Update - halfway done with lecture!

Hello! 

We're already halfway through our lecture phase. It doesn't feel like I've been here for 6 weeks...it feels more like 3 or 4. Time flies when you're having fun! :)

The whole class, with our speaker from week one and two

This week was an amazing week for me. Our topic was Prayer and Intercession. I learned a lot about what prayer should be, what kinds of things we should be praying for, and how important it is to our walk with Christ. I really needed these teachings...prayer for me hasn't been a priority in my daily life. Now I have a better mindset about how incredibly important it is. It's our way of getting to know God better, and communicating with Him. 

As for Intercession, it's a new topic for me. I used to wonder whether praying for really large issues like war, governments, and nations really had much effect. How do you pray for such a big topic? But now I know that yes, it does matter. God acts on earth in response to prayers, and if no one prays, then the enemy gets to have his way. We studied several examples from the Bible when God looked for an intercessor and found none, so He didn't rescue the people. We also looked at a few examples of when one person was able to stand in the gap and intercede for a whole people group. So, I'm thankful for the teaching this week. Intercession is a major value of YWAM, and now I'm starting to understand how to do it better. 

We found out that we'll be going to western Uganda for our outreach phase. It should be about a ten hour bus ride. So far all I know is that on outreach we're often given the chance to preach at a church or perform a skit or lead worship...so we're practicing for those things. It's kind of terrifying to think of preaching to a church full of people I don't know, using a translator. But I know I can do it!

A classmate and I had an interesting experience last Sunday. We had gone to the nearest village, Kakira, and were on our way back. Two boys were following us, carrying their food for the week. After about ten minutes I looked back at them and the older boy said "help me?" So I took one of his grocery bags. It was full of cabbages and onions. My classmate took a sack of powder (posho mix) from the smaller boy, and the boys still shared the weight of another sack of powder between them. The older boy knew English, so we talked with him. He's 14 and lives with his mom, brother, and five sisters. He used to go to school but now they can't afford for school fees, so he's about to look for a job. His brother is 12, but he was significantly shorter. Maybe the height of a normal 7 year old...I think maybe he suffered from malnutrition or a disease when he was young. Anyway, we ended up walking all the way to their home with them. It was about a 30 minute walk past the base. But we saw their house, met their family, and then their sisters walked us back. It was neat to see another village, and nice to get out of the bubble that the base is...things are so easy and well taken care of here, it can be easy to forget the problems that exist right outside. 

The sisters, and two small friends who came along for fun

Not much else to report. Everything is still beautiful here. I'm still amazed by the African people...they have such a wonderful disposition, and they're so beautiful.  So far I'm pretty sure I would love to stay here longer...I'm trying to find a balance between seeking God for direction for the future and asking Him to help me with what I desire. I feel like I can't just wait on God to write everything in my book...I should be creating WITH Him, not just asking Him to do all the work. So that's what my personal prayers have been lately.

Lastly, I got some pictures with the base puppies today! The base leader's female dog had them about seven weeks ago. They remind me of home!