Ep 12 - Stories from the Road - In Uganda

Today's podcast is quite a bit different than usual!  It's a compilation video of different interviews and footage from our time in Africa.  We spent 2 weeks in the country of Uganda with a team of 11.  It was such a privilege to go and share Christ across the world!  Road footage is tough, we hope you enjoy the stories despite the low quality audio and video. 

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hi, I'm Anna Lisa. Welcome to our podcast, Christ Our Hope and Refuge. And I'm Natalie. Our heart behind this podcast is to be a resource for those who are seeking refuge and to point them to the hope that is in Christ. Hello and welcome back to the podcast. If you're watching, it's going to look a little different. You're hearing my voice, but in front of you, you're seeing some different scenes of Africa. Me and Annalisa just got home a few weeks ago from a mission trip there. And this episode is going to be a lot different than normal. It's going to be a compilation of a bunch of different videos we took while we were there. The first one that you're going to watch is an interview, just a spontaneous interview that we did with one of the girls that we went on the trip with. Her name is Josie. She's one of our dear friends. Anyway, and I hope you enjoy this podcast. Bye. Hi, Josie.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

Hello. So yeah, me and Natalie just ordered these microphones because we thought it would be so sweet to just have some more conversations in Uganda and just be able to talk to people throughout their time here. But yeah, I guess I just want to ask you like what specifically made you decide to want to come to Uganda? You know, when we started praying about it, when Ryan and Megan offered it to us, um was there something specific that made you want to come?

SPEAKER_07 1:28

Yeah, I don't know if it was necessarily something specific. I just once I they told us that they were planning a mission trip and invited us to join. I kind of just immediately was like, that sounds something like something I would want to do. Um and then yeah, just like just a perfect opportunity, like summertime. I'm not in school, so it like just worked out perfect pretty much for me to join. It definitely took a lot of it caused a lot of anxiety and stuff within me, like as we prepared, but it was I don't know, and just the Lord never closed any doors, so it just kind of was like a step of faith, even though I was scared, but yeah, the Lord yeah, brought open the doors and allowed it to happen.

SPEAKER_01 2:15

Yeah. How would you say that the Lord, because you mentioned like being anxious, which is I would say very common? Like, I definitely struggled with quite a bit of anxiety too leading up to this trip, but how would you say specifically that the Lord helped you with that and then also like encouraged someone in that, you know, if the Lord's asking you to take a step of faith in a certain area, how would you encourage them to just take the next step?

SPEAKER_07 2:43

Yeah, I would say just like talking about it. Like I the Lord definitely like spoke a lot through others to me, like as I like I talked to Megan and Ryan a lot or a bit about it, and they just were very understanding and just gave me encouragement and uh the Lord yeah spoke through them just to like put your trust in the Lord because I mean it's a lot of unknown as we prepared, like we just no idea what to expect, like what to expect. So yeah, what I would say to someone else is to just yeah, complete trust in the Lord. I know that's easier said than done, but um it just until the until it's made clear like like no or like the Lord closes doors, then I would just say to just keep on taking those steps, just trusting that the Lord will continue to carry you through and provide all that you need and um just bless obedience and yeah, just yeah, grow bring you closer to Him.

SPEAKER_01 3:48

Yeah, it's so sweet because we all have you know, we all have situations in our lives where the Lord is calling us, okay, I want you to take this step of faith, you know. And it's not easy, it's sometimes so terrifying, but yet like the Lord is right there alongside of you, like just helping you every step along the way. So yeah, and what would you say um in what way has being here been um most encouraging to you?

SPEAKER_07 4:21

Uh I just say just how joyful the people here are, yeah, even though they have so little. Like they all just have enough to to sort to live.

SPEAKER_06 4:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 4:33

Not not many people have more than they need. Um, so it's just been encouraging and just eye-opening to realize that we really don't need much.

SPEAKER_01 4:42

Like, can you s can you think of a specific example?

SPEAKER_07 4:46

Like clothing. Like I have way too much clothes, and just like seeing like we went into the uh one of the houses at the at the at the children's home, and five girls were in a room, and we looked at like where they stored their clothes, and it was probably about half the size of my closet. Yeah. So I'm like, wow, I need to go home and donate many clothes. And don't realize I don't need as much as I might think I do. So it's just been very humbling. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:15

Yeah, they do have so much joy and have been some of the like kindest, most welcoming people that I can honestly say that I've ever met.

SPEAKER_07 5:23

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 5:24

And so I feel like I've definitely been so encouraged in that way. I've also just been so encouraged to just see how the Lord is how He uses different people just everywhere. Like we've met so many different missionaries, and like, you know, the Lord burdens this certain person for this specific thing and like how the Lord is using them.

SPEAKER_07 5:46

It's great. Yeah, it's so encouraging just because we don't all have the same burden, so it's just cool to see how the Lord uses burdens people with different things to bless others in different ways.

SPEAKER_01 6:00

Definitely. Um I guess what would what piece of encouragement would you give or like advice to someone who, you know, is wondering like how they can be specifically involved in supporting missionaries or um for anyone in the United States that maybe is not actively involved in it right now?

SPEAKER_07 6:24

Yeah, I would say to just start just looking into other into ministries, uh, like missionaries and stuff around the world and figure out where you are burdened. Like me personally, like I'm not burdened to be on the mission field. I found out with this trip. Like I'm very much feel not called to like be living in a different country, at least right now. Obviously, the Lord could change that. But yeah, um, with this trip, I my eyes were open to like all these different ministries that I could be supporting, and like I would love to support whether like through prayer financially. Um so yeah, just to go and like look into maybe you have a the Lord puts a certain country on your heart or a certain like type of people, like whether that's like children or um the poor or sick or whatever whatever that is, and like look into like research and figure out like what kind of what kind of ministries there are and how you can support them, whether that's through prayer or whatever the Lord may call may call you to support them.

SPEAKER_01 7:35

Yeah. I uh just thought of this question, but so we have gotten truly just it's been so sweet getting to worship every day, you know, not every day, but we've been in the village or in the children's home four days, but now we are in day five tomorrow, that will be our last day, which will be sad. Um but there is one song that we that the kids love to sing. Can you just like explain like maybe like what the atmosphere is in the room?

SPEAKER_07 8:09

Like which song? Oh the Jesus. Oh, Romans five. Yes, we do a like a scripture memorization song to Romans 5.8, which is but God chose his love for us, and that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And we do like a dance, and it's such a silly song, it's a silly, it's a good song with truth in scripture, but it the dance is quite silly, so uh everyone just like beams when they sing it, and it's yeah um so much like they sing so loud, and then when like the and just dance, and it's oh it's so sweet, and then we bring their teachers up on the stage to do the dance with us, and they just they love it, and it's just so sweet to just hear them just like scream scripture, yeah. And like we know that it that even if they don't necessarily understand it fully now that they'll always have that in their hearts and their minds because songs stick with us so much more than just words, yeah. So just like trusting that the Lord will be of the trusting that the Lord will use it and like bring back those funny, fun memories of them singing it with us, and then hopefully um the Lord will use it to open up their eyes to the gospel and yeah in faith in Christ.

SPEAKER_01 9:58

Yeah, yeah, and it's just so um sweet. So kind of what we do a little bit, I'll share a little bit of what we do at the children's homes. So we kind of start off with would that be like the preschool kids that are nursery school, yeah. So we're starting off with the nursery school kids. So um we're some of us are split in, so we're split into two groups. So some of us are helping with the music side of things, and then some of us are helping with the craft. Um and so each day there's a different theme of the day. Um, today's theme is God is always with you. Tomorrow's theme is God gives us hope. Um so it's very um gospel-centered um every day, you know, the gospel is shared um through song, through um Ryan sharing um the message, and then through um Megan helping lead the preschool program. Um, so it's just so sweet to yeah, to just be able to kind of pull that all together and then at the very end we play a big game with them. Um, and it's just sweet because like we've all made connections with different people, and it's just um sweet to just, you know, hear more about their lives and get to ask them how we can be praying for them, um, get to sing with them or just play silly games with them. Um, yeah, it's been such a blessing.

SPEAKER_07 11:31

It has been, yeah. It's so sweet. Like at the beginning of like when we first got there, it's like we were like greeted with the big song and all the kids like hugging us and stuff as we got off the out of the van and um and then like right at the beginning, like certain kids just kind of like grab onto you and like they're just with you for that. Like they grab your hands and they just like they walk with you, and then like it's so sweet that like as we've continued visiting the children's home, like each day, the same kids, sometimes like some re other other different ones, but like I can name I can name three girls that have just like every day found me and like just spend time and we just us just spend time together, and it's so sweet, like every day. Just how it's just interesting. Like, you have the certain some certain uh girls that probably just stick with you, and Natalie Sher and Girl and Crystal and Jake and all the other kids, like the Kelly kids as well. But it's just so sweet how they just like make connections. It seems like they just are connected to you right away, and it's so sweet, and then to just continue to grow closer to them and get to know them more and more.

SPEAKER_01 12:50

Yeah, yeah, they have been all such a blessing. And um it's been which uh tomorrow I'm hoping to have some more talks with the staff, but it's just been so so most of these kids uh come from just such hard situations. Like a you know, a lot of them don't maybe don't have parents, their parents died young, or um, it's just not safe for them to be home, just very, very tough situations. Um, but but it's just so sweet that God is using like God is faithful even over those really hard situations because now they're in an environment where the moms are just so uh caring and tender and just like sharing truth with them, and then they're being taught scripture and like that Jesus is the only way, Jesus is the only one that can give us save us. Jesus is the only one that can give us hope. Jesus is the only one that can give us a future.

SPEAKER_07 13:53

Yes. So yeah, it's been very encouraging to see just their just how much the work like the the the house moms as well as the teachers, just how much they just like love their job.

SPEAKER_04 14:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 14:07

It seems like they just love the kids and especially like a specific nursery school teacher, like he just beams every time he's with the kids. Like he just like you can just tell how much he just appreciates where the Lord has brought him.

SPEAKER_01 14:21

When he comes into the room, I beam.

SPEAKER_07 14:24

Because it's like you can't help but be beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 14:38

Yeah, yeah, it's been truly so special. Yeah. All right, well, we're about to have dinner, so we're gonna check out we're having uh chicken curry. Yes, coconut coconut curry.

SPEAKER_00 14:52

Thank you, Josie. Um, it was so fun to just um hear that back, even myself, um, just after a full day of doing VPS and spending time together with the children at the children's home. Um, we always had a lot to process and we enjoyed it a lot. I hope you enjoyed the videos of the kiddos too. Um, this next one is that same evening, Annalisa interviewed Nora, and she's one of Ryan and Megan's youngest children. Um, they lived there for six years, and so that place is really special to her. So it was really sweet to just hear her talk about this place that um she lived for six years. So I hope you enjoy this interview with Nora Hello Nora.

unknown 15:30

Hi.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Hi. How are you today? Good, you? I'm doing good. So in Uganda, it's a really big deal to be a twin, right?

SPEAKER_04 15:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:42

So what's your twin name?

SPEAKER_04 15:44

Um, Nakato.

SPEAKER_01 15:46

Ooh, do you like that name? You do?

SPEAKER_04 15:48

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 15:49

How has it been coming back to visit um your would you consider this your hometown?

SPEAKER_04 15:56

Or like probably 'cause I have most of my memories here.

SPEAKER_01 16:01

Yeah. How how does it feel to come back to your hometown?

SPEAKER_04 16:04

I it feels good.

SPEAKER_01 16:05

What have you enjoyed most about it?

SPEAKER_04 16:09

Luanda Children's Home. Oh, what do you like to do there? Just hang out with all the kids.

SPEAKER_01 16:15

Yeah, that's so sweet. What what's your favorite thing to do with the kids?

SPEAKER_04 16:21

I don't know. Um probably just it's nice to see them like sing during the service.

SPEAKER_01 16:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 16:29

It's also just fun to chat with them.

SPEAKER_01 16:31

Yeah. Yeah. Well, I know they love having you there. You bring such a smile to all their faces. Thank you. Everywhere we go in Uganda, these girls are pretty much famous. Because twins are a big deal here. Yeah. So everyone gets really excited.

unknown 16:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:52

Anything else you would like to say about Uganda?

SPEAKER_04 16:56

Um I feel like even if you're like if you like visit or something, I'm like I just always like have like an open book sharing your faith.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

Yeah. That's true. That's good.

SPEAKER_04 17:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:22

Yeah. Sweet. Well, thank you for coming on the podcast. You're our youngest guest. That's exciting.

SPEAKER_05 17:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:30

All right. Should go get ready for dinner? Yeah. All right. Perfect. As they say in Uganda, Banga. Here we go. All right, bye.

SPEAKER_00 17:41

Okay, right now what you're seeing in front of you is um a video of our bus driver. Um, he's crossing the street. We were parked on the side of the road, and he was going to get some chicken on a stick for us. It was quite an interesting adventure. Um, you'll see in this video all these people are trying to offer him um their chicken that they have cooked, and it's literally on a stick. It's like kind of like fair food. Um, anyway, it was quite an interesting experience for us. Um, and the audio was very terrible, so that's why there is no sound for this. Um, but then you're gonna see a few very bad quality videos of Annalisa interviewing Megan, and Megan is um the wife of Ryan, who um is the couple who lived there for six years and who we interviewed recently um in our regular studio. Um, so yeah, Annalisa um interviews her and she asks her things like, What was your favorite part? And was there anything that surprised you? Um, really apologize for the audio. It's very, very poor. Um, but uh we had just so much time to kill on the bus because the bus ride from um the airport to our hotel, and then this is actually these videos are on the way um to the airport from our hotel, so on our way home. We just had a lot of time to kill. It was like I think a five or six hour bus ride. Um, and so we didn't have much to do except for talk about our trip and make some podcast videos. So very random, very low quality, but um, I hope it blesses you either way. Um, and you will um hear them talk about this chicken on a stick experience at the end of this video, um, which is what you're seeing before your eyes right now. So anyway, I hope you enjoy. Talk to you soon.

SPEAKER_03 19:21

There have been many favorite parts. Um I mean, this was our home for many years, so it feels good to be back. It's sweet to reconnect with a lot of people that we worked with and did life with. And just to see them, it's been two years since we've been here, so this has been really sweet to um see these people that were a part of my everyday life for years. Um, so that's been a big treat. Um, it's been really sweet to um see again the kids at Lawanga and see how big many of them have grown, seeing how they've matured, and just um and meeting some of the new kids that have come since we've been here. Um and on.

SPEAKER_02 20:02

Yeah, it's been so sweet. Um just getting to meet everyone and see how excited when they see you guys and Ryan. It's just one of my favorite parts is just seeing. I think there was one point when we showed up that the children's home for the first time, um, two of the moms, and just see if you think hunting Natalie was also literally jumping over now. I think one of them pulled me off the ground.

SPEAKER_03 20:30

She did, yes. Mama Susan and Mama Sends. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:36

Um, is there has there been anything that surprised you about this trip so far?

SPEAKER_03 20:40

Um, I don't know about surprise. Um, it's been sweet, I think, to see like my own kids. Um, you know, they've grown in the church since also being here last. So like the twins um before, like when we would have been at the children's home, like they would have been places like playing amongst all the kids, whereas like now being a little bit older, um, watching them like want to jump in.

SPEAKER_02 21:07

I thought it was really sweet to see. Um, I think it's very sweet. Like it's nice to be in your team, it's nice to be in your own house.

SPEAKER_03 21:19

It's nice to have the watching all the normal things that were sweet to leave because we you know are thankful anytime the Lord allows us to come and just never know like when we'll be back. So um, yeah, for sure a mixture of feelings.

SPEAKER_02 21:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:41

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 21:45

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 21:46

I don't think one actually wants anymore. Okay. Will you pass that up to them? Give it up to them or to Jogo, I don't know. So it I think you know normally. when we come it has just been our family um generally and so and because we lived here we um no thank you we generally um i don't want to say we're not as organized but just kind of like take things a day at a time kind of know the things we hope to do and the people we hope to see and um so bringing a team for sure um made us um be more organized with like what was happening each day and planning things out um not that it's more or less intentional um but it definitely you know was different but what I think was the biggest treat and I know I've shared this with you guys is um you know this place that you've heard us talking about for some of you we've known a year maybe two years or four years um we've maybe shown you pictures or videos or told you stories but now like you've been here you've met our friends you've met you've met the kids at Lawland children's home you've met the people we worked with and there's just something really special and like bonding I feel like um to be able to share that with you guys it's kind of been our two worlds coming together and um it's really special yeah it's a gift for sure the next um question is about trusting the Lord and the sovereignty of the Lord in regards to traveling and just doing different trips like this.

SPEAKER_00 23:22

The reason why I'm telling you all of the questions beforehand is because for some reason Annalise's microphone was not working and Megan's was and so you can kind of hear what Megan is talking about but you don't really have context for it. At this point of the trip we were on our way to the airport in Africa in Uganda um and we're gonna be flying to Turkey but we didn't know what the trip looked like from there. It did end up being quite an interesting adventure we ended up traveling for a full 72 hours which was quite an experience but either way it's fun to just hear Megan talk about it. Anyway and then the the videos that you're also seeing um was some scenes of Africa again within some dance videos. I'm running out of videos to have for my voices um so some videos of people worshiping the Lord through song while we were at church we got to visit a church there one of the Sundays and so that was a really cool and very unique experience for us.

SPEAKER_03 24:11

But either way enjoy the conversation with Megan he is sovereign overall he knows we don't know yet when we get to Istanbul where we're flying from there. But he does and um I know like sometimes in the moment like when we we're feeling tired we want to know what the plan is um it can it can easily be a little discouraging or tiring or stressful. But we have like you said concerning scenarios where we've been rerouted for different reasons even one time when the twins were little somehow um the computer system um had them marked as like a I can't remember it was like a do not board sort of thing. Like they were like if we let you on the plane they will not let this plane land in America. And they had some something similar happen a few months before with another set of twins. So we suddenly were in um we were in Amsterdam and didn't know when and where we were going and they ended up flying us to France and we were there. And then I think yes I can't remember where they took us from there. Anyways but you know there were people along the way to help uh people were kind and um the Lord you know gave us rest along the way and um yeah it didn't take him by surprise then he knows you know what this evening and tomorrow looks like for us.

SPEAKER_00 25:38

Speaking of the Lord's sovereignty I'm very sad that this video didn't work out in the sense of the audio um Annalisa's microphone would cut in and out the entire time and so it was incredibly hard to edit so I finally gave up. But I do just want to share the story because the um yeah the Lord was absolutely glorified in it and he just provided in such cool ways. So one of the first days that we were there Megan and Annalisa and Josie went into town to buy some things from the market for village outreach that we're going to be doing later that week. We are planning on going into the village and bringing them some like regular staples of of um food as well as a Bible in their local language and so the timing is very cool in the sense of they um they got there and there was there was a man there who Ryan and Megan knew from their time there and he is just someone who's always there wanting to help anyone who isn't from the area and make sure they're getting fair prices and things at the market. And so he greeted them right away he did the shopping for them and then when they went to leave their car wouldn't start and he was rounding up people to help and they couldn't figure out what the problem was and so um they the Lord just provided different people to help and they were able to call a friend to give them a ride back um to the hotel but in the meantime it was really cool how the Lord had ordained it um it was it was very it was very hot it was very very busy part of town um and there was just kind people all around you know telling them like oh come over here you can you you know come in the shade come out of the hot car and stuff and they were um taking shelter under some women's little umbrellas they they do sell things from um under umbrellas alongside the road everywhere you go and so while they were you know getting relief from the sun they were able to use the opportunity um to share the gospel with these women and so they happened to of course not happened we know that the Lord was all in control but they already had Bibles in these women's local language in their hands because they had just bought them at the market and so with this car not working and they were just had time to kill and um they had this interaction with these people they were able to share the gospel with many people there on the street and so it was just super cool to see how the Lord provided for them and just that they're able to take advantage of the opportunity that we that they were given. And so this was just one of the really cool and encouraging um stories from our trip overall and it just yeah goes to show that the Lord is in control and just how he is sovereign over it all. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the podcast overall I know it was very messy and really random but we um did just want to share with you as much as we could um the things that we had had recorded. We do have a few more conversations that I promise are much better was just a sit-down conversation with some people that we got to meet while we were there.

SPEAKER_03 28:36

So either way I hope you enjoyed your very small um piece of Uganda and we will see you again soon bye thank you for coming thank you for trusting us with a big journey across the the world I know ultimately you're trusting the Lord but I know you rely on some of our experiences as well so yeah you're welcome thank you