We left rainy Kampala early this morning and headed to a small village about an hour outside of Kampala. For decades, this village was known for its witchcraft, child sacrifice, and other horrific practices. Because of the passion and vision of one Ugandan family it has now become a place of refuge, hope, and healing.
Hear Jenny’s reflection on the day:
Two years ago, I accepted a friend request from a “Pastor Daniel” on Facebook. Little did I know that request would change my life. As I read his posts over the years, I was inspired by his heart to minister, love, teach, and provide refuge to children in desperate need. Many abandoned, but because of Daniel and his wife Suzanne they have a place to belong and a community to call family.
A few months after I started following Daniel on Facebook, he posted a photo of three kids who had recently witnessed their mother being murdered by their father and then his subsequent suicide. They were pulled from their village and displaced with a relative who couldn’t care for them. The trauma they experienced is unimaginable and seeing Daniel’s heart and compassion is what drew me in. I wanted to be a part of these children’s lives and was blessed to help them move to Daniel’s village and start attending school. I never imagined that I’d be able to meet them in person.
I believe seeds were planted that day, however, that led me to join this team on my first trip to Uganda. I still can’t find the words to describe how it felt to hold them in person.
The image that is stuck in my mind is of these shoes—100 shoes for all 100 of Daniel’s children.
I had the honor of holding these little feet as they tried on the shoes. Some were incredibly determined to make their feet fit into the options before them. There wasn’t desperation though—just the simplest gratitude for shoes that fit (or didn’t), a piece of candy, a piece of clothing, or a pencil. As I held each one, I silently prayed that they would be used for great things, that they would always have hope, and I realized that from the biggest cities to the most remote villages God’s love is everywhere.
Reflections from Day 3 was originally published in Clarity Minute on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
