going back to gulu.

You may remember my 2008 trip to Africa – a team from my church here in Nashville, Midtown Fellowship, that traveled to East Africa. Though we were still very hands-on in ministry and service, a huge part of our trip was grasping a vision for the future of Midtown missions. The majority of our time was spent in northern Uganda, in a city called Gulu. After the trip, our team was unanimous that Gulu had stolen our hearts and we began praying towards a future partnership there.

And now, 2 years later, we are going back.

And this time, guess who’s leading the team?

That’s right, yours truly!

Let me give you a little back story:

The 2008 trip was through African Leadership - the parent company of the organization I have worked for since I moved to Nashville in 2007, Mocha Club. Then, you may remember that I actually had the opportunity to lead a team last summer to South Africa, on an official Mocha Club trip, which really solidified and affirmed my ability & desire to lead trips like this. I know it will still be scary and Africa always contains elements of the unknown and the unpredictable, but I feel confident in stepping forward and leading this team.

{OUR TEAM}

Our team is composed of 18 Midtowners, including our lead teaching pastor, Randy Draughon. The vision is to begin to build sustainable bridges from Nashville to Gulu. We will be working with Jeffrey Ocan, African Leadership’s National Director for Uganda, who pastors a church in Gulu. As we have spent time praying and seeking God’s direction for our community overseas, we are continually brought back to Gulu and the Achioli people, and a church-to-church partnership. The vision would include yearly short-term missions trips, and ongoing communication across the ocean between our two churches. Our hope is a long-term connection between our community at Midtown and the community we seek to serve, love, and learn from in Gulu.

If you’re not familiar with the history of Gulu, it is a place that has been devastated by two decades of war. Though it has now become a place of peace, the effects of war are real and the need is great. The time is ripe to enter into the journey of healing and restoration with our brothers and sisters there.

{JOIN ME}

As with any trip like this, I am responsible for raising support to get

there. How could I not ask my faithful blog readers to join me? It is humbling having to (continually) depend on others to provide, but I know that ultimately God is the provider of all things, and I am confident of His leading me once again to Africa - to this team and this trip.

If you'd like to give financially (all contributions are tax-deductible) it's super easy...just go to our website -- make sure to put my name in the 1^st box!

I am so grateful for these opportunities continually put in front of me, and that God would consider me worthy of leading a group of people on a trip like this. I can’t wait to share with you the stories and examples of how He is working in Uganda.

Of course, you can keep up with it all right here on my blog!