Been a while gang, I'm sure the sleepless nights have been mutual. So, on to it...2 weeks remain in my East African sabbatical (ha, anything but!) and starting to feel a little melancholy. I found the motivation to journal the last 12 months through pictures - might make me feel a little better and save you from my crummy jokes. Enjoy!



I'll start with the image that's been struck in my head for the past year.






Lainya is a payam 50 km East of Yei. Road Trip!









My friends

Background is a Church we were dedicating.






more.....










We'll always be friends....
Julius, little Paul, Aloro, Issac, Micheal








Two months in the field and this goes from "frozen cholera" to a sweet, sweet icy treat. 3 Refrigerators in the whole town, yet this guys bikes around with frozen sugar water...hmmm. Oh well, I'll take two!






Typical 16x7m Church. Between the South (us) and the Nuba mtns, we've build over 200. Quite a feat our Lord has allowed us to participate it

















Quad ride...almost made it to Congo. I actually fell off that day and sustained a minor concussion. Later in the day I found myself aimlessly walking through town. That's what aspirin's for...






Yei Hospital.
Sadly enough, it's been said that Southern Sudan has the highest infant/birth mortality rate in the world. Over the course of this past year, I've had three close friends lose infants.

This would be a last resort for any ex-patriot seeking medical treatment.










Dinner Time. Not bad...not great, but not bad.












The Indiana Jones plane we fly all around South Sudan in.
I hate this plane. It hates me.



A week home was all I needed!
Thanks baby.

FYI - I failed to bring my camera on trips to Cape Town, S.A. and Zanzibar, Tanzania (i forget a lot) Recap: Cape Town is far and away my favorite city in the world..fun downtown, striking mountains that lead to pristine beaches. Zanzibar, great backpackers spot. I got sick....really really sick, end of story.




I too can carry water on my head!

God Loves Sudan

Bedededdeedde that's all folks!

Friends, I hope that gives you a small glimpse of what I've seen, felt, and experienced over the past year. There's too much for one post so I'll add another before I see everyone in 2 weeks.

May God always lead us by His Spirit.....

-joey

Hey Ya'll...how goes it! So not a whole lot to update over here in these parts. Well, actually there's a whole lot goin - google news it if your interested. Just got back from Uganda this past week, I had to take the trip to Kampala to purchase a whole bunch of steel - 256 tons to be exact. Kind of a cool experience to be a part of that, kinda a cool experience to visit Uganda...kinda a cool experience to eat cheese and drink milk again. I think in the 3 1/2 days I was there I had 7 bowls of cereal and 9 servings of ice cream. My only problem is - if you couldn't tell - I have a bit of a problem overindulging...that wouldn't be that bad of a problem but if your not use to a particular food, say dairy, your body has a way of telling you. Anyhow, enough of that...sorry. Cool things I did in Uganda

1. Ate at an authentic Indian restaurant...who knew Indian food was so tasty. I think shoe polish would have be nice at that point. Very good though.
2. Rafted the Nile River. Probably one of the coolest things I've done in Africa....very intense class 4 and 5 rapids. After the all day trip I felt like I'd been in a 12 round fight.
3. On the way to raft - Left Kampala at 7am and drove 90 minutes to Ginja - got to see the Ugandan country-side...Truly is the "Pearl of Africa"
4. Ate Dairy....did I already say that?

But come Tuesday morning I was back in Yei plugging along. Something to note - I've developed quite an affinity for Yei. I'm comfortable here...it's like I crave getting back to life as normal in Yei. Oh, by the way I was able to travel to South Sudan's capital city, Juba, a few weeks back. Wow, that city is nasty and expensive! I think the only thing left for me to truly become Sudanese is, 1) get Malaria and 2) eat goat intestines - both of which I plan on doing! and I thought drinking the water was a bad idea. Listen guys, you either commit fully or you don't! Bon appetite.

Thank you Lord for family, friends and thoes commited to Prayer. Love you guys so much!

joey

this week...

This week in Sudan.....
The LRA is moving again. The group out of Northern Uganda known for kidnaping and turning children into soilders, is extremely unpredictable and operates with seemenly no motive or rational - the one group who could immediately shut this program down. Already operations have been somewhat paralyzed by their mere presence in the country. Yei is relaitvely safe due to the size of the city and SPLA presence, not the same security, sad to say, for the other SP sub-bases spread across the south. Please join in prayer guys for the safety on the Sudanese people...it's hard to swallow that, one day when I'm evacuated and flown to safety, the (best) friends I've made will have no where to run. Believe me when I tell you, Christ really is these people's refuge - Meanwhile we're worrying what performance our 401K is acheiving. Not a shot at any of us, Please don't misunderstand, just a call to re-evaluate my own perspective. As I sat and thought of what war would mean...ohh, thats tough. How could "this"...any of this work together for the good off thoes who love God? I couldn't help but go back to the heart of the Christians in Sudan, so resiliant and strong. Guys, I have to humbiliy admit..I'm missing it! Why will a family slaughter their only goat, the only source of nutrion they'll see for quite sometime, to feed these visitors with $120 shoes on. Why, will Simon or Aloro laugh and joke and smile and sing all day long when the only life they've known is hiding from soilders and providing for their family where their is no provision. The anwser is something clearly evident in every believer you'll meet in South Sudan. It's why God allows tradegy and heartbreak in our (you and me) lives. Without Faith it's impossible to please Him! I truly believe the abundant life Christ promises is found in the faith-filled life of a believer....it's what seperates Juma John and Opio Sam from me. Please, don't misunderstand this as a call for sympaty or a condimnation of how we enjoy "life" in America...I'll be the first in line for a fat cheeseburger and movie with my baby when I get back...just a mere observation the Lord gave me when I started feeling sorry for the Sudanese and thinking "I can help them." The plain truth is guys, there's is the life I pray for...the life I need to pray for - minus of couse the goat. The need for Christ is greatly intensified and realized when your faced with extremes. Either I live a life fearing death, struggling for survival - or I put all my trust and hope in Christ...All my trust and hope. The happy-medium may of us live in is non-existant over here, and praise God for that! Thank you guys for being a part of this adventure with me...lets go out and be radicals for Christ!
wilson joey (my Sudanese alter-ego)

Greetings good people!

Another month, another blog entry...seems it's been tough recently gathering my thoughts, but I'll do the best I can to start updating this thing every week or two, SO stay tuned! I guess the last we spoke I was a week away from my first trip out of Sudan since I arrived in October. Well, Dec 20th I flew from Yei to Nairobi, stayed 1 night then flew to Cape Town, South Africa with a small layover in Jo-berg. I was in charge of accommodations so cheap, I mean "budget", was the name of the game - Hostels BABY! OK so I never actually stayed in one but how bad could they be. For the first three nights of the trip I booked a...rustic...yea that sounds good, a rustic hostel right in the heart of the city. there's a reason we paid $10 a night. I gotta be honest, the experience was worth the lack of sleep...you have to sleep in a unsecured, crowded loud dorm at least once in your life, heck I was just happy with a warm meal and a flushing toilet! Cape Town is a very interesting city, it almost seems the place is run by 30-something transplants from all over the world. Don't get me wrong, CA has an amazing unique culture that is unlike anywhere I've ever seen, but it certainly is a melting pot of young people..just the feeling I got. Our next hostel was much nicer and much closer to the beach, that's right THE BEACH! Wow, CT has the most amazing beaches..the famous foothills of Table Mtn slope down to beautiful white-sand leading to the aqua-see through Atlantic Ocean...houses and restaurants line the mountain as it falls right into the ocean. I gotta say guys, Ft. Lauderdale beach don't hold a candle..except for the bball court. So needless to say I spent the entire vacation lounging on the beach, exploring the city (I did climb Table Mountain), eating whatever I wanted, and..going to movies! Hey sitting in a nice COLD theatre eating popcorn and chocolate while drinking as much coke as you want is really nice when you've done the exact opposite for the past 3 months...always hot, no goodies, 1 coke per week :( The trip really was nice and relaxing guys, what a blessing to take 2 weeks off and just relax...thank you Lord. Got back to Nairobi Jan 2nd and immediately flew out the next day. Nairobi was eerily quiet with the police presence definitely felt..we really need to continue to prayer for Kenya. Well, I've been back in Sudan 3 weeks now with only 5 to go before the next R and R...i really lucked out with the schedule I'm on. I meeting Lee in NBO then off to a small island off the coast of Tanzania called Zanzibar - don't worry Lee we'll find you a long necked, native with massive earlobes and sweet spear hunting skills...Im sorry if that was culturally insensitive, but I live here and I'm allowed...so chill.
Vella was suppose to come but with the civil unrest in Nairobi it just didn't seem like the best idea...please be praying for my sanity, I sure was lookin forward to it! Ok, thats all I got this time. I write in a week or so and update you on our progress with the Church Reconstruction.
Prayer request - Kenya, Jade (a homeless girl I met in CT), Cape Town Baptist Church and my stability now that Vella's not coming...just kidding about the last one..maybe. Ok, love you guys. God's Grace be on us. joey