The Gulu

Francis Sterling Palmer, Adam & Michelle’s soon to be adopted 3 year old, calls it The Gulu! 🙂 Well he is correct it is The Gulu….a place that has seen the ravage of a 20 year war on its land and its people.

The trip I took to Gulu is a 4 year prayer request that finally came to be Aug 01- 05. For a missionary that has lived in Uganda for the last 7 months it’s hard to imagine that I’d still be processing the spiritual effects it has had on me…but I am!

I noticed the scar that the was has left on the children on Sunday, our 1st day of outreach. After Sunday service the team went back that afternoon to Calvary Chapel Gulu. Our team of 17 missionaries did VBS and played football with over 500 children from the area. Nice ratios huh? 🙂 Well the Calvary Chapel Gulu Sunday School teachers were an absolute God send with helping us with translation, song, and just handling the children! 🙂

Teacher Mary, Amy, Brian and I had the 5 and younger group. They are SOOO cute! Anyway, we sang songs and told the story of Daniel and The Lions Den to them. Actually, Brian became Daniel and the children the lions, as we acted out the story…to fun! It was a great time with the kids but when it came time to interact these kids were unusually “skittish”. Most Ugandan children have to learn to hug and show affection of any kind but these kids were like “little statues”. 🙁 When anyone would try and put their arm around them they would almost jump (flinch) as to be scared. It was so sad to me how war around them and not having love has changed them. I obviously don’t know if any of these children had been in the IDP (internally displaced persons) camps or seen the horrible things that the war had brought to here area but it sure seemed like it. I hope and pray God’s love came through in the little time we spent with them that afternoon! I pray it showed them that there is love and it is from GOD!! John 13: 34-35