Tag Archives: missionary preparation

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Do you know why we pray for God’s will to be done on Earth as it is in Heaven? Because God’s will is not Earth’s normal state now that Satan has been flung here and man has corrupted creation with his own selfish will times seven billion at a time. War is proof of this. Orphaned children, hunger, injustice, and disease all point to this world’s need for God’s good and perfect will. Another proof is my recent MRI result. 

The doctor said that the cause of my seven-month shoulder pain is not simply one tear that can be easily repaired with surgery, but several low-grade tears of virtually every essential tissue in the shoulder. These injuries, apparently sustained during our recent move, have combined with the widening of my AC joint from a previous injury and a fairly severe case of arthritis to take me out of action. The bottom line is that he cannot do surgery to repair my shoulder but referred me for six weeks of physical therapy. The worse news is I am confined to this continent for the duration of that therapy. 

Please pray for my patience, so I can bear the delay in getting back to Uganda. Pray for my healing, the therapy and administering therapist, my precious bride who has to put up with me while I endure six more weeks of feeling useless, and for God’s glory to be revealed somehow through this ordeal.  

James 1 makes it clear that trials do not come from God, the Father of Lights, from Whom all good things come. He does, however, use our circumstances to refine our faith and shape us into His masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10, see the NLT for “masterpiece”). God is the healer and Satan is the thief and destroyer. Let’s keep that straight always! And let’s pray for the things in this natural world to be realigned with our Heavenly Father’s will for our abundant life. 

“When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;” James 1:13 NIV

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 NIV

“Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:4 NIV

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10 NIV

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10 NIV

"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus,so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you." 2 Corinthians 4:8-12 NIV

Bible Gateway references

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The Lemmons have a lot going on this month! I am still working on partnership development between many household projects. If you have not received a call from me, please let me know. I'd love to get together with you. We are still only 26% funded for our launch, so there is a lot of work to do. I will return to Uganda for another six weeks starting September 23rd, so there is a lot to finish before I go. That makes for some serious time crunching. 

Cindy’s parents are aging and in need of assistance, so she has decided to remain in the U.S. to be near them, at least for the time being. She still plans to join me in Uganda for short spells as circumstances allow, and to join me full-time in the future. Until then, she remains my administrative genius here in the States, while I will be the boots-on-the-ground overseas, at least for now.

The housing market being what it is, we decided to downsize and sell our big house. Since Cindy will be staying stateside, we put in an offer on a small condominium across the street from our home church, and our offer was accepted. Closing on the condo should take place around the second week of September. As we do some minor repairs on the big house and prepare it for market, we expect to sell right about the time I will be settling in Uganda, leaving Cindy, my administrative whiz, to handle the sale all by herself.

We have begun the process of officially organizing as TLC Uganda, Inc. with the intent of filing for tax-exempt status as a 501(c)3. So far, the only update I have received about that is that our name is approved. I look forward to introducing our board members on a separate page, but for the time being, allow me to recognize them (in alphabetical order): Melody Bruno, Nancy Cardoza, Dennis Cooke, April Tapp, and Melissa Workman. We are thrilled to have them on our team, and can’t wait to get started. 

In the meantime, Cindy and I are re-tiling floors, spackling and painting walls, updating bathroom fixtures, and getting rid of a lifetime of household tchotchke. If we could tip the house on its end and dump out all our belongings it might save some time, but we are stuck doing it the same way millions have done before, with tedious sorting, boxing, and selling. Matthew 19:21 has never meant so much to us: “Jesus answered, ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’”

We are working on it. Pray we will accomplish all that has been set before us, without serious injury, and with what sanity we have intact. Thank you!

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Tuesday, April 27

While I’m still sitting in a luxurious first world Western home with air conditioning, refrigeration, television, and hot water, I had what I would call a bad day. Worse, I’m afraid I didn’t handle the day’s disappointments with the grace of God. The plan included two simple things: get to my “Rapid PCR Covid test” appointment, and wash and pack the laundry.

Everything is worse when there is disharmony at home, and we struck a sour chord the echo of which is still ringing. With the bitter taste of disappointment already on my palate, I arrived at the Walgreens drive-through for my Covid test, only to find it was not the PCR test required by the Ugandan government. Since most PCR tests take three to five days to result, and mine must be no older than 120 hours when I arrive, my choices were limited. Online, I found grand promises, but each resulted in more disappointment. Since I am not too proud to ask directions, I called the local Travel Clinic for advice. I was informed that, while the Regency Square testing site states their PCR test can take three to five days, it usually results in two. I got that test done in just a few moments, and was promised a result in two to three days.

Not satisfied, I searched and found a local private lab that would do a PCR test. Doubling up increases my chances of one resulting in time, so I crossed town again to get that done. I was told that test result should be available “tomorrow,” so I had to confirm it was actually a PCR test and not an antigen test. First negative result wins.

The laundry had to be washed and dried before it could be treated with insect repellent, and by this time I was nearly out of daylight. I had enough solution to treat my pants, socks, and most of two shirts, so I packed everything else while I waited for the treatment to line-dry.

The 50-pound limit for my single suitcase made packing quite a puzzle. I have a carry-on backpack that contains my technical gear, but after I got all the weight figured out, I turned around and saw I had neglected to pack my nursing gear. It’s not much, but you can’t carry on shears, forceps, and some of the other tools I use, so I had to swap, pound-for-pound, everything I put in the suitcase. Answer: one “personal item.” Ladies carry purses. I’ve got a messenger bag with five pounds of clothes, my stethoscope, and other miscellany. The five pounds of clothes I chose are too important to shed if I get in trouble at the gate, but would suffice if something bad happened to my suitcase.

Overall, the day was disappointing but God provided a way when I saw no way. I’m sure I’ll look back at this post later and say something like, “Ah, first-world troubles.” I'm on the verge of launching, and I guess it's normal to be a little anxious at the edge of such a high dive.