God has placed it heavy on our hearts to go to Africa to love on His children and spread the gospel! Because coincidences aren't a thing, but God is, our church also had it scheduled to go to Africa... the exact same month we were being called to go! When learning about the mission trip's purpose, we realized this is something we really wanted to do. We will be partnering with local churches in south-west Uganda, making disciples, going door to door to spread the gospel, forming small house churches, and coaching local people on how to start and nurture their home church groups. 

Some Ugandan Facts:

Uganda is one of the most densely populated countries in Africa with a population of 45.7 million people (1). It is the 8th most densely populated country in Africa (1). Uganda is the 3rd poorest country in the world (2). Uganda has the world’s youngest population! The median age in Uganda is 15.7 years (1). 

When learning this information, we feel an even larger urge to attend to Uganda. The average person makes around $800-$900 a year. We can't fathom the needs they probably face daily. But we know that, "[Jesus is] the bread of life. Whoever comes to [Him] will never go hungry, and whoever believes in [Him] will never be thirsty" (John 6:35). So in a population where there is so much need, we want to teach people they will only truly be satisfied when they have Jesus. 

And of course, we recognize having Jesus doesn't negate the fact that people are still physically hurting. Therefore, we want to see how we can help spiritually and physically, and at the center of it all, pray for people so God can perform miracles in their lives.

We are also excited to have our two lovely daughters, Emery (3) and Amara (2), alongside with us! Because the Ugandan population is very young, we have high hopes that our daughters will help us connect to people as we try to cross the barrier from strangers to brothers and sisters in Christ. 

Going back to what I said at the beginning of this note, we were already being told to go to Africa prior to us knowing our church was going. We were told to serve with Anamed (Action for Natural Medicine) to help provide natural remedies for illnesses in Africa. Zach and I learned about a plant in January called Artemisia Annua, that prevents and treats malaria naturally. Since then, we've been trying to find a way to help provide this plant to communities suffering from malaria. We got in contact with Anamed and asked them if we could serve with their group in Uganda, and they said "YES! Please come!" After our 10 days serving with Crossbridge/E3 Partners, we will head up to the central west part of Uganda, and serve around 30 days with Anamed. In this time, we will learn how to grow Artemisia Annua, hopefully start another garden in another location, and go around Uganda to teach people about health and how they can use medicinal plants to take care of illnesses. We are very excited about this, and cannot wait to learn from Anamed who has been serving in this way for 30 years. Through serving people in this capacity, we hope to show God's children how very deeply He loves them and sees them. He knows they're suffering and He is sending help!

If you feel lead to donate to our trip, we will forever be grateful! However, Zach and I know it all too well when money is tight and understand if your tithings are already going to other areas. We trust that God is using you and your donations where He is calling you to put it. Therefore, if you could join us in prayer, that would be the best gift you could give us. Currently our prayers are:

1) That we get to go to Uganda. 

2) That God can use us as His vessels to speak truth and life into people.

3) Prayer over protection for our family, especially our young girls, from violence, harm, or illnesses. 

4) Sanity for the parents. I'm feel overwhelmed with stress when I think about the logistics with the girls. The time change. The long flights. The long car rides between all the destinations and churches. The food. The board. The long days. But then I take a deep breath and say, "God if this is your calling for our lives, please let me rest in your peace." I need an army to pray that with me 😂. Thank youuuu!

We will be making 3-5 minute videos every week that we are in Uganda to keep everyone updated on how God is moving there! So please let Zach or I know if you'd like to receive the videos via email.

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References:

1. https://www.worldometers.info/population/countries-in-africa-by-population/

2. https://www.focus-economics.com/blog/the-poorest-countries-in-the-world