Workin'

Greeting yet again from Uganda!

Wow, it’s been too long since the last update! Sorry about that. There’s so much I could talk about, but I’ll keep it short this time. Basically I’ve been working at the office the past few weeks getting ready for our project trip next week. I also spent three days surveying some land for a ministry in Etebbe here in Uganda. That was a fun experience. It was great to get the refresher on surveying, and also fun to do it in Africa! It was hot (but not as bad Alabama in the summer) and there lots of kids and chickens running around, so things were interesting. We ate local food straight from a hut everyday, but it was great actually. We also got to meet some cool people from the ministry Cherish Uganda, which has set up a school for HIV positive orphans. Very cool place. We didn’t finish the survey cause it was more land than we thought, not as clear as we thought, and a weirder shape than we thought. We’ll be heading out there later on this year to finish, we hope.

Work in the office has been good. It’s definitely a lot different than working in a normal American engineering office, but I like it. Definitely has a family atmosphere. I’ve been spending plenty of time researching things for the trip, making visits to product suppliers, and having meetings discussing things. I’ve learned a lot already, and I know I’ll learn a ton more. I really like this engineering design in the developing world. I actually feel like what I’m designing is going to make a real difference in these people’s lives. Plus it’s for a ministry that is dedicated to preaching the gospel, so it has eternal significance. Awesome stuff. I have a feeling I’ll be involved in this kind of work for a long time. I also really like the water supply/treatment part of everything. Definitely a necessary thing. I think when I get back to the states I might look for a job that involves some kind of water resources/treatment engineering. Either that or maybe go to grad school to learn more about it. But who knows.

Apart from work, I’ve had some chances to hang out with some kids from the international school down the road. I helped out at a youth group kind of thing last Friday, kind of doing games and a Bible study, and that was great. I also helped lead worship this morning at chapel at the same school. It’s a cool place. We also visited another church this past Sunday called Calvary Chapel. It was a ton more western, but was great. I’d say it was still 80% Ugandan, but the service was a lot like what you’d expect from a contemporary American community church. It was cool. The pastor is American and had some great teaching. There also seems to be a lot going on there with ministry, evangelism, and service, so that’s great too. There’s a possibility I may start going there regularly, depending on the few other visits I make around town. As much as I loved the more traditional local Ugandan church, I feel like I could be more involved with this other church. We’ll see.

Also, just for updates of other things, one of our teams has been in Kenya this past week doing a project. They’ve had some things stolen from their room (computers, wallets, etc.) so please pray for them in the process after that. I’m not sure how that’s all going to work out, I know its hard to deal with. So pray for them. Also my project leader left for the DRC (District Republic of Congo) yesterday to work with Samaritan’s Purse doing water testing. The DRC is a dangerous area, especially near the Uganda border. There’s a group called the LRA that has attacked villages around there, so pray for her.

Also, things have a been a little crazy here. Riots have broken out downtown from some political tension (I’ll spare you the details). Around ten people have been killed so far from the clash between police and rioters, and things may get worse this weekend. Rioters are burning cars, tires, even police posts. Overall its kind of a mess. So please pray for Uganda. Don’t be worried about me, though. Where I live and work is away from downtown, so we really haven’t experience anything here. We don’t expect anything to happen here either. We’re just steering clear of downtown for the weekend and things should be fine. By around Monday things should have cleared up. Overall I haven’t felt unsafe, so don’t worry. There’s plenty of people here that know a lot more about the area than I do, so I’m just following their directions on safety.

But yeah things are good here. I’ve heard some cool stories of what God has done here before and got to have some great time fellowshipping with the interns, staff, locals, and other people in ministry here. God is teaching me things here, and challenging me in a lot of ways. He’s doing some housecleaning in my heart, I’d say. Life is much more slower paced here, so there’s plenty of time for reflection, reading, and praying, so that is definitely helping, too.

Again, I appreciate all of your prayers and support. I can already tell that I’m not going to leave this place the same, and you’ve helped me get here! Thanks so much. I hope you’re all doing well, wherever you’re at!

In Christ,

Kyle