LIVING THE DREAM!
As seen through the eyes of Pam:
Have you ever had a lifetime dream? It seems so impossible it is beyond your imagination and that it could never become a reality to you in your current circumstance. So as time goes by, you put it out of your mind.
Some of my impossible dreams:
Dream 1. Address poverty in a hands-on way. (You've got to be kidding!)
Dream 2. See lives changed by God (not so often seen in Australia)
Dream 3. Disciple youth. (in your dreams)
Dream 4. Visit prisoners. (that would be great)
Dream 5. Participate in a community that is open to the gospel.
Dream 6. See Muslims find the love of God.
Dream 7. Conserve and replenish natural resources.
Dream 8. Encourage participation in education.
Dream 9. Support girls through education rather than them just becoming a baby producer.
With all these dreams we know we are only able to touch on them here in Uganda, there are such amazing opportunities. We know we are only scratching the surface but are able to have a life changing input into the lives of a certain number of individuals. With changed individual lives there is a ripple effect so that, hopefully, over time the influence widens. We are seeing something happening in a positive way in all these areas; at least in a small way. All things are possible through Christ.
I cannot see our season in Uganda being other than a miracle. Who else but God could take a retired reluctant homebody from her comfort zone in Baulkham Hills going to the local Anglican Church and take her to a place like Kamuli which has a bad reputation, even in Uganda, for corruption, jealousy, HIV, high teenage pregnancy rate, poor health care, mob justice (people beaten or burned to death), stealing, malaria, malnutrition, child and women abuse, alcohol and drug abuse.
We have seen and/or experienced sadness, grief, poverty, hunger, hate, anger, power plays, resentment, rejection, hot all year, exhaustion, humidity discomfort, long speeches, very long church services. Poor health, being the people who people think can solve all their problems with our ‘endless supply’ of money, HIV & STDs, unwanted pregnancies, We have also seen/experienced joy, passion, love, peace, mercy, forgiveness, great church services, love, success, power, answered prayer, reception of the Gospel, to being able to offer training as an alternative to poverty and early marriages or pregnancy in young girls.
We have been able to tap into many resources that are already available here in Uganda to make our work much more effective.
One stunning example of this is Farming God’s Way. This has been posted on FaceBook by Chris Sperling, the head trainer for FGW in Uganda:
Trip to New Horizon Farm, Kamuli.
Updated on Tuesday
I had the privilege today to visit Pam and Alan McEvoy up in Kamuli at their farm. What an amazing difference farming God's way makes; their neighbors have stunted poor crops yet their crops are growing very well considering the drought. We needn't be starving in Uganda. With Farming God's Way even poor seasons produce great results. Unfortunately efforts to kindly teach and help the neighbors have been turned down. Please pray for people's hearts to be softened and their pride to dry up so that God's ways and word may
Farming God’s Way Picture Gallery below, Including our Farming God’s Way (FGW) demonstration farm ‘New Horizons Farm’
Maize harvest first growing season for 2016.
Farming God's Way- beans at New Horizons Farm Nabwigulu Oct 2016.
Young farmers enjoying mangoes.
Allan with proud and happy young farmers with the maize they grew while we were in Aust. This is ripe maize with the stalk cut short. The cobs are many more in number and size than the neighbour’s maize.
Bird of prey waiting for our chickens.
Alex teaching on Open Day at New Horizons Farm. Alex is working for us on New Horizons Farm and is fully trained in FGW by FGW Uganda.
Young New Horizons Farm workers Farming God's Way trainees with a young lady Doctor from Britain (right).
Eating lunch in farm ‘dining room’, under a Jack-Fruit tree.
Alex (red shirt) has graduated from Farming God's Way 1 yr course. He has now trained around 9 young men not only in practising FGW but they are all able to teach it as well. Alex is also very competent in teaching in outreach of FGW in villages. The soil is getting poorer and with less rain in rainy seasons there is real issues of starvation here.
Open Day at the farm. We gave out 50 invitations but only 1-2 turned up so we stopped people on the road as they came past. We ended up with around 40 people and another group after lunch. Reminds me of Jesus saying go out into the highways and byways.
Village people near the farm learning FGW.
Mulch collected from swamp. Very hard work. Note: This work not done by Allan but by the guys we employ on the farm!
Some of the people going to Farming Gods Way training.
Borehole being drilled at New Horizons Farm. Funds from a major donation by a Holy Trinity family (our Aussie Church), the Brown Family and other HT donations.
Drilling is dirty work!
Chris Sperling (FGW head trainer for Uganda) teaching FGW at the remote village Bukungu north of Kamuli. Our young men trained to train capably assisted Chris. Pam & I assisted also. Bunkungu is one of the three very needy areas we are concentrating on.
Above & below - Bukungu children. We want a better future for them!
Bukungu FGW practical training.
Peaceful area at New Horizons Farm.
Allan installing a tank at New Horizons farm (with the farm guys).
Good mulching at New Horizons Farm. Mulching is so important especially when the rain is not coming and the temperature is very high as with this season.
To finish up – some pics from FGW and ministry in Pallisa – a very remote and poor region northeast of our ‘home town’ Kamuli. So many children!, and so much need. We provided some food and children appeared coming down the road with plate in hand. Alex our FGW trainer that works for us, some Horizons Farm Guys and friends visiting from Aus Barry & Linda Robinson, made up the group together with Pam & Allan. Allan put a video on You Tube of the Tesso people singing and playing local instruments on this visit – click on the link if interested: https://youtu.be/AE84FRg8CuU (watch long enough and you will see Pam!).
Remaining Pics Pallisa, Tesso people, no captions:
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