Livin on a Prayer

Well we've already reached the halfway mark on our 40 day journey to Uganda, and we can hardly believe it. It's crunch time. In the next 19 days there are supplies to purchase, Bible lessons to prepare, medications to start, bags to be packed, and unpacked, and repacked several times. There is work to be done here at home, thank you's, itineraries and prayer cards to send, things to put in order, friends and family to visit, good-byes to be said, appointments to be kept, and let's face it, it's finally hot in Western New York so a pool to be swam in.

There's so much to do, and time is not on our side to get things done. As the title of this post says, we are livin on a prayer. So we ask that you would pray for us in these last couple of weeks before we leave.

Pray that:
- The Lord would help us to stay unified as a family (Satan's favorite tactic is to divide and conquer)
- The Lord will prepare our hearts for what's He has in store for us and that He will guide us and give us strength every step of the way.
- The Lord would continue to provide everything spiritually, physically, and financially for this trip.

Thank you for walking this journey with us. We don't know what we'd do without you keeping track of us, encouraging us, loving us, and praying for us.

- Aly

Hurry. Hurry. Wait.

We were making our final descent toward the airport in Amsterdam. Depending on what time our watch was set to it was either way too early in the morning or ridiculously late at night. Our flight was an hour late leaving Detroit, and with only an hour and a half layover we had a lot of ground to cover in a short amount of time.

Oh yes, and there was a language barrier.

The "kind" International Delta employee (can you even use those two terms together?) awaiting the passengers at our gate informed us that our flight was already boarding and we should run because they don't hold planes for passengers, and no she didn't know what gate the flight was departing from.

So we're running through the airport trying to find someone who will help us. If you know anything about the Dutch and their hospitality then you won't be surprised when I say we finally found a machine that gave us all the information we needed. So we ran around in circles, because the Amsterdam airport is a bit confusing, and it was early in the morning/late at night, we were sleepy, and hungry, and hey look! They have McDonalds! But still there's no time.

We finally find our gate and there's a huge line of people waiting to go through "security" (and I use that term lightly). We have enough time to all take turns using the restrooms which were placed oh so conviently at the end of the line before taking off on our next flight.

Hurry. Hurry. Wait.

It's the term our family has coined our missionary motto. We rush around as fast as we can to get to an airport line, or prepare a lesson for Sunday School, or finish painting a room, or even just get ready to leave the guesthouse in the morning, only to wait...and wait...and wait some more.

The Houser's missionary motto applies to a lot in life doesn't it? Have you ever found yourself going through cycles in life where you rush around to get something done? Maybe it's saving money to buy a house, or preparing your family for a new baby, or getting your degree so you can find a good job. And in all the hustle and bustle and focus of just getting to that time takes you away from actually enjoying the moment. And then suddenly you find yourself in a waiting period. The housing market plummetts. The baby is taking his or her dear old time coming into the world. Or you have the diploma in your hand just as the job market takes a dive.

Hurry. Hurry. Wait.

Maybe it's a missionary thing. Maybe it's an American mentality. Or maybe it's just the way life goes. But so often we tend to want to rush through whatever season of life we're in to get to the next one. Or we have to hurry to meet this deadline, or hustle to get achieve that goal. And then we get to the waiting time. We reach our destination. We finish the project. We finally made it, but we don't take time to enjoy it. There's something else that needs done. Somewhere else to hurry to. So we lose patience in the wait.

As you go about life and we prepare for this trip, with all it's hurry hurry waits up ahead, I encourage you while challenging myself and my family:

Take time to enjoy the hurry. And don't rush the wait.

- Aly

Today's Happenings

Well we are officially 3 weeks away from leaving, and I think it's all really starting to settle in that this is actually happening. You'd think going for the past 4 summers would be enough preparation, but it's still just as huge, just as amazing, and just as much a big deal as it was the first time. It's just now we have a better handle on what to pack.

Today my mom and I went shopping. My mission: to find a neck pillow. I left mine on the plane in Amsterdam last year...on the way to Uganda. Which means I had an 8 hour flight into Entebbe, and then then entire trip home (two 8 hour flights and a one hour flight) without a neck pillow. It was not fun.

The operation was successful, and I found what I hope will be a very comfortable neck pillow. Now my next mission is to make a cover for it that will somehow allow it to attach to my bag so I don't lose it again. Maybe I can make a belt so I can wear it around my waist. I'll call it a fanny pillow.

All in all it was a good shopping day, and we found some awesome deals (Old Navy has some huge sales going on). But it's also been a long day, so now it's time for some sleep...well right after I catch up on some soccer.

But before I go, I have a prayer request. We spent part of our day in the hospital visiting a friend of ours whose son was in a motorcycle accident with his girlfriend last night. He was very lucky to only break his leg. He had surgery on it today, but his girlfriend has a bad concussion and is disoriented. So if you could keep them and their families in your prayers it would be greatly appreciated.

- Aly

Celebrate Freedom

It's estimated that collectively Americans will eat over 150 million hot dogs today, which translates into approximately two per person. I, of course, can't eat hot dogs anymore (unless I dream about it) so if someone out there would be willing to eat my two, I would be so grateful.

Independence Day is a day we spend with family and friends, a time to be proud to be American (where at least we know we're free). It's a day to forget about the economy, gas prices, American politics, the indescresions of American politicians, and debates about gay marriage, abortion, or any other in a long list of tough issues.

It's a day when all Americans can come together, regardless of race, religion, sex, or political distinction and celebrate our right to have a say in government policies, critique our leaders, and have opinions without fear of what could happen to us.

Today we celebrate the freedoms that not many have, freedoms that at times are blessings in disguise, freedoms that make us uniquely American.

Happy Independence Day everyone!

- Aly

The Blessing of Sponsorship

Child sponsorship has been such a blessing to our family. It's where our ministry in Uganda started. The decision to sponsor a little girl from Uganda almost 7 years ago has led us down a path filled with both blessings and hardships, every single one of them worth it.

It all started with this sweet girl, Eva. She was 8 years old when we began sponsoring her. She came from Igamba and had a difficult life. Her father died and her mother struggled to provide for their family. She remarried and started selling alcohol from their home. They mistreated the children and even took some of the children out to the bush to abandon them. If it hadn't been for this sponsorship, Eva would've faced the same fate. But with God's intervention through AMG sponsorship, she was taken to Camp El Har orphanage (now also known as Upendo Christian Academy). She is at the top of her class, often leads worship for the other children, and is a leader among her peers.

I met Mariam and Sophie in 2007 on our first trip to Uganda. They also live in Igamba. They weren't sponsored then since they were still very little. Sophie was just 2 and a half or 3 years old, and Mariam was just one year older. They captured my heart the moment I met them and after returning home I couldn't get them out of my mind. I knew I needed to find them and sponsor them. At times I didn't know how I would be able to afford the sponsorship, but the Lord has always provided. It's been such a huge blessing to watch them grow over the years, and I'm looking forward to watching them continue to grow and hope one day they will be leaders at their center. When we go to visit, between Mariam's quiet, sensitive nature and Sophie's spunk, I've got my hands full but my heart is even more filled with love because of them.

We began sponsoring Bridget not too long ago. She also lives in Igamba (noticing a theme here?). She is the little sister of Bill the boy with the smile wide enough to cover all of Africa. We began to sponsor her after our trip in 2009, shortly after her mother died from heart complications after surgery. Her family has always been very special to us, so it seemed only fitting to do our part to ensure a bright future for her. She has a great smile like her brother and makes some of the most adorable faces. Her soft, sweet voice brings joy to our hearts.

If you hear us talking about our sponsored kids, you may notice how we refer to them. Mariam and Sophie are "my girls." My parents regard Eva and Bridget as their girls, and I see them as my sisters. (That distinction is also held by all the kids at Camp El Har/Upendo). They are part of our family and will always hold a piece of our hearts.

Do you sponsor a child through AMG International in Uganda? If you do, we'd love to hear from you. If you email your name, the full name of your child, and if you can, the name of the child care center they attend to housers4uganda@yahoo.com we would love to try to meet them. Of course we don't always get a chance to visit all of the centers while we're there, but we may be able to get an update for you from the staff.

Our sponsored kids are part of our family and we'd love to connect you with your sponsored child or children.

If you don't sponsor a child already and would like to, we'd be happy to find one for you while we're there. Just email us and tell us you're interested. There are so many needy children in Uganda who are looking for someone to love them into their family.

- Aly

From the Archives: Smile & Watch the Birdie

Today's story from the past comes from my dad and the very first trip he went on in 2006.

Aly just loves when I use some old expression to describe something I'm talking about, so when I chose the title for today's blog she gave me that look….. Anyway the above title would be synonymous with taking pictures. Pictures are very much a part of our work in Uganda. We use them not only to preserve memories of the trip, but to also use them in our presentations to show the differences of another country and culture. The pictures show the beauty of the country and its people along with their needs and living conditions however, capturing these scenes can lead to some interesting experiences.

As our team was returning from Igamba to Kampala I took an opportunity to capture some pictures of the cascading Nile River as we were crossing a bridge near Jinja, the source of the Nile River. A couple points to be noted here are:

1. At Jinja there is a dam that supplies hydro-electric power to most of Uganda. Given the importance of this fact, along with the need to protect the power source, the dam is guarded by the Ugandan Army.


2. It is illegal to take pictures of the Uganda Army.

With that being said I was able to capture the pictures I wanted to take on this return trip. I took the pictures as we entered the bridge and had what I wanted by the time we were in the middle. At that point I innocently pulled my camera back into the taxi our team was riding in. Unknown to me on the exit side of the bridge the Uganda Army had a station. It was at that time I discovered how alert the soldiers stationed there were as our taxi was immediately motioned over and very quickly surrounded by several members of the Ugandan Army. One of the soldiers stationed himself along the taxi by the window where I was sitting. Although he was speaking in his native language it was very clear to me that he was upset especially as he was using a big stick to poke me in the ribs identifying me as the owner of the camera he had seen. Two other soldiers opened the front and side doors of the taxi and wanted to see the pictures on my camera. The taxi full of team members were concerned what the camera may reveal, but I assured them there were no pictures of army personnel, but that was yet to be determined by the army themselves. Fortunately the soldiers I had to deal with spoke English which made communicating much easier.

I turned my camera on and showed the soldiers the last picture I had taken of the Nile River. After looking at that picture they instructed me to click it indicating they wanted to look at the next picture. They had me continue to click through numerous pictures at which point I was beginning to get nervous because the soldier outside my window was still poking me in the ribs with his stick and shouting in my ear. I really was beginning to think I may be headed for prison. At this point the AMG national with us got into a heated discussion with the soldier outside my window which didn't really seem to be helping my predicament any. Soon the soldiers at the door said something and the soldier at the window walked away. The soldiers at the door had me click through some more pictures after which they said something in their native language, smiled, closed the door and walked away allowing us to continue on our journey. I asked the national that was with us what that was all about. She replied that they realized I hadn't taken any pictures of the army nor compromised the security of the dam, but they liked my pictures so much they wanted to see the rest of them. For those who know me something like this can only happen to me.

How do I tie this to the ministry? As we travel innocently down the highway of life speed bumps appear challenging us to whatever test has been presented to us. We must face these bumps and have faith that God will see us through. I know during all of this incident team members were praying. At the time I wasn't sure if they were praying that no one went to prison or if anyone has to go to prison please let it be just Dean. I'm guessing it wasn't the latter since I'm sitting here at home and not in a Uganda prison, which would indicate that God does hear and answer prayers. And I truly thank Him for that.

The story doesn't end there. The last day of the trip we were traveling to the airport along Lake Victoria. It was late evening and the sunset was beautiful. The sunlight made it difficult to see the screen so I had to take pictures using the view finder which gave me limited sight of where we were. All of a sudden the blue sky turned brown. I took my camera down and there we were at the entrance to the airport and yep there stood a member of airport security looking at my camera. The whole team let out a groan as one was heard to say "here we go again………."

- Dean

Perseverance

So the Women's World Cup is in full swing, and this girl has World Cup fever! My family keeps laughing at me because every time they walk into the living room I'm doing the same thing - watching soccer.

This is really the first time that I've ever sat down to watch all of the games. Before I was really only interested in watching the USA games. But they've been a lot of fun to watch. (Stick with me. I'm going somewhere with this, I promise).

On Tuesday, the North Korean women lost to the USA 2-0. Now the North Koreans are very hush hush. They always have closed door practices, they rarely play games outside of world tournaments, and the players aren't allowed to talk to the press. So no one really knows much about this team. After the game, the coach of the North Koreans went to the press and blamed the loss on lightning. He said that during a practice leading up to the World Cup, his players were struck by lightning and a bunch of them were hospitalized. Seriously, I can't even make stuff like this up. If you don't believe me, the news article is here. What's funny is that no one knew about this until after they lost.

Now, in the opening match on Sunday Canada's star player, Christine Sinclair, took an elbow to the nose as she was running toward goal. A defender stuck her arm up and Sinclair took an elbow right in the nose, and she went down hard. She had to step off the field for a few minutes. If you've every been hit in the nose you can imagine the pain.

Now I would think if there were any excuse to take a seat on the bench and let someone else finish out the game she started, a broken nose would be a good one. But not for Sinclair. She went back out into the game. And not only that but she also played in the next game on Thursday with full face mask.

And if that wasn't enough partway through the game a defender from France went to clear a ball and happened to clear it off the face of Christine Sinclair. Again, she went down. She already has a broken nose, just got hit in the face again with the ball, has a gash over her eye where the mask dug into the skin, and on top of that her team was losing...big time. Now seriously, if there was any excuse now to throw in the towel, any of these would be good ones.

But not for Christine Sinclair. She finished out that game. They still lost. She still has a broken nose. And they won't advance for a chance to win the World Cup. But she gave her all and left everything she had out on the field.

There are so many times in life when we're facing an uphill battle. The situation before us looks utterly helpless. The cards are stacked against us. We're hurt, we're tired, and the expectations we had weren't met. The question is how will we react? Will we make ridiculous excuses that don't fool anyone? Or will we give it our all until the very end, never giving up but giving everything we have?

You know, it's funny. I had the idea for this post earlier today, but time slipped away from me and I didn't have a chance to write it. Then some things I've been struggling with got me down, and I was seriously ready to give up, throw in the towel, sit on the bench, and let someone else finish the game I started.

But that's not the life God wants us to live. See, the thing about the struggles we face in this life is we have a choice in how we'll react. Perseverance doesn't mean that we're okay with or enjoying the pain we're dealing with. It just means that we choose not to give up despite that pain. So I want to encourage you today (and myself too) no matter what you're struggling with, if you know Christ then you have the power to persevere. Don't give up, don't throw in the towel. Even when the cards are stacked against you. Give it your all and leave everything you have on the field.

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than He who is in the world. - 1 John 4:4

- Aly