In this nation I am consistently reminded of need. From the mother sick with no money to pay for health care to the thin, frail desperate child begging on the street. This people of Uganda are ripe with desperation for a breakthrough... they are desperate for the Lord.
I see all around me so many with nothing. Literally, many have nothing to help them in their most desperate hours. No money, no health care, no parents, no media, no clean water, sometimes no food... and I see something beautiful. I see a people that understands that this world is fading. I see a people that understands that they cannot rely on the things of this world - whether that is their government, their families, electricity, water, their friends or strangers. And this is beautiful to me. There is nothing in this world that can bring a satisfaction that will last. The riches of this world will fade - but the Lord is everlasting.
There is a danger in being poor. Sadly, I am seeing it here. Believing that I am poor causes me to become desperate and at times turn to things that will satisfy for only a brief moment. Over the past few weeks I have heard many stories of witchcraft and the damaging effects it has had on this nation. So many people have stories of how it has affected themselves or their loved ones. There is a deep root of this in this nation. Child sacrifice is on the rise in Uganda... while this nation is desperate - at times they are turning to the wrong source of satisfaction.
The Lord loves the poor. Its written all over the scriptures! These past week I have been meditating on it more and more. I want to become so desperate that I have no where else to turn but the Lord. I have so much in the physical that its hard to come into this. I have family, a church, friends, finances, health care and so much that if something should go wrong I have a backup plan. But can I imagine not having any of this? Can I live without any of this? Can I become so poor in the material that I must become more hungry and desperate for my God?
In this desperation, in being poor it is an opportunity for more of the Lord. I pray that the Lord will arise in the poor of Uganda. Whether they are physically without or spiritually without - let God arise in each one in Uganda! I pray that the poor will recognize how rich they are in Christ. That the Lord says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5. Let the kingdom of heaven invade the poor in spirit!! I realize that I have SO much to learn from the people of this nation... and I can't wait!
