~Gulu~

Yesterday was a such a blessed day; I learned so much, experienced so much, I cannot believe God has blessed me so much to be in this place- who am I that he would give me such a privilege.

So for now I will share the history I learned today. The people of Northern Uganda have experienced turmoil for a long time and in fact the situation that the Ugandan military created allowed for Joseph Kony to rise up with many people’s support.  Today I was told the story of a man whose entire family was killed by the Ugandan military and also that stories like his were not uncommon. The atrocities attributed to the LRA including rape, pillaging, murder, and the capturing of people were being committed by the military before Joseph Kony established the LRA. In fact the LRA was established in response to the military’s abuse of the Northern Ugandans.  Therefore the people found themselves in a difficult place; they could not rely on their military or government for protection and the rebels that claimed to fight for them were now committing the same crimes they were initially fighting against.

Furthermore, due to the lay of the land, how the villages are spread so far apart and the surrounding area is overgrown with tall grasses the LRA was able to massacre the people and the Ugandan government was not able to provide any protection for them but realized that they needed to make an attempt despite their past actions.  Therefore, the government established the Internally Displaced Peoples (IDP) Camps and forced the villagers into such camps saying that if they were not in the camps the military would assume they were with the rebels and they would be killed.  Though the establishment of these camps was supposed to provide protection the camps were often the target of the LRA and the people were still not safe.  The people of Northern Uganda have lived in such terror for nearly 20 years.

Now that Joseph Kony has moved to the Congo, and the conflict has resolved the government has withdrawn its support to the IDP Camps.  Some of the people have returned to their villages while others have remained in the camps.  However, because the government does not recognize that there are still displaced people these individuals do not receive any aid from the government. When I asked what the source of income is for these people I was told that they literally live off the land and if they are able to sell anything they harvest they use that money to buy clothes, or other necessities.

So now that I have provided some history I will explain how Watoto is being the hands and feet of Christ to the people of Northern Uganda.  A few years ago the Trauma Rehabilitation department was established and they have a few phases in which they work. They go into the IDP Camps and build relationships with the people by living in the huts for 2 week periods.  While these relationships are being built the team offers trauma counseling through a program called Empower. Sometime after this counseling takes place the team returns to do follow-up sessions to review everything the participants have learned. Sometime after that the team returns for 2 more weeks to offer a discipleship program in which the gospel is presented.

I was blessed to drive to one of the IDP camps where the team was starting discipleship. It is amazing to me the lengths the team goes to in order to reach these people; it is a 2 and a half hour grueling car ride on roads with the biggest pot holes I have ever seen. Once the team is there they sleep in the very same huts that people they are serving sleep in. I was truly in awe of such servanthood. The people in the camp were so kind and welcoming despite the language barrier (we had a translator J; as the team introduced me, the women stood and started singing a song to welcome me. My name was difficult for them to say so they asked if they could call me Ketchie- how wonderful that they want to give me a name. 

One of my favorite parts of the day was listening to people give their testimonies about how the Empower program changed their lives.  One woman described how she was so overcome with anger that she could hardly care for her children, her friends or herself, but since she attended the program she has forgiven so much and is now able to be a better mother, friend, and person.  Another woman said that the Empower program encouraged her to care for the orphans in her community and how she used to worry constantly but now she does not worry and provides care for these orphans.  A man told his story as well, saying that due to the turmoil caused by the conflict he became an alcoholic, not caring for his family and just falling deeper into the addiction. But the Empower program helped him to make serious change in his life and now he is living up to his responsibilities.

How powerful these testimonies were; just a few weeks and God has changed lives and now they will have the opportunity to learn more about him, how to obey him, and live a life that is glorifying to him. Wow- praise God!!!

I am so thankful that God has blessed me and allowed me to witness such triumphs after tragedy.

Though I still do not know what lies ahead, how I will be used with the trauma team or any of the specific details I am deeply grateful for this opportunity.  Thank you all for contributing to getting me here and for your prayers along the way. Thank you Jesus for being Lord. All glory to you!