There were three different teams in the Winter DTS. One team was going to Thailand, one to Argentina, and then our team to Uganda. Right now I would just like to give the names of the people on my team. We had our two leaders Chase and Kelly, Jay and Kevin (both from New Jersey), Laura and Andrea (both from Michigan), Jenna and Megan (both from California), Kaitlyn ( from Pennsylvania), Steph (from Minnesota), Rebecca (from Ohio), Ryan (from Chicago), Chaiyapat aka Bom (from Thailand), and then we have Gracie and me (both from Washington). Each member of our team brought something different. It was amazing how well we worked together under each circumstance.
We left Montana on March 13th. We flew from Montana to Seattle, then Seattle to Dubai. The flight from Seattle to Dubai was over 14 hours! The longest I ever have been on a airplane. Once we got to Dubai we spent a night at a hotel. The next day we had our final flight. From Dubai to Entebbe, Uganda. We met our contact Jimmy at the airport. I was so excited to finally meet Jimmy and to be in Uganda. From the airport we had to take a bus 10 hours to get to our house in Gulu. During the drive we saw so much of Uganda. I was following more and more in love with area as we drove. Finally we got to the Gulu! We were all so tired we passed out!
Our team did a lot of different ministries. We played with kids, taught classes, did hut to hut evangelism, and spoke in public areas, and help to build part of a church. My favorite thing to do was play with kids and go hut to hut. The kids there were so amazing. They are all so care free and liked having fun. If you do something the will copy you, it made us all laugh when the kids would copy out horrible dance moves. Another thing about the kids is most of them have never seen a white person, so whenever they saw us the would come running in flocks and would grab our hands and walk with us. I fell in love with those kids there. They didn't have much but would run around with so much joy. I also had a blast going hut to hut sharing about Jesus. We would walk miles to talk to people. It was worth it. We saw people being healed physically and spiritually. God used each and everyone of us on the team to further his kingdom.
The whole trip changed for me right in the middle. For a week we went a lived in a village named Idure. From the moment I saw the place I knew I would love it. For the whole week we walked around the village praying for people and leading them to the Lord, if they wanted to. At night we would do a small teaching, then have a fire and dance and sing under the stars. It's amazing that just one year ago the LRA was attacking them and they had to live in fear. But now they don't have to live in fear. They can all just live out in joy and happiness. They thing that effected me most was one man. The mans name is Simon. I had the opportunity to hear Simon's story. Simon was kidnapped by the LRA and forced to be a child soldier. He was in it for three years before he escaped. It took him one year to get home. When he got home all that was left of his family were his mother and sisters. Since then he has gotten married and has taken in nine orphans. All of the orphans parents were killed by the rebels. Simon told me because he was kidnapped he has no education, since he has no education its hard for him to make money to support his family. After he said that he looked at me and said "None of that matters though, because I have my salvation and that's all I need". That statement hit me. I have so much and its hard for me to say that but Simon has nothing at all yet he can say that. That statement is what I want to live the rest of my life by.
Weeks went by and all I could think about was the village. I needed to go back! Finally on our last Sunday in Uganda I had the opportunity to go back with Jenna, Rebecca, and Andrea. We each got to speak and share to the people of Idure. After we were done speaking we got to go to a river and baptize people. Each of us felt honored to do this. Afterwards we said our goodbyes to the village and left. Sadly Simon had went out so I did not get to see him again.
Our last week we spent as a team, remembering stories and sharing how we grew. During this time Steph, Jenna and I were baptized by Kelly and Chase. The remainder of the week we said our goodbyes to Jimmy and to our two translators that we all grew close to, David and Patrick. We said our goodbyes and left Uganda on May 11th. It hurt my heart to leave that place, maybe one day I'll walk those red dirt roads again.
We got to the base in Montana around 11pm on 20th. The other teams were waiting for us. It was an amazing reunion. We spent our last week all together as a whole team. Having fun with each other, telling stories, and listening to our speaker. Each one of us graduated. On the 18th we started saying our goodbyes for the final time. I did this on the 19th also. Finally on the 20th I landed in Seattle and returned home.
I apologize for not posting something sooner. It's been hard trying to write something but it's been hard to think of what to write. But I tried my best. I would like to thank each and everyone of you. For praying for me and for donating to me.
A normal site to see..me surrounded by kids
Some of the kids
Baptizing people from the village
Graduating for DTS
I'm thankful to God for you, Regan. I am so blessed by what you had to share here. I will continue to pray for you as you transition and continue to live a life of worship here and wherever else you go. Love always, Rach.
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