5Crawfords

Figuring out the site boundary, with my private security officer intern Michael in tow. Part IV of V Days 9-10:   11 th – 12 th September Presentation day! The last night wasn’t too bad, with most of the team only staying up until around midnight. Compared to the all-nighters that commonly occur on trips, it was nice that the team felt comfortable with where we were at to get some sleep. Jaz Lambert - our team MVP One thing that’s been difficult on this trip has been the fact that the existing nursery school has been on a school holiday while we’ve been here so we haven’t been able to connect much with the people we’re here to help. But one of the wives on the team, Jaz Lambert, has been a great ambassador for us and has been very involved in various aspects of the ministry on campus here. So after the presentation, we had Jaz share with the team some of the things she had experienced here and the feedback she’d heard from some of the people. It was very encoura...

Part III of V Overlooking the YWAM site, with a small inlet of Lake Victoria off in the distance. Days 7-8  9 th – 10 th   September This morning, YWAM had an all campus worship and prayer time that we joined in with. It was good to be a part of something with their ministry. One of the Ugandan leaders spoke about putting on the armor of God. It was a good message and reminder that evil does still very much exist in this world. Our team is making good progress on the work ahead of our presentation Wednesday afternoon. We had intended to present Thursday evening, but it worked better for the ministry to do it Wednesday, so Thursday will be a bonus day where we can work on finishing as much of the work as possible. This has been a good trip for me as I’ve particularly enjoyed being in the company of Christians from such a variety of backgrounds. Our team consists of people from England (3), Scotland (2), Northern Ireland (1), Hong Kong (2), China (1), and the ...

Part II of V Days 5-6:  7 th – 8 th September I count it as one of the great blessings of my job with EMI to be able to work with so many good examples of Christians – to say nothing of the very talented architects and engineers our volunteers and interns are. This trip is no different, other than the fact that it’s my biggest team yet so there are more of them to like! Here they are: With interns Michael (left) and Deryck (right) Michael Day  (Edinburgh, Scotland) – One of two Scots on the team, Michael is an intern in our office in Colchester this semester. An electronics and IT guy by degree, Michael is helping with the electrical design as well as finishing the report back in the office after the trip. He’s one of those guys with a great attitude and always seems happy. I am really looking forward to having him around for the next few months. Deryck Chan  (Cambridge, UK / Hong Kong) – Deryck is one of the more interesting people I’ve met. He’...

Part I of V Days 1-2:  3 rd -4 th September Having just returned from our Summer visa run to the US 6 days before, I repacked the bag I had just unpacked a couple days before and prepared to head out back to Uganda. I’ve documented well the struggles I have with leaving, and this time was of course no different. However, maybe it was jetlag or maybe we’re getting better at it – or more likely, maybe God was answering the prayers of the many people who were praying for us those days specifically! – but this time we were a bit more resolved about my leaving and the fact that it is part of what God has called us to in this journey with EMI. Ready to depart LHR with my trusted side-kick, intern Michael. In some ways, I think our time back in the US was helpful in that regard, as we left with a bit of a renewed resolution and contentment that we are in fact doing what we feel God has called us to do, however hard it might be at various points of the journey. (I know when A...