YWAM Arua blog facelift!

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Soccer mom for a day

I had butterflies in my stomach all morning.

What is going on here?

It was Aidan's first (and probably last) ever soccer tournament, and I was so nervous for him.

Why? What's the big deal?

It sounds crazy but I believe many moms out there can relate...

...I wanted him to do well,
...I didn't want him to get hurt
...I wanted his team to win, by some miracle

I'm his mom, after all!

He's never played in a team competition like this before, and although they didn't win, he did well and didn't get hurt, so 2 out of 3 isn't bad!

Now I can relax and get some sleep!

But just to give you an idea of what today looked like....

The 'Mundu' (foreigner) team (Aidan front center)

Uh-oh...the competition looks pretty tough

More teams warming up

The teams line-up

Kezi dutifully carries around Aidan's water bottle in a black plastic bag

Meanwhile Noah picks me flowers

On the field, Aidan's getting into the action

At times he sure looked small out there

It was hard to rest much during the break due to the press of curious on-lookers...

...but Aidan took it in his stride.

We soccer moms had fun hooting and hollering for our kids
and being stereotypically loud Mundus

They lost both games, but although they were disappointed, the kids did great and had good attitudes about it all. To round out the day, we all headed back to Cathy's house where any bruised egos were quickly soothed with banana splits!

What a day...I'm off to bed now!

I'm officially a chauffeur

Most of the parents out there will readily agree that driving the kids

around is part of the job of parenting, and before today, I would have said, "Yeah, I chauffeur my kids all the time." But for some reason, the driving today reached another level of 'chauffeur-ship.'

My oldest son, Aidan, is in a soccer tournament tomorrow (his first ever) and my friend had picked him and some others up for practice this morning. I went to do the return run, but on the way back Aidan asked if he could play at Nicola's for a while. So I dropped them off, then the others, and came back home the same way I left...alone.

And that was the kicker for me, I guess...I didn't go with kids to take them somewhere, or pick kids up to bring them home, I just went out and moved them from one location to another, and then came back home.

And that's when the realization hit me...I am officially a chauffeur! The driver!

But you know what's funny? I didn't mind! I actually liked being able to do that for Aidan. That may be because I don't have to do it nearly as much as a mom in the Western world. Here in Arua, Aidan goes to school on the back of the nightwatchman's bicycle. We walk Noah and Keziah two blocks down the road to the pre-school.

There are no ballet classes to rush to, or softball teams or drama clubs. There are no youth group overnights or Boy Scout meetings. All of the social activities around here are either within walking distance, or we all go as a family, so there's very little toing and froing in the car, dropping and picking up kids, etc.

Yes, it's a bit sad that my kids miss all those other activities, but I have to admit that I prefer this pace of life. It's a little less manic, which means that when I do have to run the kids around, I get to enjoy it!

After all these years...

...our house is finally under way! After 3 years of renting off-base, we hope to be moving to the YWAM Arua base to join the rest of the team by the end of this year. Wishful thinking? We'll see! I'll keep you posted!

There's 'the slab'...otherwise known as the foundation

Aidan is standing where his fitted wardrobe will be

No cement-mixing machines here

My study where I'll write my masterpiece(s)

Precarious perches

John in the hallway (hope it's going to be wide enough!)

Fred, the Construction Supervisor, standing in our open-plan living/dining room

Me in front of the house (gonna have a LOT of yard work to do!)

Word-filled Wednesday

A toddler in a refugee camp

I love this picture...such a sign of the times. Even in a refugee camp, where there is so little of everything...someone has a mobile phone!

But what I love more is the promise in Jeremiah that when we call on the Lord, He will answer us and tell us amazing things we could never learn on our own. I love the wisdom and discernment He gives when we ask for it. I love the availability of such an awesome, yet personal, God. What a privilege to serve Him! What an honour to call Him friend. What a God we serve!

For more inspiring pictures and scriptures, check out Word-filled Wednesday posts at The 160 Acre Woods!

When satan pushes the buttons

It's another one of those annoying days when I hear a great sermon, get all pumped up about how great God is and how awesome it is to be walking with Him, and then something happens that either bums me out, or ticks me off, or both.

So Pastor Silvanus was on Part 4 of 'The walk of a believer on the journey of salvation' (I know, quite a mouthful of a sermon series title but the content has been fabulous), and he was talking about our walk with God. He made several good points, one out of Deut 20:1-4 which talks about going to war. And it says,

"Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be terrified or give way to panic before them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory."

And I was thinking, 'Who are my enemies? What things make me fainthearted or afraid?'

My enemies are not people, but attitudes and cultural stresses that seek to drag me down.


Case in point: right after church we went to the market to get some potatoes







and small fish.

I thought John would just run in and get it, so I opted to wait in the car. I should have known that I'd be a sitting target, but I didn't think he'd be gone long and figured I could handle whatever came my way.

So I'm sitting there and various people are walking up to the window saying, "Mundu (foreigner), how are you?"

"Fine," I say. They watch me for a little bit and then wander off.



Then a cobbler guy sitting on the ground a few metres away from the car mending shoes with his friends says, "Mundu, mi ngoni?" (how are you in Lugbara)

"Muke," I answer back...fine.

Then he switches to English, "Are you fine?"

"Yes, I'm fine," I say.

"Then why are you quiet?" he asks.

I look at him and raise my hands with a shrug to indicate that I'm alone in the car, and say, "There's no one to talk to."



Then a gadi gadi guy (someone who carries goods and things for people in his wheelbarrow) comes down a side lane that we happen to be parked in front of and stops at the car. Apparently we are blocking the way, although there is no break in the curb that lines the street to indicate a road, nor are there any signs to say, 'Don't park here.'

The gadi gadi comes up to me and says, "Mundu, why are you sitting here?"

"I am waiting for my husband," I say.

"Where is the pilot (meaning driver)?" Gadi gadi asks me. "You are blocking the way." Then with a huff he manoevers his wheelbarrow around our truck and continues on his way.

Not long after, though, another 3 gadi gadis come along and start kicking up a fuss. The one in the front is wearing a muslim cap and shouting at me in Lugbara. He keeps pointing to a stone that sits in the gutter next to the curb, as if to inform me that the stone marks the lane and means 'no parking.' By this point I'm really not in the mood for this, so I just sit there and look at him while he gestures and agitates himself. A small crowd has formed, of course, and people are laughing, enjoying the entertainment as this guy hurls who knows what kind of abuses at me. He was obviously not going to make his way around the truck, but preferred to make a scene until we moved the truck.

I'm getting seriously annoyed at John by now for taking so long, and feeling extremely embarrassed. I'm also ticked off at this gadi gadi for making such a scene, and wishing I had some choice words to burst his bubble (really missionary-like of me, eh?). But I know he just wants a reaction so I continue to ignore him, and thankfully John arrives who unfortunately has to bear the brunt of my frustration..."What took you so long?" etc etc.

But one thing I've learned from being here... people talk loud and make a big scene, but it's mostly for show. And as the gadi gadi guy is haranging John for parking in the wrong place, and John starts to pull out, I raise my hand and, smiling, salute the guy. He laughs with me, and John drive off.

At least it all ended well, but in those 30 minutes outside the market, the enemy (satan) worked hard on me...stirring up my anger, highlighting the cultural challenges that irritate me, trying to fire up my wrath against these people.

But God said he is the one who fights for me and gives me the victory.

So I say, "Father God, I know You called me here, and I know You love these people. So show Your power and fight my enemy who wants to turn me against the people You have sent me to. Win the victory so that I can minister Your love to these, Your children. Protect my heart and mind, and keep them ever soft and in-tune with Yours. In Jesus name, Amen."

Word-filled Wednesday

They've fled the atrocities of demonic rebels known as the Lord's Resistance Army. They've left their homes, their farms, their peaceful way of life, for the relative safety of Kotomor Internally Displaced People's Camp in Pader District, Northern Uganda.

They have very little material wealth, none of the riches of the world.

But God's eyes are on them!

He loves them, and has good plans for their lives. He desires to lift them up and bring joy into their lives.

What an awesome God we serve! Who is like Him?

There is none.

For more Word-filled Wednesday head over to hostess Amydeanne at the 160 Acre Woods...