tear so the arm just needs to be immobilized ($100).  Health care may not be available to most but it sure is a bargain compared to the US.  Another patient had a leg injury that turned out to be more serious.  She will require major surgery.  We are awaiting more evaluation.  We sent a man in with a horrible open wound.  The hospital is evaluating treatment options to fight the infection in the wound.  The last case is a baby with fluid on the brain which will require several operations and a yearlong hospital stay.  We are looking at our medical finances to see if we can support this.  It will cost around $1250 for the year.  We hope the favorable exchange rate will create space for COTHA to help.  At the end of the week we are also evaluating if we can help with some minor surgeries.
Please pray for these people that they can receive healing and that God will provide what they need.
These are the highlights.  After making my usual trek to the pharmacy in downtown Mbale with Pastor Morris and his team to restock the supplies I am bit low on fuel.  Thanks to everyone who is praying for us and supporting us.  None of this could be done if you did not answer God’s call to help.
Grace and Peace
Doug

Today we started off with Doug's devotion which was about being able to move mountains with prayer but that we need to expect to see God work.  Then we embarked on our journey through the bumpy landscape towards the village in the hills.  The area where the church is has a beautiful view of the slopes of Mt. Elgon.  It's a very pretty area and feels a little cooler than the city down below.


Our tasks were fairly similar as the past few days counting medicine and handing out mosquito nets.  It looked like a storm was coming so we gathered the villagers who did not need medical attention and just wanted the nets and created a separate line for them where we quickly dished out a good 15 bales.


They were ready to go home before it started raining, although luckily it didn't rain too hard.  Although there was a bigger crowd than yesterday we managed to finish up a little earlier than previous days.  On the way home the roads were muddier than we had seen them and we were afraid we would get stuck and have to push the van, but we made it through with a couple of close calls sliding around.


We head out to our third and last village tomorrow.  Nick Eisele

This morning was beautiful and bright after the rain the night before. It definitely seems like it is raining more than years past but we are also here a little later in the year and closer to rainy season I guess.  Nick started us off with a wonderful devotion on being called to be here on this trip.  Maybe we came out of obedience but don't know why or maybe we knew we should be here, but either way, God knows and will hopefully reveal it to each of us.  He also talked about God being in control and that prayer was what changes us and others.


We left the hotel with the warning that it would be a two hour drive up into the mountains. Those of you reading this who were on the last trip when we went up the mountain know that the road can be bumpy, and steep with long drop offs to the side. The drive ended up being much shorter than expected and was a gradual rise in grade without the cliffs to the side of us.  We were all grateful for that!!


The church was nestled in a beautiful area surrounded by farms growing coffee and bananas (and probably a lot of other things I didn't recognize).  The people were warm and friendly and we felt very welcomed.  We set up our usual stations for pill counting, exam areas, pharmacy area, eyeglasses and handing out the nets.  We didn't seem as hurried with needing to get the pills counted and to the nurses, so several of us were able to go out and pray with people today.  Debbie and I were prayer partners and set up chairs with our translator outside the church so that we could talk to people and pray for them after they had seen the doctor and had gotten their net.  We were both struck by the number of prayer requests we received for eye problems.  I wonder if there is an allergy issue this time of year up in the higher areas.  Speaking of eyes, we brought 1/3 of our eyeglass supply for this village from those that were generously donated and that we had purchased.  There was always a large crowd waiting and hoping that they would be able to find their match.  It's my favorite thing on this trip to look over and see someone with a huge smile on their face as they read their bible.


Mid afternoon it started to rain which always worries me for our ability to get back down into town at the end of the day,  eventually, the rain cleared and the sun came out drying the dirt/clay road enough for our vans to safely travel "home".   We are all tired but I think we are not as exhausted as in days past.  Maybe we are starting to get into this new rhythm of our days.


Please keep us in your prayers and pray for the people that we serve with and will encounter tomorrow when we return to the same village.  Prayers for God's guidance, His will to be done and our obedience.
Thank you!!  Karen Eisele

September 1, 2015
The second day of our medical mission started out with a devotion by Karen Eisele. She reminded us that although we may feel weak and spent, God is strong. We can draw on His strength. We all noticed that we felt stronger as the day progressed.
After a bumpy ride, we arrived back at the village church and work began. Since work areas were already set up, patients were able to be seen much quicker. There were thousands of people waiting to see the doctors and/or the dentist. The dentist did a booming business today, pulling many teeth. Thankfully, they have Novocain this year. Some of the children screamed, and some of the little ones were very stoic and did not make a sound. Well over 1000 people received care today.
As I was taking a break from pharmacy duty, walking around the church yard, I was approached by a man and 2 women. The man spoke English and told me that he had both of his wives with him and needed to talk to a pastor. I went and got one of the pastors and he came out to talk to the family.


When medications ran out, we passed out the remaining mosquito nets designated for that village and headed back to the hotel. We quickly organized the remaining supplies and Doug went off to purchase medications for tomorrow. We must all be missing American food, because we all had either hamburgers or pizza for dinner.
While writing this blog entry in the hotel lobby, a lovely Muslim family came in and had an interesting chat with Karen Odell and I. The father grew up in Uganda, and the family lives in London. The family (mother, father, aunt, and 3 girls in early 20's) are traveling Uganda to see where the dad grew up. They were very interested in our mission and enjoyed looking at pictures from the day. I explained that although we provide medical care, the main goal of our mission is to share the gospel.
It was a successful day.
Susan Akerman