Finally Arrived and Already Inspired

Hey everyone! Meghann Searcy here! Wow! What a trip this has been so far! After about 30 hours of traveling with an hour bus ride at the end (insert minor bus trouble here), let's just say that our team has had some good bonding time already, and we have only just arrived in Uganda. We met up with our out-of-state team members in Newark: Whitney, Kendra, Angie, Melissa, and Mike. Our team is great and I think we are all going to be able to work together to truly make a difference in the lives of these children. While we haven't yet met the kids we will be working with, I would like to share with you an entry I wrote in my journal:

I have just witnessed something miraculous. As I was sitting on our last flight, waiting to take off to travel the last hour from Rwanda to Uganda, I was feeling sleepy and irritated, ready to get off of this plane and get to bed. I noticed that behind me, Tory Wolf was speaking to the woman seated next to her. This woman will never leave my mind. As I began listening in (probably rude) on their conversation, I was shocked by some of the things I heard. This woman was the mother of 20 children, only 2 of which were blood-related to her. She told us that she had been rescuing children from the streets. Her own children are 20 and 24, but these rescued children range from ages 1-11. Her most recent rescue was a little boy. He was found in a bush at one week old. And he was HIV positive. She was contacted by the police and agreed to take him in, "hoping to simply have a proper burial," she told us. The little boy, now called Moses, is living healthy and is HIV negative. "He is a sweet boy," she said. This is only one story. When we told her we thought she was incredible, she replied with, "It's not me, it's the Lord." She also told us that "this is not an orphanage--it's a home. I have no intention of letting them go when they reach a certain age." This is one woman. One woman with an inspirational story of how the Lord can use anyone if we only allow Him to. That is why I am in Africa. I pray that the Lord uses me to do incredible things. Now as I sit here, still waiting for the plane to take off, I am more grateful for what I have and more energized for the week ahead. Thank you, Lord, for letting me meet this wonderful woman.

This was such a wonderful experience for me and it was only on the plane. I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for us the rest of our time here. Thank you all so much for your prayers! We look forward to sharing all of our stories and picture with you when we get back! Love to everyone at home, Meghann Searcy