Easter in Uganda!!

HE IS RISEN!! The resurrection of Christ is the foundation for the hope of all Christians...our hope is found in Jesus Christ and eternal life spent with the Lord in Heaven. I just love Easter and its meaning! Obviously I spent this Easter in Uganda :) A bit different from Florida...actually VERY different ;) Since I'm currently working 24/7 in ministry and working with a very large church here in Uganda, I've been involved in Easter celebrations since Thursday.

Thursday night they had a huge "praise rally" at the main church campus. It's basically a night of just praise and worship music. They were expecting tons of people so not only was the church set up, but also the entire parking lot was filled with plastic chairs, 2 huge screens to be able to see the worship team inside, and huge speakers. We were required to usher at this event, and several of us chose to usher outside. It was AWESOME! I've never experienced powerful worship underneath the stars in Africa before...it was incredible!!!! Getting absorbed in the words and meaning of the songs and then looking up and seeing the vastness of the open sky and stars...yeah, there just aren't words to describe it!! There were several times that I actually got so absorbed in worship, I forgot I was was in Uganda!

Friday night (Good Friday) the International Team had their own little "service" at the guesthouse :) We decided not to go to the main church for service, but have an intimate time together instead! We sat in a circle and worshiped with the guitar (no I didn't play...yet, hehe), read the Crucifixion account from the Word, and prayed. Simple, but intimate, Spirit-filled, and powerful!

Saturday night they had a special worship and prayer service at the district church that I serve at. So, I ventured out there to be a part of that celebration. It was wonderful!! They played a clip from the Passion movie, starting with Jesus getting beaten. So overwhelming, but I think everyone should watch the Passion at least once a year.

Sunday was like many other Sundays....we all went to our district churches to serve. It didn't feel like Easter when we got up, probably because there was no candy, no easter baskets, no people dressed in colorful easter sunday clothes, and no kids with sugar-highs running around everywhere. It was just a "typical" Sunday. However, there was something exciting in the atmosphere!! The worship at my church was wonderful!! I've really gotten to know about 8 of the Ugandan ushers...and I have the best time serving with them!! During worship, a couple of the guys came up and razzed me about putting more rhythm in my moves or dancing, while I'm greeting and ushering. I tried to explain that I'm white and not African...then they try to tell me that Shakira isn't African either, haha! They are slowly drawing me out :) When we sing songs in Luganda or Swahili, they come over and explain what the songs mean, they look after me! Soooo, by the 3rd service yesterday, I was dancing with more rhythm, learned a Uganda dance to one of the songs, and was singing in Luganda/Swahili to one of the songs (and knew the meaning)....all while ushering and interceding in prayer!! Yeah, it was an awesome day :) Soooo much fun!! During some of the services, in between my ushering responsibilities, I usually spend time talking one-on-one with one of the ushers or other people serving in the church. This is a step out of my comfort zone, but I'm learning A LOT from the Ugandans. They are not only teaching me about themselves and their culture, but also about caring, kindness, gentleness, and patience for others. They sincerely care about me, as a person, and want to engage in conversation, even though I'm only here for 5 months. They are teaching me what it means to be a servant of the Lord and what it means to develop relationships and be used by Him. Though the Ugandans lack planning in advance and for the future....I'm DEFINITELY learning how to "live in the moment" by watching them. They have Matthew 6:33-34, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself", down and they know how to live it out, and because of the Ugandans, I'm learning how to live this verse out too :) It's amazing how much I'm growing and learning here! Well, ended the evening having a blast back at the guesthouse with the international team...talking, laughing, playing cards, laughing, talking more, laughing, and laughing some more! Definite week of remembrance though! Remembering what Jesus Christ did for us and who we are here to serve. Remembering that we have resurrection power flowing on the inside of us. Remembering that Jesus wins...flip to the back of the book...we win because of Him. Remembering how much I'm so utterly in love with the Lord, but moreso remembering how much He loves me (and each and every one of us), that He sent His one and only Son to pay the ultimate price for our sins, so we can have eternal life...there is no greater love! Remembering that He doesn't want us to wait until we get to Heaven to start living, we can and should start living a life of freedom and love now!!!

PS I want you all to meet Hunington (see the pict on the right). This is a 10 year old little boy who resides at an orphanage called Suubi, that we go play sports at every Saturday. He's an excellent football (soccer) player, has been on choir tour to the States/Canada, likes math, loves Jesus, and likes to teach me new hand shakes every Saturday :) Since the very first day at Suubi, we've developed a special bond, even though I usually only see him at the beginning and end of the day (unless he migrates down to volleyball, where I'm coaching, to hang out with me). He's such a cool kid and I can just tell he has a precious, sweet heart!