My Journey With God to Africa - Day Five 24-06-2009

I awoke to the alarm clock this morning and forgot where I was and where I had to be! Took me a moment to realize I was still in Africa. The sign that I had truly slept hard last night.
Again, I was so thankful for the coffee that Sharlyn had brought. I always had my protein bar with coffee and it was amazingly wonderful. We both went down to the restaraunt so Sharlyn could grab a bite to eat before we started our day of wonder and excitement. Today we would spend with the children at Smile Africa for most of the day.
Jan was not feeling well today and decided that she would stay back at the hotel and catch up on things from her room. We are sorry that she will not be with us today.
We loaded in the car and headed for Smile Africa. We entered the gates and the children were once again screaming and yelling and waiving to us as we arrived.
We headed into the office and Pastor Ruth gave me the phone to talk with Sarah from Kings Primary School. There is some important issues to clear up before we make our trip there tomorrow. The phone call gave some clarification, but all our concerns had not yet been resolved. We trust that God will oversee all the details.
Before our arrival Sharlyn had asked about purchasing fruit for all the children today from the donations that had come in on her behalf for this trip. We had decided to go to the market and purchase banana's for each child. Pastor Ruth was so pleased by this gesture. Fruit is something that the children of Smile Africa rarely get, and is an important part of their diet.
We loaded back up in the van and headed to the market. I'm sure the children were wondering where we were going. Their smiling faces and hands waiving were hopeful of our return!



As we drove along the streets and market fronts we finally parked. There was no produce to be found (or so we thought). We exited the van and walked between two store fronts and found ourselves inside a huge fruit/vegetable market. Rows and rows of fruit and vegetables laid out for purchase by women in the area.





We headed for the banana's. Pastor Ruth had haggled back and forth with the vendor for the best fruit at the best price. We were so thankful to have her with us, as these people know her and respect her.
We purchased 3 bags of banana's, about 450 banana's for 75,000.00 schillings..or about 35.00 US dollars.
We met up with Saphan and Alex for a brief time to say our goodbye's. They were still in the area and were heading back to Entebbe. I had hoped that we would meet up with them again before we left.
As we pulled up again to Smile Africa the kids were all screaming and yelling. It really was overwhelming to get this kind of greeting everytime you pull in. It wasn't a forced greeting, they were truly excited and happy to see us.
As we got out of the van the kids were getting seated under the pavillion. They began to sing welcome songs and songs of praise. The screams got louder and louder to the point that you could not hear anything else. The banana's had come out and the out cry of happiness that came from these little faces caused the tears to flow in all of us. Pastor Ruth had come out from the office and I looked at her and just broke down. I told her this shouldn't be this way, these children should get fruit all the time. We hugged and she told me, "Sister, Denise, I believe every tear you shed is a prayer to God". I believe she is right. Dear God, these children are yours and they deserve so much more than this.



In my journal there is a a prayer by David Livingstone that I found so appropriate coming from a fellow missionary to Africa. "Lord, send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever any ties but the tie that binds me to Thy service and to Thy Heart". Oh I love this prayer and I agree with it's message and today more than ever before!
I only regret that Jan was not here to see this. Jan we love you!
The children sat so well waiting for their banana's. The older children sat patiently while the little one's received theirs first.






Each child and each teacher received a piece of fruit. I'm sure that the teachers rarely get fruit either. They get 30,000.00 schilling for a months salary. That's $15.00. They work from 8:00am - 4:00 pm Monday - Saturday..that's 50 cents a day. They are such a blessing to these children. They give sacrificially each day, sometimes spending what little they have on the children.
Sharlyn had brought some clothes from wonderful friends at home for the children. We asked how best to distribute them. The teachers told us that during bath time they would bring 20 children with the most need (and what a task to decide when they ALL are in need) to the office. Otherwise the little ones that don't get any will pull from the ones that do.





After the kids were bathed they came running to the office. There was not enough room inside so I stood outside as the kids lined up. I broke down in tears again, as the kids started to realize that something was going on and that the ones that stood outside naked were getting new clothes. They began to tear off their old clothes and stand naked in line hoping that was all they needed to get some. There just wasn't enough clothes to go around. It was gut wrenching and still brings tears to my eyes when I visualize it over in my head. Lord, please help them is all I kept saying, please help them.
The children that were able to get new clothes were so excited, and actually many of the ones that didn't were excited for those that did. The older siblings of younger ones that received them had grins on their faces as if it were them that received. Thank You, Jesus.



Jan had made it back to Smile Africa, but still not feeling to well.
The kids were fed lunch and we took a short break. As the children went back to class we went inside the classrooms. Sharlyn started off with a wonderful song for the older kids called "King of the Jungle". It was a motions song and the kids just loved it. They especially loved the "bubble, bubble, King of the sea". I assume that many, if not most have never seen the sea, and to sing about something that was different for them and do a fun and silly motion to it, brought such laughter and joy. A song that I'm sure to this day they remember!



She followed up the song with a puppet show with Eli. Eli talked about being a new creation in Christ. The kids loved Eli!



A fun craft followed with pencils and toppers of butterflies and a scripture verse on being a new creation in Christ. It was fun to see them make something that had such a symbol of love for them.



As Sharlyn moved on to the next classroom, Jan began a salvation message to the older children with ribbons for the kids. They have been a major part of the great commission!



We headed back to the office to get the treats for the end of the day. We headed to the gates and the kids were pushing and shoving to get to the front. They knew what was inside our large bags. The escares (guards) were irritated by the confusion and mobbing of the children.



We definitely needed to find a new system for passing out treats. The babies were getting smashed! After the kids were gone we passed out treats to the teachers, gaurds, and other workers at smile africa. They were just as excited to get sweets. We packed up our bags and headed back to the hotel. Another God driven day!
Sharlyn and I sit on the balcony while the thunder is rumbling and the scattered sprinkles fall. We talk about what other things we could do on Friday. It should be fun!!