We made it. We made it through the final goodbyes, the airport send -off, the dentist appointments, immunizations, Kampala craziness, too much sugar, and the trip home with me behind the wheel. The Folkerts family flew back to Canada on Sunday night. There were real
January 11, 2023
A Fitting End: KEO
Everything has an end; good, bad and everything in between. An end can bring relief, even rejoicing, but it always carries loss too. Karamoja Education Outreach was closed in December. It was time. Local schools have opened preschools, our classes were dwindling, and we lost…
August 22, 2022
Grief and Praise
How does one enter the cloud of witnesses – the saints gone before, already tested, tried, and purified? With a trail of grief mixed with praise. Acia Rose was the mother of two boys, and many more who never took a breath. Her husband is…
The Easter lilies have bloomed; the rains have returned; the oxen are in the fields plowing; white ants and wild greens and mushrooms are available. Everywhere we are surrounded by seasonal reminders of life renewed and refreshed. But the lilies and mushrooms spring up and
A generous reading of the blank spaces between postings on this blog would assume not only that life on the mission in Karamoja is very busy, but that it is too ineffable to be memorialised in such a space as this. Indeed, much (too much?)
The oracle concerning Dumah.One is calling from Seir,“Watchman, what time of the night?Watchman, what time of the night?”The watchman says:“Morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire;Come back again.” Isaiah 21:11-12 In this war, there are no unaffected bystanders. It marches on,
Much has been said on this blog about the preëminent Karimojong political expression, the community meeting. Participating in such meetings is one of the more distasteful aspects of being a missionary in Karamoja, and the community has started to take note. Thus, I was recently
How much wood does it take to burn a human body? Our Advent sermon today was from Genesis 22, where God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, as a means of testing his faith. Of course we all know the story; it never changes
As I entered the compound, I noticed two cliques of women. I had come to see how the clinic staff were killing the day. Olive had already found her place with the teenager of a clinic worker. After the initial resistance, she was quite content
“You have returned in a time of blessing!” was one welcome I received. Harvest is only a few weeks away. Another proceeded to give me a list of trials that I had missed in their life while we were gone. Another told me proudly that
The Way We Do
Strange Weapons
We Christ-followers have strange weapons. They are not made of anything physical. They do not cut or jab or puncture. Where the weapons of…
Karimojong Politics
Much has been said on this blog about the preëminent Karimojong political expression, the community meeting. Participating in such meetings is one of the…
Three Days. Three Friends.
As I entered the compound, I noticed two cliques of women. I had come to see how the clinic staff were killing the day.…
On Being a Missionary
On Being a Missionary – Chapter 8
A Palace, or a Mud Hut? We come to what is perhaps one of the discussions that Chloe and I are most apt to…
On Being a Missionary—Chapter 7
Kings, Cooks, Beggars, Saints Our last chapter was a bit theoretical on the inevitability of culture shock and how to overcome it. This chapter…
On Being a Missionary – Chapter 6
Culture Shock It’s the biggest catch-phrase of moving between continents. When Chloe and I first arrived back in San Diego, it was the first…