Uganda Monday

Monday in Uganda
Ok, well prayers are working. Things went pretty smooth (even though I am missing my usual dental team!) We were able to see several patients and pray with them. The clinic is the finest I have ever seen on the mission field, God has truly provided. We have been eating lunch with some of the orphans in their house, what a blessing!! They sing songs for us and I get to teach them "head and shoulders, knees and toes" - oh the benefits of being a grandpa :-). Visited with the head master of the school here and was amazed at how God saved him and the stories from escaping with 9 children for the revolution army (LRA) several years ago. He has started a church and they had 30 professions of faith last week.
The ladies (Pam, Ann and Susan) are going into the nearby town to minister with the commercial sex trade women. They are excited and apprehensive all at once. A new group of 20 youth and sponsors from Waco arrived today and they are excited as well. Also a group from San Antonio arrived (6)

Looks like we will be busy all week at the clinic!
Most of the dorm moms are either widowed or abandoned, so truly we are ministering to the widows and orphans.
So far, our health is holding up great, we miss you all and covet your prayers.

Because of low wifi, unable to send pics. Sorry, but there are some good ones so far :-)

David

Uganda Sunday

Saturday
Today, we had a great day. We were able to get a flight from MAF (missionary aviation fellowship) that made the trip so much easier. They are a ministry that has been helping missionaries for years. Our pilot was Dave and has just returned from being on furlough. As we landed, we saw out the plane elephants, giraffes, hippos and lots of monkeys (no I was not looking in the mirror). Tim and Janice McCall picked us up and we made it to Restoration Gateway - amazing. One story is that in the neighboring village, which is basically a truck stop, there are many prostitutes.  A visiting group contacted them and invited them to church. They said that they do not want to continue in that "profession" but feel trapped. Pray that many will come to hear the good news of redemption and that they can be liberated.
RG - has only been here for about 7 years but it has 21 houses for orphans and so much more. They build their own bricks for the houses. It is awesome to see God working here, there are about 20 people (americans) that are ministering here, from OGBYN to facilitators, to teaching. Thank you for your prayers and lifting us up.

Sunday
We were able to worship with the people here at RG. The lesson was by one of the dorm "moms" who taught on forgiveness. She did a great job. Such a joy to see the people worship The Lord and such a happiness that shows in their faces. We then took a tour with Dr Tim McCall of how God brought RG to being- all started with a vision and provisions. Tim had a vision of 800 acres and todate there is 700 acres, on the Nile River. His initial vision was a medical clinic, but along the way God showed him the need for orphan help. So there are many houses (21)that hold 8 children each but not all are filled yet.
Our lunch was rice and bean (which will be our normal staple for the week) which we ate in one of the orphan houses. Getting to meet them and have fun with them.
Then Dr Jody Yarbro and I went to the dental clinic to start setting up. We spent almost 3 hours doing that and we shall see tomorrow how things will go with the patient care.
Please pray for stamina, for safety, for receptivity to the gospel, for our families back home.
love to all

Saturday - I think

Well, we made it through the toughest day - 24 hours of travel and little sleep. The upside is a great sleep night! I feel like we are ready to "hit" it now. We traveled by plane for 16 hours and 5 hour layover in London. Really, all in all, no problems.
Read David Platt's book - Radical - if you have not read that - I challenge you to get inspired on what the church is doing (or not doing)! We are in a "guest" house and leave later for Restoration Gateway later today.
Thanks for the prayers and keep them coming, God is working here in Uganda just like at home. You do not have to be far from home to encounter people who need Jesus - a purpose for living. But while I am here, I pray that God will reveal how to make a difference in this part of the world. I wish that I could be accompanied by so many of you and miss you!
love to all
David

Departure day

Ok, it is finally here and I am excited to see what The Lord has in store this time. I have a feeling that it is going to be much different than other trips that I have been on - however I say that about each of the others as well. So, pray that I will remain flexible and patient and enduring to the culture and to those who have gone before me. It is not my job to change things, but that The Lord word through me.

Here is a little about where I am going, Restoration Gateway - the vision is to develop a Christ-centered model community that will foster God's heart for physical and spiritual restoration among the people of war-torn Uganda. It is on 700 acres of land overlooking the Nile River and has developed into
-=orphan care
= medical and dental care
=empowerment of Ugandans
= ministry to the church of Uganda
and so much more.
It was birthed in 2004 when 7 Ugandan men began meeting to pray under a tree presently held by the project. God answered the call by sending Dr Tim and Janice McCall in early 2005. They moved onto the land in 2007 and God had blessed it ever since.

I am excited to see what God is doing there and joining in for support

Uganda 2014

Ok, I am practicing my blog writing. So it is Tuesday evening as I write this. My plane leaves for Uganda Thursday afternoon and I am already thinking a bit about packing. I will meet the rest of my team in London and we will fly together to Entebbe, Uganda from there. Please be praying for the following:
safety in travel, team bonding, the patients and people we will be working with, for Jill as I leave her for a while, for Kim as she is left keeping the office (also being 6 months pregnant), for spiritual insight of being on mission for Him there, for good health, for patience in a different culture and for a joy in The Lord that will be contagious.

Thanks for holding all these up
Serving Him together
David

Guatemala Photos!

Some of our photos...

Dremel tool we used as a titrilator to shake our composite for a filling. 

Dental Team working hard!

Sunset over the McDonald tomato fields across the road from the hospital/compound. All tomatoes used at McDonald's restaurants in Central America are grown here.

View from the rooftop. Behind the compound (foreground) are some very, very humble homes.

Dr. David with Misael, a 'celebrity' who had come to the U.S. for orthopedic surgery in Dallas.

Our friend Karen, from New York's Long Island.

Guatemalan traditional dress. Last photo is Brenda, who went as part of the dental team

but was drafted to the Operating Room!

Dremel tool to the rescue once again! We were pouring up a model to replace
a missing tooth for our interpreter. 

More to come soon!

Guatemala, Day Eight

I know, I skipped yesterday. :-) Yesterday, we arrived in the beautiful city of Antigua. Antigua means "ancient" and it is. There are cobblestone streets lined with old, old buildings. Lots of cathedrals and ruins, and so many interesting people. 

There are 3 active volcanoes surrounding Antigua. One of them, Volcán de Fuego or "Volcano of Fire" has spit smoke while we were here. Antigua was at one time the capital of Guatemala, but in 1776, after a series of earthquakes, the capital was moved to Guatemala City.

God has blessed us with some incredible weather and scenery, but the greatest blessing we have had has been this whole mission trip. There have been low points, but very few. We've had many, many more highs. We have met some interesting people, and we pray that we have planted some seeds in those who don't know the Lord. 

We cannot wait to see our families. We're thankful for your prayers while we've been gone, and our prayer is that reading about our experiences will encourage you to try a mission trip yourself. 

See you in America!