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As you probably know, I am home now.

And in fact I am currently working on thank you letters!

so if you replied to my mailings to support me financially or in prayer then be expecting a letter in the near future. it takes some time for me to get them all out. i just jumped back into life in san diego, getting back to school and working at Flood Church.

i love you all.

thank you for all the support.

i feel the love.

Andrew

just wanted to drop a few lines for you guys. The weekend was really great. Friday we traveled over to kukoko village for some training with the church elders and the womans group, talking about ways to engage their village with the reality of Christ's death and resurrection. I'll have to tell you about my friend Eric who recently left his life in Islam to follow Christ. its a beautiful story. Anyways we had a great dinner of nsima and chicken at one of the chiefs houses and then curddled up on the floor with a sleeping bag and mosquito net. woke up to the roosters at 5 and quickly went outside to laughing kids waiting for the azungus to get up. haha. spent time with the Chisomo Idea at the childrens center and feeding program. so neat.

so this is our last few days. sunday we leave for London till Wednesday when we arrive home.
got some things to get done here, some design work for flood that i need to do, visit the crisis nursery, kudoko one more time and wrap up our research for the intern program.

i'll probably connect with you all here one more time before i leave.

much love

MALAWI!

So the last time I talked to you all on this here blog I was getting ready to leave Kampala! Its been almost 2 weeks since then and I have since then traveled to Malawi, seen my beautiful girlfriend Rachel, rendezvoused with Adam and friends for the first portion of my time here in Malawi, wined and dined with the Flood Malawi staff in Lilongwe’s finest, retreated to the shores of Lake Malawi with the Flood Malawi leadership for some vision casting and rejuvenation, and now am exploring and researching a potential intern exchange program between Flood San Diego and Flood Malawi.

I don’t think I understood how different this experience would be compared to what I have become so familiar with in Uganda. I tried my best to not imagine what I thought it would all be like, feel like, look like, feel like, as to give it a fair opportunity to be just what it is and nothing more or less. It’s not a bad difference at all. I really enjoy how unique this experience has been. Here in Malawi I live with an incredible funny and sweet young British couple, Tom and Jo, and their adorable 1 year old Sally Jane. They house 3 other Brits that are visiting for various amounts of time and 2 young Malawians, Funa and Guise. It’s a lively house. I spend most of my time with them and the rest of the staff at Flood on the African Bible College campus, compared to a typical day in Uganda where I would spend long afternoons and evenings at childrens village playing and laughing with those lovely kids. There was a day that my team and I went out to Msalitza, a COTN village partnership, to help out with the feeding program that feeds over 350 kids. The kids welcomed us with some songs and I couldn’t stop smiling. Helping the woman feed them was insane, and the smell of a vat of boiled fish was not pleasant, but there is something so sweet about just being with kids. My time here in the capital city of Malawi (quite quiet and mild compared to Kampala) has allowed me to connect to a whole other side of life in Africa, the life of the young urban Malawians striving to make a name for themselves in the warm heart of Africa. More specifically I get to spend time with those at ABC that are trying to rise above that western dream of individual success and instead care about educating themselves for the sake of the love of Christ and their communities. Some have a heart for the villages just outside of the city, for training up leaders that lead with integrity and courage, some have a heart for hip hop in the city and for brining hope and light to those stuck in bars.
This last weekend Adam and our team from Flood lead a 2 day retreat for the Flood staff at Lake Malawi. That’s when it hit me how unique and unreal this experience is to be along side Shaun (the pastor of Flood Malawi) and his staff who are on the front lines of the kingdom expanding it in ways the church here has historically said it should not and could not be done. So what exactly does this young movement of Malawians need me for? Well, they don’t need me actually. So I feel honored that they invite me here to what God is doing in their city and in their lives. I did come to help give some tools that could help refine and focus their vision as a church but other than that I am just exploring ways for us to partner with them by exchanging interns for a cross cultural, cross everything experience in ministry.

To do that Kyle and I are tagging along with the staff asking questions, doing work, going places, etc. This Friday Kyle and I are joining a group from Flood that spends every Friday at Kudoko village spending time with the elders and leaders of the village teaching and training them in discipleship, bible study tools, and every day life stuff. They also just hang out with kids and help with AIDS/HIV education stuff too. No big deal. These guys are legit!
I’ll try and let you know when we get back how it went! Internet is really spotty but ill post something asap.

kampala

kyle and I are currently plucking feathers off some slaughtered chickens at our friends edward and caitlin olara's house.

we've had a really relaxing time here in kampala getting ready for our 5 am flight to nairobi then malawi.

back to the chickens
peace

so full

I never knew two weeks could feel so full. Kyle and I plunged into our time in Uganda right as we stepped off the plane, getting into a car and driving straight up to Lira. It’s about a five-hour drive after two days of traveling with no sleep. I also never knew I could be that slaphappy. It was such a dizzying drive, falling in and out of dreams, waking up to red dirt roads and the blurred green peripheral. Deep breaths reminded me this wasn’t a dream.
After dropping off our stuff at the guesthouse we headed over to the new children’s village. My nauseous stomach was filled with a flood of excited emotions. I couldn’t contain the joy of seeing the boys again and all the COTN staff. I wondered how Solomon had grown this year and how the kids had adjusted to life in another new home. But all my questions and curious thoughts stood still as I ran into the circle of beautifully built brick homes and saw their bright eyes heading for my arms. I wept… to say the least. And then to add to the joy I see the intern team, all comprised of good friends of mine (Elena, Chris, Tyler, Hanna, Ashley, Maci, Alex). I was so full.

There began a very busy two weeks of venturing out with the interns to serve at schools, hospitals, a babies orphanage, and just spending time in the village. Each place has had its challenges, its joys and adventures. I don’t think you ever get used to seeing extreme poverty. The pain of watching death wait at the edge of a child’s bed in the halls of the malnutrition ward never dulls. But there is a very different way of processing it when you have spent more time sitting with these realities with the people that live them. Death, sickness, new life, and joy are all very present at most parts of the day it seems. That being said I felt such an odd mix of celebrating and mourning throughout the two weeks here. God has done miracles with these children living in our new village as he has opened up the way for COTN to take in more kids. We have seen incredible change in their broken hearts. It’s very hard to just feel like I am stopping by on the way to Malawi, driving through this beautiful country in my dizzy dreaming. I want to slow it down and keep my eyes open but its time to leave… for now. There is much work ahead of COTN and much ahead for the people of Lira, for the people of Uganda. I am praying about the ways that I may make my return to walk alongside these people for an unknown amount of time once I graduate this upcoming fall. I am so full.

Kyle and I are in Sipi Falls with the interns till Thursday for a beautiful debrief and then to Kampala for 2 days until we fly out at 5:00am Saturday to Malawi! Pray as you feel lead. We are ready for this next adventure as both of us have never been to Malawi and are excited to work with Flood Malawi, start creating our intern exchange program and future human rights clinics.

1.2.3.

Go.

Tonight, Kyle and I leave from LAX at 9:20pm. We will fly straight to London and arrive in Uganda Wednesday morning local time (tuesday night california time).

I wish I could describe a bit better of how I feel getting ready to return. Ironically, as I left Uganda last year I asked myself if I could even return again without staying for an extended period of time. Two months was just enough to start scratching the surface of the culture, way of life, mentality, everything. I imagined a two week trip or something shorter than a few months would be a bit of a painful disappointment. But I was only setting up a wall that would surely be toppled down. Im obviously returning to Uganda just for 2 sweet weeks and I could not be more thankful. We have a few goals and things to hopefully accomplish but more than that I cannot wait to see those that I deeply love and be apart of the beautiful work they are doing for their communities. One of those people would be Uncle Thomas. You can look below here and read up on my last trip to find out more about Thomas and his life living with the COTN kids.

Anyways, I cannot wait to get on that plane and finally land to breathe in the sweet humid air.

I will post here to let you know when we are safe at COTN.

Pray with Kyle and I, that we see every opportunity as we travel to share the deep love that is Christ.

Obanga Mii Gum,

Opio Andrew

I am home now. Its been 5 days now, back in the states. What was a strange reality to me a few weeks ago is now a very real one. It is nice to be back, to see faces I missed, to rest at home. There are many comforts too, but none that I abosuletly need. Thats one thing Ive been aware of alot since being home, trying not to be tied to the comforts of this country (this world for that matter). I don't think its a selfrighteous thing, to make myself feel better about living nicely amoungst a starving world, but rather there are so many comforts that simply distract and take away from life and relationships. So im on the look out.

Anyways! I wanted to wrap up the blog and let you know how it all went down. Goodbyes were hard, obviously. I will never forget the night when a few of my teammates and I camped out at the kids home. The moment we arrived at their house my arms were pulled at every direction and my ears filled with the same questions, "ARE YOU SLEEPING OVER TONIGHT'? I asked Thomas (my dear brother who lives with the kids) not to tell the kids but he couldn't hold in his own excitement and told them as we were on our way. Their faces as we answered yes put the biggest smile on my heart and probably my face too. They danced and screamed and helped us set up the tents. I could probably have lived in that tent for a very long time.

Scott, the boys, and I went inside their rooms to sit around and read some passages from the Bible. We wanted to encourage them as we left to continue loving and taking care of each other as they move to their new village in a few months, but to also shine like a light on a hill for the new children that will find their home at COTN. The village, as we learned from our weeks teaching, had many kids in need of a place to rest their heads and their souls. I know that my boys will love those kids like no other. I cant wait see their new community flourish and grow next year and in the years to come.

After we talked and prayed I whipped out my computer to show them videos and pictures from home. They laughed so hard at the pictures from my previous trip to their home and got a kick out of silly pictures from my home. They made me promise that I would come back with long hair again like last year. They just love that it resembled Jesus from the Jesus film. haha. I really prefer the simplicity of shorter hair, but I will do it for them.

And a storm came. Our tents nearly flew away. Not really but it was quiet intense and Jenny jokingly threatened to walk home. We survived and woke up to the kids doing chores and putting on their finest for church.

It all seems like just yesterday. It was quite the switch, one day in Africa 2 days later in America. Yesterday though I sat around and thought about what to tell you about my trip and what is next for me. There are so many stories I could tell from the last week in Lira and our trip to BEAUTIFUL Sipi Falls and Mbale. Oo here is a good one, our team danced and sang for the kids in our fairwell cermony. I had a good cry when I had to give a little speech to the staff and kids. It wasnt a sad tear though. As I stood in front of the kids I was overwhelmed by the love in my heart for each one and the joy I have from just knowing them. What a blessing.

It is hard to sum it all up. But I would have to say of all the lessons I learned of all the experiences I had, they all led me to a very important and hard truth to follow; to always trust my heart to a God that knows it deeper than I ever will. Many times I doubted my ability to love someone enough, to help enough, to care enough, to actually make a change in broken lives and a hurt land, to use my passions and talents to make that change. In those times of doubt I was royally shown up by Gods faithfulness to use what he has placed in my heart to do all that he desires which, let me tell you, is always beautiful and something I could never do with my own hands.

Whats next? Well for now, I start my intership as Local & Global Impact Intern as well as a Graphic Media intern at Flood Church and then school in late September. Im going to be working on that project I mentioned in a previous post about Alex (the boy i met in the field during the Jesus film) and creating a way to empower leaders in Northern Uganda, specifically Lira. Who knows where that will lead me. Back to Uganda? I hope so. Obanga Ngeo (God knows).

Obanga Mii Gum! (God Bless You) Apwoyo Matek (Thank you very much) for reading my blog and all your prayers and all you love and all you support. I could not have done it without any of you!

Thank you letters are in the making for all you who supported me financially. So be looking out for those!