Justine Goes Home to be with Jesus!

Mike and the girls have taken our Awaken to Love team up to Murchison Falls for a 2 day safari. I stayed back to welcome another volunteer who is arriving late tonight. I am really enjoying spending some time alone here at Field of Dreams. Thinking of all the interns and other teams planning to come in the next few months, it might be my only time I will EVER get to be alone here, so I am going to breathe it all in.

While the team is gone, I have been pondering so much that has happened. I guess the emotions of some things don’t really come up until you actually take some time to uncap your heart and let them out. (thus the blog)

The days of the week all seem much the same here (at least to me). Other than having a few specific outreaches that happen on certain days, there isn’t anything to really decipher each day. Back in America, we have TV shows or school things to pave the way for our week. It seems here though, you don’t strive to reach the weekend so you can rest or have fun, because most of our “work” is done then. We are still figuring out how to take time off and find some time to rest. It can be challenging with so many needing your help and input on things.

With that said, I can’t remember the actual day the following happened; I just know it was a little over a week ago. One of the orphans we had been helping passed away. Her name is Justine and she was only about 7 years old. She had been sick with the measles. (We don't even have to battle this disease in America anymore and there is a way to prevent it!!!)

 We have a nurse on our team who was consistently checking on her and giving her medicine to help with her fever. We also took her food and juice to help. Actually as I type it seems it was a Sunday evening. The nurse had visited Justine that morning after church, but that evening we got a call to let us know Justine had died. 

As I received the news, I couldn’t believe it. I had just seen her the day before. I wasn’t sure whether to cry or yell. Suddenly, asking Mike what we should do, I said, should we go pray for her to be raised back to life. Honestly, I don’t know where the thought suddenly came from, but it came and we did just that. We took a few other of our friends from our church back home and headed over. When we arrived, her body was still hot from fever. 

The children were all crying hysterically as well as the family and neighbors. As we cleared the room, we knelt down by her delicate little body and began to pray. I don’t know how much time passed, but suddenly there was a peace that truly surpasses all understanding that enveloped the room. Right then, I had a picture in my mind (I could see it even though my eyes were open) of Justine running down the dirt road toward Jesus. She looked back at me with her precious smile. I too was on the road. She turned around and ran back to me into my arms. She hugged me BIG and said “thank you for all you have done” in perfect English and then began sprinting back into the arms Jesus. 

Was this real? Am I making this up? As the emotions flood back and tears roll down my cheeks, I can promise you this wasn’t some made up moment. I don’t think you can make up things as powerful as this in the midst of death, faith, tragedy, peace, contending, and letting go. I knew then, she was with Jesus.

You would think I would have broken down and began to cry, but instead, I had a peace and strength to get up off the floor (while the rest of my team continued to pray and worship Jesus), walk out to the back of the house and sit on a log with the rest of the family. 

As the sun began to set and darkness arose around us all, I marveled that here I was in Uganda. I felt so honored and humbled as I sat under the stars and hugged the family who had a dear child leave them to go home to their Father in heaven. 

As I loved on the children, Margaret, the care giver to some of our SMI orphans, shared her last conversation with Justine. As they sat on the couch, Margaret was holding one of her newborn twins, Phoebe. She looked at Phoebe and then over to Justine. Phoebe was Margaret’s first biological daughter, but in that moment, she told Justine, now, she had two girls; Justine and Phoebe. Justine smiled up at her “momma” Margaret. It was about 1 hour later, Justine breathed her last breath.

(Here is something my good friend Jeanne shared with me back in February about little Justine:

"I was singing Jesus loves me this I know to the kids and then I asked them to sing a song for me and she is the only one that sang. She sang I have joy,joy,joy down in my heart, where down in my heart,  and I'm so very happy so very happy I have the love of Jesus in my heart. It was so cute, she touched my heart.)

My good friend Jeanne with Justine and Zaitum

It wasn’t until the next day that the “what if’s” hit me. What if we had our medical clinic opened already, would Justine still be here? What if I had been more of a voice and had raised more funds for our clinic? What if more nurses or doctors were here with us now, would we have saved this life? What if What if What if! 

Time is a gift from God. Life is a gift from God. Today is a gift from God. We obviously can’t focus on what we could have done, because that won’t change anything for today. We can focus on what we will do, because that is where change awaits us all! So, if you are reading this, will you pray with us as we continue to press on to complete the many things SMI has to do. We need help in every area you can think of. With God all things are possible, but HE always works through people.

It’s weird how changing the continent you live on can begin to change you. When I say change you, I mean, perspective and realization of the actions necessary to help others.

I am thankful to be here to help and serve. My body is getting used to the bumpy roads and my feet will learn to love hard concrete floors and dirt roads (right?). I think we need a masseuse (uh, maybe my Auntie G) to come on a trip. I am sure many missionaries could use your gifts and talents. 

One last thing. For some reason the scriptures I hear read every Sunday are like life breathed into my being. When a Psalm is read, something inside of me comes alive and says - IT'S TRUE! I guess it’s because here, the answers aren’t so readily found. I guess I've taken the words I've heard for so many years for granted, but now, they give me life and hope. You have to seek HIM with all your heart and THEN, well, you get the point. Life is different here, but I still find that Love is the same. We are all looking for LOVE and longing to discover the way it can bring about life...including me.

Lori