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Tell God Your Plans
I have spoken to other missionaries who tell me it is not uncommon to feel this way, but it seems that every plan I make must generate peals of laughter in the Heavenlies, because they certainly end up back at the drawing board here on Earth. As the adage goes: "If you want to hear God laugh tell Him your plans."
I thought it would be a good idea to seek formal recognition for our Ugandan organization as an NGO (non-governmental organization), but every step of progress toward this end has been sacked. Instead, we have been told a better designation for our enterprise is as a CBO, a community based organization. These are indigenous, more community-focused, less temporary, better esteemed by the people, and with a few extra tax breaks. So, we petitioned the local government for recognition as a CBO and they reminded us we have not yet built anything. We were told to get started then alert the authorities to what we are doing. So we are guilty of too much planning and not enough getting started doing the work.
I thought it would be a good idea to apply for work permits, so we can come and go as necessary without renewing $50 90-day tourist visas which do not permit us to work or get local driver licenses. The missionary work permit costs $750 for three years, but guess what it requires -- a valid NGO. When I inquired of Immigration officials how a funding missionary of a CBO could get a work permit, I was directed to the class D Business and Trade work permit which costs $7,500 for three years. Never mind. I will remain a tourist until we get recognized. I am currently not "working" in a traditional sense anyway, managing and directing without a salary, not making or selling anything. When we erect our buildings and I sit in one of them typing this same correspondence, I guess our status will change.
I thought it would be a good idea to formalize our Land Title, something I should be able to do from here. We did what I thought was our "demarcation" of the property. It turns out that what we did was merely plant a few fence posts. "Demarcation" is part of the process done by the local district, after an Environmental Impact Report is done by the District Planning Officer. Since ours is virgin, native land, the whole process is one best handled by a Local, preferably one with legal experience. At least that is what my legal advocate recommended. Granted, surgeons sell surgery, plumbers sell plumbing, and lawyers sell legal services. Still I feel this may be one of those pieces of advice best heeded, especially given my lack of patience with government officials who demand money for soda and lunch at every turn.
So I am turning my attention to grant applications and resource development. We have a great 8-acre piece of land overgrown with brush and fruit trees and cannot build until God sends us someone to buy bricks. Heaven is surely either laughing at me or crying along with me!
Here is what our Freeform board looks like today...
Up, up, and away!
If you read my blog post "It's been a long six months" then, like me, you were expecting me to remain in Jacksonville caring for Cindy during her chemotherapy. She is more than half-way done with that treatment regimen, and has been told side-effects will not get any worse than they already are. So far, they pretty much include alopecia and fatigue only. While she loves having me home to cook and clean and wait on her when she is tired, she admits that my services would be better placed in Uganda. So she is sending me away!
Of course, Cindy excusing me from domestic servitude rang like a starting pistol in my ears. Within two hours I had already secured my airline ticket and travel visa. I leave Saturday so I will arrive in time for Easter break. While packing and mentally preparing for the journey to the other side of the world, it occurred to me how very little I had accomplished while in Florida. Sure, our team bought land, and we helped make it happen from here. Both our cars gave up their ghosts and I managed to secure reliable transportation for Cindy. We got a first draft of our building project submitted to building engineers, but that is where it stops. I spent so much time between the kitchen and sitting room for Cindy that we failed to get around to many of the groups that count on us to update them in person. I hope to make a more deliberate effort toward that end on the next visit to the States.
Pray for us!
Cindy has a line-up of great friends to ferry her to her last two chemo infusions, and our bio-kids are on deck for table-waiting if necessary. Cindy gets cautious on days 5-15 after a treatment, when her white blood cell counts are lowest and she is most susceptible to infection, so she limits her exposure to crowds and wears a mask anytime she must go out. She will be returning to work at the American Cancer Society, where she serves as coordinator for the Hope Lodge, a temporary home for out-of-town cancer patients receiving treatment here in Jacksonville.
I am throwing together everything on my list of "Wish I had in Uganda" and trying to pack it all into two airline approved bags. We shot up to Memphis to greet family one last time before launching for what may be most of the year. We are doing this with little more than the price of another plane ticket in the bank, so pray for funding miracles while I continue the process of tax exemption in Uganda, filing our NGO, seeking work permits for both Cindy and me, and planting the surveying stakes for our new pavilion. (See "Building is next!" for details about that project.
It has been a while since I said so, but we pray for those of you following along with us, praying for, and supporting us. If you are reading this, then we are praying for you. If you never have before, we would love it if you would fill out our Getting to Know You survey so we can know more about who it is we are blessing.