Woohoo for 2011!!

Happy Christmas and Merry New Year! :-) I pray that you had a Blessed holiday season and that you are rested and ready for 2011. This year has flown by and has been filled with soooo much adventure! Just the way I like it. This year has also been a year of a few first times for me: milked a cow, skinned a snake, moved to another country, lived on an island, was bucked off horses twice in one day, drove a dirt bike. Yep, it's been a good year!
This year has also been filled with learning the importance of flexibility in the Lord. Upon moving to Africa, flexibility was the character trait most missionaries insisted was most important. Only now do I see why they have all agreed. For example:
After much prayer and fasting, seeking the Lord's Will, I have decided not to move to Kapchorwa to work with the REACH program against FGM. This decision was made following weeks of heartache regarding certain circumstances surrounding the organization. I have nothing bad to say of REACH, only that it is not the organization which the Lord desires me to serve with. I continue to feel a deep calling to serve girls affected by FGM and I am currently seeking out other organizations in Africa working towards the goal of eradication of the practice.
I must share some difficult news which has occurred recently. Luke, the boy from the children's rehabilitation center I've written you about, has disappeared from the hospital. He went through his skin graft surgery on a Tuesday and Thursday morning I received a call that he was missing. There is not a suspicion of foul play, Luke has been a runner ever since he first showed up at the center many years ago. However, the urgency of this situation is that due to the surgery having just been done, Luke now has two wounds which have a high chance of becoming infected. So I ask for your prayers for healing, that he is found and that in the meantime he is kept safe on the streets. I also ask for your prayers for my heart. Luke has become a friend and was always a joy to be around. Every time I went to the hospital he'd run to see me and give me a huge hug and take me around to see all of his friends he'd made. We had begun to be able to communicate through his disabilities. I will miss him terribly until he is found. But I will believe in my all powerful, all Loving Abba that He will watch over and take care of Luke until he is found.
I want to take this opportunity and say a bit about the missionaries I live with and their ministry. First, Brent and Virginia Earwicker have been in Uganda for four years with their two children. After being in Uganda for some time they began taking trips out to the Islands of Lake Victoria. During their visits they learned that most pastors had little to no training on the Word or how to lead a church. Therefore, through a pastors' training school, Roots of Character seminars and evangelistic crusades Brent and Virginia serve to train up the pastors in the local church of Uganda. Their other ministry is through Life Church in Kampala. Through the church they run a discipleship program called Ignite. Ignite is a 6 month program for 18-30 year olds. For more on their ministry, visit their website: http://www.pleadthecause.org/v2/
The other missionary at the house is Seth Sokoloff. Seth has lived in Uganda for one year working to assist Brent in the ministry to the Islands as well as with the Ignite program. Around Life Church, and our house, Seth is known as the 'go-to' man for just about any job needing completion-including being my veterinarian assistant as I've stitched up a few dogs. Long term, Seth desires to develop a discipleship program in the Ukraine. Seth has a boldness and passion for following the Lord that is rare. He will do amazing things for our King! For more on his ministry, visit Seth's blog website: http://sethsokoloff.wordpress.com/

I would encourage you all to check out their websites. There are so many amazing ministries in this world and each one of you can be involved in an area you are passionate about. These fellow missionaries have become my family and I'm sooooo thankful the Lord has blessed me with such amazing people as I begin this new stage in life serving Him in Africa.

I love and miss you all and continue to chat with my Abba daily about you. I ask for Blessings and Peace for each one of you in this time of new beginnings!

Love and hugs to you all!