Thanksgiving Celebration

This year’s Thanksgiving we were blessed with a visit from Uganda’s First Lady, Janet Museveni.
Interview with Tim Peterson, Staff Pastor and coordinator of 2012 Thanksgiving Celebration

I understand Thanksgiving is an annual event here. Can you tell us the purpose of New Hope Uganda’s Thanksgiving celebration?
The purpose is to remind us to give thanksgiving about what God has brought about here, and the amazing works He’s doing in this place – not to take the credit for anything we’ve done, but to give Him the glory.
How was this year’s Thanksgiving similar and different to past years’ Thanksgivings?

Ugandan First Lady Janet Museveni being welcomed at New Hope's Thanksgiving celebration.

[It was] similar in that we bring the whole community – not only the Kasana community, but the surrounding community, to join us in giving thanks. We represented many different languages in our singing, and we celebrated what God has done in the last year, not only in Kasana but in Kobwin and Musana camps as well. It was different in the fact that we didn’t have a processional, mostly due to the security issues, but also due to changing the way we do things. But unlike most years, we had the First Lady [of Uganda] here and although she was a guest at our very first Thanksgiving, it isn’t a regular occurrence at Kasana. The other thing is that we had a lot more children involved with what was going on than in previous years.
Can you describe the First Lady’s participation in this year’s Thanksgiving?
She had two separate roles – one was to see our Special Needs program and the children that were involved in the program, and to open the Hope Family House by cutting the ribbon, placing her handprint on the wall, and planting a citrus tree. The second part was taking part in the actual Thanksgiving service and giving the keynote address. We also appreciated the words from her daughter, Patience, and appreciated her words of challenge about building a legacy for those who come after.
What role did the children play in the celebration?
The biggest roles that they had were singing, ushering, security, and serving food… but all the children were valuable in giving testimonies,singing, and making this a place of welcoming community for all the guests who came outside.
In what specific ways did you see God working?
That all the pieces came together, for one thing! But many people were blessed by the children who were helping them, ushering them, caring for them… and many, including Mrs. Museveni, were impacted by the heartfelt thanksgiving. As she came tired and left refreshed, many others did as well. We appreciated the deaf ministry that came and cared for us by dancing and worshipping God with us. Others were blessed by the testimonies, both verbal and the card testimonies telling what God has done in their lives in the past year. And finally, many were surprised and pleased by the food that was served and how it was served.
As overall coordinator of the event, are there any specific success stories you’d like to share?
The biggest success story was the children showing responsibility. They really showed themselves far beyond their age in maturity. Theyblessed others and blessed God by the way they cared for others without thought for their own comfort, even to the point of missing some of the service because they themselves were serving.
Interview by Harrison Scott

A day in the life of Nico and Nate.  They had fun playing with a dead python after the farm workers killed it. Apparently the python was eating a goat at the time of its capture.

May June Udate

Mitchell Update May/ June and a bit of July 2012

Are we really sending our May and June update in mid July? The past few months were so full we will not be able to do justice when describing each event, but here are the highlights. During the month of May two teams from the States were scheduled to visit New Hope Uganda, Kasana, one from Utah and one from Arizona. Their arrivals were anticipated but created a bit of a situation for our family as Caleb is the Teams coordinator and our family hoped to be in California for two weddings! Thanks to our friends Keith McFarland and Hannah Kusler (also our old partner in Teams) and our assistant Jordana Bakimi for taking on those teams so that we could be there for my Dad and his new bride Patricia’s wedding ceremony on May 12^th and my sister Janea and Josh Beakley’s covenant union on the 19^th! All four of us Mitchells were able to fly to California and celebrate marriage because of a wonderful, which made it all the more meaningful. Both occasions were uniquely special and we were blessed in a myriad of ways and by numerous people during this season of celebration. Thank you LORD for being a God of covenant who perfectly demonstrates covenant love! We arrived back in Uganda on the 23^rd.  Hardly over the jet-lag from our two weeks in Cali, we jumped right back into the activities here at New Hope! The last Friday of May New Hope’s Institute of Child Care and Family had their class graduation. We were excited to celebrate the graduation of Pacific Family’s Kigundu Wilson from this five month intensive training. The word “intensive” is accurate, not because the class itself is so tough, but because God so faithfully challenges, and transforms lives during this time. Days after graduation Wilson joined the East family (fellow classmates during their course) as they moved to Gulu and started their childcare ministry (with Four Corners Ministries). What a joy to see God take Wilson to a place of ministry where he will be privileged to lead others to the healing hands of the Father God, where he himself has received healing! Thank you Lord for the fruit in Wilson’s life! Never the less, emotions were mixed as we said good-bye. I (Alair) fought back tears as we dropped him in Kampala to catch a bus for Gulu, and to start a very new chapter in his life. It was my first experience with one of our kids “leaving the nest,” but the promise of many more similar experiences await (especially when you are part of a family that exceeds twenty)!

About a week later we travelled to Jinja for a foreign staff seminar/ retreat. Four days and evenings were filled with discussions and teachings on co-ministering cross-culturally, opportunities to encourage one another by listening and praying specifically for each foreign staff person/ family, and time for fun and fellowship. When we returned from the retreat we had a little less than a week to finish preparations for the County Line Church of God team who arrived on June 7^th and 8^th. This team did it all- from tutoring in the primary school, working in the clinic and with the ladies who care for Hope Family’s babies, to painting trusses, ceilings and even a mural in Hope Family’s new home! Not only did they serve through their work, but they served our Pacific Family by building the foundations of authentic relationship. They shared testimonies of the journey God has had them on in their lives- challenges, conflicts and change that He has brought them through. They served alongside Pacific Family during an outreach to relatives of Peter and Rebecca (the eight year old twins in Pacific Family) and literally walked life with many of our kids. Thank you Lord for using willing and empty vessels and thank you County Line for your many generous gifts, for loving our kids, and serving our great God!

The third Sunday of June Kasana Community Church had an afternoon baptism service and several people gave testimony to their commitment to follow Christ before entering the water to be baptized. It was a special time for Pacific Family as we rejoiced with Sarah, Jalia and David! Thank you Lord for the saving work you have done in their lives!

June finished with two more teams- Baker Lutheran from Montana who worked tirelessly at Musana Camps with a short visit to Kasana and the North Creek Youth Team from Washington who served our school, reached out to the community, and blessed Worcester Family. And since it is pushing the middle of July we’ll include New Hope Uganda’s Thanksgiving celebration last Saturday. The days leading up to this year’s annual commemoration were full of planning for the event (more so than an average Thanksgiving Day celebration because this year even Janet Museveni, the President’s wife, joined in the festivities).  But it was also a time of preparing our hearts to bring an offering of Thanksgiving to God for all that He is and has done over the past year. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness to New Hope Uganda!

Wild Fires

The familiar nursery rhyme, “Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day,”
has no place, even for children, in this part of the world! As each dry season
comes to an end the entire country eagerly awaits the rainy season to begin.
Rain means life… water to drink, and cook with, planting to begin, green vegetation for animals to graze on, and the end of the coughs, asthma and allergies that come from the burning of brush and the red dust that seems to blanket everything. Brush fires on the New Hope’s Enterprise farm flared
very near our home for a week as surrounding farms and community members cleared land and flames jumped from one neighboring property to the next (threatening a few buildings, and claiming some of the efforts of our farm).
Along with the rest of Uganda, we have been anticipating the rain since we arrived in January, Nicolas was eager too, but for different reasons that we adults. Nico has been longing to play and splash in the puddles in his new rain boots and coat. It has only rained a few times, but he was ready! Nate’s favorite part was the mud the rain left behind!
Transitions are often challenging and our transition from the U.S. back to Uganda has been no exception, but God has been faithful to His word and has provided for each challenge out of the abundance of his riches… grace for each day and even more, the knowledge that He was, is and always will be Emanuel, God with us! Thank you for praying! We are also thankful for the way God answered prayers for continued relationship with the boys and girls in our family group. For those of you are just getting acquainted with us and the Kasana family, let me try to paint a picture for your minds eye. The fatherless (including children whose parents have abdicated the physical and relational aspects of parenting) or completely orphaned children who live here at New Hope Uganda are placed in family groups (God sets the lonely in families Ps. 86:8). These family groups might be compared to foster family in the United States.
God’s design for family is never represented perfectly in any family here on earth. Such perfection can only be found in Him and flawless fatherhood can only be experienced in relationship with Him. With His guidance however, as any other family seeking God’s glory, the children here at New Hope Kasana’s Children Center are given a unique opportunity to belong, to experience family. In these seven families, we pray that each child will experience the love and healing only their Father God can bring. Ultimately we pray for each child to experience the grace of salvation through Jesus Christ. Additionally we pray that they will receive and reciprocate genuine love, acceptance, and trust as they grow and mature through childhood, adolescence and early adulthood. Please continue to pray for us and the many committed individuals who serve as parents like Rukundo William Pacific Family Father and Christine Pacific Family mother who has been very sick. Pray also for family associates (Aunties and Uncles) as we alongside the family parents, endeavor to build trust, enter the hurt places in their hearts and direct these young people to the One who cares, loves and heals. Join us as we pray for the children we love and serve in our Pacific family.
Pray for Wilson Kigundu Wilson is 21 years old and has been here at Kasana, in Pacific Family since he was 8 years old. Two years ago, when he was in S4 (his last year of secondary/ high school) Wilson accepted Christ and has since been a journey of challenges and growth. Right now he is in a training course offered here at New Hope. This five month course is designed to confront world views from any culture, redirect individuals to the word and purposes of God, identify woundedness in the their lives and in relationship with teachers and other students, seek the transformation and healing the Lord desires to bring as they then minister to others, specifically orphans! (We were blessed to have gone through this training almost four years ago when we first came to Uganda.) Pray for Wilson as he desires to learn and experience all that God has for him during this time. Pray as he cultivates a God honoring world view. Pray as he seeks to start and conduct a business that would bring glory to His Lord. Pray that his heart would remain soft as he waits on God to direct his steps.
Pray for us the Mitchell’s, as we continue to build into the children God has placed in our lives, for clarity on how best to coordinate short-term service teams, and for wisdom in how we balance family, ministry and work.
Praising the Lord for all that He is and all that He does! The Mitchells- Caleb, Alair, Nicolas, and Nathaniel
Mitchell News

Happy New Year!

Dear Family and Friends,
As we start the New Year appreciative for the opportunities to have visited with many of you, we’ve also begun to identify a familiar twinge of sadness as we are not being able to take you with us when we leave. Yet we know and are excited about the ways God uses the times and places He situates each us in His sovereignty! It also helps that we are able to anticipate seeing some of you in Uganda in the not so distant future. Again, thank you for your continued support of us, and please know how grateful we are for the year end gifts many of you sent in.
Our time in the States presented an incredible chance to reconnect with family and friends, and to introduce the boys to loved ones that will again, be so far away once we arrive back in Uganda. This Christmas season was filled with sweet times with our families, times that have been etched in our minds and hearts, and times we will surely recall when we have settled back into life in Uganda. One of the many blessings we received while in Indiana was our time with County Line Church of God, our sending church Blackhawk Ministries, and Auburn Baptist church. All three churches have been an enormous encouragement to us and we are very thankful to be in partnership with them. Not only have they supported us finically but they have been prayer warriors on our behalf.
It was amazing to see God’s provision specifically through County Line Church of God as they took their once a year Christmas time offering which they call the “Joy to the World” offering. This year the funds raised were designated for New Hope in order to outfit 6 of our family groups with solar powered lighting. On a daily basis, solar light is practical way to meet a need that directly impacts the lives of approximately 140 children who call New Hope, “home”. Often the children are interrupted while studying, and their nightly activities are complicated when power goes out. The church’s goal was to raise $12,000 to accomplish this project. Not only was that goal met, but because of the outpouring of God’s generous people there, the goal was far surpassed with a total of $27,000 given. We hope that each time government power goes out in our district and the solar lights at New Hope are turned on, the children will be reminded of God’s provision for them, and the love of the body of Christ half way around the world. The extra funds will allow other vital projects to the ministry to be completed (solar power for additional buildings, much needed text books for our schools, and general supplies for the children at New Hope).
Our flight is scheduled to depart out of Chicago on the 6th with a lay-over in London, then to arrive in Uganda late evening of the 7th. Please continue to pray for us as we have begun to pack and to say some of the many “good-byes” that will fill this week. Pray for health, safety, and the anxiety that often accompanies continent and culture hopping. We know and serve a God who sees our every need and gives peace that surpasses all understanding. Pray also for our financial support. Currently, we are under budget in the area of “non cost of living” expenses such as adoption fees, health insurance, and vehicle expenses, flights between Uganda and the U.S. along with travel costs while in the States. We plan a 30 month budget and are short around $400 a month. Be assured that we are adjusting our budget like everyone else in this economy and are doing our best to be good stewards of the gifts that have been given.
Thank you again and we praise God for you all!
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate
www.newhopeuganda.org
www.calebalair.blogspot.com
Psalm 68:5, 6

First Snow

Last month the boys experienced snow for the first time. Nico was bouncing off the walls when he saw it coming down. Up to that point he had only seen it on TV. Needless to say they were so excited!

Kobwin Update

Eight years ago, one of our Kobwin daughters was abducted from her family in Amuria by the LRA. At nine-years-old, she became one of “Kony’s” wives. This is the name abducted girls are given. She continues to struggle in almost every way, academically, spiritually, and physically, especially in regards to her health. She still wonders what is”"wrong ” with her. BUT after being with us for almost two years at Kobwin, she now smiles. She now has a glimmer of hope, because of Jesus.
Another son we work with in Amuria, just escaped last year from Central African Republic. Eight years, four countries and five languages later, he has been reunited with his twin brother and is helping to care for his mother. We will bring him to Kobwin in January to be part of our second family group. He is already saved and trusting God to provide care for his ailing mother so he can begin building his future, the future the Father has always had for him.

Who is that? Simply put, family, by God’s grace and blessing. Ask anyone who visits Kobwin even for a short time and they will tell you that there is something very special going on with our family there.

At the age of seven, one of our sons now at Kobwin, witnessed the brutal torture and murder of his mother. The LRA rebels then took his father and until two months ago, our son never knew if his father lived or not. For the last eight years, this young man has had repeated nightmares reliving his mothers death and grieving the unknown fate of his father. We recently received a call that his father was living only an hour from Kobwin! What a joyful, yet tearful reunion it was!!! God, our Father does work in mysterious and amazing ways.

During my recent visit, I had the privilege of leading a number of the nightly devotions as we examined the book of Acts. In just one week, God met us and spoke to us profoundly. We saw how the early church came to be and how they lived and worked together. WE realized that that was us! Young believers, in general, living as family, praying and sharing the word daily, breaking bread together daily – having everything in common with no one in need. The kids were amazed and challenged. The challenge is to go on in the same way and to go out into the Kobwin community and even return to their own community to share the Gospel – to bring life to those who know no life and share the hope they now have. In December, the opportunity is coming. Our kids all go back to Amuria for the holidays and to be with relatives and friends. Please be praying with us for these young ambassadors!

The fact that our Kobwin children are growing is a real testimony to the Father’s amazing ability to change lives. But there is still much work to be done, much healing that needs to take place. And for this, we also need your prayers! As staff we need wisdom and strength to pursue these special children to the depths of their need. Some of them will be “repairers of the breech” (Isaiah 58:12) for their people and their community. Others, I believe, will go to our local community in Kobwin, and beyond.

We are thankful for our current partners and all that have come alongside of us in one way or another, very thankful! We trust that the others who will join us are on the way!
BY CONSTANCE DOBBS