Glimpse of Heaven

I must begin with an apology.  Our wifi connection at the hotel in Mbale has been very unreliable (more so than normal), and I have not been successful posting to this blog or even publishing pictures to the Mission Mbale Facebook page.  If you are a Facebook user, I want to encourage you to follow Mission Mbale for quick updates and picture posts as I am able to load them.

A luggage update:  We have received all the personal bags and most of the supply tubs that were missing, only 5 remain MIA (and we know that 3 are being held up by customs officials).  We are grateful for your prayers and ask you to continue to pray that what is lost will soon be found.

Now for the good stuff.  Yesterday was a wonderful Sunday of worship at Ebenezer.  We sang, we danced, we shouted, and we praised the Lord for the mighty work He has done.  We are so grateful to be refreshed and renewed--and so incredibly blessed--by the authentic worship we witnessed among the church members here.  Indeed, it was a glimpse of heaven.

At home, whenever someone asks what we are going to build in Uganda, I usually say "relationships."  And that was what today was all about.  Our team split into two groups, with some of the men leaving with Pastor Fred to visit with church leaders in the mountain region around Mbale.  These are the same pastors who traveled to Ebenezer for a conference in July, and we are praying that this will be an excellent time of fellowship and discipleship, a family reunion of sorts.

The rest of the team remained behind at the church to visit with the women and children and lead Bible studies in the afternoon.  It has been amazing to see the physical growth among the children (they are all getting so tall!) but even more encouraging to see how much they are growing in their faith.  Late in the day, I was chatting with some of the teenage girls.  They told me about the language education in Uganda and taught me some basic words in their local language, and then sang a song for me in Swahili and  English.  For just a moment, I was reminded of scripture's promise that one day all believers will be together for eternity with Jesus, people from every tribe and every tongue.  And this happiness that we feel now at the wonderful, miraculous way the Lord has brought us together from around the world to be church family is only a shadow of the joy that is to come.  Another little glimpse of Heaven.