Uganda Be Kidding Me!

My oh my! I never knew there were so many things that would need to be done in order to prepare for a mission trip! Shots, insurance, doctor visits, getting the gear, the list goes on. But I'm kind of glad this endless to-do list is keeping me occupied, because I'm beyond excited for this trip! Maybe I should start packing....

Okay so here is a little update on my soon to be adventure:

-My trip is completely funded!!! Praise Jesus!!

-Found out that I will be flying to Amsterdam (Netherlands!) then to Nairobi (Kenya) ..not exactly sure why we are flying to Kenya and not Uganda??

-11 people are on our team, including 2 leaders. :)

-This Wednesday (Aug 22nd) I'm going to be having a fundraiser/spirit rally at the Strongsville Chick-Fil-A. (more details to come) All money is going towards paying for airfare to Atlanta, shots, etc.

-While in Uganda I will be blogging through AIM's site. Here is the link if you want to check it out: http://uganda.adventures.org/

Things to be praying for: peace, that God would provide the money needed to pay for all the "extras", that the Lord's will would be done, that He would be growing my entire team and preparing our hearts, that He would protect, bless and grow all those we meet on our trip.

A Chapter Ends. A Chapter Begins.

Sweet nostalgia. Tonight was our last night at youth group, man oh man so many tears! One by one all my friends whom I have become so close to over the past year are slowly heading off to their colleges. I feel like its even harder to say goodbye knowing that its going to be awhile before I seem them again, but I know that time is going to fly. God has totally and completely blessed me in the last year, beyond anything I could have ever hoped for. Which only makes me so incredibly pumped for the crazy awesome adventures that are sure to come!

If I could sum up what I've learned in the past year its that God is one thing, good. SO good! He has grown my heart and stretched me in ways I never knew possible. He allowed me to get a little better glimpse of His heart and completely blew me away. I can definitely say that at this point I am so head of heals for our Creator! What an amazing feeling it is to be so in love with someone you know will always love you forever and ever. Complete bliss. :)

I'm sad that this chapter in my life is slowly closing, but I'm so pumped for the next to begin! I can't even believe that in sixteen days I will be in Africa! How crazy is that?? God is SO good. =) Over the next week and a half, I'm curious to see how the Lord will grow and prepare me for Uganda. One thing is for sure, this will definitely be an adventure.

His Daughter,

Hannah Renee'

20 Days..20 Things To Pray For

20 Days.

Twenty days until I head off for Atlanta and later Uganda! Here are twenty things that you all can be praying for!

1) His Will~Pray that whatever God wants to happen will happen, pray for His perfect will to be done.

2) Uganda~Pray for the people of Uganda, that God would totally blow their minds with His love and grace.

3) All We Encounter~Pray for not only those we meet in Uganda but everyone we encounter..even those at the airport:)

4) Provision~Pray that the Lord would provide the last $682.45..as well as the money to pay for all of the "extra" stuff. (shots, airfare, etc)

5) My Team~Pray that the Lord would grow our hearts and our love for Him. Also pray for friendship and bonding. (something I'm super pumped for!)

6) God As Father~Pray that those who come from broken homes in Uganda would be able to understand God as a father.

7) Health & Safety~Pray for God's protection to be over us as we travel and live in Uganda.

8) Ebola Threat~Pray for the ebola threat currently going on in Uganda, for those affected, and that they would be able to contain it. (Also pray for the friends & family of those who have lost a love one because of it)

9) Willing Hearts~Pray that as the Lord shapes all of those on my team, and that we would be willing to be stretched..even when it hurts.

10) Energy~Pray for energy..I'm sure we will be quite tired from time to time!

11) Hanging Out With Christ~Pray that we would all make time to hang out with God on our own. (to read the Word, pray, journal, etc)

12) God's Love~Pray that the people of Uganda would see God's love through us.

13) Lot of Laughs~Pray that we would be able to have lots of fun!

14) Healing~Pray for healing among the brokenness of Uganda.

15) Filled With Christ~Pray that the Lord would empty me of myself and fill me with Him.

16) Boldness~Pray that Christ would give us the boldness to openly witness to others.

17) Worship~Pray that we would be able to worship and honor Christ in all we do.

18) Remember The Point~Pray that through all of this we would remember the point, why we are going. Christ loves us. Christ saved us. Christ wants to have a relationship with us.

19) Joyfulness~Pray that we would be able to be joyful and praise God among all circumstances. (even through tears & food poisoning) ;)

20) Not Just Another Mission Group~Pray that we wouldn't be just another mission team that comes and leaves. Pray that the Lord would use us to make an impact on His beautiful people.

Broken and Trusting

Lately all conversations within my household have been focused on the ebola threat in Uganda. My mom's kind of freaking out, which I can kind of understand with the whole "mom" thing and all. ;) But this whole epidemic has only spurred my love and desire to go to Uganda. Which really doesn't make much sense, people are dying due to an unknown disease with no cure..great LET'S GO! haha My first reaction was that isn't this when they would need our help more than ever?

My heart aches for Uganda, and I can't explain it. This beautiful country and their beautiful people have gone through pain that I cannot even begin to imagine. So much brokeness. So much hurt. They were finally on the mend, and now this? I know that they have had ebola threats in the past, but it just seems like one more thing they have to deal with. I don't understand what God is doing, but I know that He is good.

Whether I remain in the states or cross the Atlantic I trust that God will use me in Africa, if I'm praying at home or playing soccer with Ugandans He will use me. I've been asking God to grow my faith..I guess this is Him doing that? Anyways, through all of this my heart will sing no other name. :) God is SO good!

His Daughter,

Hannah Renee'

Uganda Update

Just thought I would give everyone the update on my Uganda trip. :)

~A lot of people have been asking about the Ebola threat (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19048998) I have not heard from AIM as to whether or not this will effect our trip to Uganda..so in the mean time I will continue to fundraise and prepare. Please be praying for the health and safety of all those in Uganda.

~Right now I have currently fundraised $4,020.55 meaning I have $1,429.45 to go.

**I have two weeks left to fundraise (August 13th deadline)..if you are going to send in any checks please do so ASAP (they take about two weeks to process)! Online donations need to be made 3 days before the deadline so they have time to process as well.

~Fundraising: Right now I'm selling tshirts through fundthenation. They are $15 apiece, sizes S-XXL. Let me know ASAP if you would like one:) P.S. Shirts need to be bought through me.

30 Days

30 Days.

Thirty days until I leave for training camp in Atlanta. Thirty days until my adventure begins. In honor of this momentous occasion I thought I'd come up with thirty interesting facts about the lovely country of Uganda. :)

1) There are 4 main ethnic groups in Uganda: The Bantu, The Nilotics, The NiloHamitics, and The Hamites.

2) Independence Day is October 9th. (1962)

3) It is twice the size of Pennsylvania..slightly smaller than Oregon.

4) Boda-bodas (small mopeds) are the most commontransportation.

5) Matoke (steamed bananas) is a popular dish.

6) Agriculture is the most common job.

7) Most who live there eat two meals a day:lunch and supper.

8) Queen Elizabeth (National Park) is known for its warthogs and hippos mowing the lawn at Mweya Lodge.

9) Gorilla tracking serves as a fun past time, but you need a permit first. ;)

10) Landlocked (completely surrounded by land).

11) Olio-tia means "How are you?".

12) Capital: Kampala.

13) Flag consists of six black, yellow, and red stripeswith a grey crowned crane in the center.

14) Is a male dominant society.

15) Is a world class rafting destination.

16) Each tribe has their own music & dance for most occasions.

17) Waragi (banana gin) is the national drink.

18) National Anthem: Oh Uganda, Land of Beauty!

19) Mzungu means "European/foreigner".

20) Life expectancy: 54.

21) Have hot summers & mild winters.

22) Religions: Roman Catholic 41.9%, Protestant 42%, Muslim 12.1%, other 3.1%, none 0.9%.

23) Coffee is the major export crop.

24) Klear Kut is one of their popular musical groups.

25) Tropical climate.

26) Grow crops such as coffee, tea, banana, mango, maze, groundnut, casava, soya, sweet potato, cabbage, onion, rice, etc.

27) 14 million of the country's 30 million people are under the age of 15.

28) Government Type: Republic.

29) Currency is Ugandan shilling.

30) Is called the "Pearl of Africa".

Last Minute God

Most of you know that I have been working like crazy trying to bring in the needed funds for my mission trip to Uganda. Over the last few weeks God has blown my mind and performed miracles, through friends and family over $3,000 has come in. So I thought that I'd share about how amazing our Lord truly is. :)

I had one week to make the $2,000 deadline, and I had only $100 in my account. Let's just say I was a little stressed considering my letters were sent only seven days ago. I knew that if God wanted me to go to Africa He would get me there, but I didn't understand what exactly He was doing, why He was waiting until the last minute. Throughout the week I received about $300, which was amazing, but I was also still $1,700 short. I received a message from my cousin throughout all of this chaos, and his encouragement was exactly what I needed. "Money is nothing for Him! He is all powerful. Just rest in Him. He will do the rest. He is a last minute God. It grows our faith." So one day prior to the deadline I fasted and texted, emailed, and called everyone I could think of begging for prayers. It really doesn't make a lot of sense, but I could literally feel the prayers and through it the faith to know our God never fails. Over the next few hours through family members and some bonds I received as a child the deadline was met. What a blessing! I was so unbelievably relieved..until I got a message from AIM saying I couldn't be for sure guaranteed a ticket unless I could manage to get another $700-800 by the end of the weekend. Oh boy, Iwas so upset! I had just been relieved from this huge stress and now it was back! Throughout the weekend I received $200 which I was extremely grateful for, but I still had $700 to go. My mom said she could put in about $100, but it still wouldn't be enough. Sooo I decided to open my Bible and let the Lord do a little talking. I stumbled upon a little notecard that I had written a verse on from the previous summer (from Kingslove), the original plan was to give it to somebody but for some reason I felt the Lord telling me to hold on to it..I guess it was for this very moment. On the card was Isaiah 26:8, and I know it sounds so cliche' but it was exactly what I needed to hear.

Isaiah 26:8 "Lord, we show our trust in You by obeying Your laws; our heart's desire is to glorify Your name."

I went on to read the rest of Isaiah 26, which felt like God was literally speaking to me, so..amazing. This is now a chapter I will read everyday. :) Anyways after reading that I knew without a doubt that the Lord would provide if it was in His will. So I decided not to tell anybody, because I knew my God would come through and in the end be glorified. The next day I received a phone call from an old friend in Washington asking if his online donation for $500 had come through. I almost dropped the phone, especially considering I had never mentioned anything to him. God was so so good!!! My mom put in another $100 and I got to my deadline, actually I went over by $50. Throughout this past two weeks God has completely blown my mind with His love and faithfulness. What an amazing King we serve! Considering I haven't even left America yet and God has been working wonders now I'm SO pumped to see what all He has in store for me and my team in Africa!!! Right now I have $3,525, meaning I have $1,925 left to raise but I know that God will provide without a doubt. Our God is such a good God, and I'm so blessed to call Him my king.

His Daughter,

Hannah Renee'