Sunday, January 4, 2009

Watoto...Wow!

Our family had the pure joy and honor of hosting a gentleman and two boys from the Watoto Children's Choir last evening. I honestly can say, the experience was amazing. There were surreal moments, when I thought, "this can't be real". It just seemed too good to be true. We started by going to see them at a church in West Milton last evening. Jim and I had a difficult time holding it together throughout the concert. Julia usually stares at me when I cry, which is a lot, so I tend to hold it in a bit. The choir spoke so loudly of what has been on my heart for over a year, but I feel as though I had no way to express it. They expressed it loudly and clearly. I could not get over how beautiful they were...inside and out. They said please and thank you to everything. They are THANKFUL to go to school, have shoes, a warm bed, and a mom who cares for them. They know what their lives were like before Jesus rescued them, and their not afraid to tell about it. They asked "Uncle Brian", their chaperone who stayed with us, if they could play downstairs. They asked if they could watch tv. They were simply amazing. Brian was such a kind soul. He mentioned that he helps to lead worship in his church in Uganda, which has approximately 20,000 people...yes, I wrote the number correctly. Can you imagine?! He said there are satellite churches (I forget exactly what he called them.), so they're not all in one building. But, he said there are 2,000 people who will come to one church in one day over a period of hours. Jim handed him my guitar after he told us that he plays during worship. He made the guitar sound beautifully. I guess I can't blame it on the guitar any more...and He likes Jennifer Knapp...one of my favorite singers. He said that they use the same music that our praise band uses, which surprised me. Brian led us in some worship songs..."Majesty", "You Are My Strength"...He was such a humble, yet courageous soul. Words simply can not express my gratitude to the Lord for allowing our family to participate in such an awesome experience! In James 1:27, God tells us to visit orphans...I guess the Lord even rejoices in having orphans visit us :-)