Mar 22nd Update

Click to enlarge

Greetings, my friends in America!
I hope all is well with you and your families. We are doing well here in Uganda. Actually, I'm doing great today - it is raining and the temperature is way down in the 70s! My kind of weather...The Ugandans are freezing, of course. You will see from the picture I sent that the children wear sweaters - we had them made a couple of weeks ago - something like $100 for 22 sweaters to be hand knit. Anyway, the kids can wear them when it is "cold."
If you are at BAMM, ECC or Vancouver Friends, your church has received, or will soon receive, a video from Rogers and I telling you how things are going here. Also, Dina Poulin has been here for the past 2 weeks and has just returned to the States. She has many many pictures. I also sent pictures with her to Abby, who can send you some if you would like.
I sent some Ugandan batiks home with Dina and they will be framed (thanks, Toni!) and then be available for sale through ECC. This is one of the revenue streams we are trying out. Contact the church office there in Hillsboro if you are interested and not at that church. These are not made by the kids - we'll be able to teach the children some traditional crafts like mat and basket weaving soon, but not yet - but by Ugandan artists. They are Ugandan life scenes. I sent several different color schemes - hope something fits for you!
Thanks to all of you who sent a return email last week - it's so good to hear from you and to know at least some of what is happening in your lives.
I spoke at church yesterday about working in the Kingdom of God and asked people to come forward in response - it was touching to see 10 people come forward to recommit themselves to working with the King in His kingdom. We had 66 people yesterday - we've just about maxed out our room we rented. We'll see what is next...Easter is in 2 weeks, and we are praying for many unsaved to come and hear the Gospel.
The kids are doing great - sicknesses here and there...pink eye was running through them last week - but overall everyone is doing well. The kids are becoming very much like a family, fights and all :-). Good thing I've had a little experience working with kids...
We are buying a sewing machine (thanks to a family from ECC) soon and will begin either teaching some of the older children to sew, or renting the machine as another revenue stream. I'll let you know as we go.
We are looking at propane ovens this week to see the feasibility of buying and using one to begin making breads, etc., that we could sell in Budaka. I am excited that we might have some good bread - they only have 1 kind here - no taste. We would hire someone to go and sell the bread to homes (huts) and businesses and see if people want something new. BTW, we can't advertise in a traditional way as there is a 60-75% illiteracy rate in Budaka.
We were able to buy a speaker and microphones for the church this past weekend and so the Word is going out in a louder way. It is one of the only ways to "advertise" the church to people around. Young people in Uganda (up through their 30s) are drawn to music and sound systems...who knew? Several came yesterday to see what was up. Thanks to Dina who convinced me this was a good purchase. My ears will never be the same :-)
Thanks to all of you who are praying, giving, sending emails and/or calling. I feel your support here and praise the Lord that we are in this together. God bless you.
Laurie

Mar 15th Update

Click to enlarge

Hello, Everyone!
It's already warm here this morning (it's 10:45 am on Monday). We haven't had rain for several days, so it's gotten very hot again in Budaka. Last night at 10pm, it was 82 degrees in my room. I keep praying for rain, but apparently someone is praying harder on the other side :-).
Here are some things that are happening:

• Dina Poulin and I made American pancakes for the kids for breakfast last week. You have to imagine, though, the conditions first. We have a large pan (about 4' in diameter and about 12" deep) which is put over a big fire. I put some oil in the pan (it's not non-stick, of course) and the pan was too hot and the oil caught fire. The Ugandan cooks looked at us like we were crazy - I guess we were... Then, think about standing over a fire with smoke filling the area - your eyes and lungs are full of it as you try to turn pancakes with a round implement with holes in it - there is nothing like a pancake spatula here. Then we did not put enough oil in the next time, so the pancakes stuck to the pan. Finally we got everything going well and began mass producing them - we could do about 6 at a time. I had bought syrup at the American store in Kampala and I think maybe the reason the kids liked them is they were sweet - they don't have much that is sweet here. The cooks ended up liking the pancakes, but seemed glad when we finished and got out of their "kitchen."
• We had to cut the fence around the outside of the orphanage about 4” up as the termites were eating it. Now they can’t get to it. The posts have been treated and the termites can’t reach the other parts. Termites are bad here - before we even moved into this place, the termites had eaten about 2 inches of my inside office door. Sometime I will send a picture so you can see.
• We now have a supplier of all foods for the orphanage – he comes each day, as necessary, to deliver food. He brought 50 kilogram bags of rice, sugar, posho, millet flour, beans – things we use regularly. So now our food costs will be under control.
• I looked at the original picture of our children that we took when they came for interviews with their guardians. WOW! They have changed so much. Their skin looks great, their faces are cheerful and full of life. They have meat on their bones. It is so wonderful to see the change in only 4 weeks. As we pray for them each night in their beds, I am struck with the Lord’s words over each about what He will do in their lives…and what He is doing presently in their lives. I shared at evening devotions with them last week about spending time with Jesus (taught from the story of Mary and Martha) and encouraged them to that very night begin talking and listening to Him. There are 5 rooms – 3 for boys and 2 for girls. As we went into one of the rooms, the boys were in their beds praying already. Ben, our oldest boy, was on his knees up in his upper bunk, intently talking to the Lord. It warmed my heart so much!
• I am sending updated pictures of the kids back with Dina and they should be on the website soon, so be sure to go there to check them out. It is www.cornerstoneministriesuganda.org.
• I have sent you a picture of Rogers and some of his family at his daughter, Samantha's visitation day. She is in boarding school and you can only visit once a term, so this was the day. The older girl is a friend of theirs and is not part of the family. The young boy is Prosper - he is 4 years old. Rogers' wife, Betty is on the right holding their new baby, Hope. Samantha is in the uniform sort of in the middle. And, of course, I'm the white one. It looks like I was photoshopped into the picture...

Love hearing from you! Thanks for praying for us and giving as the Lord leads.

Talk to you again next week!

Laurie

Mar 8th Update

Well, you all are sleeping right now, but it's 12:30 in the afternoon here. Here are some things that are happening here in Uganda:

• We are about 60 miles from the mudslides, so they have not personally affected us. However, we are collecting clothing for those who lived through the mudslide as they lost everything. (We're not collecting clothes from the States - takes too long to get here)
• Today, we were coming here to Mbale and the taxi we were riding in (think mini-van with 17-25 people, live chickens, etc) apparently does not have windshield wipers. It was raining quite hard. Anyway, the driver stopped in a little village, bought a small packet of laundry detergent and took a handful and threw it on the windshield and continued. Apparently that helps to clear the window a bit.
• Yesterday, we were driving to Mbale and there was a group of people on the side of the road. Rogers told me this is a tribe here in Uganda who do circumcision on boys and men as a proof that they are tough. They find a man and circumcise him in front of a group of people and he cannot cry out in pain. It was right out there in front of us -- well, we didn't see the man, just the crowd around him. This is apparently only done in certain seasons of the year. Youch!
• We finally have our 20 children. We got the last 2 last Monday, a set of twins, William and Stephen. They are adjusting to the large group of kids and seem to be happy. We have 2 sets of twins, all are boys.
• The children are so happy - yesterday in Sunday School, I asked them to share something they are thankful to God for. The first boy raised his hand said he had never had a chapati before and now he has. Chapati is a kind of food sort of like a tortilla only with more flavor. They make a sell them here for about 50 cents, but these children were from homes where that much money is beyond any parent to buy.
• We had our first firing of an employee last week. Turns out she was skimming things, taking them outside and reselling them: pieces of soap, small containers of cooking oil, the kids' shoes, fruit, etc. She was defiant to the end, but we are praying that she will see the error of her ways. Her thought is this is money from America and there is much more where it came from. Sad...and hard for the kids. Now we have a new "mom" who is doing great...and we have a storeroom now which is locked and they have to ask for each thing. Ah, the joy of being an employer...
• Please keep us in prayer as we do planning for the coming year. Now that the children are settled, we are beginning to work on our business projects, plans for what to teach at church, what community classes to begin and how to begin working toward opening a school in January 2011. The Ugandan govt. requires that we own our own land for the school, so please pray that we find God's way through this hurdle.
• We have had much opposition from the religious community, but the Lord has spoken to us to "make every effort" to be united with them. We are looking for ways to bless them.
• Dina Poulin is here right now - she came on Friday. It is wonderful to have another person who thinks similarly! The children adore her, as she does them. She will be teaching workshops for our staff this week and next. Dennis - thanks for letting us have her for 2 weeks.
• Sorry there are no pictures today - I forgot my computer back in Budaka. I will get a picture to you next week...and Dina will be bringing back lots!

I would love to hear from you. Some of you have been keeping me updated on your lives. It's great to hear - the rest of you, what's happening in your life?
Greetings from Budaka (actually Mbale today).
Love you all!Laurie

Feb 22nd Update

Click to enlarge

I am so excited to tell all of you that we have been with the kids now for one week! We are having a grand time! It is so wonderful. It feels like they have been here for weeks. The first day was a bit hair-raising - no rules, they're from villages and have had the run of the wild during the day. But after a couple of days, they had settled down and are becoming a family. It's great to see the older ones helping the younger ones get their food, cool their tea, peel their eggs, etc. They have come with many diseases and conditions, but we have a physician's assistant (Mary) who comes morning and evening and is getting them the medications they need. We are also de-worming all of them. We have to do this every 3 months as there are many opportunities for them to get worms, apparently. They take everything in stride, except Charity, the youngest, who screams every time Mary comes close.
The children are so happy - they play and laugh and sing together. We have been teaching them many songs about Jesus, and they absolutely love them. I will be sitting in my office doing paperwork and hear a group of children break out in song, then the sound gets louder as all of them come together and mimic what we have taught them and are singing at the top of their lungs about Jesus. What a great thing!
The kids began school today - they are so excited. For about 1/2 of them, they have never been to school before. I have attached a picture of all of them sitting on the benches outside (before they went into their classrooms) learning how to sit and listen and be respectful in a classroom. They were buzzing with excitement about the whole thing. Today we pick up their uniforms - this is a Ugandan must...and to make 18 outfits cost about $40! That's us buying the fabric, taking it to a tailor and having them made. We also bought "smart" shoes (dress up) and knee high socks to go with the uniforms. They will look so great!
Our staff is doing well for the most part - we are working on a couple of them, but I have to say they all love children and are committed to what Cornerstone stands for. The names of our staff are: Christine and Stephen (cooks); Geoffrey and Lillian (mother and father...not married); Cephas (night watchman) and Rogers, Auntie Betty (Rogers' wife), David (teacher) and myself. God is working on bringing us together as a family. We have had to give one warning to one employee...she has 2 more and then is fired. But, she has really come around since we talked with her, so perhaps she will make it.
Each night we have devotions with the kids at 8pm - that's 9am your time. It has been so sweet and wonderful. The children love the attention and the Bible stories. Then either Rogers or myself tuck them in bed and pray with each separately. They are loving it. They also love the beds and mattresses...for many they have never slept on a bed. Thanks to all of you who helped make all this possible financially! They have clothing, bedding, great Ugandan food, medications necessary and some small toys (a tennis ball each, jump ropes - thanks to Vancouver Friends Church, and a stuffed animal each). They so cherish each thing that is theirs - no one else can touch or hold it. They have mostly never  had anything of their own. They also now have flip flops and shoes - most have never worn anything on their feet, so they are getting blisters between their first and second toes. But, we brought bandaids so they are okay.
The church is also going well - we had 44 yesterday. We will soon outgrow the room we have rented, but it feels great to have so many together in a small place. We have Sunday services in the morning and at night if there is no soccer game - the same room is used to show the games. Then we have prayer on Wednesday mornings at 5:30 and service Wednesday night at 5:30. It's a full schedule with the orphanage, too.
Rogers' wife had her baby last Saturday, Feb 13. It's a girl - Hope - and she is doing well. I don't get much time with her because of my work at the orphanage, but it's wonderful to have this new little life as Cornerstone and it's new little life begin. A great picture for us.
Please continue to pray. We are so thankful for your time on your knees for us, as well as the financial gifts you are sending so we can continue meeting the needs of these little ones, and reaching the people of Budaka. We pray for you and think of you all.
Love from Uganda,Laurie

Feb 12th Update - first Sunday picture

Hopefully this will come through to all of you. This is a picture of those who attended the first Sunday of Cornerstone Christian Center. I'm the white person :-)

Laurie

First Sunday Picture

Feb 12th Update

Hey, Everyone!

Thanks so much for your support - I feel like I am not the only one over here, that there are many who are helping this dream of Cornerstone become a reality. Your prayer, financial support and emails are so important to me and to the people we serve here in Budaka. Thank you.

So, here are some things that are happening:

• We had the crusade and had 14 people (that we know of) saved. Hallelujah! I preached the first night from Hebrews 13:8 - that Jesus is the same today as he was yesterday and will be forever. People responded to the call for salvation, healing and miracles in their lives. There was a huge thunderstorm, accompanied by probably 2-3 inches of rain that began around 2 pm that day. It's the first day it's rained since I have been here. The crusade was to begin at 5:30. I was watching the storm, thinking we would have to cancel. At about 4pm, the Lord said to me to get moving and get ready - there would be no rain that night. So, I got ready and it was still raining very hard. At about 5:15, the rain suddenly stopped and we had no rain the rest of the evening. Amazing! When I talked about miracles, I was sharing about Jesus being the master of the winds and waves and shared with them about what the Lord had said to me. So nice that He gave an illustration to us of His miracle power.
• We had 2 days of training this week for our staff. The training was great - the emphasis being on us becoming a family of people working together to help the children and to see the Kingdom of God come in this place. The new employees responded well and we did several exercises together to get to know each other. Here are the names of our staff - please be in prayer with us for them: Christine and Stephen - cooks; Lillian and Geoffrey - house parents; Cephas - night watchman (he is getting trained with a bow and arrow to protect us); Mary - physician's assistant; David and Betty - teachers; Rogers and I - directors.
• Our first church service was last Sunday and we had 29 in attendance - WOW! Even some of the people who got saved at the crusade were there. Then Wednesday we had early morning prayer (6 came at 5:30!) and an evening service at 5:30 with 19 in attendance. God is moving in Budaka. People are responding and getting saved, delivered and healed. We have had lots of requests for counseling also - there is a lot of witchcraft, spells put on people, etc. here and people are not sure how to get free. We will continue to be available to people for help in their everyday lives. Please pray for wisdom in this...and another translator. At this point, we have only Rogers who speaks Lugwelle - the local language.
• Our kids come on Monday - I'm so excited to get to be with them in an ongoing way. One of the things I have felt from the Lord is that I am to do evening devotions with the whole group - simple Bible stories with fun songs - and then tuck each child into bed and pray for them individually. Since they don't understand English, Rogers and I will be doing this together at least for the short term. I'm excited for them to feel the presence of a mom and dad who love and care for them. Please pray for those who are scared about the new place and new people. Even some of the children are scared of me because I'm white - I'm the first muzungu (white person) they have ever seen. Pray that the Holy Spirit will give them peace inside when they see me.

I will write again within in a week or so to let you know how our first week has gone. I pray that your lives will be full of the presence of the Lord and you will respond to all that He asks you to do right there in your neighborhoods. God bless you as you continue to seek Him.

In His great love,

Laurie