Joy In Serving

Greetings from Kampala! These last two weeks have been ones of orientation and settling in. The people of Uganda are friendly and relational. Much about the city is very familiar - the sights, sounds, and smells, the power outages, boiling and filtering water, public transportation, mosquitoes, kerosene lanterns, bargaining at the market, and the list goes on. There are also a number of things that are different from Nigeria, the most notable of which so far are the side of the road cars drive on (left), traditional wear being less prevalent, and the apparent indirectness in the interactions of the people.

The first Saturday we were here, the new interns were taken on a Construction Management tour to project sites in Entebbe. At these sites we looked at facilities that Engineering Ministries International worked on for three different ministries: Calvary Chapel Entebbe, Music For Life - African Children's Choir (a project I will be working on), and Cherish Uganda.

Calvary Chapel kids having fun

Confined masonry wall and exposed trusses at Music For Life

Inspecting the forces at work in a gazebo at Cherish Uganda

I have really enjoyed hearing the stories of my fellow interns and growing closer in relationship with them. You can get to know them too and read about their time in Uganda at the following blogs:

Anne Herron - http://anneemiuganda.blogspot.com
Belinda Tam - http://byyt-emiea.blogspot.com
David Stringer - http://davidwithemi.wordpress.com
Daniel Nyongesa - http://danwexzar.wordpress.com
Meggie Meidlinger - http://archafrica.wordpress.com
Paul Smith - http://paulinuganda.wordpress.com
Samantha Forbes - http://anengineerinuganda.blogspot.com
Uriah McCall - http://uriahuganda.blogspot.com

All the spring 2013 interns in front of the office

Last weekend I visited Good Shepherd's Fold orphanage (GSF) near Jinja. I got to spend time with my girlfriend Corinne and meet all the wonderful kids and staff. I am part of the EMI project team working on the planning and design of a GSF/Amazima Ministries secondary school, and it was cool to see the ministry work being done. It was also exciting to see the progress of the toddler house renovation. On Sunday I attended church with the GSF community, and it was a blessing to worship with them.

Good Shepherd's Fold entrance

Light of the World Church at GSF

I also started volunteering this week as an assistant soccer coach at Heritage International School. I am looking forward to coaching and ministering to this group of 11-and-under boys in the coming weeks. Plus it's great to be back on the field again!

Dutifully waiting for positioning instruction

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go back out to Music For Life with an EMI project team. We walked the site and met with the ministry leaders to discuss the planning for a new Choir Training Center. We were able to meet some of the kids as well. The work that MFL is doing and the vision they have for the future is inspiring!

Praise God for the work that He is already doing this semester at EMI East Africa! Please pray for GSF and Amazima as they plan to purchase land for the secondary school in the next few weeks. Also, a volunteer electrical engineer that worked with EMI passed away suddenly yesterday. Please pray for his family during this time of loss. Finally, a group of interns and staff from the office along with volunteers is currently on a project trip in Burundi. Please pray for success in their work and safety in travel.

Thanks, and God bless you!