“He equips you, enables you and empowers you.”
The excitement and the preparation started in me months before I was due to go on my first mission trip to Kitgum with Jireh Women, a charity that I am involved with, and Missionary Ventures, in June 2009. God had given me a a vision of “Draw close” – draw close to Him by meditating on His word and being the paintbrush in His hand.
Months before the mission trip I had such great support from many of my art suppliers. I phoned them and told them of my mission trip to Uganda and that we were doing ladies conferences and workshops to draw the ladies closer to God by drawing and colouring and then to bless the ladies with a pamper session of hand massage afterwards. I collected a box from one of my suppliers with over 760 damaged pencils which could not be used in UK but they were willingly given to take to the ladies of Uganda – this box weighed in at 2 stone and 2lb and this was just the first of many miracles that God gave us! Other suppliers provided the paper and the plastic wallets for our ladies to take their “masterpieces” home in …. the support was overwhelming from the art suppliers, friends and family, work colleagues and my employer.
When I left to meet the team, Carol, Denise, Moira and Jackie at Manchester airport, one of my cases alone was full of pencils of all shapes and designs, and paper, everything needed to do a “draw close” workshop. God had truly equipped and enabled us to do the conferences and the workshops, and for Melinda to distribute as and where, when we had left to come home again.
Rex and Melinda the missionaries in Kitgum were waiting for us with big smiles and lots of excitement at the airport. Melinda called the people of Kitgum “her people and her land” – I now know why. The people of Kitgum in Uganda are so warm and loving, they give out of their nothingness and just keep on giving, their love is so embracing and sincere – we “gelled” like I had never known before.
We drew close as a team and we drew close to the people of Kit – gum, men, women and children – we laughed, cried, hugged, danced, sung, praised, worshipped and loved together. We were united in God’s family and the hospitality was amazing.
The ladies conferences went really well and the draw close workshops were full of fun and excitement. It is hard to get the people of Uganda to “be still” but that was fine, we went with the flow and we saw God move mightily. Some of the ladies did not know how to even pick up a pencil to draw, but when we showed them, their creativity was astounding. They all drew and coloured their “masterpieces” and were given a plastic wallet to take home with them to hang on their walls in their own homes!
We did hand massage and that was such fun, it didn’t just go on the hands it went all over! legs, arms, faces, wherever there was skin showing, cream was rubbed in!
We blessed the ladies with a goody bag, full of things that would make them feel special and pampered at the end of the conferences.
There are so many more experiences to share with you, that I could fill a book, but this is just one of many.
I went with the heart of being a blessing to these people but came away more blessed than I could ever imagine – they have certainly found a place in my heart! This was my first mission trip and I know it will not be my last! My heart’s desire is to go back when God calls me ….. after all, He may send me somewhere else to do the “Draw close” workshop – His world is a big place but then we serve a big God where nothing is impossible.
Uganda is known as the Pearl of Africa and it is a beautiful country, with wonderful people who know how to worship God in their hardships and sufferings, as well as their good times. I hope and pray that in the 12 days that I was in Kitgum, they will remember “the crazy white women” especially the one who called herself “Pearl of Africa” who has been blessed in abundance, by being with them.
Let me encourage anyone thinking of going on a mission trip, stop thinking and step out and do it! God will equip you and enable you and empower you, you will come home a different person with the desire to do more for those who are less fortunate than yourselves. It was life changing and a wonderful experience and yet challenging too ….. but I believe this is just the start of new beginning’s for me.
I want to thank Rob and Karen from Missionary Ventures, Rex and Melinda, Pastor Otto and his wife Christine and their family, all the ladies on our team, and everyone I met whilst in Kit gum, Padibe and Adysee for making my first mission trip so wonderful, one that I will never forget. Thank you so much to you all and may God bless you more and more each day.