a little update

Thank you so very much for praying for David and I, for your support and for simply loving us and our beautiful kids! These last couple of months have been very full but God has been so very good to us! I am sorry that I haven't written more, I have been pretty overwhelmed with everything. Thank you so much to everyone who has also given financially to our ministry in the last couple of months, God has used you to allow us to be able to expand so that we can be able to raise even more forgotten children for Him. Thank you so very much from the bottom of our hearts!

I am going to try and summarize some of the bigger things that God has been doing in our ministry API in the last couple of months. He has been so good! 
We have been doing home visits with the boys in our forever homes to see their biological families (as required by the Ugandan government for children in homes). I love our boys so very much, they are our kids, in our family and are our joy and responsibility and pride for the rest of their lives! Going home to visit their families has been so... complicated. The reasons that they run away are so varied but at the heart of it is always profound neglect and almost always abuse (and often witchcraft and/or alcoholism). It breaks my heart whenever we bring a boy to see his relative and they either deny him or state how, "hopeless" he is.  I think for some of them however, getting to come back (on their own terms) with safe people that they trust beside them just for a very short visit, has helped them connect a bit to their past and have some closure that they did not have before since most of them ran away when they were really distressed, without any goodbyes to not only their relative/parent but to any of their siblings or friends either. 

One of the boys in our home changed his name from Musoke (a name connected with witchcraft) to Paul. When we brought him to see his relatives he was afraid to visit his father because of how much he used to beat him. His dad is a drunk and homeless and we found him staggering down the street in town.  The last time he came home to visit from the streets his dad greeted him by severely beating him. When we came Paul was terrified of his dad (I made sure to stand in front of Paul, I may be small but I would do anything I had to to protect one of my boys) and so Paul kept a good distance from his father while talking to him briefly. His father however was happy to hear that Paul was in our home and going to school. His dad kept staggering around shouting to everyone and pointing to me saying "Look at Musoke's mother! He is now her son and he is in school!" Paul brought a bunch of pictures of himself since he has been in our home in his school uniform, with our dog Flint, dressed up for church, etc- giving them to his old friends and siblings,  telling everyone that he wanted them to have it to remember him by. We stayed for about an hour and as we got back into the car I told Paul over again how much we loved him, how happy we were that he was our son now and that he was going to be a different man than his father. He got a big smile and said he loved us too.
We now have a street children program every Tuesday and Thursday (in addition to the normal M, W, and Fri programs) with a deeper bible study, time of prayer and bible memory verse to help street kids have a deeper knowledge of who God is and His love for them. We also have a Sunday school class with them at Grace Fellowship Church every Sunday.  We won't be with all of the street children in our programs forever, so we want to put as much in them as possible with the time that we have!
We also started homeschooling our boys that are in first through third grade who are discouraged and behind in school. We are hoping to make learning fun (the educational system here still uses corporal punishment and teaches only through lecturing to children as they copy notes, even if they dont understand what they are writing). Our goal is for our kids to be able to develop an interest in school as well as to be able to catch up a little in school since they are all years and years behind. We started a little over a week ago but the Ugandan teachers we hired are terrific and  we are really excited about how it has been going!

Last Sunday, the older boys (18 years+)  from our home had a graduation party, time of prayer and send off and officially moved out of our children's home, Stephen's House into the discipleship house and program. Thank you so much to everyone that made that dream a reality!  They were trained to actually build the home (so that they could learn the skill) and it is just beautiful. There are house parents, kind of like RA's there to watch over them and do devotions with them at night for the two years they are there. While there they will be working and learning a vocation skill, going through business and savings classes and saving up money so that when they graduate they will be able to rent a place of their own as they get a job and never have to go back to the street. Next week we are planning on starting up our own bakery and so they are now learning how to bake bread and run it! It is another job skill and experience we think will be very helpful for them!

Joseph's House is doing very well, the home that was started almost 7 weeks ago for "special needs" street children who have so much trauma and have been on the streets so long that they are unable to go into "normal" homes for former street children. Caitlyn, the house director and mama wrote a blog update about the home here. It is truly amazing to see some of the transformations going on in that home with kids that Kampala deemed, "hopeless". I Corinthians 1:27 says "Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? "  This verse is just coming alive in that home and it is beautiful to see the kids transformation!

We have hired a Ugandan social worker named Susan to work full-time resettling street children, getting their information on file, counseling children that have been resettled and doing follow-ups on their families once they are brought back home. Since she has come on board with API, we have resettled three street children each week home with their biological families. It is not always a fairytale ending for some kids going back home, but we have had several very successful resettlements in this last month and that always makes my heart glad. For kids that are resettled to abusive families (we only resettle children that want and request to go back home)  that do not want them, I always have to tell myself that they were able to run away to the streets before when they felt their lives were threatened and they can always do it again. God is always going to be looking out for them and makes everything work together for good for those who love Him and are called together according to His purpose.

Thank you all for praying for us and again for anyone who has given financially to make all of this possible! You love us and our kids so much, we minister to these kids together!

Please pray that God will show us which children to bring into the children's homes as we now have spaces open since the older boys graduated out. Please pray that God will continue to be the center of all that we are and do and that He will pour His love and healing into all of our boys and staff. There is a lot of pain on the streets of Kampala, but God is here and He is doing amazing things! A light shines all the brighter in darkness! Also, please pray for the success of the bakery as it is a new project that we are starting and for our d-house boys as they are adjusting to their new found independence and responsibilities! I'm proud of them but worry about them too!

Street children prayer requests, Fred and HenryHenry

Fred in the programs

Fred

Fred Natovu

 Fred is a small boy. He says his age is ten but he looks to be maybe seven at the most. What he lacks in size he makes up with spiritedness. He seems to hold his own fairly well with the other boys at program although he is definitely smaller then them all. This is part of his story.

My mother's name is Coleen. I have never known my father. I came to the streets of Kampala sometime in April and I have been living on them for a month now. I ran away from home because of my mother. She used to beat me and sometimes deny me food. When I left my home in Waskiso and started traveling to Kampala I was helped by a man. He was on a boda boda and he let me ride with him to Kampala. My plan was to visit my uncle. He lives in Kampala. The problem was that when I got to his house it was locked and no one was there. The neighbours told me that my uncle was in prison but they didn't tell me why. I didn't know anyone in Kampala other than my uncle. I came to the streets because I have nowhere else to go. I do not want to go home. Life on the streets is not good. It is hard to get things to eat. I don't have clothes like I did at home. I sleep on the ground with other boys and sometimes we get chased away from where we are sleeping at night.  When this happens we have to walk in the dark to find another place to sleep.

Please pray for me. I want to go back to school. I also want to have a safe place where I can live and be happy.

Before he came to the streets Fred reached primary 3 in school. When he grows up he dreams to become a teacher. He explained that teachers teach people new things and help them become what they dream of through education. 

Henry

Kiyemba Henry

Henry says he is 12 years old. He has started coming to program in this last month. He cut his foot and heard about the clinic through a friend. Since getting treatment there he has been coming often to the street programs. He is a friendly and engaging boy with a quick smile. This is part of his story.

I have no interest in remembering my parents names. They are both living. My father is living with my step mother. My mother lives in Kampala. I was living with my father and stepmother. We used to live in an area of Kampala called Karerwe. My father decided to move from the city to the village. The village we moved to was called Kiti. When we moved there I lived with my family for three months but all this time I did not go to school. In the morning I would do my chores but then after that I would have nothing to do. I was bored so I would walk around and often go to visit my aunt who lived not too far away. When I came back home I often found I had missed meal time. My family never kept any food for me.  I would ask why they didn't leave anything for me but they would never reply to me. Instead they would tell me to get water. Sometimes I had to fetch water three times a day. often my family only ate one time a day so it was not a good situation for me. I was hungry so I would looked for jackfruit in the bushes.  My father and my stepmother sometimes threatened to send me to Kampiringisa because I was stubborn.  One day I was out with some friends. I stayed out too late and when I came back I found that my house was locked and my family was all asleep. I was afraid to wake them up since I knew they would be very upset with me. So instead I made a makeshift bed using a sack and string. I hung it in a big tree near our house. In the morning my father was very angry with me. He beat me with a stick that also had wire on it. He also hit my foot very hard. My foot was hurting me a lot and it took some time to heal. I waited some time after this at my home but things were not getting any better. I decided to come back to Kampala. My mother lives in Kampala, although I do not often see her. When I came to her house she was angry at me for coming to her and told me that I needed to go back to my father. She refused to let me stay with her. I did not want to go back to my father's house so I stayed on the streets. I found a plastic container and started fetching water to make some money. Slowly I learned more things about street life and how to survive. I met a boy named Big who brought me to Kivulu.  I did not like Kivulu though so I did not stay there. I have been on the streets of three years now.  Right now I sleep in Wandegerya in front of a restaurant called  Chicken Tonight.

Please Pray for me. I have an injured foot right now. I would like prayer for healing. I would also like prayer for an opportunity to go back to school.

Bossa, an update

Bossa in bed with his stuffed animal

Bossa on left

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God put a love for a street child named Enoch Bossa on my heart. I hardly knew him and had only met him a few times, yet I knew he was supposed to be in our home. He nearly died, and then he disappeared.

I prayed for him constantly,  looked for him, and I fought for him, I cried for him, and I loved him so much.

And then one day God released him to us and he came home!

Bossa is doing so well and so often whenever I look at his sweet face I remember how good God is. How He knew this boy was meant to be in our family and worked everything together for good so that he could be home.

Enoch Boosa has a smile that can light up a room. He has a beautiful voice and is such a sweet kid. He loves animals and singing and playing the drums. He enjoys playing games and laughing. He now sleeps in a bed, and goes to school, he has devotions at night and plays with his toys. He is respectful and loves God with all of his heart. Bossa is doing SO well in the home, he is a great friend and leader to the other boys. He is safe and loved.

How he has remained so sweet after all he has gone through is nothing short of a miracle. But of course, when working with street kids, we see God working miracles on a regular basis- because He is good all the time, and all the time He is good.

Back in Uganda, (the photos were taken by Rachael Ryckman)

Sorry I haven't updated in such a long time. I think I was waiting to write a truly outstanding or interesting blog, but I have decided to simply write some of the little things that have been going on

The boys going into the d-house are doing well! They are working hard and have already saved up a good chunk of money! Caitlyn has been giving driving lessons to all of the boys, (which has been super fun to sit in on) and very interesting, it turns out that the boys personalities are REALLY reflected in their driving! Sadic, who has been working the hardest in the d-house, has also been doing the best at driving, he is seriously amazing, parked perfectly his first time parking in reverse and parallel parking. As a reward for how hard he has been working and what a good and honest kid he is, we are going to put him into driving school, so that he can be the driver for our bakery and deliver the bread in town! As Dirissa (who is also in the d-house) and I were serving as human cones for Sadic as he was driving, Dirissa was telling me about how he is going to treat his wife kindly and how one day he will teach his son and his daughter how to drive too. =-)

Thanks to the encouragement of my mom and sister I got a crockpot and have actually really really enjoyed being able to use it through the week, it makes my whole life easier! We have also started a couples bible study and game/prayer night at our home on Thursdays with other couples and it has been a really fun time of play, encouragement and fellowship with other couples!

We are also in the rainy season. It is great for the crops but hard on street children since it is so cold and wet at night.  

 It is also great to be back with my dog Bear. For anyone that doesn't know, I love animals (always have) and about a year ago we got a Rottweiler named Bear for security since we kept getting broken into. He has been the best dog ever and super theraputic for me, whenever I have a hard day because of something heartbreaking happening to a child or children that I love, Bear is always there to sit with me patiently and help to calm me and cheer me up. He is great with the boys and they love it when we bring him, they are constantly asking me when I am bringing Bear to the homes to see them. Plus, all of our break-ins stopped as soon as we brought him home! We heard our neighbors being broken into, but no longer are we the target. Daniel's House (the new home with our younger boys) are especially in love with dogs. Today I got a couple of letters taking about Bear/dogs but in one the boy kept taking about how much heloves dog, that his favorite color is dog, that he loves that he in and I both have in common that we love dogs,  and then he drew a picture of Bear with a heart around it.

I have been really overwhelmed as to which child we should bring into our home next. The boys here are doing so well, and it is such a big change bringing in a new child, plus so hard to decide which boy in our street programs is going to be safe and stable to the other boys in our home.  Last night in devotions I was again praying that God would guide me as to the next child to bring into our family. After devotions were over Caitlyn came up to me and told me about a new boy that was at the street programs on Friday (I was at the children's homes and not in Kampala) she said that he was named Emma and was 7 years old. His parents had dumped him in the slum and left and although the police had looked into it,  it is obvious that they are not coming back. I am praying really really hard about this little boy and can hardly stand to wait until Monday when I will get to meet him in our programs.

I guess that's about it! 

 

Lots of love!

Abby

Some photos from the street programs

Because the boys in our homes have been so good we took them swimming at the lake as a reward! 

 

Shafik showing off the fish he just bought

Adorable little Reagan, yes, he is as sweet as he looks!

It was beautiful!

Ibra and Bob with Bear. All of the boys are in love with Bear, but especially Ibra

Paul and Peter having a blast, so happy to see Peter laughing! Praise God!

Bear being coaxed in by Enoch Bossa in front of him

Meet Bashir!

Bashir

Bashir making bricks

If you ask Bashir what he wants to be when he grows up, he will say an evangelist. It is
obvious that the Lord has always had His hand on this young man.

“At home my father would beat me and tell me to fetch water in cans that were too big
for me as a young boy. There was a church near my home and I had always felt deep
inside that I wanted to be a Christian, but my father was a Muslim. He would cane me
and yell, “Why do you want to be a Christian?” It was difficult at home so I went to the
streets instead. I had no hope, but I trusted God. I struggled because I had little food,
couldn’t sleep, and there were bad guys that beat me every night. I thank God that I
never used any drugs during that time.

“After a few months, I met Auntie Abby and began attending the API program. She
wanted to resettle me, but my father beat me and kicked me out of the house for being
a Christian. He told me I was stupid and useless and he never wanted to see me again.
Auntie Abby took me into the Forever Home and we celebrated with a party. It was so
wonderful.”

The Lord has placed within Bashir a wonderful heart for the unreached, and he recently
went on a mission trip to the Congo. He said his favorite part of the trip was preaching
the Gospel and praying with those who had never heard the Word of God before. Bashir
also has a love of music. Besides being a pastor, he hopes that God enables him to use
his music abilities to share the Gospel with others. Bashir's plans are to be an electrical engineer so that he can have a flexible schedule and be able to also provide his own way to evangelize to others, including people in Congo. 

 Bashir is now working to build and move into the discipleship house, the two year mentoring and vocational program as he is preparing to grow up and launch out on his own. We are so very proud of his gentle and kind heart that he has completely given to God!  (this interview was taken from Lauren Taylor who wrote an article about Bashir and her time in API and in Uganda, thanks Lauren!)

Street child prayer requests

Thank you to everyone who prayers for our children still living on the streets, periodically we meet with two of the street children in our programs, ask about them and how we can tell other people to pray for them. We then pray with that child and try and encourage them. Here are the prayer requests from two children in our street children programs. Also, David and I are going back to Uganda in just a little over a week and one of the first things that we want to do is bring in more children into our homes. Please pray that God will guide us, from the many children in our street programs, which children He wants for us to bring into our home!

Ssekamaya  Patiya

I was at home when my dad did not want us to go to school, he would make us work in the gardens  and he would wait for the time of harvesting so that we can sell of the surplus to the market, we did what our dad told us but all the money we got he used it for personal things and he told us we can dig again but all it was in vain. It was one day that my elder brother came and took me to stay with him, he told me he is going to take me to school and as soon as we reach his home. I waited for some time to see my brother fulfilling his promise but as I was waiting he came up with an idea that we should plant rice and we can earn good money from it then your dream will come to pass. We cleared the land, planted rice in it and I was told to look after it, I used to go there a lone from morning until evening because I had to prevent birds from destroying the rice but some time I felt tired and rested but whenever, he could find me resting or the birds in the plantation I was beaten badly.

After we harvested the rice we got a lot of money and my brother told me that next week I was going back to school. I dreamed about going to school, and I started drawing pictures how school looks like and how I could look when am in the school uniform. Two weeks passed and I reminded him, he told me can we plant rice one more time and I accepted but in pain. He did the same thing again by having me work and harvesting the rice but using the money for himself and not helping me.   I ran to my uncle's home, he welcomed with both hands and I explained to him why I had come to his house, he told me his family was already too many and too big a burden. He told me he could not afford to take me back to school,  but that if one day he can become rich, he would take me back to school. The following day I was told to go to the garden and dig, water the crops, I stayed there for some good times and I had given up on my dream because every time I could look at my uncle's children going to school, tears became my drink. One day we were having lunch my elder brother came and he told my uncle that he wanted me to go with him, we reached home and I was punished heavily, he gave me orders of cooking food but I was not supposed to eat until he comes home. I was starving and my big brother would beat me anytime he saw me eating. I was told to work. Life became hard and I felt that I was not loved but instead I was forced to work for others gain. I made up my mind and escaped from there, I walked day and night for three days until I reached Kampala.

I have many things that I would like for people to pray for me for. Please pray for me to have a place to stay and be safe. Please pray that I will  find people who can treat me as if am their own child and love me. Please pray that I can go back to school and that my dream of studying will come to pass. 

God bless you. 

Street Child Prayer Requests #2

Juma Madangi

My name is Juma. I am nine years old, my mother died and I stayed staying with my father who married another woman. We were staying with my with my step brother called Mendy his mother went to Juba in Sudan but did not come back. 

We were told to fetch water yet we could find a big line of people waiting to get water, this delayed us, we had to go home late at night and when we reached home she used bad language to abuse us  and every time saying," I wish you had died with your mother and that could make me feel at ease", every time she used to remind me of my  mother who died and I felt soooooooo bad.

We used to go to school but as soon as we reached home, we were told to go to the garden dig, look for fire wood and from there we were told to fetch water, we could not stomach that and one day my step brother ran away from home, as we were in our holidays I fetched water and sold it to people that was the money I used to escape from home. I go a taxi from Mukono to Nakawa and I slept there until morning and walked to Kampala.

Please pray for me. Pray that I will have hope and that I will have a good life off streets. I also want to go back to school, because it is through education that one can have a better life, please pray that God will find a way to make that possible.