Next is a new video from the people at These Numbers Have Faces. I helped them out a very little bit about a year ago when I was in South Africa. I was deeply impacted by meeting Ace, Anda, and Michael. The work that These Numbers is doing there is powerful and effective. They are currently sopporting 3 students from the township of Gugulethu to go to school. Check out the video and see what they are up to! Here is their website as well. www.thesenumbers.com

What am I asking for?

I stand among 25 people lifting their voices, their minds, and their hearts – in essence – their lives – to a Perfect Father. Over the last 10 months He has given us the nations, a tremendous blessing and opportunity, but also one that has had it share of struggles. We have witnessed the numerous heartbreaks of humanity; infanticide, famine, the deepest hunger, those on their deathbeds from HIV, the effects of war, the vicious cycles of poverty and disease that claim millions of precious lives each year, and the injustice of the apathetic. All of the traveling was not a joy-ride but one involving real and evident sadness. The situations and circumstances left us changes; scarred forever like a brand on our hearts and minds. So we continue to ask for the nations… along with all of their joys, but also their sorrow.

But, we are not left there because even in immense pain is beauty – we know of it as hope. In John 16 Jesus talks about sadness – that we will have it and that by following Him, we seek it out. When we follow Him into the life – into the nations – into love – We are following Him to the Cross. But as we pursue Him there He gives to us what can never be taken away; a peace that passes understanding and incomparable joy. That is why we are able to laugh hysterically at our living conditions, each other’s crazy experiences, and shake-face pictures (see below). It is also the reason that we are able to stand together wherever we are in the world and, with tears in our eyes and compassion in our hearts, cry out to God; telling Him in our feeble words how great and how good He really is.

“Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

He wins.

Blessings through Him… the most beautiful One
John Paul

Please don’t view this as an impression that the beautiful people, places, and moments are rare; they are definitely evident in every society and culture around the world. But pain and suffering are found everywhere as well and it is the reason that we are here, to proclaim Hope to those who may have lost it whether they be in Myanmar, Switzerland, or Denver, Colorado.

Shake-Face – just use the flash… compliments of Anna

A team from Germany came to Spain to teach us about photography. We didn’t learn heaps about photography that week, but we had major breakthroughs as a family that the students have become. Amsterdam was a difficult time for most of us, not only as a team, but on individual levels as well. We were disconnected, distraught, and visionless. In a way, we had forgotten why God had called us to do this program in the first place and, in our relation with each other, weren’t walking in love. Spain and the team from Germany provided a sort of intervention, keeping us all in the same room sharing what we were struggling with in relation to the team, ourselves, and with God. It was such a fruitful time that reignited our passion to receive and give the Father’s love freely.

[A mountain that Tim and I climbed overlooking Torremolinos]

[The lower part]

[A hillside in Tanger, Morocco]

[Marrakesh is a city known for its craziness. It has one of the biggest markets in North Africa and competes with Addis Ababa for Africa's largest. Even on the first day, I needed to get away from it, so Scott and I headed into the back alleys away from everything else and found a small group of boys playing soccer. We spent a few minutes with them before heading back to the hostel.]

[Morocco is known for a traditional dish called Tajin. You can find it everywhere along with the spices that are included. There is so much color in Morocco, more than I ever expected.]

[Anna and Aaron on the Atlas mountain pass. Our guide, Housine, asked us to count the number of turns on the way up. We didn't, but he kept asking. When we got to the top, he wouldn't tell us how many until we gave him good guesses, but after we did he revealed that there were only 2; right and left. Clever, Housine... very clever.]

[When we were told that we would be driving through the Atlas Mountains to get to the desert, I wasn't expecting red earth, snow covered peaks, and windblown wheat fields filling the valleys. Anna and Aaron both said that it reminded them of Nepal. It just reminded me of something beautiful since I had never seen anything like it (besides maybe the Alberta Canada coat of arms).]

[Housine says that the Berber people only live in the mountains. Its possible that they came from the Mountains, but they live all over Morocco. They make up about 60% of the population if you are interested in figures. They are a warm people, a point that I will explain in another caption.]

[After driving through some diverse and amazing landscapes and biomes, we arrived at the end of the road, literally. Housine lives in a small desert town called M'Hamed and it is where the pavement ends as far as roads go. We stayed on the edge of the Sahara in Bedouin type tents at a campsite. Unlike many other of the tourist programs, it was just Aaron, Anna and I at the camp with Housine and his friends and family.]

[Housine and his family come from the tribal Tauregs that once traversed the Sahara. They are also known as Nomads or the Blue Men because of their bright blue jalebahs (long shirts). Because of the Nation-States that have invaded the African continent in the lat 200 years, whole tribes have been cut off from each other, especially with countries with closed borders like Algeria, a mere 38 kilometers from the town of M'Hamed. The once itinerant Blue Men are mostly settled down now, but the freedom of wandering is evident in the infrastructure of their towns and the remains of vacated Kasbahs (old towns with refuges) that dot the desert countryside. Who knows how long Housine's family will stay in M'Hamed?]

[After visiting the old M'Hamed Kasbah, we headed via Landrover to the Chicaga Dunes. It is one of the largest dune systems in Morocco and boasts the highest dune of 300 meters (or 990 ft). The desert is one of my favorite ecosystems and for some odd reason, I find refreshment for my spirit there.]

[A few tourists taking a rest on one of the lower dunes. We were surprised that there weren't many tourists and the dunes were relatively untouched, which was amazing for pictures.]

[Anna making the long trek to the top of the highest sand-dune. There is this innate desire to see the highest point around and climb it. We gave in to this aspiration and reached the summit with a few minutes of sunrise left.]

[Aaron and Anna at the top. We hauled Anna's MacBook to the top in order to record one of our daily video journals which can be viewed HERE on Anna's Blog. We watched the sun drop beneath the horizon and praised our Maker for His amazing creation. Soon after, we headed back to the camp and fell asleep early (before the Blue Men were finished with their rhythmic songs) so we could get up for sunrise.]

There were no thoughts of sadness, worry, or disappointment as my feet almost flew down the sand dunes in the Saharan section of Morocco. I was carefree (besides feeling that I might end up toppling end over end down the rest of the dune) experiencing excitement, joy and freedom. There are moments like this in all of our lives, some brief others long-lasting, that force us to forget about our issues no matter how big or small. In reflecting on the seemingly insignificant instance, I realized that many people as they get older don’t take the time or even feel like they can have moments they can let themselves go with childish enthusiasm to experience innocent joy and exuberance. Look for your sand dune.

[Our camp at the Chicaga dunes was surprisingly cozy despite the fine layer of dust that covered everything (including our camera equipment). The sun rewarded our early morning efforts with spectacular views of the dunes and the textures of the sand. After breakfast we piled back in the Landrover and started the long journey back to Marrakesh, 12 hours away.]

[Along the way, we stopped in a Berber village high in the Atlas mountains. We had yet to experience hospitality in the way they showed it to us. We were invited to a terrace overlooking wheat fields and mountain dwellings where we enjoyed mint tea and broken conversations. We were invited to spend a few nights up in the village, but wouldn't have had a way to get back to Marrakesh had we done so. We all want to visit Morocco again and spend much more time in the Atlas with the Berbers.]

[It is extremely difficult to get photos of women, especially in the Muslim world. Equally difficult is getting to know them and their stories. Outside of the craziness of the Marrakesh Medina, we wandered in a small community of craftsman and porters. There were no Westerners walking the streets so it was much easier to relate with the people on a personal level. Anna had been praying that she would be able to get connected with a local woman and possibly even get portraits of her. God presented the opportunity and we spent close to an hour and a half getting to know the Berber family who had come to Marrakesh. We were so blown away by their hospitality and warmth. We would all love to go back and visit them someday as well.]

[Morocco is quite famous for its leather. The largest tannery is located in Fez, but there are also quite a few large tanneries in Marrakesh as well. It is popular for tourists to go and thus popular to be led to specific tanneries by a myriad of different people, including children and inebriated men. We finally made our own way through an open door into a tannery deserted by tourists. We walked around and took some pictures before heading back to our hostel. The man on the bottom is Abdallah Azziz who showed me the whole process of tanning leathers, a process that has become his life-long profession.]

[Some of the Arab influenced architecture in Marrakesh]

[The closest coastal town to Marrakesh is Essaouira (I am still terrible at the pronunciation). Translated, the name means "windy city" and it is very windy. It is also dominated by the tourism industry. There is also a history and tradition of catching fish in the Atlantic, so a generous fishing industry also brings in revenue for the coastal community.]

[A man sits at the gate of the Essaouira medina in the traditional dress of many Moroccans, a hooded jalebah.

[One of the strays that Aaron and Anna (and I) fell in love with]

[Another of Essaouira's medina gates.]

[Aaron standing in front of a colorful backdrop composed of rugs and blankets]

[The medina walls of Essaouira]

We are in Costa Rica and Latin America for the next few weeks finalizing the phase of the track in which we travel around the world. It’s hard to believe that it has been almost 9 months already. Pray for us as we finish here, take a quick break at home, and then meet back in Kona. I will be sure to have another blog update before then.

In His Love,

John Paul Vicory

The last 2 months have been pretty crazy, even though I have only been in the States for a little over a month now. When I first got the vision for this show, I really had no idea how involved it would be until I got back home. There was money to raise for the trip, venues to book, sponsors to find, prints to make, details to tie up, and finally, the event to put on. God has really paved the way for these shows to go through, first of all, blessing me with Cierra, a friend from DTS. She has really been the influencer behind the event, all I really did was print out some pictures. He has also given us favor with countless individuals and companies. If I were to list all of the amazing things that he has done, you probably would stop reading because the text would go on for pages.

So, on Thursday the 12^th, the first show of the Not Alone Benefit Photography Tour kicked off in Downtown Denver at JC’s Ground. I would say probably 150 people showed to support the orphans in Africa. Family and friends came, but I would say that I probably didn’t know the majority of the people that were there. There was even a young man from Zimbabwe that has been living in Denver for a short time. I won’t tell the amount that was raised, because I want to save it for the end of the tour, but it was so encouraging. I really didn’t expect what happened, with the amount of people and money that was given. It was great to see people moved by the social and physical damage that is going on in Africa. To Him be all glory!

Thank you as well to all of you who helped make the Benefit a reality!

[All photos courtesy of Matt Loevenguth]

I leave tomorrow for the next leg of the trip, which will be Chicago and Toronto. I still don’t know what to expect from these places, but I know that people need to see what is happening and get involved in some way. Please pray that people’s hearts will be open to see these children as God sees them. You can also check the Benefit’s website for more information…

Not Alone Benefit Photography Tour

I have also been accepted to another school from YWAM that I have mentioned in previous posts. It’s called PhotogenX Around the World, and it starts this September in South Africa. From South Africa a team of us will travel to Egypt, Sinai, Israel, Ethiopia, Spain, Morocco, the Netherlands, and Costa Rica before going to Kona, HI for more training. The whole program is 17 months long with only short breaks for Christmas and New Years. The focus of the school will be on social justice in the areas visited, how to capture and record injustice to portray an accurate display for the rest of the world, learn about the different cultures that we are immersed in, and to learn more about the Word of God. The program comes with an Associates of Arts in photography too, which isn’t a bad deal, and a portfolio from across the globe, which is amazing.

I have been particular about not asking for support on the blog, and there is a reason for it. I want to make sure that I am providing insight and information with no strings attached. The blog isn’t a gimmick for raising financial support for myself and I would like to keep it that way. So, if you are interested in the next program that I will be involved in and how you can help, please contact me (at the email address on the side) and we can discuss further. If you aren’t, then there is no pressure, I still need as much prayer as I can get!

I will continue to update the blog on my future travels so stay tuned!

God Bless!
Servant of Christ
John Paul

It has been two+ weeks since the last blog update, and less than a week since I have been home. I wanted to be sure that told everyone about the conference the last week in Uganda and some of my experience in being back home in the Western World.

A quick update from St. America’s before I continue. Someone, who will remain anonymous, has agreed to pay 1500 US Dollars for the children at the orphanage to get bunk beds! This is such an answer to prayer because previously they had all been sleeping on thin straw mats on the floor, practically and literally on top of each other. God is so good, and it is such an honor to be a part of it! Mark visited one last time before he came back to the states and discovered that they had named the three houses after him (Mark Weaver), Alex, and I. My eyes welled up with tears after I heard the news.
Their international account is also set up, which is a huge blessing from God. We are using a YWAM account set up by John Bills to enable people to get tax-deductable receipts. If you want to donate, make checks payable to YWAM (or Youth with a Mission) and don’t make any indications of St. Amerias on the check. Put a note that says, “African Orphans Fund, St. Ameria’s Orphanage” on it, and send the envelope to
YWAM Los Angeles
11141 Osborne Street
Lake View Terrave, CA 91342

The conference was powerful to say the least. Some of the days were spent without power, some were spent without water, but the fellowship evident among the attendees was powerful. Even people with no background in HIV/AIDS work came to the conference to get a better understanding. They left with so much more; a deep understanding of the daunting task, and even a deeper appreciation for those who have been involved with this fight for so long.

One of the most powerful sessions was the day the First Lady of Uganda spoke, although it wasn’t her speech that was so necessarily powerful. After all the Ugandan dignitaries and officers had gone, we were left without power yet again, but this time was different. It was a Wednesday night and on the schedule was a memorial for those who had lost their lives to HIV related illness that had been a part of YWAM. Attendees were asked to bring a ribbon, a foot in length, to the conference for this memorial service. We tied the ribbons together to get an idea of how HIV was affecting the YWAM community. This helped all of us realize the importance of HIV/AIDS work in all of the world. Staring at the countless strands of ribbon, many couldn’t handle the emotions of remembering those that they had lost. Some had been small babies and children, some had been friends and mentors of many years. I am not sure there was a dry eye in the entire place. We are all affected.

The week finished off great! Everyone I talked to said that it was one of the best conferences that they had been to despite the power and water outages. It wasn’t anything that the preparation team did though, it was all about God bringing together people who have a passion for the same thing, seeing Gods heart in this world. It was encouraging for them to be there and see that they really aren’t alone in this fight. Please don’t let this blog be the end of your experience with HIV/AIDS. Take measures to educate yourself and those around you to what is going on in the world. Investigate different areas where you can be personally involved in this mission that is so close to God’s heart.

As for me? This may be the last blog update for a while. It has been a great journey is sharing my thoughts and experiences with you, and a great blessing to receive the encouragement and prayers that we did from you.
I am already over my head in work trying to set up these Benefit Photography Galleries across the States. Please continue to pray that I will get everything done that is on my heart and that God will provide for the overwhelming expense that it is going to be. I really know that God wants to do a lot for these different ministries that will benefit. If you would like to be involved in anyway, please let me know!
The set-up for the benefit has changed slightly. Instead of dealing with percentages of donations and all of that, there will be different tables set up highlighting the different ministries. People will be able to write checks and give cash to the ministries of their choice. My images will be available to be purchased and donations will be accepted for me and the needs of the Tour as well.
The benefit tour will be called “Not Alone” and will be in the following cities on the following dates.

Denver, Colorado: July 12th
Chicago, Illinois: July 19th and 20th (20th Lord Willing!)
Toronto, Ontario Canada: July 21st
Ellensburg, Washington: July 31st
Seattle Washington: August 3rd
Santa Barbara, California: August 22nd and 25th
Visalia, California: September 1st

There are also bookmarks with one of my pictures available from Halfway There Water Project. Click on the bookmark to go to the site where they are all available!

Go to the Bookmark Section

Okay, so that is it from me, at least for now. I would just like to encourage you all to look into the issues that are going on all over the world. There is more to life than meets the eye, especially in the Western World. It is part of our responsibility to take action, changing our world even if it means one person at a time. This can mean supporting someone who is in missions, getting involved in community based ministry, or getting out there into the world yourself! I guarantee that you will find unparalleled fulfillment in it.

Please continue to pray for me and for the rest of the team as they readjust to the places that they left 9 months ago. Its not as easy as it seems for us. The difference between these two worlds is staggering. Continue to provide feedback as well; I would love to hear your thoughts!

Take care, and God Bless
A servant of Christ,
John Paul

What a week of changes; not only for our team, but for the base in general. Honestly, this last week was the best week I have had in a while. We were extremely busy, but focused on the issues and tasks at hand. It brought us together as a team.

It was Tara’s Birthday on Monday as well, so we got together and watched Sleepless in Seattle (I couldn’t make it through the whole thing) and ate bananas roasted with chocolate. It was so good! We were even able to use a projector for the film, so we didn’t have to huddle around a laptop.

We went to Sam Kisolo’s house this week for a time of fellowship. Sam has 15 children… That’s right, 15. Four of the kids are his by birth, the others have been adopted by Sam in response to the tremendous need for parental care in Uganda. In some ways, Uganda is extremely blessed with resources, fresh water, and help from many international NGO’s. Uganda also has some tremendously complicated problems. So many parents have died from the AIDS pandemic and many also from the war areas. It is also very common for me to have more than one wife. They also value having many children. So, the end result is so many children, and not enough people to take care of them. Even, Job, a member of our team from Gulu, has four children of his own and takes care of his niece as well. The story is the same all over Uganda. On one hand, it is sad that children aren’t getting taken care of by their parents, on the other, it’s a miracle that they are cared for by family or people like Sam.

There was a new addition to the team this week as well. P’toni and Lupe, a Tongan married couple that are leaders of the Frontier Missions Outreach, had a baby girl on Thursday night! They had been planning on going to Kampala on Thursday for a couple of weeks because the baby wasn’t actually due for another 2 weeks. They ended up leaving on Wednesday and it is a good thing. Both mother and child came back to the base on Friday and are both doing extremely well.

Like I said, it has been a very busy week. We have all been working everyday and then occasionally relaxing during the evening. Many times there are things to do during these times as well. Since the DTS left for outreach, there hasn’t been as much help in the kitchen so we have all had to take double shifts in order to get all of the food out on time. It takes away from the conference work, but it enables us to build relationships with others on the base as well. I was able to spend a considerable amount of time in conversation with the men from Sudan who are doing their SBS here. I am still blown away by their stories. I appreciate those who have been looking into what is happening all over the world as far as oppression goes. The more that we know, the more we can do to help!

I have to make an apology to the readers of this blog. There have been so many times when I wanted to share what I had been thinking, but was afraid. Afraid of people and what they might think of me. During the course of this week, though, I have been discovering that it doesn’t matter what I am thought of as long as I am being obedient to God in what I say in the blog, no matter if only my mom and dad read it. There is so much that I have been wanting to say, but have been disobedient is saying it. Because of this I am sorry.

One of the reasons that I started this blog is to encourage people to take action. When we live our lives in a way that resembles Christ, we have no other options. Christ himself stated his mission when he was back in Nazareth at the start of his ministry. He was in the temple as he often was. When he went up to read the scripture, the book of Isaiah was handed to him. This is what he said (from Luke 4:18-19)

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

As this was his call, it is ours as well. Does this in any way do any damage to the world? Of course it doesn’t, but there are so many people that aren’t doing anything about it. In the US and Western we can be so comfortable with life. Many of us want our children to get the best education that they can get so that they can life a “comfortable and satisfying” life, free from worry. In reality, we should be sending them to school to be witnesse
s to Christ and to discover ways to help God’s creation (humans especially). The rich young ruler followed all of the laws, he loved God and loved his neighbor, but was unwilling to sell what he had to give to the poor, the last request that Jesus had for him to be called a disciple. Are we willing to pick up the Bible and follow Christ’s teaching and his life, no matter what actions that we have to take?

I don’t say all of these things because I am mad or disappointed. I say them because I have discovered the fulfillment that comes from following his command to GO! (Luke 10:3). I am not perfect or “there” or anything like that, but these aren’t my words; Jesus is the one that spoke them. I need them just as much as anyone. There is no doubt; I am a sinner, truly unworthy of salvation or any blessings that I have. But, God is good, and he is faithful when we are not. I say this not to condemn, but to encourage you. If we get (understand) what is in the Bible, we will understand that we are called to live in a completely different way from the world. Not only will we understand it, we will do everything we can to live the life that Christ wants us to live.

I have heard some people saying that they don’t feel like God has called them to anything, when the New Testament, especially the Gospels, is full of Jesus’ “calling”. When we step out and try some of the things that he wants us to do we have nothing at all to lose! In fact, Jeremiah 29:11 says that he has plans for wholeness, not for harm; and a hope for the future, that we will one day be united with Christ. We really have nothing to lose, plus, when we are helping others we open doors for them to share in salvation. When you have next to nothing here on earth, and dying seems better than living, a hope for a future is something to get excited about. I know that hope is something I take for granted in the midst of all of this “stuff” on earth that distracts me.

Anyway, the point is, that we all need to be doing something! James talks about how faith without obedience to the works that Christ called us to is dead! I thought that by coming to Africa, I could get away from this because I was going to Africa, but it has been especially hard here in Uganda to do those things that God wants; to give even a glass of water or a little cookie to someone in His name. We can all be getting involved. Pick up your Bible and discover for yourself what he asks you to do.

Thank you for reading another entry. Please continue to pray for us in this remaining week until the conference. The conference begins next Sunday, but I will try to upload a new entry before all of the activities start. Please pray that this conference will be a success, not it terms of how many people show up, but in the amount of fruit that comes from it. We know God has great plans!

Also pray that the team will be able to stay focused on what God has us here for and not to look forward to the time we leave in a way that distracts us from the present.

In Christ

John Paul

With only a few weeks left until the conference, we are in need of much prayer. It’s crunch time and there is so much to do here. Another person has left the team. Gina left Wednesday to spend some time at home. We will miss her, but now are even more focused than ever. We are down to a solid crew who are very hard-working. The Frontier Missions group from Tonga have also been such a vital part of our team. The common room is in its final stages of remodeling and the grounds are looking good. There is even a ping-pong table (a board with a net) in the common room now which “Pila Ping-Pong” is usually dominating.

Jessie’s parents arrived in Uganda this week to spend some time with us. Her Aunt, Kim, who was also staff on our DTS came as well. It was so good to see Kim again and to meet a part of Jessie’s family. They didn’t come empty handed either. They gave us some much needed relief in the form of food and games. They also brought some much needed tools that will benefit the conference preparations greatly. It will also be a big blessing for the base after we leave too. They have been such a blessing to me and the whole team. Jessie’s father, Robin, is a pastor (and a member of the SWAT team) in the city where Jessie is from. His church surprised him by sending him and his wife all the way out here to be a blessing to us. Not only did they buy the plane tickets, but they provided all the money for the tools, food, and even electric/gas powered grass-cutters. It will reduce our slashing time and effort to a great extent.

[I will include a picture of Jessie's parents and Kim in next week's update]

Personally, it hasn’t been the greatest week for me. I have spent a lot of time looking at past journals to see where I have come from. That is the whole purpose of journaling, but I didn’t realize what the effect was. When we look at where we have come, we are left guessing where we are going. I had some choices to make inside myself of who I am and who I am becoming. I feel like I have been called to be a missionary; which is great, but it comes with some consequences. A few examples: time with my family and friends, financial burdens, potential health hazards, and bodily harm; even death. Am I willing to evaluate the risk and follow what I believe that I am supposed to do? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this type of life is the way that all Christians are supposed to live. Not that everyone is supposed to be a missionary in foreign countries, but we are all supposed to be missionaries in our world. The cost of discipleship is not a topic that is covered in many churches, but it is one that should be looked at regardless. Being a Christian shouldn’t be easy; we are called to give out entire lives to Christ. Its not like we are just inviting him in to be a friend, we are inviting him to be in control of our lives, it is the basics of salvation. Making Jesus Lord comes with all the costs that I mentioned before and even more. I know that it should be an easy decision, but to be honest, it’s not that easy. When I have the choice of saying yes and giving all of those things up or living a comfortable life with a comfortable job, not having to worry about my very life, I get caught up thinking, “what if?” But then I try to get eternal perspective, but my mind is too weak to comprehend eternity. It all comes down to faith. Faith that if I do the right thing now and surrender my life to Christ, then there is hope for the brightest future imaginable – Eternal Life.

I had a huge wake-up call and example this week. I was forwarded an email by my uncle about persecution in the modern world. The article was from Resurrection (Easter) Sunday and highlighted the death of 3 Christians in Turkey (Smyrna specifically, the first place where believers were called “Christians”). These men were not only killed, they were tortured gruesomely because they were Christians. I will not go into details here, but knowing them made me picture them in my mind to this day. Not only did I picture them, but I tried to put myself in the position of those being tortured. Am I willing to take my faith to that level? Am I willing to go through what those men went through because of a belief? I can only hope that I would be able to. I can only pray that God would draw me so close to him; that it wouldn’t even have to be a decision. That I would be so Kingdom obsessed, that I would go to the places where the light of Christ is needed the most no matter what could happen. That I would be obedient even in the face of death… or worse… torture. [Email me if you would like a copy of the article]

One Thursday we also had a day of prayer and fasting for YWAM as a whole, but focused on the “Hot-Spots” where there is persecution going on, or where the Good News is being rejected. There is a list of countries that I could provide for you who are interested, please let me know. Some of the big ones are Brazil, Iran (the Middle East in general), and many African countries. We learned that last week in Sudan a DTS outreach team from Egypt was fired upon while driving out of a church compound. 3 people were killed (local Sudanese) and a few of the students were injured. The driver had the wit to keep driving out of danger and to a hospital. A couple of years ago, 9 people were killed in Nigeria in a bus accident. A base in Tanzania keeps promoting base leaders who die soon after they are established. Some YWAM staff in India have been suddenly getting sick and dying within minutes with no cause. There are events like this happening all over the world, but many more in these “hot-spot” areas. Please pray for determination for missionaries everywhere, and that we would not have a spirit of fear in any situation.

[map from Release International click the map to find more info!]

The base also experienced power surges that took out some computers the internet, and my external hard drive with all of my pictures from Ethiopia and many from Uganda as well. I am praying that it only took out the power supply and that all of the information is safe on the drive itself. I thank God that my computer is still safe. But it has made my job a lot more difficult seeing as most of the work I do is over the internet. I guess until the problem is fixed, I will be making many more trips into Jinja town to use the internet. Hopefully by midweek, the internet will be fixed and we will have a better idea of how many office computers we do and do not have. Pray for patience; that all of us will keep a level head and Christ-like attitude when things aren’t working out.

Tara,
Alex, and I visited St. America’s again yesterday. It was to visit the children, but also to tell the headmasters of the orphanage that international transfers aren’t available with the type of account that they have. It was bad news to deliver, but I know that the Lord works everything out to those who love him. I trust him, but will continue to pray that the door will be open to get the home some much needed help. They are so grateful for prayers and the love that we have shown them, but we can only explain that it’s nothing we can do, but Christ through us. We are grateful for the opportunity to share our lives and what time we have with them.

We haven’t really had any team building experiences with our new, larger team yet since things have been so busy. Last night (Saturday), we decided to have a feast with meat! The Tongans have cooking pigs down to an art, so they displayed their workmanship by roasting a pig while others made potato salad, cooked Talapia (a native fish from Lake Victoria), sweet potatoes, cassava (an edible root), and curried meat topped off with ice cream and fruit salad. I am sure that we have never eaten better on base. It was so good and the fellowship was even better. Jessie’s parents brought a few baseball gloves so a few of us played catch, while others sat around the roasting pig and talked. At the end of the night, everyone was satisfied, what a blessing. A few of us non-Tongans also tried some parts from the pig that we had never had before like the tongue, ear, nose, brain, and Tara and I partook of the eye ball as well.

I guess that brings this blog to a close. Please continue to pray for us out here and be sure to let me know if we can pray for any of you about anything. We know from experience the power of prayer. If you want to discuss anything, please let me know, I am more than willing to engage in a conversation, even if it is over text. If I don’t get back to you right away, I will eventually.

As far as the benefit art gallery goes, I have conformation for a venue in Visalia, California. If you have any information or know any venues where I could hold the show and you live in Chicago, Seattle, Denver, Las Vegas, or Santa Barbara/Los Angeles I could definitely benefit from it. If you want any more information on the benefit art show, please contact me.

Thanks for reading and may God richly bless you!

A servant of Christ,

John Paul

Greetings from the Hopeland Base in Jinja. It has been a bittersweet week for us here in Uganda. Another one of our team members has left for home this morning. Rob decided that it was time for him to go home a couple of weeks ago, so he prayed about it and felt that the Lord gave him the O.K. to do so. He left for Canada this morning, so pray for traveling mercies on the long series of flights necessary.

Rob was one of my closest friends throughout the entirety of my YWAM journey thus far. The Lord has blessed me so much through him physically and spiritually. We will be dearly missed by all of the team members and especially by me. Rob, I will miss you, bud… See you this summer Lord willing!

There was another tragedy in the United States this week that I am sure all of you are aware of. The deadliest shooting spree in US history occurred at Virginia Tech on Monday. It comes almost 8 years to date from the Columbine Shootings in Englewood, Colorado. Tragedy is a constant reminder to me of the state of our humanness. I am from Colorado and remember the day of the shootings at Columbine. I know how devastating that these actions can be to communities and to my country as a whole. Every 20^th of April, I remember the shootings by listening to the “Lullaby for Columbine” album and take time to pray for our country and especially our youth. The song that impacts me the most is one called “Friend of Mine” written by Jonathan and Stephen Cohen, two students of Columbine… These are lyrics that all of us should keep in mind. Please take time to pray for all for all of the victims and their families of both Virginia Tech and Columbine. Pray also that we will act in Love toward all people.

“Turn our pain, to your gain,
Keep our hearts, on the mark
Comfort us, with your love, love again.

Christ of grace, Oh turn this place to
Look to you, honor you,
Fix you in our view”

On a lighter note, there is a definite praise report this week. The Lord has spoken to someone back home through this blog. I got word early last week that St. America’s Home [refer to previous blog entries] will be getting a monthly supporter! The donors will remain unnamed, but most of the technical information was handled today on a journey to the orphanage. This will be the home’s first monthly supporter since it was started in 1994. It is such an answer to prayer. They were so excited to hear the great news! I am so thrilled that they will be getting the support because I have seen the tremendous need that they face. I am also honored that the Lord would use this humble blog to accomplish his will!

I will also be supporting St. Ameria’s Orphanage with some of the funds that will be raised during the benefit art shows later this summer. If you would like to help out as well with any of the ministries that I have highlighted in this blog or the Team Ethiopia blog, please let me know.

It was so nice to see the children again today. Tara came with me and it was her first time to St. Ameria’s. The children sang again today, but instead of singing of how AIDS killed their parents, they sang of the hope that is found through Jesus Christ. The headmaster/choir director was also there today (he had been at a conference in Kampala the previous visitations). He was telling us of how the children use songs and dances to the Lord to comfort them when they are in pain. I felt such hope today, more so than the other times I had visited. It was such a blessing to be there.

The Vocational Training School (VTS) put on a coffee night for the base on Friday night. There was food, great coffee, and wonderful entertainment. A group from Tonga are here on outreach for a Frontier Missions School and have been helping out with the VTS. Another couple of staff in the VTS are getting married soon as well, so much is happening in that arena. The Tongans did a number of traditional dances for us, so here are a couple of the pictures from that night. They were also able to raise some money for the school as well!

Plans for the benefit photography shows are also coming together as well. As is stands right now, the cities are as follow (in order): Denver, Chicago, Ellensburg, Seattle, Santa Barbara, and Las Vegas. Please pray for the dates and places to be solidified. The ministries that will benefit from the shows will be: Bereket Orphanage (Ethiopia), YWAM Mercy Development (Ethiopia), Hope Enterprises (Ethiopia), and St. Ameria’s Orphanage (Uganda). To learn more about
each one of these ministries, please refer to past blog entries both in this blog, and the Team Ethiopia blog (http://ethiopiadts06.blogspot.com). If you want further information, please contact me and we will work something out.

A portion of the benefit will also go for my student tuition for another YWAM program called PhotogenX “round the world” tour. I think I have posted information about it before, but will go into a little bit more detail now. It is a program that starts at the end of September 2007 and ends at the beginning of April 2009. As the name suggests, it involved photography and going around the world. For the first 12 months or so, we will be traveling the world starting in India then proceeding to Israel, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, Chad, Southern Africa, Germany, Venezuela, and then back to Kona. In Kona we will be taking some more classes in photography and then going back out into the world for outreach. During the course of the school, we will be focusing on child trafficking and the sex trade. Part of the course will be taking the short version of the School of Biblical Studies as well. The final product of the course will be an Associates degree in photography, a portfolio from across the globe, a published book of all of our work, and a wide range of experience. More than what is seen, what I wish to make a difference in the world that was entrusted to us. I hope to fight some of the injustices that plague humanity as a global community. For more information, check the resources available on the internet. [PhotogenX]

Thank you so much for reading yet another blog and for the encouragement that I get from hearing your comments. I have mentioned this before, but to all who get the link to this site from the email I send out, I don’t just add everyone in my address book to the list, but because I want to. I don’t necessarily want this to be a one way mode of communication, but more of a two way mode. Please leave comments and questions you would like me to address and I will do my best to get back to you. And, if you just want to drop by and say hi, or have a prayer request, please feel free to email me and I will reply as quickly as I can. Thank you again.

Please continue to pray for all of us out here in Uganda. The struggle against HIV and AIDS is an uphill battle; we are behind in the fight and are still losing ground on a wide scale. We hope that with this conference we can stage an offensive and finally make some of it up.

In Christ Alone

John Paul

We had a team member join us this week and we are all pretty excited about it. She is Sarah, a Nigerian girl who was doing here SBS (School of Biblical Studies) in Arusha, Tanzania. While Alex and Ruth were on outreach, they met up with Sarah and became quite close with her. Another girl named Sarah came with her, but she left this morning to begin the long trip back home to Washington State.

[Sarah (WA), Sarah (Nigeria), and Ruth... photo compliments of Ruth]

The story of how they got here is very extreme, but God’s glory and protection can be seen through the whole thing. So they left on Wednesday night (the 11^th) to get here. They ran into some visa problems getting into Tanzania, but eventually were let through on transit visas. Not long after they had passed the border, they came to a road block. One man boarded and went to the back of the bus. Then other armed men came aboard and emptied the first 4 or 5 rows of people and took them outside (including women and children). Then they proceeded to command all the money from all of the passengers. Sarah (from Washington) was one of two white people on the bus, but she quickly covered her head with a blanket so she wouldn’t be targeted. An elderly German man was sitting two rows in front of the Sarahs and was not complying with the robbers orders. The men holding up the bus walked out and their commander walked in and shot the German man twice, one in the arm and one in the chest. While he was bleeding everywhere, the men continued to shake down the bus for money and valuables. The German was still being defiant and saying things like, “look what you have done to me”, and “why are you doing this?” The Sarahs were able to hang on to their passports and a little bit of money as well. The men ended up leaving (without raping anyone, thank God) and soon the Sarahs were headed back to the Kenya/Tanzania border. They stayed there for a while answering questions. The German had been cleaned up and the bullets had gone all the way through, so he was going to be okay as well. They were there for a couple of hours and then escorted for a couple hours into Kenya. It wasn’t a restful night because there were many other roadblocks that night as well, but thankfully they were all police roadblocks. We finally saw them late Thursday night and they were thankful to be safe. God’s protection had been with them the whole time. We are so glad that they are safe as well. It’s so good that they are here, Sarah already adds a lot to the team by here presence.

Alex and I had originally planned on going to Tanzania and Kenya to speak to YWAM base leaders about the conference and to visit some of the Masai villages in Tanzania around Mt. Meru and Kilimanjaro. We knew that Sarah would be joining us as well, so we were going to bring her back here to Hopeland, Jinja. Because of some frustrating visa problems in Uganda, we were unable to go. First we were upset, but now that we know the scenario of what we would have come back through that night, we have quite a different perspective. Sometimes we don’t understand why we go through certain obstacles, but God knows and he cares… If we only knew everything that he spared us from… reminds me of 4 flat tires coming back from Bahir Dar in Ethiopia (read the blog here). We are thankful for his grace in sparing Alex and I from that situation. Who knows what would have happened. Needless to say, Alex and I won’t be going to Kenya anymore.

Another scary incident happened to me yesterday (Saturday) in Jinja. We were there getting some cash from the ATM and getting an actual breakfast from a café. On our way back to the special hire taxi, we stopped at a supermarket to get a couple snacks. I stayed outside and was watching a group of Ugandan people gathered in an intersection. I watched for a few minutes and proceeded to ask someone that had come from the scene what was going on. He told me that they were confronting a thief. I stayed on the opposite corner for a while when, all of the sudden, one of the accused took off running down the street toward me. He jolted past me evading many Ugandan men trying to tackle him. He ran out of sight, but was back about 5 minutes later in the custody of the angry mob. The crowd gathered around again when all of the sudden, a sedan screeched to the middle of the intersection and the man was forced inside. 2 other people were in custody in the back as well and the car was off in a hurry. I was taking pictures of the man being arrested, and after the attention was off what was going on in the street, a few of the bicycle taxi drivers directed their attention onto me. Alex and Jonathan were still in the supermarket so I was all alone. One of the taxi drivers proceeded to threaten my life by mock slitting his throat then pointing at me. Others did the same, so I hurried back to the supermarket to hide out. I was tense, paranoid, and anxious for the rest of the day…

[The scene on Saturday afternoon in Jinja]

Our team hosted a base-wide fun-night on Friday, and we had a great time. Some of the games included musical chairs; limbo;
a form of rock/paper/scissors involving men, women, and gorillas; and jumping through hoops. It was a really fun night, the only casualties were a few chairs and Pila’s (one of the Tongans) shoulder being dislocated… He was fine and came back to play some more games. Everyone had a blast and it brought the base together to be more unified, which is always good in the body of Christ.

[Ruth and Gina displaying some of their limbo talents at fun-night]

There was also a sad event that happened on the base this week. It started out great because one of the base cats had kittens on Wednesday. Many of the girls would visit them everyday and marvel at their cuteness. During fun-night on campus, many of the people were getting bitten by soldier ants on their way to the DTS classroom where the fun-night was held. The next day, Saturday, there were so many soldier ants everywhere. The base cat was also walking around meowing at everything that moved and looking for affection with everyone she came across. Rob finally discovered that an entire colony of soldier ants had found her new litter and had eaten them alive. The four kittens were covered by ants, all of them dead. They kittens hadn’t even opened their eyes yet. It was a gruesome sight to behold. I took pictures, but I will not post them here due to the unnecessary graphic nature. I wouldn’t have thought that ants could do such things, but I guess huge colonies can come through small communities and clear them out, taking down cattle and even babies if they are left behind.

[Poor Mother Cat]

That’s about it for this weekend. Please continue praying for the team and for this conference. We are beginning to feel that the world, even the YWAM Christian world is not ready to take on God’s heart for HIV/AIDS. We believe that we should be overwhelmed with people trying to sign up and get here for this conference. I guess it’s a good indicator of the spirit of the fight against AIDS.

I am also starting to promote a ministry called Halfway There Water Project based out of San Diego in the US. The ministry is raising money for drilling projects in Africa to provide clean, drinkable water to areas who have none. If you would like to support this ministry, please click on the link to the right of the page. Their website contains some staggering statistics and information about the water situation in most of Africa.

Please also be praying about the support tour that is taking shape for the summer. God Bless.

In Christ Alone,
John Paul

Happy April! I can’t believe the year is ¼ over already… and that there is less than two months until the conference.

This week we have experienced a range of emotions. I went with Lucy to pick Ruth up from the airport last Tuesday. It is really great to have her back. She adds a lot to our team and I guess I might not have realized it until she was gone for the 10 days. She was able to share about her time in London and was really blessed by God for the entirety of her trip.

Other than that, it has been a busy and hectic week. We all really feel that there is some kind of block on our work; like we are fighting against something. There is so much going on here at the base that isn’t really related to the conference, but affects it and our progress greatly. Please pray that we will be able to stay focused on the Word of God, His promises, and our personal relationships with him. It’s hard to explain such things…

The preschool was broken into by little girls this week and the managed to take off with a lot of equipment, lesson plans, books, and toys. They also bit Job’s wife as she was trying to stop them. It was in the middle of the day and they were the same girls that took some dog shampoo from our girl’s room earlier this week. Since the base is so large and spread out, its hard to keep tabs on everyone that is on base. The grass was long around the school building, so our team spent some time slashing at it on Friday…

Like most weeks, we had a team dinner on Thursday night thanks to Rachel and Rob. It was vegetarian spaghetti and garlic toast topped off with chocolate pudding (don’t ask me where they got it)… So Good. I haven’t had garlic toast since Ethiopia when Anna made it weekly. The team dinner is starting to become a bit of a competition, so I am eager to see who raises the bar next week.

We also went out to a place called “2 Friends” in Jinja-Town on Friday night as a team. It was a great time of fellowship and a great time to get to know each other better. We all shared about some embarrassing moments from our lives, some movies that we felt embarrassed about tearing up over, and other random things. We all needed that time to get a fresh breath of air. It was amazing (and so was the Jack’s Chicken Tikka pizza that Alex and I split).

Since there wasn’t too much that happened this week because of all the craziness, I will tell you what I am doing, thinking, praying about, and reading.

This last week I finally turned in my application for a YWAM program coming up in September of this year. I have been taking pictures for a while, but have received no formal training; everything has been picked up along the way. A ministry within YWAM called PhotogenX is starting a photography DTS. This DTS is about to start this April and will run the normal length of a DTS. After that session is finished they are starting another session called “round the world”. It’s a track that starts off in India in September of 07’ and continues around the world, going to every inhabitable continent. From India, the tour goes to Egypt, Israel, Turkey, Greece, Chad, Southern Africa, Germany, Venezuela, then to Kona, Hawaii. We will stay there for a few months and then go on outreach again. Throughout the course of the tour, we will be learning many things. We will be taking photography classes, a school of biblical studies, graphic communications courses, as well as learning about the cultures that we are immersed in. Since we are going to a wide array of places, the program is lengthy; it doesn’t end until April of 09’. This may seem like a long time, but when I was hearing about the program back in Hawaii, it seemed to be perfect for me. I love to travel, take pictures, help people, and learn about different cultures and traditions. I will also get an associates degree in Photography and have a published work at the end.

I know that this is the next step that God wants me to pursue. With the hope of going on this track comes a dream for this coming summer. I have been thinking about setting up some benefit photography shows in a few cities across the states. This is all tentative right now, but I have been thinking about setting one up in Denver, Las Vegas (Alex is going to help me with that one since he lives there), Santa Barbara/Ventura/Los Angeles (somewhere in that area), and Chicago (Ruth is also a photographer/painter so it would be a joint showing). I would be going to all of these cities to share about my trip and raise money for some of the orphanages that we have been working with in Ethiopia and Uganda.

What do you think?

Also, let me know if you would like to be involved in the process. Please pray for clear direction and guidance.

Click for PhotogenX Track Outline

Click for PhotogenX Track Overview (places and dates)

In Christ Alone

John Paul