For the last two weeks I have been working at Wakisa Ministries in Namirembe and I will be working there for another week when I return to Kampala from Jinja. Thank you to all of those that I have been touch with who have been praying for me.
It has been such a wonderful and rewarding but challenging experience. It has been great to spend time with the girls there and get to know them. Many of the girls have very difficult backgrounds and stories that led them to Wakisa, which are heart breaking to hear. The youngest girl they have at the centre currently is thirteen but the youngest they have had there is ten. Due to the trauma which these girls have experienced, they are offered regular counselling from Christian counsellors. The stories of transformation that I have heard are remarkable. God is moving at Wakisa.
I have been doing a variety of different things at the centre to help the long term full time staff. For the first few days I was mainly observing the different classes that the girls had. On my first day, I arrived at 9AM and put wellies on straight away to join them in their agriculture class to dig. It has been a case of being flexible to turn my hand to wherever I am needed :) .
Thank you to Aunt Vivian, the rest of the staff team and the girls for making me feel so welcome.
Thank you to Aunt Vivian, the rest of the staff team and the girls for making me feel so welcome.
Agriculture class- Wakisa have a small garden down the road from the centre where they grow food like cabbages, potatoes and lettuce that are then eaten at the centre. The girls learn agriculture theory in the classroom and then learn how to cultivate the crops in the garden. When they leave the centre, some of the girls choose to pursue agriculture as a business or for subsistence after learning these skills, especially if they come from village areas.
Life skills class- In this class, the girls learn many practical skills to help them and their future children lead productive and healthy lives. They learn about health, hygiene, diet, relationships. Some of the classes I have participated in include nutrition, sickle cell disease, how to wash properly and healthy relationships.
Textiles class- The girls learn to see by hand and by machine and to knit. The first week they were seeing together blanket squares that have been donated to the centre. The second week they were making baby dresses and the girls showed me how to make a hemline using simple hand stitches. The skills they learn can be used to learn a living as a seamstress or as a basis for further training.
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| The Wakisa gift shop where the crafts and textiles the girls make are sold. |
Antental and infant care- The girls learn about pregnancy and how to take care of themselves whilst they are pregnant. I have also accompanied them for antenatal vaccinations and scans at the nearby Mengo Hospital. It was a joy to see the excitement of the girls at seeing their scans. The other part of this class is learning how to care for their babies well as they grow up, which is especially important because infant mortality is fairly high in Uganda.
Bible study class- Wakisa is a Christian centre that aims to show the girls the love of Christ and the Bible study class helps them to learn more about the Christian faith. They also have a visitor who teaches the Alpha course, which introduces the basics of the Christian faith to them.
One Bible study class looked at our identity in God. At the end, everyone had a piece of paper attached to their back and had to write positive encouraging things about other people in their back. It was really wonderful to see the encouraging things that were written and the joy this brought to the girls. Many of them come from abusive backgrounds that have caused low self esteem. I am so thankful for how God is working in these girls hearts to show them that they are beloved daughters of God through Wakisa.
Also, I led another session on what God promises about their unborn children. The focus was on Psalm 139 and other Bible verses that show God knew us and had a plan for us before we were even born. After studying what God has to say about their babies, each of the girls chose a verse that they wanted to declare over their baby's life. They wrote this in the middle of paper and then wrote their prayers for their baby around it. As many of their babies were originally unwanted or unexpected, with some of the girls planning abortions before Wakisa, it was amazing to see the love for their babies that was poured out into their work and what they were praying for their lives.
English class- The English proficiency of the girls varies greatly. Some of them have learnt English well in school before they were forced to drop out due to pregnancy, whilst others have never been taught English formally because they have never been in school or had a limited education. The English class helps them to improve their conversational skills. I have been teaching them proverbs and idioms. The idioms especially result in much laughter. We have had great fun acting out and making conversations using idioms such as 'we're all in the same boat.'
Cookery class- The girls cook their meals for themselves at the centre on a rota. The cooking class teaches them how to make these meals, including matooke and gnus sauce, chapattis, rice and beans. They also learn how to make other foods that they can cook in the future or in a business such as chocolate biscuits, doughnuts and pancakes. I loved joining in with the chapatti cooking class and learning how to use a charcoal stove to cook them using your hands. I also loved eating what was made!!
One of the girls who gave birth this month plans to start a cookery business with the skills she learnt at Wakisa.
One of the girls who gave birth this month plans to start a cookery business with the skills she learnt at Wakisa.
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| chapatti making |
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A birth- One of the girls that I got to know in the first week gave birth to a healthy baby boy in the second week. I had the pleasure of meeting him before her father came to collect her. Thank you God for a safe delivery!
Helping Aunt Vivian- I have also been working in the office at Wakisa to help the director Aunt Vivian. I have been helping to edit her newsletter and to write a book for young people on healthy relationships. I have enjoyed having the chance to be creative and write. I hope that what I have worked on will help the girls and others across Uganda.
Please pray for:
- For the mother and baby who just left the centre- that their will be healing of family relationships and that she will settle well into motherhood.
- The health of the centre.
- For me in my ministry with these girls for a week in a few week's time.
- For Aunt Vivian as she continues to write the book on relationships.
- My travel over the weekend to work with YWAM Jinja
. When I first arrived at the airport, it felt so surreal. I couldn't quite believe that I was actually in Uganda! The best way I can describe it is that my heart sang for joy. That sounds really cheesy but I think it encapsulates how I felt. I can't wait for the next 2 months! 
