It has been an amazing couple of weeks. Once again it is such a joy to serve the Lord with my son Bryan. He along with my dear friends Jimmy Wallace and Joel Cobb who are like family to me, and they make it seem much like home around here!

I’m not sure of the exact order to write the events of the past few days, much has happened that has been unusual, yet without a doubt each of us knows God has been in control, although some of the events have been hard to understand.

God allowed me to once again experience Malaria, so now I am thinking surely 3 times has to be enough!  As both of the other times, I visited the local clinic for testing and the test results were positive. However, this time, after finishing the medicine, I was not better. So, I traveled over into Kenya and was examined by a real docto who actually has a license hanging on the wall!

He said the medicine I took last week wasn’t effective, so he took me up the next strongest dosage. I started the medicine last night and by this evening I could tell I was getting better.

Although I have been ill with Malaria, I have been able to participate in much of the activities. I’ve only had a couple of days where I just couldn’t keep up. Last night was one of those nights I would have gone out with the team regardless of how I was feeling. God graciously gave me the strength and endurance to travel to a bush church and hear my son Bryan preach his first sermon! WOW, God spoke through him and many were saved!

I was thinking about how proud I was when he won his first ballgame, and when he won his first wrestling match, the day he became a born again Christian, the day he married, the day he became a father, and now the day he preached his first sermon! What a joy it has been to watch God bring him to the place He always knew He created him to be!

When we headed out to the bush church for service, both of our vans got stuck. Without a doubt it was a fun adventure, well maybe not for the guys who had to get out in the mud and push us out, but it was hilarious! The second van got stuck trying to pull the first stuck van out.

It was disappointing to have to turn back knowing the church where we were scheduled to attend would be greatly disappointed. As we started back a decision was made to stop at a church we had passed on the way. A group of Christians were there and we had stopped on the way and greeted them. When we went back there, God showed us that this is exactly where we were suppose to be! All week God has changed our plans to align us up with His perfect will.

Last year when I traveled to Busia with a team, I had the privilege of making a great friend named Jeff Sheppard who was a part of our team. One of the greatest blessings of traveling on mission trips is the friends you make along the way. Jeff was no exception, and since that trip I have looked forward to his returning and serving here once again. He arrived here last Thursday afternoon and was super excited to be back. He was looking forward to being a part of the construction team putting the new roof on our church.

On Friday things were going great, the construction team was making great progress when Jeff had a terrible accident. He was on top of the church wall helping bring up the first truss when he fell 20 feet. He was rushed to the local hospital in the back of a dump truck but the power was off so he was transported to a hospital in Kenya that could take the necessary scans and x-rays he needed. God truly protected him, although he has spent the last 6 days in the hospital, he had no broken bones or internal bleeding. Yesterday a nurse flew in from the states and today they flew out headed back home. Please remember Jeff in your prayers, he was very disappointed not to be able to come back here and complete the mission with the team. He continues to seek the Lord and is trusting that God has a plan for allowing this to occur.

It’s been good to be a part of the awesome team God has sent here, as well as the team of people back home who are praying for us and made it possible for so many of us to be here. One of those people back home is my friend Trevor Cain. Trevor has been here to Busia on 2 different mission trips. One of the blessings Trevor has given to us here is some new bibles. We have so many pastors who do not have a full bible. Some have a New Testament, but very few have both the old and new testament. This week I was blessed to hand out the bibles to many of the Pastors here. Here are pictures of Pastor Patrick and Pastor Samuel who oversees not only their own bush churches, but 18 others as well.

I asked Pastor Samuel how many of his pastors had full bibles and it made me sad when he told me that only 4 had them. I ask him what did they do to prepare for preaching and he told me they would use the bible of one of the church members, if a church member had one. Now all 18 pastors have a full bible. I can only imagine how their flocks are going to grow now!

The team has been wonderful, the roof construction has continued,

the sponsor packets have been distributed, the children have been taught,

and more than 10 bush churches have been visited and many have come to know the Lord. Tomorrow will be the last full day for the team and we are anticipating much work to be accomplished.

Safety has not been an issue. We have adjusted to having armed guards and riding in a vehicle every where we go instead of walking. I have learned that in January and Febuary there will be the threat of violence all over the country of Uganda as the National elections take place. We have been advised that this will not be a safe time for me to be here. My friends here that are Kenyans but teach at our school and live here on the Uganda side of the border have told me that even they will flee back to Kenya until the elections are over.

I am planning to leave as scheduled the first of January and head back to Africa, but I will go to the Kenya bush for January and February to teach women’s bible studies as well as leadership. It has been something I have been praying for the opportunity to do and am looking forward to ALL God is going to do! Please remember my Uganda family and friends in prayer in the months ahead as events such as this election bring uncertainties to them and their families.

Love to all,

Joy Breedlove

Missionary-East Africa