Amazima (means "truth" in the Lugandan language)

I thought I would share some more pictures with you that were posted on the Uganda 2011 Facebook just a bit ago from the team's time in Jinja today working with a truly incredible ministry run by a young girl named Katie, Amazima! They were able to participate in Amazima's Community Outreach feeding program, packing lunches for over 300 kids! Joshua and I weren't able to keep our Skype connection today because I guess electricity has been on and off there all day (no surprise, this is a common thing in Uganda) and they're running on back up generators. However, for a couple of precious minutes we were able to connect and I was able to see a spark in Joshua's eye and a passion in his voice for what he had experienced today! Despite the awkward delay where our voices weren't matching up with our mouths moving and the fact that we kept interrupting each other because of it... one thing was clear... my hubby experienced our Heavenly Father in a unique way today!  I walked away from our conversation knowing one thing is for certain, Joshua's heart is being stirred for far greater things! Please pray for Katie and the work she is doing in the lives of so many precious Ugandan people, both young and old! Please pray for continued clarity and wisdom for Joshua and he processes through this trip and all that God is doing in and through him! Please pray that, while we know this trip is just another piece to the puzzle that God is putting together in our lives, ultimately, as a family we would seek God above all else and have the courage to live our lives in reckless abandonment for His names sake!  Thank you for your prayers, we truly are forever grateful! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves! Enjoy! 

Pictures Speak

Sometimes pictures speak louder then words.... The time at Kamiringisia, my husband was left speechless.

Lovin' on kids & praying for them

This particular boy asked that Joshua pray for knowledge so he does well in school. Sweet child. 

The faces of God's children

Lining up outside for the items our team brought for them

Where the kids hang out during the day

Please continue to pray for these children. I first heard of Kampiringisa in February at an adoption retreat, I would have never thought that 5 months later my husband would actually be there, seeing with his own eyes, what broke my heart through a documentary! Only God. If you think of it, please pray for Joshua and the rest of the team as they process through all that they are experiencing.

I've been blessed to Skype with my hubby every day and catch a glimpse of the amazing work God is doing in and through the entire team! Truly incredible!

Skype- it's a good thing!

Guess who's face we got to see today?! That's right... Joshua was able to SKYPE from Uganda this afternoon (10pm Uganda time). Thank heaven for modern day technology! He was able to borrow a team members iPhone, for which I'm so grateful- thank you Michael!  I must admit... it sure made the iPhone/iPad get scooched to the top of the Helms family wish list!

The PTCC team men meeting with one of the ministry leaders today.
I think this is Moses from Sixty Feet... but that's just a guess?
(I'm totally snagging this pictures off of FB as other team members post them,
hope that's okay! There wasn't a description under this photo. )

I've never been so excited to see that blue little "S" skype logo start jumping up and down and hear the ring come through! My eyes had that happy teary thing going on as I hit "connect" and his face showed up on the screen! We were able to catch up on his day and I ran through my list of questions for him. The short of it is... the entire team is doing great! They're all pretty exhausted from their first full day there with the jet lag and all... but I think they'll all sleep well tonight! They spent the day meeting with two incredible leaders from two different ministries- both of which serve the unfairly imprisoned children there outside of the capitol, Kampala. I don't think they actually spent any time with the children today, just met with the leaders. Tomorrow is when they'll head to Kampiringisa and be with the children. Again, prayers for the entire team tomorrow as no doubt, it'll take an emotional tole on all their hearts!

Jude was down for a nap when Joshua Skyped in... so after talking to Joshua for a bit, I told him to hang on for a second and went and grabbed Jude out of bed. He had just fallen into that crazy deep delirious stage of sleep and so he literally never woke up as I picked him up. I walked into the computer room, carrying Jude like a limp noodle with his head unconscious on my shoulder. Joshua's face was on the computer screen- but Jude's head was turned the other way, so he didn't notice. I sat down in the chair and Joshua whispered, "Hey buddy!"... Jude's head immediately shot straight up and his eyes were wide as saucers looking around. I'll tell you what, my boy knows his daddy's voice from anywhere! I told Jude to look at the screen and the instant he saw Joshua he yelled, "Daddy!!!" and reached out for his face! Melts my heart! He just kept interrupting in a soft voice, "Daddy!" the entire time in between Joshua and I's conversation, as though he was just soaking in the fact that he could see and hear his daddy.  Then at some point Jude remembered that Joshua still had his Finn McMissile (that I mentioned in a previous post). He asked daddy if he was taking pictures of Finn in Africa on adventures- to which daddy assured him he was. Jude told him all about the new "upgraded" Finn McMissile he got to replace the one that was left in daddy's pocket the other day. Joshua doubled checked with Jude to make sure it was still okay with him to give the Finn he had to a little boy who doesn't have any cars tomorrow at Kampiringisa. "Sure thing daddy! That'll be a good choice!"

Jude and his new upgraded Finn McMissile eating their afternoon snack!
(Sorry for the poor quality photo, the hubs has the camera with him!)

So I'm a happy camper having heard from my man today! Thank you for the continued prayers for the team as they are serving in Uganda! I'll keep you posted as I hear more!

Uganda Soil!

They made it! Today around 2:30pm US (CDT) the Preston Trail Team made it onto Uganda soil after nearly 24 hours worth of travel! Can I just say that I'm breathing a lot easier now knowing that my hubs and the entire team are safe and sound, in a hotel with all their luggage, and nothing crazy to report! It's so weird to not know when and if I'll here from Joshua, which leaves me so incredibly grateful for Mark Powell (the husband of our director of compassion ministries, Nancy, who is on this trip) keeping us in the loop as he hears from the team! Like any stalking wife would, I've been keeping a close eye on all Facebook status updates on the Uganda 2011 page, and I get so super excited anytime I see new info posted! Joshua was actually able to post on my FB wall, "Love u so much. We r in and going to bed. Love and miss u and Jude. Will try again when wifi is better"... To which I squealed with excitement to know for certain all was well! I guess he was able to borrow someone's laptop or iPhone while there because he doesn't have either- so to whoever that individual is... you rock! Thank you! I miss him so much already and genuinely feel like I can sense the distance just knowing he is so far away, which is a strange feeling to have. 

I will say however, that this bittersweet feeling I had as I drove away from the airport yesterday is definitely being replaced with more sweet rather then bitter! My heart is beating a little faster now that I know they're there and they can hit the ground running! I feel like God has restored an excitement for all that He is going to do in and through this team over the next 10 days of ministry! I pray that God has far greater things up His sleeve than we can imagine! I pray Christ's love would radiate from each one of the team members in such a way that the lives of those they come in contact with are forever changed!  


As I type this, it's 6:30am Uganda time and the sun is rising for their first full day! Today they will be working with a ministry that is meeting the needs of orphaned children. I know that both today and tomorrow (when they go to Kampiringisa) are going to take a toll on Joshua's emotions. We talked in length about these two days before he left and we agreed that God clearly was stirring our hearts in BIG ways for these children! We both are heavily burdened for "the least of these" in a way that I can't really even put into words. Since this past February when I went to an adoption retreat (Created for Care) and first learned of these children that are unfairly and unjustly imprisoned, through an incredible documentary called Bereaved by Sixty Feet, I have not gone a SINGLE NIGHT without thinking of them! I'm regularly brought to tears at the thought of these children and find myself genuinely broken to do something! The only thing is... I don't know what "something" is at this point. I'm not sure what God is up to exactly- all I know is that He's broken our hearts for these imprisoned children and we want to respond accordingly. If you think of it, please pray specifically for Joshua to be able to discern the tug of the Holy Spirit and for compassion and grace to pour out of him onto these sweet children! 


I'll end with this, because I've thought of this quote often when I think of Uganda... while reading the book From Ashes to Africa (BTW, totally recommend!) the author quotes a lifelong mentor of his, Ken Gire, who said, "Any time art  touches your life with tears, whether through a story, song, film or painting, it was wise to pay attention to those tears because your tears could help  you find your heart. And if you found your heart, you found what was dear to God. If you found what was dear to God, you found the answer to how you should live your life."..... 




Below are several pictures of Nancy Poweel's from PTCC's last trip to Kamiringisa back in January that capture just a glimmer of what life is like there for these kids! 

Picture from the PTCC's Team back in January at Kampiringisa

This is what their mattresses look like 

Cooking lunch

The outside 

They were all lined up to get a piece of soap, a pencil and a lollipop... and grateful.

And the Adventure Begins!

The Uganda Crew

It's official, my better half is at the airport and due to depart at 3:40pm today for Uganda! The Jude man and I got Joshua all loaded up this morning, grabbed a quick bite to eat at Chick-fil-a (because let's face it, it may be the best food my man gets to eat for the next two weeks), headed to the church to meet up with the rest of the incredible Uganda team and pray (10 of them in total), and then loaded up into 5 vehicles and caravanned to the airport. Jude and I opted to park and go inside with daddy so we weren't as rushed to say bye at the drop off zone (the cop guys that monitor that area always make me all nervous & I always feel like I'm getting the evil eye to hurry it up when I'm saying my fair-wells, so I just avoided it all together today, for the sake of my emotions!) Everyone made it there safe and sound, unloaded an insane amount of luggage for the airport dude to stack up on the dolly, and then got in a long line to check all the bags.

The team getting ready to pray and head to the airport 

I could feel the lump in my throat start to creep up on me, knowing that it was that time- the time to hug and say goodbye to my partner in crime. Sigh. The realization that I wasn't tagging along on this trip suddenly was upon me. This go around, it was Joshua's turn to go on behalf of our little family, and I'm finding it a bitter sweet thing. You see, we do everything together- so this is all new to me. The only time we've really ever been apart in 7 years is when he's gone twice now to grade essays at this AP reader thing in Colorado for one week out of the year. I'm not the wife of a traveling business man, so this is all out of routine for me, my emotions run high at goodbyes. Maybe that's why God knew that I needed to marry a teacher who would be home all the time! Go ahead, you can roll your eyes at me- clearly I'm needy. (o;

The teams luggage all stacked up!

As most of you probably already know, Jude is quite the daddy's boy! They are such buddies and Jude truly adores Joshua! We've been talking about Uganda and daddy going on this trip for a while now and so Jude has a pretty good understanding of why he's going and what all he's going to be doing when he's there. I think the more important thing to Jude frankly is that "Daddy is coming home, right?!"... anytime we mention Uganda, Jude will always follow it up with that question- to which we respond with a resounding YES! Talk about tugging on my heart strings though! As a mama, you want nothing more then for your child to feel secure and loved- and I knew that his reaction today in saying bye to his daddy would make or break me! Thankfully... Jude kept it together! He gave daddy the sweetest little hug ever and kiss and was his shy little self, knowing that everyone in line was looking at him. It wasn't until we were walking back out into the parking garage, holding my hand, that he softly said, "Mom... I want daddy" in a genuinely sad voice. Then, as quick as that thought was there, it was as if it triggered him to remember that daddy accidently still had his new Finn McMissile toy car in his pocket, "Mom! We have to go back! Daddy has my Finn in his pocket still!!!". At this point, going back, weaving our way through long line of people and luggage for a toy car was not an option! I quickly came up with a story about how Finn would be on an awesome adventure in Africa with daddy and how daddy would bring him home safe and sound! That once Finn was home, Jude would be able to tell everyone that his Finn had been to Africa and on a plane and all sorts of fun. Sure that this would sound so super cool to him, I paused... to which Jude said, "I don't like this story". Ha! Well, I tried. I had a little chat with the hubs letting him know that Finn was in fact still in his custody and he let Jude know he would take pictures of him and Finn in all sorts of cool places throughout the trip & that Jude could buy a new one so that daddy could give this Finn to a little boy who doesn't have any cars to play with. Jude agreed, that this was a great idea.

One of the guys just sent this picture of their plane for the first leg of the flight
Praying for safety! 

And so.. that leads me to now. Jude's nap time is over and we are headed to Walmart to buy a new Finn or some other Cars 2 vehicle of his liking! My man's plane should be taking off in about 10 minutes or so for his first stop in Amsterdam and then onto Rwanda and then Uganda! By 2pm tomorrow the team should arrive, hopefully not too jet lagged!

If you want to keep up with the trip you can follow them on Facebook under Uganda 2011!

I'll post more soon!

Think Great Thoughts

Have you ever found yourself reading an amazing book or article and thought to yourself, "Wow, now THIS is some good stuff!  I totally wish I could hand a copy of this book to everyone I pass on the street!"? Well, I had just that experience yesterday! I finished up a particular chapter in a book and as I reflected on it I found it so convicting, true, and spot on that I just wanted to share a glimpse of what I read with ya'll! Who knows, maybe just maybe, it'll spark an interest in someone to go get the book and read all the other good stuff it's chalked full of!

I know, I know, you're wondering what the heck this book is, right?! Well, my mom is letting me borrow the book "ME the me I want to be- becoming God's best version of you" by John Ortberg, and while I'm not going to pretend to have read the whole thing... yet... this one chapter in particular called Think Great Thoughts is about how powerful our thoughts are in determining what our life looks like- and I'm just sayin' it's a crazy good chapter! I think all of us would have much to gain in realizing just how much our thoughts have an enormous power over our lives! Here's a story he shares that paints the picture so well... Enjoy!

"My friend Danny went spelunking in the caves of Iowa. The man guiding took him deep underground, then said he would lead Danny through a passageway into a spectacular chamber. The passageway was small enough that Danny had to stoop at first. Then as it grew still smaller, he had to get on his hands and knees. Eventually the only way to go forward was to lay on his back and push his body forward with his feet. Then the ceiling was so low that when he inhaled he could not move at all! He had to stop, inhale, and exhale, and only then was his chest low enough to allow him to move. By this point is was physically impossible to back out. If the passageway had gotten any smaller they would have lain there and died in that cave. 
Danny is a sky-diving, mountain-climbing, hang-gliding thrill-seeker, but there in that cave he felt sheer panic. He was terrified, He tried fighting his fear, but he kept picturing his dead body moldering in the cave. Finally, he told his guide he was about to lose it, and the guide said, "Danny, close your eyes and listen to my voice. I will keep talking, calmly, and guide you through this. We will be okay. I have been here before. I will get you to the other side. But you must listen to my voice. It will not work for you to let your thoughts run wild. Just focus on my voice."
Danny did so. What freed him from panic and fear was not trying hard to quite thinking fearful thoughts. It was listening to another voice.
What voice do you listen to when you're in the cave and it's dark, when the ceiling is low and you can't back out? The Spirit longs to flow in our minds all the time. One reason why people have found memorizing Scripture helpful is that it helps us listen to the voice of our guide when we are in the cave. I might miss a second serve, but the Spirit will remind me that I am still God's beloved child. I might be criticized, but the Spirit will remind me that truth and grace are always my friend. The Spirit desires his presence to be a river of life- of love and joy and peace- through each moment of the day." 

He goes on later in the chapter to say...

"Even twenty years ago, researchers thought that the adult brain was genetically determined and structurally unchangeable. But they have since found that even into adulthood the brain is amazingly changeable- it has neuroplasticity. Which synapses remain and which ones wither away depends on your mental habits. Those that carry no traffic go out of business like bus routes with no customers. Those that get heavily trafficked get stronger and thicker. The mind shapes the brain. Neurons that wire together fire together. In other words, when you practice hope, love, or joy, your mind is actually, literally, rewiring your brain!"

Isn't that good stuff?! I'm not sure if I'm doing the chapter justice by only sharing those two little tid-bits... but no way am I retyping the whole thing! I think on a good day, I can only type 40WPM so, yeah, it's not happening! (On a side note, it's stinking hard to type looking down at a book and not up at the computer screen to see what you're typing like normal!) This chapter served as a good reminder to me that even when our adoption process seems confusing and full of unknowns, and I feel like I'm walking blindly- I don't need to focus on the circumstances, rather- just stay focused on God. I want to "set my mind on things above, not on earthly things" (Colossians 3:2) therefore having a life that is full of joy and peace- trusting that God is leading the way. I'm listening to His voice in the cave.

That being said, I get that what I call a "cave" in my life, is actually a "well lit room" in other's life. The unknowns in our adoption don't compare to some of the dark caves that others are trapped in! As I was reading, I was burdened for several individuals that I love and care about. I thought about each of their life circumstance, from the tragedy of loosing a child, to a broken marriage, to a life-threatening disease, to crippling mental illness, to the struggle of flat out being dealt a crap hand in life... leaving them swimming in a sea of negative thoughts, depressed and hopeless. Sick at heart. They feel trapped in a dark cave and their voice isn't telling them truth. I cry out on their behalf and pray that the TRUTH of the Holy Spirit's voice would scream above their own fears and doubts! I pray for peace and joy in their life and that the truth of God's love would releases them from the paralyzing grip of their negative thoughts! "Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think." (Romans 12:2 NLT). I pray in this very moment that God would heal their hopeless hearts so that they are able to truly become God's best version of themselves!

Amen!

Discerning the Voice of God

The past couple months have brought with it an element of uncertainty within our adoption. From statements issued by MOWA back in March that they would only be processing 5 cases a day (in essence cutting adoptions by 90%, which could extend our wait time up to 7 years!) to more recent news from our agency last week that MOWA has indicated that they are currently processing 10 cases per day, one thing still remains the same... uncertainty. Ugh- not a word I'm a huge fan of! What it comes down to is... I have no stinking idea how this is all going to pan out, and I'm not going to pretend to! All I know is that slowly but surely, referrals are still going out within our agency and families are still passing court. I could totally be wrong (because after all, what do I know?!), but it seems to me that things are happening at a quicker rate then 10 cases a day?! Don't get me wrong, we're not zooming right along by any means! In fact, I feel like we're creeping. BUT we have not come to a screeching halt either, which I find encouraging! Joshua and I have said from the get go that unless there is a definite stop in movement OR God is super clear in directing us elsewhere, we would stay put. Honestly, I don't know if that's silly parameters to put on the process, but they make sense to us because this journey has never been our agenda, but has been entirely God-led, so we trust wholeheartedly that He lead us to Ethiopia for a reason. We didn't get where we are on our own, that's for sure!

That being said- I need to be real for a moment and say there have been numerous times I have second guessed whether we're stupid for staying put! Self-doubt is my worst enemy! All the unknowns that surround the Ethiopia program have rightfully so, triggered several families to leave the program and pursue other avenues of adoption. In fact, several of these families are my closest friends in the adoption world that I have come to love and treasure their friendships. Hear me when I say, each one of these families has their own unique story of how the Holy Spirit has undoubtedly prompted them to go a different route. I want to be very clear in saying we, 100%, support their decision and trust that God is leading the way in each of their stories to their children! My point is, when I look around me and so many people are "jumping ship" and I'm staying put- I start to wonder if maybe I didn't get the memo from God to change course. Make sense?

Trust me when I say, I've had many nightly chats with God about the fact that I need Him to just shoot me straight and be blatantly clear stressing the fact that I'm not good at subtle signs. The hubs and I have prayed for God's direction during the past couple months more times then I can count and I want to assure you that we are whole heartedly pursuing His will for our family! At this point we simply feel like God is telling us, "Stay put".  The other reoccurring answer when we pray for His direction is, "Wait on Uganda.". Hmmm... Now you're probably asking yourself, "Uganda?" As many of you might recall though, Joshua is heading to Uganda at the end of July on a mission trip with our church and while I'm confident that God is going to do big things in and through the team while they're there- I have no idea why, "Wait on Uganda" continues to be an answer to prayer when we're begging for direction. I'm not even sure the two answers correspond with one another?

Our hearts are burdened for getting Isa home all the while we're burdened for Africa and feeling the tug of the Holy Spirit to "go" at some point down the road. So, I can speculate all day long on the different things I think "Wait on Uganda" means- but that just leaves room for me to get in the way of Him. And so, I simply trust. For now, we stay put with the Ethiopia program unless it comes to a halt and we would reevaluate what to do at that point. And... We wait on Uganda- for whatever reason.

Below are some solid truths I've found myself returning to and rereading from a study I did last year called, Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer. Seriously... excellent study that I would highly recommend! I'm praying for clarity to distinguish the difference between my voice and God's voice... I liked what these key point had to say. I hope they speak to you too!

"He sees the end from the beginning and seeks to guide us through this life." 


"We can be free from the burden of trying to make things happen when we know He promises to fulfill His own Word."

The Holy Spirit leads me PERSONALLY and INDIVIDUALLY. 


"Scripture commands specific obedience of all believers on some matters. Some areas, however change based on the individual and what the Lord wants to accomplish in her life. In these instances the Holy Spirit will "call us by name," giving us detailed directions tailored to our lives."