Uganda

Praise the Lord! The {purl} Project is well underway in Gulu, a small town situated in Northern Uganda. Coming here, I was unsure how God would use this message to bring hope to women, both young and old.

On one of our many trips to the marketplace, we stopped and visited a shop run by a small group of seamstresses. We were sharing with them our hopes for the youth of Northern Uganda, when one of the women asked us “what can you do with us?” Before we reached the outer parts of the market, I turned to my friend and suggested we do a women’s bible study. After brainstorming ideas on what to study, God led us to the story of Tamar. Tamar was a woman of hope. Her story unveils a life that longed for a loving God and overcame the abuse of the men who controlled her future. God used women in a very deliberate way to bring about his purposes for his people...because they were sensitive to his calling. We want to study the women in the Bible that God used and relate what we learn to our lives so we can become women of character.

As we began this study, we were amazed to see how closely this simple story that was buried in the Old Testament, related to the women we were forming relationships with. Before we began, we presented each of the women with a pearl necklace, all made with the same golden yellow colored bead. We showed them a real oyster and pearl, representing who God believes them to be…created out of hardships and painful situations overcome…they have been created and found valuable by Him. He holds them in his hand. We call them our “marketplace pearls”, eight beautiful women (so far) who have opened up to us and shared pain and joy they experience daily here in the beautiful nation of Uganda…known as the “pearl of Africa.” Of course, we mentioned that connection to their lives…that they are the true pearls of Africa!

We have been blessed to no longer be considered only mzungo’s (white person) but have become their sisters in Christ. They have shared with us their heart…and their needs…inviting us to laugh and to cry with them. Our time spent in prayer, is one of the most beautiful things I have ever experienced. Some of the women pray in Acholi (local language of Gulu), while others in English. Regardless, of the many differences in our lives…God has brought a group of unlikely women together to grow in our faith, our love, our pain and our hope in Him who calls us His own.

On one of our recent gatherings, Grace (one of our sisters), mentioned that others had been noticing a three mzungo’s coming into the shop and were wondering what we were bringing. Grace proceeded to tell them that we come with nothing, other than the most important thing we have to offer…the love of God. Wow! It is incredible to see God holding these women out as a testimony of his hope. Continue to pray for our “marketplace pearls”

(Grace, Dorcas, Consolut, Christine, Karla, Miriam, Cecila, Sarah, and baby Lakica) who meet twice a week on Tuesday & Thursday afternoons.

This coming week will be the start of another {purl} group, made up of girls ages 12 – 15. It will be located at one of the primary schools and take place every Wednesday afternoon. We are planning to do a study on the life of Esther. Along with our weekly girls bible study, we will be making pearl necklaces to give to the various women we come in contact with. Some of these women we have been asked to share the message of hope with are the Congolese women who have fallen into prostitution due to poverty and racism, and the women at the local prison. We are looking forward to having a small part in raising up this next generation of young women who are going to do dynamic things for the nation of Uganda and the world! After a meeting with the headmaster last week (an incredibly supportive man of God), he encouraged us to start this {purl} project group as soon as possible…excitedly reporting this will be the first girls club in a Ugandan school. This group will be called “school pearls.” He shared his plan for us to expand this group into the other schools in Gulu…saying there is no club that focuses on girls specifically and speaks life over them and breaks the hold of the traditional views of women. We laughed at that notion…and yet maybe something may just come from all of this.

The value on our lives as women is so unmistakable. Here in a culture where women are considered to be less then men and bound by their traditional roles…God is moving. Just as Tamar blossomed in some pretty dark situations…and Esther began as an orphan, but transformed into a queen…so God is searching for his pearls. Those who will allow their experiences and circumstances to help shape them into who He has called them to be. That is the message of the {purl} project and the message of our creator. It is our hope this message will spark something in the deep places of the women we share it with…and that they will pass it on to others.

It is even more exciting to hear that God is not only moving among the women in Uganda, but in Canada. I have heard from one of my one of my co-leaders back home that there are girls in Winnipeg who are making more necklaces to be brought over to Uganda in the summer. The {purl} project has also been taken to Jamaica with a youth group just this past March. It is incredible that a missionary woman living in Haiti has even heard about it and has sent money to support this message of hope and value placed on the lives of women all over the world. God is good!

Blessings,
Janessa