I'm Sorry...

Setting the Stage:

Most of you know I have a lot of kids. All with different personalities and different bents. Some have given me "well earned" gray hair, and some are not even a challenge. They are all beautiful inside and out.

Today I just want to share something that tickled me about my oldest biological daughter Coral. Being the oldest girl should tell you something about her personality. She is a strong, influencing, leader. She knows what she wants and is determined, and enduring. She love Jesus, more than any young girl I have ever known. She has a wonderful servants heart, and whats more, the Lord has a plan for this girls life and she is on the journey of finding out what it is!

I home school all of my kids (yes, I do ask myself "why" from time to time). I am not the best teacher, but we make it work and by God's grace, all my kids read and write and are pretty bright. I use different curriculum to make this school thing fit the different needs of my kids.

Last year I used an online program to school some of our kids while we adjusted to our new additions. It gave me some extra time in the day to work with the ones who needed me more. However this seemed to be a big mistake. The program that I used had underlining messages of, no absolute truth, and there is no real God.

As you may have guessed, this didn't settle well with me. It was fine for my Coral because she seems to be well grounded, but not for some of my other kids who are just learning their identity in Christ. And even though Coral would survive, I would rather have her learning solid Christian values rather than worldly ones at her age.

Ok...the story. This made Coral upset. She wanted to graduate early on the online program, and I was throwing off her groove. She didn't want to return to curriculum "A" because she thought it was not challenging enough and said it was a waste of her time. I decided she would not continue on the online program, so I would mix it up. I didn't return to curriculum "A" but found other programs that would fit. We battled on this one and she ended up hurting my feelings trying to prove her point.We worked it out all then and she apologized.

A year later, (a few months ago) Coral decided, she disliked the new curriculum's I used in place of the online program, and really wanted what she had...curriculum "A"! As you can imagine I laughed at the thought. She proceeded to tell me how wrong she was, and how she just didn't get it then and now she does. "Please mom, please let me use curriculum "A" you were right I was wrong. I will get a better education with this and be able to stay on track!"

So...I got a bright idea. "Coral," I said. "I will switch you back to "A" IF you write me apology letter, and I will post it for the world to see!"

Well, I told you she was determined, she did just that. So here it is world!!! Take notes...this is what it looks like when a 15 year old apologizes publicly to her mother! (I have typed it just as written minus mentioning the name of the curriculum).

Dear Mom,
I must admit I've been stubborn, annoying, and all around awful. I have put you through some hardships. As I think about my heart then, it was evil and impure. It makes me truly depressed. I count the grey hairs I helped produce and feel sorry.

As I write this essay, I feel stupid for what I have said. I feel the need to mention, I love you. Now that I have been put into a less school challenging curriculum, I feel the need to go back to the curriculum, I "claimed" to hate. I understand that you make the right choices and curriculum "A" was clearly the right choice.

To put this paper to an end, I would like you to know you are the smartest mom I know, besides Carol Denny, since you ask her for advice. But still, I think curriculum"A" is the smartest choice yet! Thank you for still loving me.

Love,
Coral

Now, I know what you all may be thinking, "You are so lucky to have a daughter who understands her mother and finally gets it." or "I wish my daughter would write a letter like this one!" I want to encourage you all, you too can have a letter writing daughter...it just takes the right touch and a little bribery, and I am not above that at all. With perseverance and a little grey hair, you too can have your very own apology writing child. But remember there is always someone smarter than you!




My Coral

Parasites, Scabies and More...

What do parasites, scabies, malaria and an unreached people group have in common?

I just returned from Uganda, Africa where the Lord used disease to bring Himself Glory. The Karamojong Tribe in Northern Uganda are an unreached people group. They are a nomadic people who pillage and steal cattle from the other tribes in Uganda. They are frowned upon among the people because of the havoc they reek in villages. Most Karamojong are not welcomed among any of the people in the market, and churches. They also can't get jobs and are just tolerated at best.

The heart of a man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. Proverbs 16:9

This trip to Africa was like all others. Hard work and planning was the prelude before the actual travel. We needed to fundraise, send letters, and organize garage sales. Originally Bryan and I both planned to go on the trip. We would visit our missionaries in Uganda, cross the border to Kenya and spend time with Pastor Cyrus and the kids at the orphanage. We worked hard to earned money, and had several donations but we just didn't bring in enough for us both to go. We needed to make a decision, put off the trip again, or go with what the Lord had provided thus far. We had prayed for the Lord to show us and he opened the door for just me to travel and that is just what I did.

Once in Uganda, almost a day later than planned, I was greeted at the airport by my dear friend Tonya. We had big plans for my stay, sick babies, visiting ministries, vision casting, and travel to Kenya. We arrived at her house at 5am and slept for a couple of hours and when we woke, Tonya was sick with a fever. I spent the day at a program down the street that cares for sick and dying kids, (pictures to follow).

Day two in Jinja, Uganda started off well and ended bad. Some how I picked up a mean parasite and well you probably know what that means but I'll tell you anyway, vomiting and diarrhea. I pretty much would have rather die, but that wasn't going to happen. It was just miserable enough to beg for mercy and lay in bed and not move. By day four I had recovered and was ready for the mission field, or so I thought. Day 4 also was the start of high fever for Tonya's son, who tested negative for malaria shortly there after.

In the back house lived Aunt Sara and Mama Maria. Maria is Karamojong. She has three children living with her, Phillip, Angela and Longoli. If you follow my blog you may recognize the names of the children (if you want a quick background click here to read the story). Phillip and Angela were Tonya's foster children. Tonya had been caring for Phillip and Angela for a few months while searching for their mother. Maria had been separated from her children for about a year previous to Tonya meeting them. Once Tonya had the children in her custody, and Maria found her children, Tonya starting to form a bond with Maria and helped Maria to form a bond with her children.

Tonya then invited Maria to live with her to make the transition for the kids from Tonya to Maria easier on the children. When I arrived Maria was very welcoming and I was immediately drawn to her. She sat on a mat in the side yard listening to the Proclaimer (a New Testament reading of the scripture in her language).

In between being sick and laying low, I would venture out back with Maria to talk, the best I knew how, using sign language and common threads between women. I invited myself to sit on her mat and hold her precious 2 month old baby girl and she willingly and joyfully excepted.

About day five, we started to make our plans for our big travel to Kenya to visit Pastor Cyrus and his wife Eucbeth. Our ministry has adopted Pastor Cyrus' orphanage and I try to make regular trips out there to see the kids. Day five was also the day Tonya and I started itching! Some time in the morning Tonya was telling me of the bites on her body that she had been complaining about for a couple of weeks. I began to see some bites on me too, but figured that it was Africa, so what else would I expect.

While sitting on the couch one night I saw these tiny, tiny, bugs crawling on me and assumed they were hatching spiders. So I remedied that situation, I got off the couch! If you know me, you know I HATE bugs of ANY kind. Day six, Tonya is really itching and can feel things crawling on her and I can feel things crawling on me, more little spiders! I proceed to pick these buggers off of her neck like a monkey would groom her baby and she did the same. Gross I know, but necessary for the story! So we groomed ourselves and sometimes each other, as needed. After a while we decided to put the bugs in a ziplock bag, and head for Al Shaffa clinic for a twofer, diagnosis of bugs and a malaria smear for Tonya's son who still had a high fever.

The Doctor informed us that we were infested with scabies, a microscopic bug that burrows under your skin and lays eggs (look it up if you don't know), and another negative malaria test. The remedy for the bugs was to treat ourselves with a "poison" lotion, literally, and boil all of our clothes and linen. Easy for people in America, but hard and time consuming for people in Africa. We did what we had to and bought 15 bottles of "poison" and treated the whole compound and ourselves.

Now at this point there are far more stories to tell about wood eating bugs in my bed, toads in my bathroom and the sort, but I will spare you the details in order to keep this from turning into a novel (dangerously approaching one already, I know). But lets suffice to say that the devil was on the hunt to destroy every ounce of hope and every opportunity to share the Gospel with anyone outside of our compound. BUT God determined our steps.

At some point, as I am sure you would understand, I began to get discouraged. I kept asking God why had he brought me halfway around the world to get all of these sicknesses. I could have been sick at home. My personality is such that I began to feel bad for the people who poured themselves and their finances into this trip. Nothing but sick was happening. I couldn't even go love on sick babies in fear I would make them more sick! I kept being reminded that God knew every part of this story already and I had to trust in that, but my plans to travel to Kenya were slowly fading, especially when I found out that Cyrus had contracted a bad case of malaria.

We spent many days at home with Maria. I had brought Maria some gifts from home and we spent time laughing together, clapping at new outfits she would try on and model for us and holding and loving on her babies. One gift in particular struck me. Someone had donated a Bible coloring book. The color book was for kids, with pages from Genesis to Revelation. It was used and some of the pages were colored in, but it was new to them! I had gifted it to Phillip, but Maria was the one who was captivated by it. Then it dawned on me, of course she was her tribe was mostly illiterate! This appealed to Maria because it was story made from pictures!

She began to point at the pictures, loving calling us Mommy, and saying the charters in the story by name. "Mommy, Abraham! Mommy, Jesus! Mommy, Moses!" She knew each one, it was astonishing. Then in her own tongue she would sing! The songs were unfamiliar, but ministered to my soul. I could pick out words like Jesus or Abraham. She new it all. "Mommy, Angel!, Mommy", pointing to the Cross. The words that I once couldn't understand came to light.

Someone had gotten to Maria, long before Tonya or I came along. Someone had told her about Jesus. Her understanding my not have been focused, but it was a start. What joy it was to see her sad eyes come to life, a tool of communication in a kids coloring book. At times we would look out the window to see what she was doing and we could see the color book next to her on the mat and Maria there flipping the pages.

The days went by and our Kenya window closed. I wouldn't be able to visit the kids I so much in Kisii. I kept asking God to make clear for me the reason for all of this illness and the steps he determined for me. Our scabies were gone, Tonya's son received treatment for malaria (even thought he tested negative) and we were all feeling better. Only 48 hours before our return to the states and Pastor Cyrus called and said he was taking a bus to come and see us! Praise the Lord!

Cyrus arrived what a reunion, and with Cyrus we had a perfect translator. Maria had her own tribal language and spoke Swahili, Cyrus' native tongue. He was able to tell her all that Tonya and I wanted to say. We talked about Jesus and how he loved her. We talked about the kids how she would care for herself once we were gone. Tonya had been thinking how wonderful it would be if somehow Maria would be able to go with Cyrus back to his compound and live with them. She asked Cyrus what he thought and he loved the idea.

Cyrus asked Maria if she would come and live at the orphanage with him and his wife. At first Maria was tentative and said that she would do whatever Tonya did. But we explained that Tonya was coming back to the states for awhile and wanted Maria and the kids to be cared for.

Karamojongs are notorious alcoholics and drug addicts. They put their small children on the streets to beg and then spend the money on little food and lots of drugs. They are sober on rare occasions. But Maria had a definite interest in caring for her kids and most importantly, Jesus.

When asking the question to an American, "What does poverty mean to you? List everything that pops into your head." What do you think of? I thought of several things, no food, no water, no shelter, no work, no education, no clothes, etc. But when that same question was asked among the poor, the very objects of poverty, around the world in various different cultures and countries, the answer was astounding. It was NOT based off of material things like food or water or housing. It was based on one thing, SELF WORTH! These people didn't have anything to say about their lack of watter, or food, what they said was, they feel useless, like they didn't matter, their life was meaningless, they had no self worth (When Helping Hurts).

Maria, like most Karamojongs lacked self worth. No one respects her in her culture expect her own. She can't and won't work which creates this horrible unending cycle of poverty and low self worth. It is a vicious cycle that consumes and devours thousands maybe millions of lives around the world. Moving with Pastor Cyrus would provide the Godly model of working, going to church, caring for others, community, and discipleship which brings about WORTH!

Maria, Phillip, Angela and Longoli are all in Kisii, Kenya now. Phillip has started school and has a "smart" school uniform. Maria is being mentored by Eucabeth, Cyrus' wife. Angela is making new friends and Longoli is growing and doing just fine.

(Phillip in his school uniform)

So what do parasites, scabies, malaria and an unreached people group have in common? Answer, God's perfect plan. It is simple, had we have gone to Kenya as planned, we would have missed this opportunity for Maria to move with Pastor Cyrus! God determined our steps, now that is worthy of praise!

(Eucabeth, Phillip, Maria, Longoli, Cyrus and Angela)

As for Maria, will you please join us in prayer. This will be a long road for her, breaking the bonds of addiction, changing her place of living, and learning to trust Jesus for everything. Our prayer for Maria is that she would fall madly in love with her Savior and then return to her people where she can share God's truth and this people group can change status from unreached to reached!

The Source of the Nile

Angela and her new baby

Me and Maria, looking at pictures of my tribe (kids) she was amazed

Rejoicing with Maria over Gods goodness

The untold story of my wood eating beetles, this is the saw dust after one night!

One of the many beetles in my bed

Girls carrying water from a muddy, dirty water bed

Bujagali Falls

Angela getting her baby tied on her back, The African way

This is Harriet. She is over one year old, but the size of a 6 month old. I fell in love over and over with these kids. Harriet suffers from malnutrition and HIV/Aids. She is currently being treated for both.

I had the privelege to love on some really sick babies. This is Harriet.

My other heart throb, Abby. Her mom and dad are young about 13 and are from two different tribes and are cousins and not married. When the elders of the tribe found out about the baby they planned to kill her because she was a disgrace to the tribes. She was recued and brought to Rene, who runs malnutrition rehab center in Jinja, Uganda. Abby is awaiting adoption.

One, two, three...swing

Tonya with Maria and the kids (with one extra)

The slum in Kampala

Cyrus and I having lunch at Two Friends Restaurant

Maria and Longoli, so beautiful

The sunrise over Jinja town from Tonya's balconey

Lake Victory in the morning and the view from Tonya's house

My dear friend Seggy and I, having coffee

Frequent Flyer Miles...

Cara on one of her trips to Teso

Tonya with Angela, who has been living with her and is now healed from her Turberculosis.

We have the privilege of partnering with two of the most amazing young women you’ll likely ever meet. Cara lives in Entebbe near the Nkumba schools, and Tonya lives about 4 hours east in Jinja. Both are in Uganda with Remember the Poor. They pour their lives out for the sake of the Gospel.

Trans-continental trips don’t come cheap! If you have frequent flyer miles that you’d like to donate (or un-used airline gift cards), please email me with the quantity of miles you have available as well as the airline. We have specific need for 4 tickets in late January, and 1 in March. We can use both domestic and international carriers, as some of the travel is within the U.S.

Thank you!

Swell Up and Die...

Dear Friends,

I would like to update you on our fundraiser and what the Lord has done, but first I would like to share a true story with you.

Acts: 28 1-10 ~ Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2 The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 3 Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. 4 When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.” 5 But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 6 The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.

On the way to Rome, Paul faced many life threatening events. In Acts 27 he boarded a ship as a prisoner and set sail for Rome with a centurion, guards and other prisoners. The crew decided to sail and beat the weather in order to deliver their cargo in a timely fashion. They sailed into some hurricane like storm. Paul warned the centurion to no avail. After the crew feared for their lives, Paul shared that an angel of the Lord appeared to him and that no one on the ship needed to fear. All 276 people jumped ship and swam to the island of Malta, all 276 men made it alive, just as Paul promised according to his vision.

In Acts 28, once the crew arrived safely on shore, Paul gathered some wood to throw into the fire. But a viper was hiding in the wood and jumped out and bit him on the hand. I love that the Lord had orchestrated that all eyes would be on his servant Paul. Verse 4 says that the islanders thought that Paul must have been an murderer and was getting what was due him, from the goddess Justice, because he escaped death from the sea. But Paul just shook off the snake. Verse 6 tells us that the people expected him to swell up or fall over dead, BUT “after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.

God had all eyes on Paul, everyone watched him, the centurion, the guards, other prisoners and now the Islanders of Malta. Not all of us has had the prospect of sharing our faith through a snake bite. However the Lord has orchestrated the things in lives to be such a witness to Christ. He draws attention to us, our life stories, our up’s and our downs for one purpose, to bring Him glory!

This is the case with a friend of mine living in Uganda. Tonya has been a part of our ministry at The Mission. The Lord moved her and her son Christopher to Uganda and she has been on a wild journey from day one. In just five months, Tonya has had to change her course about five times, move twice, saved a child from witch craft and starvation, has taken three children into her care under the age of nine from different tribes (one tribe being an unreached people group), lost and regained two of her children twice, been sick, feared for her life, been thrown in jail for protecting a neglected child, and has been in two car accidents. There is much more to her story that I can’t go into detail about now but you get the idea, Tonya has been under great pressure and great attack.

Tonya shares a compound with a Muslim couple. They have began to form a relationship and the couple really cares for Tonya and her kids. Just last week Tonya got into a pretty big car accident and had to take care of some personal business. The couple was concerned for Tonya and her family and was waiting for an update once Tonya returned. You see, the Lord has drawn attention to Himself, through his servant. This Muslim family has been watching Tonya get struck by “the viper!” They have been waiting, just as the Islanders of Malta, for Tonya to swell up and fall over dead! How could one person endure such venomous strikes and live?

With all eyes on Tonya, she gave testimony to the one and only, Christ! She has displayed his truths and testified to His name sometimes, without even knowing it. This Muslim couple has been watching. With their gaze fixed on Tonya and the wonder that she has not given up and died, they made a bold statement! “We are tired of this Muslim religion, we want to know about your Jesus!”

This is why we are set on traveling to Uganda and Kenya. This is our heart beat, the nations coming to faith in the one true God! This is why we have garage sales and fundraisers. This is why we ask for your support! Christ glorified is the reason we live! There is story after story of people giving up their “old idols” for new life in Christ. They watch and see that we have victory and no snake bite will take us from praising the TRUE God!

Our sale earned $1097! Praise the Lord! Thank you to all who participated by donating and helping so much. We fought against the rain the whole time, but God is good! We are approximately in need of $2000 more! Will you please pray and ask the Lord how he will use you to “send” us? It is the time of the year where we are all busy getting ready for Christmas and we know that it is the time of the year where finances get tight. Would you please pray and ask God to challenge you in the area of giving, and then trust Him through it?

If only 20 people gave $100, the task would be accomplished! We appreciate all of you. We thank you for your generosity, prayers and love for us and the mission of Christ.

There are two ways to donate, you can send a check to Remember the Poor (with a note “Thiele Travel”)

RTP
PO Box 1013
Lynden, WA 98264

Or you can go online to http://www.irememberthepoor.org/ and click the donate button and donate on line. Make sure you add a note to it, saying “Thiele Travel”!


As for the end of Tonya’s story with her new Muslim friends, we will have to wait and find out what the Lord has planned. Tonya can only do and say so much because of cultural barriers between men and women, but her friends are eagerly awaiting Bryan’s (and my) arrival so that he can ask questions of another man, a lover of Jesus

Blessings to you all. Please know that we are praying for you! Please email us your prayer requests, we would love to pray for you as well!

In the Matchless Name of Christ,

Bryan and Andrea Thiele

His Desires, My Desire...

Dear Friends and Family,

This past week we have learned so much about reaching the nations for Christ. Bryan and I were able to attend a Community Health Evangelism (CHE) meeting and it spoke right to our hearts.

“The purpose if CHE is not just breaking poverty or planting churches, though both are accomplished in CHE programs. The real goal of our work is a transformation in the lives and communities that is as deep as the human heart, and as broad as the whole range of the human experience on the world God made. We want Jesus to be recognized as the Lord over all creation, and our development activities to reflect the depth and breadth of the kingdom of God. CHE seamlessly integrates evangelism, discipleship and church planting with community health and development. The ministry is wholistic, seeking to obey everything that Jesus commanded and addressing the whole need of individuals and communities.”

We are planning on taking next steps with CHE to receive their formal training. This is will be a vital tool we use to reach out to the Karamojong people of Uganda and other communities.

Our trip to Uganda and Kenya will be a vision trip. We will be working with our missionaries in Uganda and our pastors & leaders in Kenya to cast vision and explore the possibilities of reaching local communities and unreached people groups with the Gospel of Christ.

As we all know, going to the nations requires the means to get there. While we know that reaching the unreached with the Gospel of Christ is important, we also know that some go and some stay to send the goers, every part is vital to a successful ministry and as the body of Christ, we seek to build the kingdom of God together.
Romans 10: 12-15 ~ For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”[f] 14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”[g]

We are well aware that this is the Christmas season and money is tight. I would like to present to you:

If 40 people gave $100 (or more) we would reach our goal.

40 x $100 = vision trip to reach the unreached!

Your donations are tax deductible, when you make your check to Remember the Poor. Please do not write our name on the check, but please do include a note, “Thiele Travel”.

RTP
PO Box 1013
Lynden, WA 98264

Or click here and donate online to RTP, please include "Theiel Travel" in your note.

Our fundraiser is one week away! Thank you to those of you who have donated to our sale, we are so grateful.

I will keep you up to date as we move along and God provides.

Blessings
Bryan & Andrea

Help Needed...

Dear Friends and Family,

I am sending out a reminder that we are having a DONATION GARAGE SALE on December 16th through the 18th . 100% of your donations, will go to our Uganda/Kenya trip. Remember it is almost the end of the year and ALL of your financial contributions are tax deductable.

Bryan, The Mission and I feel it is vital that we spend time with our missionaries in Africa. We have several ministries that need special attention and our help. We are asking for donations for our garage sale, and financial contributions to make this trip come to fruition and to be successful.

In Uganda, we plan on working with Tonya and another local missionary to effectively reach the Karamojong people. We believe the Lord has provided ways to begin ministry with the Karamojong, to teach them the Word of God, and bring Glory to His Name! The Karamojong are an unreached people group in the 10/40 window. You can learn more about their people on Joshua Project.

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”
Rev 7:9-10

The Bible says the Karamojong will be represented in heaven! Praise the Lord! This is our hearts cry! We long to serve Christ in this capacity, reaching the unreached of His nations.

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Romans 10:14-15

We NEED your help:

We are accepting all donations for our garage sale ASAP! Please drop them off anytime to our house, or call and we will pick them up. (623) 910-4886, most of you know this routine, we have done it before

OR

You can donate directly to our ministry for our trip. Your money will go toward, travel, The Proclaimer (a tool used for translating the Gospel into native tongues), training, and needs for our missionaries and leaders. This is a great time to make tax deductible contributions, before year’s end!

You can send your financial contribution directly to the address below, or online by clicking here:
Remember The Poor
PO Box 1013
Lynden, WA 98264

Include a note “Thiele Travel”
Remember the Poor is a 501 c(3) charitable organization. All donations are tax-deductible. Please include your e-mail address so we may send your gift receipt by e-mail


Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for partnering with us in ministering to the nations of the world.

Blessings
Bryan and Andrea

“Ministry that costs nothing, accomplishes nothing.” John Henry Jowett

Reaching the Lost...

Urgent: The harvest is ripe the workers are few!!! Matthew 9:37

Dear Friends and Family,

I want to take this time to update you on some important circumstances in our ministries that need immediate prayer and financial attention.

Most of you are aware that we have ministries in Africa. Tonya is one of our missionaries that we sent out from The Mission and is one of the ministries that we support. She lives in Uganda and has been given the opportunity to minister to the Karamojong (an unreached people group) and street children.

Tonya has been facing some trials in the last month or so. It has been hard to send out updates for prayer, because her circumstances change sometimes minute to minute. I think now is a great time to try and update you while there are some things that need immediate prayer and financial attention.

First I will give you some back ground. Tonya has 5 children. 1 biological, 1 adopted and 3 foster children. The African tribe called the Karamojong live in Masses, near Tonya. That is not where they are originally from, but they venture out of their home town of Moroto, to the towns to beg, and earn money.

I am stilling learning about the Karamojong, and don’t want to tell you information that is not true, so I will be vague. The Karamojong are not highly regarded are not liked and looked down upon in Uganda. They also, believe that they own the cattle in all of Uganda, so they steal, pillage. They are sometimes a violent people.

Most of the Karamojong do not work. When they don’t have cattle, the women take their kids to the streets of Kampala to beg. The children are left by themselves to walk up to 15 miles a day, sometimes with a baby on their back, begging for money and food. If the children can’t make the long walk home to the slums, they sleep in store fronts, alone.

This is the story of thousands of lives, including Phillip and Angela. Phillip and Angela were picked up by the police, off of the street for begging and taken into custody.

Tonya finally was able to take in Phillip and Angela to care for them. They have been on the streets for most of their lives, or in custody of the police. She knows that the Lord has clearly told her to advocate for these children. She was looking for the birth mom, in order to make sure there was not a birth mom looking for them. The birth mom was able to find Tonya and her children. Tonya invited the birth mom, Maria to live with them, which she did for about 24 hours. Maria brought her supposed mom, infant and 4 year old son with her. Maria took Tonya to the slums where she lives in Kampala to sign papers so Tonya could have custody. Tonya was welcomed in by the women singing and dancing and praising a foreign god, not our own Jesus. The chief of the town, invited her back to help them in the future.

After about 24 hours, Maria decided that she would take the people she came with and Phillip and Angela with her back to the streets. Tonya tried to argue with her to let them stay, but Maria insisted. When asked if the kids would go back to begging, she said “Yes!” Tonya packed their clothes and loaded them up and Phillip and Angela walked into the night in the pouring rain. This is a note I received from Tonya after the return of her children the first time. I love her words, and I must share it with you. Tonya spent a horrible night sick to her stomach and that is the reference you read in the beginning about sitting on the bath room floor;

Wow sister, that was not, not fun! But I spent a lot of time with Jesus in those moments as I laid on my bathroom floor and I praise him even when satan tries to tell me that none of this is worth it.

I prayed about the slum in Kampala with all those Karamojong brothers and sisters. I was thinking that their rent is $2 a month and their food is no more than $2 a day. The kids are the ones who work, not the parents. But for them there is no other way.... BUT THERE IS.... JESUS!

I am praying in many moments a day about THE MISSION MASESE and about that slum in Kampala. My heart is forever tied to these people because that is what God did through my precious Philip and Angela. They asked me for help as they thanked me for the kids, and that, I believe, was God opening the widow to heaven.

I need help sister. I am but one woman with these huge tasks on my heart. The letterhead paper that the village persons wrote the letter on for me to care for Phillip and Angela says, "Together we can make a difference". I can't stop thinking about that and how with Jesus and just small, small resources we can change the lives of these people who feel so outcast yet God holds in his highest regard.

I remember reading a post that Gwen from 147 million orphans wrote after a visit last year to Masese1 where the Karamojong live that they work with. She said it was different, because when they pulled up there were not kids begging! I pray for the day we drive down Jinja road, the same path that my dear Philip walked with his little sister strapped to his back, to find no Karamojong children on that road working. I know I can pray that prayer with confidence because surely that is God's wish too. He wants justice.... OCEANS of it. He wants fairness.... RIVERS of it. Let us not yearn for the things of this world, but for JUSTICE and FAIRNESS as it is written by THE ONE we claim to know and love so dearly.

These past few days I have found myself homesick. I thought it was for AZ and all the people I love so and miss so dearly, but this morning I realized it was for heaven and the arms of Jesus..... whew, I get chills just thinking about that day. I love you. Come quickly, praying for God to make the path so clear and for his provision for every single need. XO from UG my dearest friend. Oh how I love you and long for the day that we serve his people together, arms linked and in community!

Please understand that the primary concern is for the children. Tonya’s heart is wrapped around these kids, but the heart ache comes when she knows that they are unwanted and are going to be living in conditions that are not suitable for a child. It is hard to imagine, that Angela was once in a warm bed receiving the medication she needs for her TB and now is living in the slum with no food to eat, facing a life of danger in the streets, with a mom she doesn’t know and a language she doesn’t speak.

We have been praying for the Lord to advocate on behalf of these kids and today, God is working miracles! Today Tonya is on their way to pick up her kids BY THE GRACE OF GOD!

This is just in from Tonya, via text:

“I have them, only by a miracle. I think Angela is drunk with alcohol and has a broken leg. They are in the same clothes and looks like they have not bathed. They are weak and limp, please pray.”

“Angela is drunk!! Phillip just told me they have no mattress, and slept on the dirt floor. She knew me and cried and them came back and won’t let anyone near her. She is gyrating and I think someone must have hurt her. We are going to the hospital.”

“Please, we pray we need God to keep showing up.”

Friends, here is the situation. Tonya NEEDS money. Most of you know that she doesn’t not have much support. She stepped out and trusted God for her circumstances. She needs money and support. It will cost money for the hospital and the paper work for the police. On top of that she trust that the Lord will supply all of her needs for food. They are going on faith right now.

It takes a lot of money to serve these kids, and their families.

Please pray and ask the Lord how he wants you to give right now. You can contact me directly if you can donate to Tonya and these beautiful kids, we can get it to her ASAP. Your donations are tax deductible, through Remember The Poor.

If you click here, you go right to the donation page:

https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_flow&SESSION=HVaKEdaLqPP6sHnzSMaMQWb9wMX8-yz-zj83LSxXlv6tZH405ZesIA_U6_e&dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1f8e263663d3faee8d9384d85353843a619606282818e091d0
Please include a note in your donation that specifies “Tonya, Uganda.”

Finally, friends, pray for the lost and dying world in Africa and the nations. These people need Jesus and discipleship. They are in desperate need of a Savior, until that time, nothing is going to change. The harvest is ripe, the workers are few! The Karamojong are an unreached, possible unengaged people group. There are no known churches among them. We are praying for the Lord to show us how to reach them. This is what the Lord has commanded us to do! Pray for him to make our path clear and to begin to soften the hearts of the Karamojong to accept His truths.

“Ministry that costs nothing, accomplishes nothing.” John Henry Jowett

Blessings,
Drea