missionary work
Mission Musings
By Bonnie…
January 10, 2016
For the Grace to see you in each one I encounter today
For the strength to always seek Thy will
For the courage to leave behind everything just for the sake of serving
You called me
You led me
You strengthen me
For without you I can do nothing
I am nothing
Fill me up Holy Spirit with your guidance, comfort and courage.
Feeling like the Old Testament psalmists this morning; weak but sure in the knowledge God will not abandon me.
Last night, feeling lonely, missing my little dogs, curled up in bed, sleepy and listening to Wayne pack his carry on and backpack.
Thinking about the incredible event at the end of Mass, when the entire congregation rose, outstretched hands, as we were blessed, sprinkled with Holy Water, and given plain wooden crosses to proudly wear. We were commissioned by St Peter’s The Apostle Church to go forth and evangelize, to spread the word of God in Africa.
Two thousand years of Church history in front of us last night, all around us like the original disciples sent to teach and preach and bring truth to God’s children.
Oh what a sinner I am. How could it be me? I am not worthy to gather up the crumbs or as Saint John the Baptizer said, “There is one greater than I and I am not worthy to unlatch his sandals.
Our worthiness has nothing to do with our calling. We can never be good enough or holy enough.
Thinking God has a great sense of humor because He loves the least of us so very much. Some of the greatest sermons I have heard were in a soup kitchen or the Alzheimer’s ward.
I am still me; vain, proud, silly but, different somehow this morning. A little weepy, very humbled and in awe of what we are doing. At the same time I am feeling o.k. with it all.
Our Uganda goals
Wayne and I were advised to make a list of short term goals and long term goals to take to Uganda.
We will sit and share them with Sister Angeline and perhaps the Board of Directors to see if our goals mesh with theirs.
It should be interesting to compare the lists with the reality in six to twelve months.
We are truly clueless about what is possible and what is just a dream.
The number one goal is always to go to morning Mass and remain open to God’s will because all things are possible through Him!
/s/ Bonnie
If God can work through a sinner like me
If God can work through and with a sinner like me.
I finally heard someone I love say the words “going off to love children that are not your own” yesterday.
I knew it might be said so I was ready.
I have no guilt going 9,000 miles around the World and “loving children that are not mine”, because that is what I want to do, am called to do, am ready to do.
I am healthy, retired, no children at home and overjoyed to be able to do this mission with my life partner.
If someone does not “get it” then it’s not up to me to explain it.
/s/ Bonnie
Our Uganda Home, a few before shots
No one’s asked, but when did that ever stop me. LOL
Here’s a few from where we’ll be living in Nkokonjeru, Uganda, beginning in January. The top photo is our two-bedroom apartment, although we figure to turn the second bedroom into a dining area. The left door leads to the living room, the right door to the second bedroom, and the open door is a small clinic where Sister Regina treats wounds and dispenses medicine. Bottom left are the flowers we’ll be planting in the garden out front. Nothing like bluebonnets and hollyhocks to remind you of home. Bottom right is the sun rising out front.
Before photos of our apartment in Nkokonjeru, Uganda, beginning in January. The top photo is our living room. The walls will be painted white and the floor will be polished cement, once we get there. The bottom left is our patio, with the hot water shower room on the left, an emergency outhouse-like toilet behind the closed red door and a western-style flush toilet in the open right door. Bonnie is standing next to the area where we figure to install an outdoor sink/food prep area/gas cooker. Bottom right is our main bedroom.
Top left is our water tank. Sister Angeline is issuing instructions to the plumber, who’s holding up our South wall. Top right is a small anthill out back. Bottom is entering Nokonjeru.
Heading to Uganda; making a list and checking it twice
12/7/15: One of those many items we needed to check off our Uganda to-do list.
Wednesday we’ll be dropping off approximately 500 pounds and one cubic meter of shoes, clothes, religious items, books, other charitable contributions, and household items to Amid Logistics in Grapevine, TX.
From there, the boxes are heading for Houston and the Maersk Pittsburgh for shipment to Kampala, Uganda. The Pittsburgh’s estimated departure date is Dec 17, and the estimated delivery to the Ransami Uganda Limited warehouse in Kampala is Feb 28.
$835.00, so far, for one cubic meter, which is the least expensive way were able to find for shipping this weight and volume. I say so far, as we were warned there could be destination charges.
The biggest item remaining on our check list is selling/getting rid of our 2011 Chevy Silverado 1500 LT Crew Cab. It’s valued at about $23,300 and the current payoff is $22,700 (and about $22,300 in January). Excellent shape, 50,000 miles, pretty consistently 17 MPG around town.
We purchased the truck used about a year ago, planning to use it for something else we had planned. But, as we all know, plans change.
All we want for the truck is enough to pay off the note. Interested?
Less than 40 days to go before our move to Uganda
Less than 40 days to go before we board our flight to Uganda.
I’m quite sure some people thought we’d never be leaving. We’ve been sharing, updating, talking about, and promoting the Little Sisters of St Francis and Providence Home for what seems like forever.
Our friends still see us at church and still participating in local activities, and are probably wondering, “I thought they moved to Uganda?”
For us it’s seemed like forever, even though it’s “only” been six months.
If we were independently wealthy we probably would have been long gone John, settled in, and doing what we could for as long as we could for the children, seniors and Sisters at Providence Home.
There were a number of times we wondered how and when we’d ever come up with the cash for our plane tickets. But, as one of the Nuns at the Sisters of St. Mary of Namur in Fort Worth counseled us, “everything happens on God’s time, not yours”, as she told us to be patient.
From Antique Alley craft sales, the help of friends, and basically selling off everything in our apartment but the bare essentials, we were able to buy our plane tickets.
We still have a couple other very big ticket items to take care of before we head to DFW Airport Jan 12 but, as always, figure everything will work out.
The past six months, as agonizingly long and slow as they’ve seemed, have also served a valuable purpose. Through handmade jewelry sales, fund-raising, and personal contributions we’ve been able to send 26,223,872 Ugandan Shillings to various groups and individuals in Uganda.
We’re also helping a young girl in Malawi stay in Catholic Secondary School, to the tune of 410,623 Malawi Kwachas.
In U.S. Dollars the total is around $8,300. We’ve been happy to do what we could, and overjoyed at those who have helped us help others. The influx of cash we’ve been able to send is more than a small fortune to people who make, on average, a dollar a day.
We hope to be able to send a bit more before we head to Uganda and, once we get settled in, should be able to make an even more significant difference in time and resources.
God Bless.
Asking for the wisdom and grace to “preach the Gospel and sometimes use words”.
From Bonnie…
Since returning from our Uganda trip in June we have had two face to face meetings with Catholic religious, some who have spent more than 37 years serving in Africa. Their suggestions have been invaluable.
We have also had a Skype meeting with two workers from Caritas for Children. Colleen and Chris have actually been working with The Little Sisters of Saint Francis for over nine years in Nkokenjeru.
And yesterday we had an hour teleconference with a Maryknoll Priest who has spent 47 years in Kenya and who is well-acquainted with the Little Sisters of St Francis.
Everyone has given us books to read and articles to study and lots of practical advice.
The main thought is trying to help us avoid the mistakes they might have made, always remembering to “do no harm” and respect the Ugandan culture.
For sure Wayne and I will be changed but that isn’t why we are going!
We are going to help the Ugandans become more self-sufficient so that when we leave or die, they are able to take what we have experienced together and continue onward and upward.
We each have a list of short term goals and long term goals to share with Sister Angeline and see how those goals fit in with her vision for the future of Providence Home.
I hope to set up a scholarship fund for students who wish to major in occupational therapy, physical therapy, psychology or special needs instructors. These no interest loans would require the students to live and work at Providence Home during breaks and fulfill an internship requirement.
Of course there is always God’s will to be done, and we constantly ask for the wisdom and grace to “preach the Gospel and sometimes use words”.
The gospel on five fingers
Mother Teresa always told her sisters to remember the “Gospel on Five Fingers.” She would say the words, “You did it for Me,” as she held up each finger of her hand. These words come from the Judgment of the Nations (Matthew 25:31-46) where Jesus tells us that we will be judged by how we treated those who were thirsty or hungry or sick.
I never tire of sharing this message, as it’s one of our primary reasons for moving to Uganda. We’ve also said what we’re doing is not unique or special, as what we’re doing is something anyone could do. But most people are not in the same position as we are; retired, healthy, and no children at home. We have few physical possessions and a desire to do more.
We’re also some of the best (or worst, depending on your perspective) sinners in the world. Moving to Uganda doesn’t change who were are. But if we can help one child, and then another, and then another, we hope to be living out the gospel of Matthew 25.
God has lessons to teach us in Uganda
A friend who has spent many months in Uganda and learned many life lessons told me, “You think you are going to care for the children but you are going because God has lessons for you”.
Patience and being present are two lessons for sure.
If I spend an hour rocking a child and giving her my undivided attention then that is what I need to be doing.
If a planned project with adult special needs class goes south then I have to be flexible, patient and happy to just sit on the floor and sing songs or let them teach me songs.
When I am rushing somewhere all hot and sweaty I need to take the time to squat down and hug a child, make eye contact and let them know they are loved.
The big lesson for me might be none of what we do in Uganda is about us!
The labor of love promoting, publicizing and sharing the works and activities of Providence Home
Over the past three months, besides our normal day-to-day activities, we’ve been working hard at sowing seeds; promoting, publicizing and sharing the works and activities of the Little Sisters of St. Francis at Providence Home in Uganda.
It’s been difficult, but a labor of love.
We sometimes fantasize over the possibility of a single wealthy donor with altruistic tendencies, catching wind of what we and Providence Home are doing and asking, “How much do you need? Let me write you a check”.
But the reality is a tidal wave of individual donations, some as small as $10, is adding up and making a difference.
Some of the donations remind us of the parable of the widow’s offering in Mark 12:41-44
“Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
Thanks to the generosity of individuals far and wide, individual Knights of Columbus, fellow Franciscan Friars of the Renewal Associates, the Irish Community in White Settlement and elsewhere, many members of the parish community of St Peter the Apostle, complete strangers, and oh so many more people than I can ever begin to recall, we have gathered and sent quite literally thousands of dollars for Ugandans with a greater need than you could ever imagine.
The goal we set on Go Fund Me was smashed into oblivion, thanks to the dedication, focus, love, and single-mindedness of the Irish.
We’ve said it before, but we are overwhelmed and extremely gratified by the kindness and generosity of everyone who’s been able to help, some with as little as their “two very small copper coins”.
God Bless you all.
While we’ve been successful at topping one goal, more is needed for the Little Sisters of St. Francis and Providence Home, in terms of increasing self-sufficiency and building the infrastructure.
There is always a need for clean and readily available drinking water, reliable power supplies, a regular supply of food, and a roof over the heads of children and seniors with no other place to go.
And that’s part of the mission we undertake.
As far as our mission, we are not special, by any stretch of the imagination. We sin just as good, and sometimes better, as anyone else.
Our difference is we’ve been presented a unique and remarkable opportunity. We have the time, the desire, the willingness, and the income (as small as it may be) to serve.
We move to Nkokonjeru, Uganda with a three year commitment, the length of time of a Ugandan work Visa, but only God knows how long we’ll stay.
“You did it for me” Uganda
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