July 17th 2009

I feel bad for taking so long to get this up....

"We arrived in Kampala yesterday @ 3pm. it was so exciting! we walked off the plane onto the runway that was a cool experience and gathered our luggage. We were greeted warmly by a man named chief fire...well thats his nickname :) and introduced us to our global partners. We loaded up our luggage and got on a bus, and 2 vans. I was in a van. There were 3 ugandans in the car their names were Allen, Esther, Ann, and Joy..i guess 4.. It took 45 min to get to our Hostel or new Home. On the way there we saw alot of Kampala and at one point boy cme up to the window and us a bag of sugar cane. Allen had to teach us how to eat it. It was hard and funny you don't swallow it, but it's kinda like gum, get the flavor our then spit it out. When we got to the hostel C -trippers ( kids that were in Uganda for 2 months) were screaming and welcoming us. They were so excited! There were a bunch of little children with them holding up signs that read " Welcome B trip to Uganda!" as soon as I stepped out of the Van a little girl ran to me and gave me a hug, Her name was Joy. The children live in the neighboorhood and leave at dinnertime. We saw kids EVERYWHERE, walking home from school, they just wonder around on their own in the Big city. The biggest form of transportation is bodbodas- a motorcylce or vespa. you can even ride them like a taxi. The driving here is insane not many laws...C team is really nice and imformative. Its really comforting to have them here. There is one girl in my room from C team, the other 2 are from my trip. We start ministry on monday which i am excited for! One thing is for sure, no one is here on accident, God is up to awesome stuff, I hear there is a revival in Uganda and now is the best time to be Here. Its neat to be apart of it! I'm excited to meet pastor Ssempa. There is just so much to say and tell and so much more to hear and learn! we are all so excited to be here. Oh and one thing all of us were prepared to get dirty and gross and really do hard things and God has provided us with comfortable beds and showers its quite comfortable here. It is such a blessing."

Day 1- July 14th/15th

We left this morning. Its midnight in Dubai, and 4 o clock in Kansas...weird..anyways the plane was nice ( real nice) I don't know where those 14.5 hours went! I sat in an aisle seat in the middle section nest to my team leader, Emily. It was fun, we watched Hannah Montana the movie, ate lamb and slept, played bowling ( I dominated and Emily quite when she realized she was going to loose) and slept and talked and slept...haha the weirdest part was watching the sun go down and then seeing it come back up 2 hours later..I think I got maybe 6 hours of sleep? The airport in Dubai was empty, though it felt like morning it was dark...I've been off the plane for 5 hours and now it feels like night...We are at a hotel and it is really nice <3 I get a big bed to myself! My roommate Leah ( you'll hear alot about her in the future) is from FL and is really sweet. The hotel gave us a free meal to an all you can eat buffet! Praise the Lord! let me tell you, there are no picky eaters in my group, everyone was excited to try EVERYTHING and you know it was very exotic food, I found mushrooms and was very happy.
We got 4 hours of sleep...I haven't slept that deep in awhile ( texas was rough) I feel so refreshed! They eat mushrooms for breakfast, so I had some more, not too many..but seeing it is 10 pm kansas and stomach time, I think I'll be ok...later on the plane....They are serving mushroom omlettes and the smell is making me feel sick.. For the first time on the trip I am listening to music... wow..really? I finished reading Amos and Obidiah and Lamentations I don't like reading about Isreals time of seperation but it makes the Grace and Mercy of God even more Great. Sometimes you have to go through the tough times to appriciate the good things...Sadly for Isreal it took alot of them to get it.
Everyone is so excited to get to Uganda today! Most of us still can't believe its happening! I've been talking to alot of kids on my team about how and why Uganda..and let me tell you, NO ONE is on this trip on accident, God's hand was in it the entire time. No one got here on their own and we were all just about last minute.
Its interesting just in these last 24 hours God has really lead my heart to the Middle East..flying over Iraq, Being in Dubai and being up close and personal to the people of Islam ( airport security) seeing the women being covered from head to toe but still looking beautiful, but also oppressed...I think I want to do something with woman in Isalm. We'll see where God takes me. Part f me wishes we were staying in Dubai, Dubai was very diverse, there were people of all nationalities. There is still so much to see and learn and experience and I want to be open to it all. I still am so humbled by God's Grace in giving me the opportunity!

I Promise!!

So I Promise I will be typing out my Journal on here soon and adding pictures from that day! but school has started and I have quite the schedule! I knew this would happen...But I promise As soon as I can I will get pictures up..I have some up on facebook, so if you want to find me because you can't wait any longer! Friend me - Kara Jane Evans

Used

Wow what a summer! All that I expected plus more! God Moved in Uganda this summer, He was moving 6 months ago, He is moving today, Uganda is on the Brink of change and it is so exciting to see it happening. Waking up every morning and seeing God everywhere it was overwhelming to be in the midst of his Glory. Hearing God Speak, and Seeing lives changed, hearing yourself and knowing you don't have the words to say and yet here you are saying things that you never thought of and know it is the Holy Spirit, Wow. Being Used by God is incrediable. Not only that but Fun :) I spent alot of my time playing with children, and holding them, running with them, Singing with them, dancing with them, Putting on silly skits for them, and then talking with peers, and sharing Gods love with them, and answering questions for them, informing them, and then there was hut to hut ministry where we did laundry, pealed planta, and talked to new moms and prayed with them. The neatest thing for me, more so then ministry, was just being with kids from all across the states and bonding with them, and hearing about there struggles and victories. We had no drama over the course of 1 month being together 24/7. It was great! we all had the hearts of servantude, and just really loved each other, I learned that I'm not the only one living in a barren Town! it was encouraging because now I have girls to go to, Now I have people I can ask to pray for me and to encourage me, and I am so sad that we are seperated, what Got me though is how i have never met any of them, and yet I feel like I have known them all forever! It was neat to go somewhere and just Praise God, we are of all ages, all backgrounds, all different churches and traditions but we all know how to praise God, we all know the same songs, and have been to some of the same confrences and camps, it was just great. I am so sad its over, but I am excited to take what God has given me and run with it, I know that God has amazing things planned for my senior year and I want to be Used By Him!

Here are a few Pictures from My Trip, More to come later :)

My Awesome Roommates and MAG This is alittle boy in an orphanage for disable kids,
He loved water bottles

3 more days :)

WoW. 3 more days left! I can't believe it, it exactly 3 days I will be on my way to Dallas...and in exactly 5 days I'll be on my way to Dubai and in exactly 6 days I'll be in Ethiopia, and finally in exactly 7 days I will be in Uganda. WoW. The next 10 days of my life are going to be pure Bliss. I am so so so Blessed and so Humbled by this opprotunity. Before I leave I wanted to share a story that was such a blessing to me. I was interviewed by the Lawrence Journal world, and was featured in their GO section. It was released on Monday. Now I had to go to work that day, and the article mentioned where I worked. I walked into Spangles really not wanting to be there, and Joey my manager says Kara I have something for you. he hands me a check and it wasn't a paycheck... It was a check for 75$ that came along with a note explaining the money was for my trip. I was so overwhelmed. I was never expecting to recieve money from a complete Stranger! it was much needed and I am very very Thankful.

I do have a prayer request of much urgancy, My sister and My mom have come down with a 24 hour flu, and though i am thankful it is only 24 hours, I still don't want to the chance of getting it while on my trip. Please Pray that God will place a hand of protection on my from the virus and keep me Healthy on my trip.

Well I have to clean my room, seeing as school starts right when I get back!

In Christ's Love

Kara

13 days

After a weekend Trip to Oklahoma, and a lot of sleep, I am ready to get going again! God has provided all of my Support, and now the real fun begins! I am in the middle of completing my packing list, and picking out outfits, and finding the memory chip for my camera ( which is still missing so please pray for that). Really no much news is going on yet, however I do have a new Rep now, since my original one is in Asia on a trip (she never told me about it!) his name is Jared, and All i know is that I miss Sara, We had a special bond...I think... But Jared seems like a cool guy, I've only talked to him once so far and I'll probably only talk to him once more before my trip. Pictures from Team A are up on the sight, And it looks like they are having a blast! I am happy i get to see what the girls are wearing and stuff, help me figure out what to bring. Here are a few pictures from the current trip that is over there, it will give you an Idea what I'll be doing when I am over there.

God is Good

So I've recently really gotten into reading Psalms. David, is slowly becoming my new Bible Hero. Its not that I've never admired David, I just didn't really know how much I could relate to him!
Psalms is the story of my life, and quite frankly everyone's life. There are days you want to Praise God, Question God, Call out to God, or even just talk to yourself. I've been reading in the back of Psalms lately, mostly Praise. I have so much to Praise God for, and Psalms can just word it so perfectly! My favorite Psalm right now is Psalm 103

¹ Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

² Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-

³ who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,

⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

⁶ The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:

⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.

⁹ He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;

¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;

¹² as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.

¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass,
he flourishes like a flower of the field;

¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.

¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD's love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children's children-

¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.

¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.

²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.

²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.

²² Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, O my soul.

Praise the Lord, O my soul. I feel an awesome David Crowder song coming up...But no, The Lord is worthy of all praise. A friend and I went out for coffee last night..we went to Dillions, which is a grocery store with a Starbucks in it. There was a couch and a chair in the back and it was delightful, we talked about college (She may be a future roommate), and marriage- more so the lack of preparation we have for that, friendship and of course Jesus! I had my Bible in the car, but she had two in her purse! So we had some devotion time. It was so refreshing and Just what i needed. I don't have to many friends who will praise God with me, and it brings me so much Joy to get to talk about God without getting funny looks or uncomfortable sighs! we decided to start meeting every Sunday, we are going to be looking for Bible verses that I can use to show Gods love to the children of Uganda. last night she found 2 1 John 3 and Romans 12. I liked 1 John because its says little children a lot, it sounds more intimate. but I like the Message or more so the wording of Romans 12.. I think I can find something even more comforting however to memorize and share with them.

Be Praying that God will give me just the right Passage, and help me to commit to memory the words he has chosen!

Also I'm wanting to take some things over with me to leave behind, I'm not quite sure what i want to take yet, So you could be praying that God will give me an idea, I've been thinking Bibles, but thats heavy to carry over, plus I don't know how many of the children know or will someday know how to read.

I've been receiving donations from Complete Strangers, and that has been the biggest blessing of all. I was able to communicate with a guy who went to Uganda last year with Teen Mania, and This year he is going to Zambia and South Africa for 8 weeks! He has been giving me travel tips, and ideas for my trip and asked for my ID # to give me a donation! This is a kid I have never met, I just found him on facebook through a friend in Los Alamos, NM whom I've only met once and he his parents are supporting me. God has been Blessing me through the most random people and it has been a very humbling experience. It interesting, because just 4 months ago I had a completely different plan for my summer, not to mention my post senior year life, and God has turned it around in a matter of weeks. It is so exciting to see God work in my life and change my heart, Its also scary and nerve-wracking as well, So please Pray that I will continue to follow him and not look back at all I've left behind for it isn't worth looking at anyways.

Thank you for your Prayers

In Christ's Love,

Kara Jane

Summer is Here, and God is Working

My Hand is so sore from writing Thank you Cards, This may sound like a complaint but really it is a blessing. I am so happy that I have reason to write Thank you Cards. My trip is 39 days away. Wow 39 days...i remember when it said 64...time is flying so fast, and I'm not at all stressed about raising the last of my support. My mom and I figured its about $1700.

Last Night I received a call from My history teacher, Mr. Nussbaum. He was asking me to help him publicize his trip to Kenya to get people to a live auction he was having. He also told me of an African Appreciation Day the Salon De Marco was having on the 13th. He said that they were going to have an information table, and that I could set up some information on my trip with a dollar jar! I quickly agreed. God keeps on providing ways for me to make money.

Another way God keeps on being amazing is that he gave me press time to share about my trip. I have a friend who got the opportunity to write and article in GO the Monday Magazine the The LJworld puts out instead of the paper. I am so excited that I get tell the whole city of Lawrence that I am going to Uganda to share Gods love and that the reason I'm going is because of God's love for me, and How i want to Glorify Him and Follow his commandments. Perhaps I'll get to share Gods love to more then children in Uganda through this! That would be Great!

Prayer Requests:
That my last bit would be quickly raised. I'm scared I'm hitting a roadblock...I'm going to start trying to sell days of my trip for 62.50 a piece..I just need to find 32 people for that.

That During my Interview for GO, I won't say anything, And That I really just let God Speak through me.


In Christ,

Kara

So I had my fundraiser at Spangles on Thursday, and It went Great! Thank you to those who came!

GOD is amazing, A couple of days ago, my family wasn't sure if I would make enough in time, and that Maybe God didn't want me to go, we prayed and prayed and prayed, and God pulled through of course! In just 3 days God brought in more then enough for my first deposit. I don't have much more to raise for my other half either, my dad put it in terms of 23 people give $100 and I'm done, I get to go! This made me excited, 23 people isn't very many, and I'm sure I could get more then that to just give me 50.

I have a prayer request however, Tuesday and Wed. are my last days of school, Finals week, and I have been so busy working, and making phone calls, and going to graduations, I haven't had much time to study..Today is my study day, and I am taking a 10 min break from physics to update you guys. I pray that God will give me energy to finish strong, since these Grades are crucial to my college career.

I pray and thank God for all of you,

Kara

AHH I need your Help!

Its Official!
Spangles Fund raising Night is going to be one Thursday May 21st
Bring all your friends, family, frienemies..whatever...Spread the word!!!
It starts at 5pm and ends at 8pm, so don't come at lunch...it won't count..
Now I know a lot of you are thinking gross spangles...but I have worked their for 7 months now, and I have worked at sonic in the past...Sonic food is decent yes?? well after working there...I'm never eating their again..where as at Spangles..today I wanted some onion rings, but Resisted... The oil isn't animal oil it is soybean so if your a vegetarian, its cool. The Ice cream is good, I like it, and it is Lactose free, so No excuses..I have my bases covered..

Haha I hope to see as many of you as possible come out to at least say hello or place a tip in a jar..

Which reminds me....
At school There is a Jar in Nussbuam's room, Feel Free to make it happy, it WILL smile for you if you put a dollar bill...laugh if you give it 5 and will it might give you a hug if you give it a 10, I guarantee it :)

Praying
Kara

Fund raising Night?

So Spangles agreed to let me have a fund raising night where I'll get 20% of the profit made in a 3 hour period... We initially agreed on a Tuesday night...but later I found out that a bazillion graduation parties were going ( ok only 2...but 1 of them had 3 of my good friends..who would attract half of my school.) so not wanting to compete with seniors who have waited their whole for a grad party...I am going to try to move my fund raising night to that Thursday two days later...
I will update this post to let you know the exact times on Thursday..PLEASE spread the word! Moms take the night off from cooking dinner- Dads Advocate for dessert that night! Please come and order something! any and everything will help! You don't need a poster or a name..just come in.. I might even be your cashier, or milkshake maker.. haha

More updates soon

Trusting in Christ

Kara

I wish I had more for you....

Its been awhile since I've been able to update but not much has changed, I'm still working on sending more and more letters out. but not many reply's yet.. Keep praying that God will open hearts!
I went to Wal-mart the other day to see if I could do a car wash, I've heard that they will match what ever you make up to 500 dollars. Instead the manager said Wal-mart might just donate to me! which would be great :)

I'm also planning a fund raising night at the restaurant I work at... Spangles.. So if your in the Lawrence area...check back on... Monday... ?...for a date for that, Spangles will give me 20% of the profit they make that night which would be a huge help!! Mudslides, fries, and Milkshakes are pretty good there so if your not a hamburger person please feel free to still come!

At school I "installed" a change jar on my teacher, Mr. Nussbaum's, desk. I'm hoping kids will stick loose change and dollar bills in it...Most of my friends know about my opportunity and want to help.

All in all I'm a little nervous seeing as I only have 20 days left to raise 50% of my total amount, and with Global Expeditions, its a first come first serve, I cannot go with out your prayers and support. But I know that God will pull through and remain faithful, he is the one ultimately in control.

In Christ
Kara

Beginning Stages Coming Together.

I received my information packet on Saturday while I was at the Rescue of Joseph Kony's Invisible Children. I ripped it open as soon as I got home! I got a T-shirt, brochures, and envelopes. Everything is coming together and becoming more real! I have about 30 days to raise $2,377. Balance so far...$0. Be praying for me!!
I have printed out all of my letters, and I have hand addressed more then half of the envelopes.
I hope to get all of my letters out by the end of the week.

Praying for a Miracle,
Kara