This is what
the cab of the pickup currently looks like…
This
has been quite a month. Last month I
wrote the newsletter from Uganda while we were taking some family time and
getting our shopping done and vehicle repaired.
As I was writing that newsletter there were two things impressed on my
heart. First, I thought about how
writing the September newsletter was going to be boring and hard because “all
we were going to do” for the month was study language. Second, I was thinking about some of the
strategic relationships that God has given us in Lohutok and how, as we start
trying to learn how to communicate the gospel to these people, we would be
facing some opposition and spiritual warfare.
Well, now that August is
over I can say that I was right about the second thought, but wrong about the
first!
We got back from Uganda at
the beginning of the month on a Wednesday, and as is usual, we spent Thursday
and Friday getting the kids back into a routine and unpacking from the trip,
and then started on language study Monday morning. That week I realized that we needed groceries
from Torit and planned to go on Saturday, so Friday I checked out the pickup to
get ready for the trip. When I got in
the truck, it wouldn’t go anywhere!
After a bit of tinkering, I realized that one of the brake drums was
locked up with mud, which is an easy thing to fix. I jacked up the vehicle, and before I could
even try to get the brake drum off, the bumper bent and the jack slipped, and
the truck almost fell over. I managed to
stack some timbers (as you can see in the bottom picture) and get a jack under
it, and finish freeing up the wheel, and I was set to go to town the next day.
I took Caleb with me to
Torit to have some daddy time. On the
way I noticed that the steering wheel was doing something funny. It would turn randomly and “slip” so when I
turned the steering wheel, the car didn’t respond. By the time we got to Torit it was completely
broken, with the car parked I could spin the wheel around with no effect. I managed to get the vehicle to a compound
where I found some friends staying, and the problem we found seemed to be easy
and we fixed it within 30 minutes. The
vehicle worked fine most of the way home, but the steering which I thought was
fixed broke again about 10 miles from our house. That portion of the trip usually takes about
30 minutes, but that night it took four hours.
I would stop, adjust the broken spline shaft, drive until it broke
again, adjust again, and repeat.
Finally, about 4 miles from our house, the thing broke and I couldn’t
get it to work again.
So, I’m on the road at 9pm
with Caleb (our 2 year old) with me in a truck that won’t steer. I got back in the truck and said, “Caleb, I
can’t fix the truck anymore so we might have to walk home, but first let’s
pray. I can’t fix the truck, but Jesus
can, and Jesus wants you to know that he is powerful so let’s pray that He helps
us get home. My sweet little boy
immediately closed his eyes and said “Jesus please fix our truck amen.” I started the truck, tried the steering, and
it worked. And it worked for the rest of
the trip home. As soon as I pulled into
our home it broke again, but we were home and didn’t have to walk or leave our
truck full of groceries on the side of the road. I might admit that I cried for most of that
trip home.
Amy’s malaria
test. I thought it would be funny to
post on Facebook to see if people would think it was…something else!
During the week between
getting home and going to Torit, I took our LandCruiser down to the airstrip to
meet a plane. On the way back I noticed
a rattling sound, and upon inspection I found that one of the rear shock
absorbers had come completely loose.
Someone who installed the shocks before we bought the vehicle had used
the wrong-sized washer, and it just came out of the bushing completely (I know
some of you won’t understand what I’m talking about, but just know that it was
broken). Since it was loose, probably
for part of our trip home from Uganda, the bolt that holds the shock to the
frame had bent, and as I was trying to get the nut off, that bolt broke off
completely…a problem that requires some serious welding which is a skill I don’t
possess.
So now we’re here in
Lohutok with two vehicles that are down.
A friend has let me use his 4-wheeler for a little bit while he is gone,
but that doesn’t get us very far as a family!
The spare parts we need are all purchased, but are in Uganda on a truck
with a local shopkeeper from Torit who is bringing them
to us. Those trucks usually get stuck in
the mud this time of year, but we’re praying that they make it safely and
quickly, and that we’re then able to get the parts from Torit to here…somehow!
In the midst of all of that
stuff, Amy got malaria that didn’t quickly cure with the usual treatment and
had to go into secondary measures. Caleb
has managed to climb OVER our gate in an attempt to escape the compound, and
then climb on the roof of a friend’s house when he found an unattended
ladder. I was trying to finish making a
brick oven that was Amy’s birthday present this year (Her birthday is in
January…) and while I was drilling a hole in an angle-iron, the drill bit broke
and went into the palm of my hand (I learned the Lopit words for “Bleeding” and
“Spurting” and I learned that arteries spurt, veins don’t). Add to that numerous other little concerns
with kids’ behavior, school and isolation, and the daily struggles with Satan’s
lies (“What are you doing here?” “This
is all a waste of time.” “You’re not cut
out for this”) and this month’s newsletter which I thought would be a struggle
to write could actually turn into a book with multiple chapters!
It’s a bit easier to go through each day when there’s a busy to-do list full of building projects and logistical tasks. Now most days are filled with hours of language study, preparation for those studies, and review of yesterday’s study, and although we’re making big strides in speaking the language already, the results are less tangible and discouragement comes much faster.
Will you keep praying with
us against Satan’s attacks on our emotions and bodies? Pray that our kids stay safe and healthy,
that our marriage relationship is sweet and free from jealousy and pride, that
we have the courage and energy to press on when the days get tedious. Thank you all so much for your encouragement
and prayer, we couldn’t be doing this without you!
Justin, Amy, Ezekiel and Caleb 
Trying to
break loose a frozen brake drum, the rear bumper came loose on the truck and
the high-lift jack almost fell over! I
had to run fast to get something to stack under the bottle jack to keep the
truck from falling. It’s a good thing
the spare tire was there to catch it!
