"Father, help to the street children."

Studies estimate that approximately 5,000 Ugandan children "beg, wash cars, scavenge, work as commercial sex workers and sell small items on the streets of Kampala. The number of street children has been rising steadily for the last five years."

(http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/459/649570)

We walked the streets of Kampala and saw these children, many caring for younger babies who are strapped to their backs. They wander dangerously through lanes of traffic, approaching open car windows with their hands cupped. They hover on street corners, skeletons of potential... ghosts of childhood. A poor reflection on the city, they are sometimes herded into centers for "care," to ensure that the streets are rid of them, that the image is clean. But there they are often mistreated and many escape to return to the streets. You're compelled to give them money, but that only reinforces the cycle of poverty; it does little to change the system.

Sounds hopeless, eh? Well, with a heart for the Lord and a little creativity, life-changing things can happen. Andrew Sserunjogi, orphaned by AIDS, developed a passion for these lost children. He would visit them on the streets repeatedly, slowly but surely gaining their trust and building relationships. He was an adult who cared, not interested in pimping them for his own profit, or offering them glue to sniff. Through the very trip I went on (the first year they ever went) he met Amanda Davis, an American student at Wellesley, and they discovered a common passion for God, children and the arts. Andrew was studying industrial and fine art at that time. Together they embarked on a project to offer street children a new life: one of love, family and education. The result? The New Start Home.

It was there that I spent my first week in Uganda. And there that I began to see God's heart for healing and restoration. One boy at a time lives have been changed. Now they hope to be rap artists, pastors, famous football players-- you name it. Man might change their environments, but only God could change their hearts. They'll be the first to tell you, not me. They once stole and bullied to survive, they now sing and dance in celebration of life. What a transformation :)

Please Pray

(Note-- this post does not suffice as a proper news source. These are my comments and interpretations of articles I've been reading. I suggest checking out bbc.co.uk or cnn.com for more information)

I'm sure many of you have seen it on the news, heard it on the radio, or had it pop up on your newsfeed in some fashion... the terrible news of a terrorist attack in Uganda.

Just one week ago yesterday, we were walking those very streets in Kampala and today bodies are being identified in an attack on Ugandan football fans watching the World Cup final. To date, the death count is at 74, according to the BBC. The fanatical Islamist group, Al-Shabaab, is currently taking responsibility. They are mainly stationed in Somalia, a threat to the transitional government there and brand their enemies as anyone involved in trying to bring peace to the area. According to the National Counterterrorism Center, "Al-Shabaab is responsible for the assassination of Somali peace activists, international aid workers, numerous civil society figures, and journalists." Yesterday's attacks make very little sense in terms of a political agenda, but were clearly an attempt to strike fear into the hearts of Ugandans and the international community, reminding us of their presence.

Among the dead is an American man, Nate Henn, who works for Invisible Children. While I was in Gulu (northern Uganda) I met some of the boys featured in the documentary Invisible Children, that shines light on the horrors of child-soldierhood. This organization partners with Child Voice International (in mission), who we worked intimately with while in the North. Some sources are saying that these attacks were aimed at ex-patriats on the ground, members of the international community.

Whatever the case, this very well could have been a member of our team just one week ago and that is a sobering fact. While frightening for us in America, even more frustrating is the fear that this might create in Kampala. Uganda is a nation slowly building back trust after the betrayal of war. This is the last thing they need. But there is hope. This claims no victory over the work of healing that God has been doing and will continue to do in Uganda. Please join me in prayer.

• Pray for the families of the victims of these attacks, our Ugandan brothers and sisters and Nate's family too.
• Pray for safety over potential targets in the international community abroad.
• Please pray for God's comfort, peace and healing to overshadow the pain and confusion.
• Lastly, as we are taught, please be praying for the hearts of those terrorists responsible, that their hearts might break over what has been done. That they might actually turn from this lifestyle of terror and destruction.

God responds to prayer. That was a huge lesson for me in Uganda. It wasn't until the Ugandan church fully mobilized to fast and pray that there was any tangible weakening of Joseph Kony and his LRA forces in Uganda. That is HUGE. (More on that story later). But be encouraged, God responds to our faith that he is more caring, more powerful and the victor in this broken world. Will you join me in prayer?

Let's Start at the Very End. A Very Good Place to Start.

Oh friends,

It's been nearly a week and I still find it hard to believe that I am typing this post on a laptop on my bed at home. Just six days ago I was driving down red dirt roads, seeing villagers display their harvest in roadside markets and sucking on raw sugar cane. But here I am, in Plymouth once again. Vacationers have flooded local beaches and summer is in high gear, as if I'd never left.

There are no summary statements adequate or blog posts long enough to explain how Uganda, or really how God, impacted me on this trip. I can tell you I witnessed God's healing and redemption in ways I never could have imagined. I've seen transformation on a nation-scale down to a little ol' heart like mine. I have built bonds stronger in a shorter amount of time than relationships that have had years to take root. It was intense in every way.

Over the next few weeks, for those who are interested, I will be sharing excerpts from my journal (well...er...three journals. I'm an English major, guys. I write a lot). It won't always be in chronological order, but it will allow those who have been praying in my absence and those interested in global issues to catch a glimpse of the last five weeks of my life. I'll also post a picture every now and then, and a video if you're really lucky ;) Thank you to all of you who encouraged me before, during, and now after this adventure. Shall we begin?

The following entry is actually taken from the last few days of my trip. I think it's a good place to start. It captures the first moment I began to process what this experience has meant, is meaning and will mean to me. It is written where I began the journey on the ground in Uganda-- on the shores of Lake Victoria at a camp site (Gerenge) for the Ugandan university students we partnered with throughout the trip. Here goes:

"30th June 2010. Gerenge Camp. 15:00.

Wow. I can't believe we're back in Gerenge. It feels like yesterday I was sitting right where I am now on the shores of Lake Victoria, about to embark on this journey. I was so scared then... and now I know I have nothing to fear. Jesus, thank you for where you've taken me. The strange feels familiar and the familiar will feel strange.

There's nothing like returning to a place unchanged to see the ways in which you yourself have altered. And through it all I am consistently a child of God.

And the world spins madly on.

These dragonflies have continued to buzz, the monkey-birds* call, the waves gently lap. The only difference is the ferry boat that has taken form just down shore. But as I inhale, it smells the same; water, grass, smoke from a leaf fire.

And the world spins madly on.

Seemingly satiated, now hungry.

Mature in growth, now shrinking.

Limited by fear, now free.

More of Him and less of me."

*this reference will make more sense later. Stay tuned for more journal entries. Now you're hooked! What are monkey-birds? To be continued...