This year I had the extreme joy of taking my wife and oldest son to Pajok, South Sudan with me. As followers of Jesus Christ we are called to serve as a family.
It is approximately 19 1/2 hours to Uganda and then another 1 1/2 hours to travel by bush plane to South Sudan (2 days total time). This is the first time it was possible to fly directly into Pajok. This saved 2-3 days of travel time!
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| Mission Aviation Fellowship plane (Cessna 208 Caravan) ready for take-off... |
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| Lake Victoria View Guest House. Entebbe, Uganda |
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| Luke trying to smile after 1 1/2 days of virtually no sleep! |
Somewhere in this aerial view is God's Tender Mercy. We are fairly close to the Atebbe River. I am unable to pinpoint exactly where we are.
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| Pajok town center toward top of photo...don't blink |
Even though it is a long journey, it is exciting to arrive in Pajok! It was a bit intimidating for Luke since the primary school abandoned school to check out the new arrivals and were all waiting for us on the airstrip! Personal space is defined much differently there. They were touching Luke and his hair, pointing at him, laughing and talking very much in their language (Acholi). They probably had never seen an American boy before. It was very exciting for them! Luke wasn't so sure...
The first thing Luke did when we arrived at the orphanage was to play football (soccer) with the kids and Samuel. Samuel is always one of the first people I see when arriving in Pajok. He loves visitors and never misses a meal with us!
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| Luke & Samuel |
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| Kids playing soccer at GTM orphanage |
My first official duty was to setup our lodging. If you ever need a tent that absolutely does not leak, no matter how hard it rains, I would recommend a Kelty! This tent and my smaller version for only myself did not leak no matter how hard it rained. Going to bed without a shower is much better when you are dry. :^)
Stay tuned for further trip updates. Grace & Peace in the Lord Jesus Christ!
Grace and Peace Brother Jeff!!! I am very glad that your family members were able to see the fruit of your ministry for the Lord. Keep up the good work for the Lord, in due time you all will reap the rewards...Thank you for sharing your blog with us. It was good to see your wife and son's pictures along with the kids in Uganda. -Pallavi
ReplyDeleteHow very exciting for Luke and very taxing of course. Can imagine this was a labor of love for him also at his age. Most kids get cranky when they have to drive 2 hours to anywhere.
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking: Tent- yuck. But it is a great "spiritual exercise"= once you get back to your real home, you are so appreciative of your wonderful conveniences like running water, shower, kitchen sink! How I love to cook and wash dishes, when my family ( husband , children and grandchildren ) are out there camping. I be glad to bring them a meal!