Let me tell you, our enemy does not disappoint, but neither does our Savior! This month we went to Kenya for some required training, and we have been blessed by the fellowship and teaching, but it’s been a trying time as well. Amy has had trouble sleeping at home because of a mold problem in our house that has to do with the way rain runs off of our roof, so I have been working on a plan to solve that. I went to town to get some supplies for that project, and Amy and the kids went along to get a few days’ break. On my way back home with a truck full of supplies, one of the wheels started falling off of our truck. The lug nuts/studs just started breaking! I’ve had problems with that particular wheel lately and was glad that we were on our way to Uganda where we could get it looked at (It’s cheaper to fly from Uganda so we were planning to drive there first), but all of a sudden I had to make a decision. Do I drive to Uganda with the family in a vehicle that insists on losing a wheel?
I started writing emails to people who might help me get Amy and the kids to Uganda by air so I could drive down slowly and without the worry of having them in the car. At first I was told that it wouldn’t be possible to get there from here, but in the end our friends at MAF were able to make it happen…the email I got said “We can pick them up, it will be tomorrow at 9am!” So we rushed to unpack from our trip to Torit and repack for Amy and the kids to fly the next morning. Since I was home for a few days by myself, I thought it would be a good opportunity to do some things I’ve been putting off like spraying our house for mosquitoes. The first night I was home, I got up into the attic space to look at the roof structure and make a plan for the mold/water problem, and as I was climbing down from there my ladder collapsed. With me at the top. I laid on the floor and said “Ow!” for a while and then messaged our friend Scott who came down and helped me. I’m pretty sure my heel is broken and I know a few ribs are, but I wasn’t able to get an XRay and it is all healing slowly, but for anyone who knows me, not being able to walk is a bit of a trial.
Amy went to Uganda with the kids, and the first day she was there she decided to go to a hospital and get some labs and vaccinations that the kids needed. While they were in the waiting room, she noticed a funny-looking rash on Caleb’s legs. She asked the doctors at the hospital to look at it and they told her it was just some sort of viral rash that she shouldn’t worry about, but Amy thought it looked different, like bruises, so she kept exploring. After messaging a few friends at home and some who live nearby, Amy went to another pediatrician who confirmed that Caleb had HSP. It’s some kind of auto-immune issue that causes bleeding and has other potential complications.
I managed to drive myself to Uganda after a couple of days. Scott helped me do the mosquito spraying and packing for the trip. It wasn’t very easy to make the 2-day drive with a broken foot and ribs, and even though my family flew out so that I could come in the pickup, in the end I had to bring a different vehicle since I couldn’t drive with the clutch.
I got to Uganda and had a few days to potentially get my foot looked at and get the mechanic started on what we needed him to do. I never got a chance to go in for my foot because Caleb was awake all night, miserable that his tummy hurt, and was at the hospital for part of most of those days. One night Amy took him to the Emergency Room for an ultrasound because of a possible blockage/intussusception, but in the end there weren’t any major concerns. We flew to Kenya to head to our training conference, and spent those weeks trying to manage two crazy kids in a hotel with basically one functioning parent (Amy) who has been taking care of all of us! Ezekiel was sick for one night as well, so Amy has been the only well person and has been a nurse for our whole family!
With all of that going on we’ve still managed to get a lot of good insight from this training. We have been learning more about African culture, traditional worldviews and other things pertinent to our work here. We have also made lots of new friends and the kids have had lots of fun.
Language study has been going well, I have made some major strides in storytelling, hearing and vocabulary and Amy is studying regularly but is struggling with balancing language time with homeschool.
Ezekiel turned six while we were in Kenya! He had so many of his new friends giving him drawings, treats and presents all day long…I don’t think he minded all of the extra attention!
Would you keep praying for us in this endeavor? We are sold on the fact that ministry here is going to take some time to get going and show fruit and are dedicated to “sticking it out” but it gets pretty tiresome after months and months of one sickness, injury, car issue or village drama after another! Pray that God would give us endurance, eyes fixed on Jesus, and joy in His love for us. Pray that we would do a good job taking care of ourselves and each other, that Satan would not succeed in driving wedges between us in our family, our team or with the village. Pray that we would use our time well as we manage everything that is being thrown at us and still strive to learn the local language well enough to share the gospel, and pray that God would open doors for the Gospel and His power to be known in Lohutok and in the Lopit tribe as a whole.
Thanks for your prayers and support!
Justin, Amy, Ezekiel and Caleb
