Stoic, serious expressions are often on the faces of Ugandan pastors and leaders as they carefully and intently listen to our teaching. From our American cultural perspective, this can be unsettling, causing us to wonder if our message is getting through to our audience.
As we talk with individuals, however, we discover that they are grasping and understanding Jesus’ message of servant leadership, for which we are grateful to God. He gives us the words we need, aids our translators, and the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of minds of both teacher and student to communicate the truths that need to be grasped.
In spending time with people before, during and after sessions, we discover that they are very engaged with the call to turn from leadership based on pride and fear to Jesus’ servant leadership based on humility and confidence.
They hear God’s word to them as they participate in the various activities that allow them to realize that they are not alone in their struggle with pride and fear, that help them determine the top values that will guide their leadership and how to lead people at various stages of development, as well as developing habits to sustain servant leadership as a lifelong journey.
Our time in the home of a Ugandan pastor, sharing a homemade lunch was the epitome of Ugandan hospitality: washing our hands before the meal, welcoming us, providing a bountiful selection of delicious freshly-prepared foods, and comfortable conversation. It was a wonderful gift after so many restaurant meals and snack meals on the bus.
Vicent just left the hotel for his “refreshment,” lunch and break, before returning to serve us in the evening. He is a gracious young man, one of many of our friends in Iganga who serve us faithfully and with grace here at Mum’s Resort Hotel. This is our second year here, and we have been welcomed as returning family.
James, our bus driver, serves us with great care, not only driving, but making sure we have water to drink, communicating with local officials on our behalf, patiently waiting for us as we teach, and inquiring after our well-being.
What I have come to realize, upon reflection, is that the stoic expressions and seriousness with which the Ugandan people receive our teaching is a sign of respect and an indication of their desire to learn all that we have to teach them.
American audiences and students have so many options that we tend to undervalue what we are being given. Not so here in Africa. Each opportunity to learn is seen as a gift from God, not to be squandered, but to be received with great seriousness and responsibility to learn and to put what is being learned into practice.
We trust that the Lord will be true to His word, and that not one word of His truth will fail to accomplish the purposes for which He has sent it out. Our prayer is that He will use the message of Jesus to transform lives here in Uganda, first those whom we are teaching, and then those whom they begin to influence through the power of Jesus expressed in Christ-like servant leadership.
Debbie Goes To Uganda 