Another BIG step

Traveling in a different vein, another BIG step has been taken in the journey of ALI. The website is now completed and in public domain. www,advancingleaders.org is ready to be used of God to advance His purpose in bringing ALI into existence. I am now able to run the race of sharing ALI with as many people and organizations as God puts before me, to raise funds to meet the needs of the ministry, and to bring educators and coaches into partnership of raising up a new generation of leaders in the countries where we work. God, your presence is with us; help me see your guiding light and hear your gentle words of direction so that I will be your faithful servant in which you have trusted "10 talents".

Diana

Meet our delightful Kenyan daughter, Diana. She is 11 years old, in 7th grade and ranks 9th in her class of 37, likes math (a girl after my own heart), finds history hard as there is so much to remember, is the choral leader for her family of 24 at the Children's Home, loves the Lord, and has several special girl friends. Her Home parents describe her as very sweet and helpful with her brothers and sisters. I gave her a lesson on using the computer and found she is a fast learner. We are very proud of her!

His Fingerprints

Fingerprints are unique to the individual, so it is no surprise when I can clearly recognize God’s fingerprints throughout this journey. I have been repeatedly blessed with His direction as I have shared the vision and process of ALI with educational leaders in Uganda and Kenya. Without exception, once they have clearly grasped the concepts, my perception of the need for higher cognitive skill development in students, and how teachers need to learn to weave it into their lessons has been confirmed. The door for ALI to move forward is wide open.

Psalm 121 tells me, “My help comes from the Lord…He will not let me stumble or fall.” While there have been a few minor potholes in the road traveled—a flat tire in the dark of night, an intestinal issue, and not sure if water will flow when the faucet is turned on—my pathway has been smooth thanks to the graciousness of my hosts. I have been well cared for, well fed, and well welcomed. I would wish for everyone in the West that they could experience the hospitality of the Africa I know.

Next steps:

1.       Take a long flight home.

2.       Hug and kiss my dear wife who is such a great support to me.

3.       Find someone who can help me take all the video footage I have shot, and weave together a great presentation of the schools we will be working with.

4.       Find at least two master teachers who would like to help change the face of education in Kenya for three to eleven months.

5.       Fine tune our training curriculum.

6.       Raise funds to make all the above possible.

How exciting it will be to see God’s fingerprints on each of these steps and in our lives as Team ALI moves along this road!

   

Uganda Headmasters and primary Lead Teachers

Tying Up the Package

The hectic pace of meetings has finished, so now I am enjoying the casual conversations over chi with educators here in Ilula tying up our commitments and expectations. Communication is so important when people do not share the same understanding of words and sentences. I find it is good to repeat a thought several times in slightly different ways to be sure the idea registers as desired. My hearing ability does not help the matter, but I do okay if words are clearly spoken to my face.

I met with Samuel, manager of Samro School, and Raymond, the electrical contractor, to be sure we are in agreement as to scope and cost of bringing electricity to every classroom. All looks good. I was marveling once again how God has prepared me for all this. My work on building the cabin at Piatt Lake along with all the building projects I participated in through schools and churches helps me be knowledgeable and specific while working with this contractor. I am pleased that they are planning for the electrical needs of the school in the years ahead, not just for next month.

There are so many other challenges for this school as well as the schools in Uganda. I am helping them understand that while we want to help with supplies and facility changes, that is not our main purpose. I explain that it is similar to when Jesus fed the 5,000 with 5 loaves and 2 small fish. We have very small financial resources for such big, basic needs, and as God blesses and multiplies what we offer, we will be happy to share, but please do not consider us a bank. It is good to take care of these basic needs like school supplies and textbooks, but the more important emphasis of ALI is to improve teaching so generations can be blessed with leaders who can solve the problems leading to 12 baskets of provision left over.

Diana, our Kenyan daughter, and three of her friends just dropped by to say hello. They are busy getting ready for the start of a new school term Monday. Diana is a cheerful eleven-year- old in 7^th grade who loves school, friends, the Lord, and her American father whom she gets to hug once a year. She is also looking forward to her American mom’s visit in six months. It is our great pleasure to stand with Diana as she grows into God’s design for her.

The last knot on the trip package will be bringing the message in church next Sunday. I am really looking forward to this as I remember God’s power download in times past. I am no preacher, but I trust the Lord to use my words to touch hearts and minds as He desires.

Five days to Myra and home, but who is counting.

He Has Done It Again

After a long day of packing, driving to the airport, going through endless security and having to repack bags as my carry-on suddenly became too heavy, short flight hops in and out of airplanes, rushing through customs, and waiting somewhat impatiently with a ticket agent who couldn’t bring up my ticket because she continually misspelled my name; I arrived to a gracious reunion with my dear friends, Samuel & Rhoda Teimuge—directors of the Samro School in Ilula, Kenya and Don & Amy Rogers & son Joshua—directors of Empowering Lives Int’l. We had a great time catching up relationally over a delicious dinner at 8:00 p.m. and briefly discussed my purpose for being here and the agenda for the week. I fell into bed exhausted, but happy.

At 4:55 a.m. the alarm clock went off; not mine, but God’s. I woke up thinking through the conversations of the past few days with the educational leaders, and wondering how I could better explain the value of having everyone being a thinker in a paternalistic culture. God immediately brought a diagram into my mind that I promptly transferred to a PowerPoint on my computer. Thank you, Lord, and now I’m going back to bed.

9:00 a.m.: A typical training center breakfast of chi, bread, and sausage with friends and a new church team from Fontana; a good start to my Sabbath. As I had my quiet time this morning, I sensed I had a different feeling being here in Ilula—something of a disconnect, yet feeling okay about it. It came to me that for the first time I am here not as part of Empowering Lives Int’l. There is a new player on the field with the same overall mission to empower the people, but with a different game plan. This is a good thing. We need change whether we like it or not to keep us vital and real in life. I am looking forward to advancing the ball with my fellow players in this new season.

Church in Kenya is special. These people really know how to bring their faith and love for the Lord to the sanctuary. The children always have testimonies that touch the heart because they come from a child-like heart. I also could barely contain my joy when our eleven year old daughter, Diana, came and sat next to me with a hug and a BIG smile. She, and all the other children is why ALI exists. I hope God allows me to see the day when she moves confidently into whatever God has designed her for.

Monday, April 4

God is so smart! The diagram He gave me Sunday morning worked perfectly as I met with Samuel and Rhoda to discuss how ALI will partner with the Samro School. They expressed their thankfulness profusely for helping them fulfill their dream for the children of their school—to grow to be strong Christian leaders for Kenya. They knew that they needed to deliver a higher level of education to the students; they just were unknowing how to do it. In God’s timing, enter ALI, stage left. All is in agreement to help Samro School be #1 model school for Kenya. Tomorrow I will be having more discussions with the headmaster on how the training will happen, and I will do a complete walk-through with the electrical contractor who will be bringing electricity to all the classrooms. I have already told him that ALI desires to prepare the rooms for the power they will need for technology that will come in the years ahead. We want to build mind, soul, and facility for The Power and the power needed at both levels.

Mission accomplished! Now I will just polish the apple a bit more.

Moving On

Moving on

To say God has blessed this first round of discussion in Uganda would be an understatement. I cannot imagine an outcome that could please me more. Five secondary headmasters, a Junior High headmaster, seven primary school lead teachers, and Bishop Simon Peter have strongly affirmed all points of ALI’s vision. We had a rich discussion going through a series of development questions Myra and I developed for us to gain deep insight into their thinking and their school needs in light of what ALI desires to deliver. The problem will now be to decide where to begin as all wish to be the “model school”. I’ll let the Bishop hammer that out with them. Our first training in Uganda will be done in 2012.

My approach today came about in an amazing way. Thursday, I was disturbed that it seemed the school leaders I visited with could not grasp what ALI’s purpose was, and express a desire for it to happen in their schools. They were very focused on their schools’ reputation through testing as that is what encourages parents to send their children there, and the facultative needs of their school. This is understandable, but it is not how to raise up thinking leaders in those communities. I went to sleep giving it all to the Lord, and considering I might be like Apostle Paul—leaving Uganda and shaking the dust from my shoes. At 2:10 a.m. my eyes popped open (after 10 hours of sleep in 91 hours of living) and the Lord said showed me the way to go. He gave me the words and scripture to speak my heart’s passion, how to modify and use the ALI PowerPoint to make our purpose clear, and to be more direct, not trying so hard to make our mission their idea. I thought, “Okay, this is where I wheel my bike (ALI) onto the narrow cliff ledge of my dream. The Lord and His angels will save me whether or not the school leadership understands what ALI is trying to accomplish.” Half way through our meeting today after I did this, the headmasters were all eager to be on board. I was encouraged that other headmasters came today who clearly grasped what ALI is wishing to do, and desired to move their schools into this opportunity to change education in Uganda. They also could verbalize the struggle this will be to bring both their staff and their children’s parents to this same desire, but they really want to do it. I came back to the guest house praising God and bone tired!

Now it is on to Kenya where I am equally excited to do the work of ALI and meet my friends of ten years. I am eagerly expecting  God’s hand to work there too. Maybe there will even be a surprise as He pours out bigger blessings than expected. As Myra put in one of her encouraging love notes to me, “I (God) will lead the blind by a way they do not know; in paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them, and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.” Is. 42:16