Simon was called on last Thursday to do a medevac (medical evacuation) for a man upcountry. He was very ill with malaria and possibly typhoid also. When Simon arrived at the destination the man was visibly pretty sick. Simon flew him down to Kampala to go to hospital for vital treatment. We haven't had an update yet on his status but pray that he was able to receive the correct medical treatment and is on the road to recovery.
On Saturday Simon flew out to the West of Uganda to a place called Bundibugyo. This town is on the border of Congo. The team he flew out were going to be putting an inverter system in for their mission organisation. The plan was for MAF to fly them in and then they would stay overnight and return by bus the following day. This journey takes just over an hour by plane but many hours by bus. I know which one i would choose :). Thankfully Simon has had experience with inverters (a system that enables power when the main source of electricity is off.....a regular occurence in Uganda) as he put our one in and also the MAF guesthouse. Due to this he was able to spend the day helping the team put it all together which meant they finished earlier than planned. Because of this he was able to bring the team back in the plane to Kajjansi which meant they didn't have to take the bus the next again day. Praise the Lord for a handy husband!!!
Monday, 24 October 2011
Friday, 21 October 2011
Rocky, Fang and the babies
This wee bunny is nicknamed "Baby Rocky" because of his colouring. He is like his Daddy.
Zara holding one of the white ones for the first time.
Joshua holding one of the smaller babies....maybe the runt of the litter :)
We had just gone swimming hence the lack of clothes on Joshua and Zara :)
Fang the mummy rabbit who did all the hard work. The picture of Rocky didn't come out well so we will show him another time.
Thursday, 6 October 2011
A trip to R.O.S.S
On Tuesday Simon was supposed to fly to Torit in the new country of the Republic of South Sudan. However, the passenger that he was to pick up had been out of communication contact so it wasn't sure if the flight was going to happen or not. However, about 9am the office got a phone call to say that the passenger had made contact and was ready to be picked up. Simon called me to say he was heading out to the airstrip to do the flight. In a moment of impulse (not usual when it comes to things like this :) ) I asked if I could join him and he said that it would be a good day to go as he was only picking up one passenger. South Sudan was the only country that I hadn't been to yet with MAF and was one of my goals before we left Uganda (if we ever leave Uganda). Simon picked me up on the way to Kajjansi and while he was pre-flighting the 206 (it wasn't going to be a fast flight) I talked with some of the team members from MAF Holland who were visiting our programme this past week.
Soon after Simon and I set off for R.O.S.S and I appreciated flying over Uganda again and seeing the changes in the landscape as we flew. On approach to Torit we crossed some rugged terrain and also dodged some weather systems. It was amazing to see the cloud formations at 10,000 ft and marvel at the size of them. It was remarkable to watch Simon navigate these clouds and find holes that I couldn't see until we were closer. I was thankful I was flying with an experienced pilot who knew his weather :)
On arriving at Torit we met with our passenger who works with Sh*lter f*r L*fe in Sudan. This organisation works with farmer and tillers of the land to help them move from just sustenance farming and to think bigger and work towards commercial farming. This organisation provides tools and seeds to the farmers to help them on their way. I am always amazed when I get to fly with Simon and meet some of the organisations that are working up country. It is fascinating to learn of the work that they are involved in and the difference they are making to peoples lifes.
It took us just over two hours to fly to Torit and we would have the same journey home. I couldn't imagine doing the journey by road and, again, it was an invaluable experience to see how MAF makes a difference in people and organisations lives.
On our approached to Entebbe Airport there was quite a bit of traffic in the air. You would think it would be quite easy to spot other planes around you but it wasn't easy at all. It makes you realise how important air traffic control is for a pilot. We landed safely at Entebbe and Simon was able to take the passenger through immigration before getting back on the plane again to fly him 6 minutes to Kajjansi.
When I told Joshua and Zara that I had got to fly with Simon they were definately jealous and would have skipped school to go to. Thankfully Joshua and Zara have both had the privilege of flying with Simon on occasions to experience more of life in Uganda. They are looking forward to their next holidays and the possible opportunity again.
Soon after Simon and I set off for R.O.S.S and I appreciated flying over Uganda again and seeing the changes in the landscape as we flew. On approach to Torit we crossed some rugged terrain and also dodged some weather systems. It was amazing to see the cloud formations at 10,000 ft and marvel at the size of them. It was remarkable to watch Simon navigate these clouds and find holes that I couldn't see until we were closer. I was thankful I was flying with an experienced pilot who knew his weather :)
On arriving at Torit we met with our passenger who works with Sh*lter f*r L*fe in Sudan. This organisation works with farmer and tillers of the land to help them move from just sustenance farming and to think bigger and work towards commercial farming. This organisation provides tools and seeds to the farmers to help them on their way. I am always amazed when I get to fly with Simon and meet some of the organisations that are working up country. It is fascinating to learn of the work that they are involved in and the difference they are making to peoples lifes.
It took us just over two hours to fly to Torit and we would have the same journey home. I couldn't imagine doing the journey by road and, again, it was an invaluable experience to see how MAF makes a difference in people and organisations lives.
On our approached to Entebbe Airport there was quite a bit of traffic in the air. You would think it would be quite easy to spot other planes around you but it wasn't easy at all. It makes you realise how important air traffic control is for a pilot. We landed safely at Entebbe and Simon was able to take the passenger through immigration before getting back on the plane again to fly him 6 minutes to Kajjansi.
When I told Joshua and Zara that I had got to fly with Simon they were definately jealous and would have skipped school to go to. Thankfully Joshua and Zara have both had the privilege of flying with Simon on occasions to experience more of life in Uganda. They are looking forward to their next holidays and the possible opportunity again.
Monday, 3 October 2011
Through the Bible
Since returning from furlough I have restarted the Bible studies. This time we are doing things a bit different in that we are going through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. We, obviously, can't go quite as deep as we would if we were just taking one book at a time but the idea is that we will see the big picture of what the Bible is all about.
The International group always seems to change each time due to the ever transient ex-pat community. However, as good friends leave new friends come and we have been blessed with new people this term.
This week and next we will be looking at the story of Abraham. It is a fascinating story and much can be learned from his life for us today. As I was studying today one of the main things that seemed to pop out was the fact that we can't rush God. God has a plan for our lives and we so often want to hurry God and help Him along. When that happens it seems to go quite pear shaped. We see this when Abram travelled to Egypt with Sarai and passed her off only as his sister in fear that the Pharaoh would kill him. (Gen 12:10-20) We see Sarai influencing her husband for the worst in asking him to take Hagar so that they can have a child (Gen 16) and there are also other instances of people taking matters into their own hands throughout the Bible.
As we have studied these first few chapters of Genesis one of the things that was highlighted was the fact that women have a great influence over men. We see that with Adam and Eve where Eve gave the forbidden fruit to her husband. We see it with Sarai giving Hagar to Abram so that they might have an offspring even although God promised this to Abram personally in 15:4 without the need of a maidservant. The choices we make today can have long lasting consequences for the future long after we are gone.
Abram, in 15:6, believed the Lord and He credited it to him as righteousness. In 13:4b Abram called on the name of the Lord. May we learn from Abram's example in this.
Pray with us that as we study God's word together that it won't be just for knowledge sake but will impact the way we live our lives with one another and those we come in contact with.
The International group always seems to change each time due to the ever transient ex-pat community. However, as good friends leave new friends come and we have been blessed with new people this term.
This week and next we will be looking at the story of Abraham. It is a fascinating story and much can be learned from his life for us today. As I was studying today one of the main things that seemed to pop out was the fact that we can't rush God. God has a plan for our lives and we so often want to hurry God and help Him along. When that happens it seems to go quite pear shaped. We see this when Abram travelled to Egypt with Sarai and passed her off only as his sister in fear that the Pharaoh would kill him. (Gen 12:10-20) We see Sarai influencing her husband for the worst in asking him to take Hagar so that they can have a child (Gen 16) and there are also other instances of people taking matters into their own hands throughout the Bible.
As we have studied these first few chapters of Genesis one of the things that was highlighted was the fact that women have a great influence over men. We see that with Adam and Eve where Eve gave the forbidden fruit to her husband. We see it with Sarai giving Hagar to Abram so that they might have an offspring even although God promised this to Abram personally in 15:4 without the need of a maidservant. The choices we make today can have long lasting consequences for the future long after we are gone.
Abram, in 15:6, believed the Lord and He credited it to him as righteousness. In 13:4b Abram called on the name of the Lord. May we learn from Abram's example in this.
Pray with us that as we study God's word together that it won't be just for knowledge sake but will impact the way we live our lives with one another and those we come in contact with.
This and that...
Thank you to all of you who prayed for Simon last week on his trip to Tanzania and Rwanda. The flight time was long and the weather proved a challenge but everything went as planned. The group that he flew were able to complete what they wanted so mission accomplished. We were glad to have him safely back on Wednesday evening. He did take some photos which I hope to post once I have downloaded them off his phone :)
This month has been a busy month for visitors not only personally but also for MAF Uganda generally. Last week we had a team from MAF Denmark visit the programme. Many of whom had never visited the field before but took an opportunity to come and visit and see what it was like for themselves. They were able to go on a MAF flight as well as take in some local sights. A MAF colleague and I took three of the ladies to one of the Christian Martyrs Shrine just outside of Kampala. This gave the history of 22 martyrs who bravely died for their faith. 13 of the martyrs were burned at this site between 1885 and 1887. It made us consider if our backs were against the wall would we willingly die for our faith. Good to be challenged by these questions now and again.
Over the weekend some Dutch business ladies who do support work for MAF Holland visited the programme. We took four of them to church yesterday and then spent some time talking with them over coffee afterwards. Today Simon is flying them to the North of Uganda whereby they will be on the ground for a few hours in Pader looking at a project there. This will give them first hand knowledge of the work that MAF does and the people that we support through flying and other means. We trust this will give them an even greater vision for supporting the work of MAF around the world.
This month has been a busy month for visitors not only personally but also for MAF Uganda generally. Last week we had a team from MAF Denmark visit the programme. Many of whom had never visited the field before but took an opportunity to come and visit and see what it was like for themselves. They were able to go on a MAF flight as well as take in some local sights. A MAF colleague and I took three of the ladies to one of the Christian Martyrs Shrine just outside of Kampala. This gave the history of 22 martyrs who bravely died for their faith. 13 of the martyrs were burned at this site between 1885 and 1887. It made us consider if our backs were against the wall would we willingly die for our faith. Good to be challenged by these questions now and again.
Over the weekend some Dutch business ladies who do support work for MAF Holland visited the programme. We took four of them to church yesterday and then spent some time talking with them over coffee afterwards. Today Simon is flying them to the North of Uganda whereby they will be on the ground for a few hours in Pader looking at a project there. This will give them first hand knowledge of the work that MAF does and the people that we support through flying and other means. We trust this will give them an even greater vision for supporting the work of MAF around the world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)