Uganda Trip Reflection
I was voluntold to go on a trip to Uganda with my dad. And so, for 7 days, we lived in the middle of the Ugandan jungle. And I am happy to say that even if I wasn’t thrilled about going at first, this trip was one of my favorite experiences ever! I was fortunate to be able to spend time in Pastor Eric’s class, and among the students at the college. These men come from different backgrounds but they all have amazing stories of salvation. The one theme that characterized each story was joy - joy in circumstances we might consider nightmarish.
The first thing I learned is that true joy isn’t based on external circumstances. One night I had dinner with a South Sudanese student at STC named Django. He used to live in South Sudan before being forced to flee with his wife and six kids because of the wars there. Nearly four million people have fled this damaged country either because of war, lack of water, lack of food, or lack of healthcare. When I said something along the lines of “Wow, that’s really hard”, he responded, “Well, that’s why I’m planning to go there. They need more pastors.” I thought about Django’s story for a long time. It was and is very convicting to me. I know that I personally find myself complaining about trivial matters, when people like Django are risking their lives for the sake of the gospel. God helps us to be more willing to sacrifice for him.
The second thing I learned about true joy is that it is meant to be shared. During lunch one day, I sat down next to a student named James also from Sudan, living in the Bidibidi refugee camp. That camp is home to 280,000 South Sudanese refugees. The conditions in the camp are miserable. Potable water is rare that so many are forced to drink polluted water filled with disease. Many die from diseases that go untreated because of the minimal healthcare. Each family is provided about six pounds of food per month. James has lost his home and family members to the wars. Yet he strives to make God’s name known among the refugees. He pastors a church of about 100 people in the camp. They meet outside every Sunday to worship the Lord. In the squalor of the refugee camp, James has found his joy in the Lord. He says, “This is why I must get trained here [At SOS]. So that I can return, and share my joy with my people.”
When our time was up in Uganda, I was truly sad to leave. The people have impacted me more than they know, and I know I will remember this trip forever. I pray that when I’m tempted to be ungrateful in the future, the Lord will remind me of this trip, and enable me to find true joy in him.