My Blog

Big Thanks & Signing Off

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 19:13:18 +0000

Hi guys!

As you all probably know I’ve been back at Hope Corner for the past month now, because of visa issues with the charity I was out there with. So this entry might come as a bit of a surprise!

But I just wanted to let you all know really, that even though my early return might have been a shock to us all, God has been completely in control of the situation. I’ve learned a lot through my time in Uganda, and I’m also extremely blessed in that I’m going back out there for two weeks in February with Matthew, to hopefully establish a link between Hope Corner and Mubende Pentecostal Church. So who knows what the future’s going to bring?

I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank you all so much for the support that you gave me whilst I was out there, your prayers were definitely heard and it was so amazing having the support of a loving family back home.

Well, I’m glad to be back with you all after a long four months and thanks for following my blog!

God bless,

Danielle.

Hello from Rwanda!

Wed, 2 Dec 2009 22:57:11 +0000

Well well, a big hello from Rwanda!
(I'll explain) :)

Only a short one this time guys because time's limited. But I'll tell you the main happenings of the last month.

Well firstly, I was asked to preach the 'word of wisdom' in church. And after an initial pang of fear and a sharp decline, I decided it was something that God wanted me to do. I preached a sermon on sin and it's implications on your life, and even though i'm not a natural, I think it went very successfully. And it was an experience I definitely did not think I'd be having in Uganda. On the church front, the language barrier can be very difficult at times, and I often feel as though I'm not gaining anything when they are preaching. So I'm on the lookout for ways to help, or if that fails, a church with a better translator. The worship's still really quite good though. :)

Secondly, we managed to do the women's workshop that I told you all about last time. And my section was on the role of men and women according to the Bible. And Sophie's section was designed to improve their business practise. Some very interesting questions arose from the sessions and we've been asked to return, with them requesting that I give them a workshop about Christian marriage.

Finally, the school holidays started very early this year and we're now finished teaching until the 8th February! I'm asking that you will all please pray that God will show me what he wants me to do during these few months, as I hadn't planned on having this much free time. And I feel lacking a purpose when I'm not helping! Projects are very difficult to find in Uganda because there are so many volunteers out here, so I'm praying that something will come up.

As for the Rwanda situation: there has been a lot of trouble with us being able to secure visas so it resulted in us having to cross a border for a few days before going back to pay for our next one. The country is absolutely beautiful, you'd think you were in Italy because of the scenery. We also thought we should visit the genocide museum whilst here (because I doubt an opportunity to come to Rwanda again will ever happen), and it was worth the visit. It was horrible to see the devastating effects that it had on the people, but the country seems to be recovering very well.

So, because my time is coming to an end, I'd better finish. Please keep me up to date with the happenings at Hope Corner and I hope you're all enjoying the festive period (I miss the winter!) :).

Miss you all and love you all so much.

God bless,

Danielle x

Teaching and other new opportunities

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 09:10:36 +0000

Hello again everybody!
I hope you’re all doing great. I thought it was time I updated you again with everything that’s going on in this part of the world.
Firstly, teaching’s fully underway. And I’d like to think that I’ve almost got the hang of keeping the ‘kids’ under control. (‘Kids’ because some of them are probably really quite close to also reaching their 19th birthday). I think I’ve found that the hardest thing is trying to get them to use their imagination for anything. The Ugandan education system is based on learning facts and reciting them, which leads to a serious lack of understanding. However, Sophie and I are trying to combat it very slowly. At the moment, I’m working on preparing a series of monologues with them about issues which affect a lot of African families (HIV, prostitution). And then we’ll move on to see if they can think of appropriate ways of trying to deal with the problems. They’re also enjoying debating. Topics have included alcohol and polygamy. I also thought I should mention that we have started up a choir in the Senior 1 and Senior 2 classes. The current song – Michael Jackson’s ‘I want you back.’ J
We’ve also started volunteering on Fridays at Tweyambe Primary School for Special Education, where they welcome disabled children. We’re mainly able to teach them dancing, singing, sports and art. And it’s seriously SO much fun. They have endless amounts of energy, whereas we, suffering from a diet lacking in anything that gives us a lot of energy, have trouble keeping up with them. It’s a fair walk away, but it’s worth it. They get really excited to see ‘Mzungus’ (white people), and I think they’ll continue to get excited throughout the year. So Matt has a lot to look forward to when he comes to visit. J
Another amazing opportunity that we’ve been given is to give a workshop to the adults of the village. Apparently wife beating is common practice in Africa, and we’re fortunate enough to be able to educate them about why it’s unacceptable. Obviously, it’s going to have to be thought about carefully. We don’t want to just appear as ‘Westerners’, educating them in our ways of doing things. But rather, I’m going to try and appear as a follow of God and explain how abuse is unacceptable in His eyes too. That’s in about two weeks so I’ll let you know how it goes.
Again, God is amazing. He’s continually giving me the strength that I need and I feel so content because He has given me such an awesome opportunity. I hope that everything is doing amazing back in Runcorn, and I’m really in no doubt that it is. I pray that you’ll all keep safe and in good health.
Until next time, God bless & I love you all.
Danielle

Settling into life in Uganda

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:00:11 +0100

Hey guys! I've actually rewritten this so many times but I thought I'd give you the most up to date version. I hope you're all doing well back in Runcorn! I can't believe how different it is to Kiwangala, but I'll try to give you a rundown on life here before my time in the internet cafe runs out.

I'll start off by saying that God could not have brought me to a more perfect place. Christianity is largely the way of life here. With most of the taxis in Kampala sporting "Jesus is Lord" stickers in the windscreen. It's actually amazing to see people living in such poverty worshipping God with all they have. I should also mention that me and my partner Sophie learnt a song in Lugandan with the youth choir in the church. We don't fully understand it. But I'm pretty sure "naye nze nywerera ku yesu" is something about running to Jesus. Oh! I also taught them "The Stand". :)

Okay I should probably tell you a bit about our humble abode. It consists of two rooms, two beds, a table and a few shelves. I suppose you would call it poor by british standards, but it's a palace compared to the homes of some of our neighbours. - so we really are very blessed.

We've just finished our first week of teaching, which i really enjoyed. And we're hoping to start our secondary projects next week. These will include volunteering in an orphanage for disabled children, helping the elderly and working on a farm.

However, I can't take credit for any of these projects. It's only with God's strength that I can do these things. I'm depending on him so much out here. And he keeps drawing closer to me, it really is amazing. He keeps showing me the poverty out here, and his heart for his children. I don't know what it is that he needs me to do, so I'm asking you to keep praying for me!

I thank God everyday for this amazing opportunity to do his work and for blessing me so much back at home.

Take care of each other for me! And look after Matthew and my parents.

Miss you all! Love you all. God bless xx