Here I go again! 😊

Hello friends and family!

GSFIS teachers and
graduating class 

What an incredible gift my time at GSF has been. I have loved serving MKs and their families at the international school. Teaching them has been so much fun and these families are the best.  I have loved learning about how they serve in Eastern Uganda through Ekisa, Sonrise, Equip, Farming God's Way, GSF (which is more than the MK school), and Amazima. I have also been so blessed by all the love, encouragement, and support I have received from the families of my students, as well as my coworkers at GSF. These people love Jesus and others so beautifully and I feel blessed and thankful for this past season at GSF.

Highlights from the last few months:

April/May

Amy, Delaney, me, and Chelsea
(left to right)

- Amy moved to Uganda at the same time I did. She has been one of my closest friends over the past three years and we have often cried together, prayed together, processed hard things together, and been there for each other in many situations. She decided to stay at Amazima a few months longer than her contract to make sure she handed off her responsibilities well to the next person taking her position - so she was here
until the first week of May. The few remaining team members (Delaney, Chelsea, and I) took her to Prayer Mountain for a day of reflection, thanksgiving, and prayer. What a sweet gift our friendship has been and I'm so thankful for the team that came to Uganda together. 

- Amy was determined to go to Sipi Falls before she returned to the US. We had planned to go in October, but she got sickness after sickness. After rescheduling our trip 5 times, we ended up squeezing in a short trip the weekend before she flew out. Sipi Falls is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been and we loved hiking from waterfall to waterfall on this trip. Again, I am so blessed with the friends God has given me and I'm thankful Amy and I finally had the chance to go to Sipi together.

June

- The last day of teaching at GSFIS was June 6 and we had the chance to celebrate with all the parents and students. It was so sweet to hear from the parents how things I had said in class made it home and led to family discussions. I'm thankful for the many cards and messages from families that have let me know that my time at GSF, though brief, has been meaningful. Of course, I also taught my students some of my favorite songs (enjoy the Hippo Song below) and many parents commented that their kids were often singing Bible verses to them (thanks Mom, Dad, and Miss Epley!).

- Saturday, June 8th was my last day as a member of the GSF team. We had the most wonderful graduation celebration with three amazing graduates. Each graduate had a chance to speak, and they each chose someone to speak. The speakers each spoke on John 15 reminding them that no matter what they end up doing with their lives, the most important thing is to abide in Him. It was a great reminder to our graduates, and also to myself and I've decided in the next couple of months to work on memorizing that passage (you can test me next time you see me!). The evening ended with everyone jumping into the Nile and then dancing. It was definitely a sweet celebration and a beautiful way to wrap up my time working at GSF.

- Because I'm going from an international school back to Amazima (a Ugandan school), I don't get the regular end-of-the-year break. I didn't get that either last year when I went from full-time Amazima to part-time Amazima/part-time GSF, so I decided to make sure I got a little break before I start back at Amazima. On June 10th, I was able to go to the UAE and meet up with some friends who flew in from the US for graduation at The Wellspring School. It was such a good week and a half of visiting old friends, seeing students that are now almost as tall as I am, enjoying good food, spending time at the beach and pool, and just taking time to relax. I'm so thankful for such a close place (only 5 hrs by plane) that feels like home and friends there that feel like family. 

Coming Up:

- I start back full-time at Amazima on Monday!!!!! I'm so excited to be going back. I've visited my students on Fridays over the past few months and am looking forward to being back full-time with them. There have been changes in Amazima's leadership and some hard lessons learned since the start of the primary school, and I am praying that it is a healthier place for staff so we can serve our students well. Please pray for me as I will be adjusting back into Ugandan curriculum and longer school days again. For the rest of this term, I will mainly be working with a teacher named Sarah as she is working with 18 kids who are far behind in P5 and in need of extra support. Pray that I would be a valuable resource for her, that we would be able to help the kids, that we would get along well, and that I would not take charge (as I'm so used to being the lead in my own classroom). My students from my first year are also in P7 (the most challenging year) and I look forward to being there for them more consistently this term. 

- I'm moving (again)! I'm so thankful I had the chance to live with Esther these past few months. We've hosted many events in our home - last night we had a worship night. She works for Ekisa, a beautiful ministry that works with children with special needs, and two long-term interns are coming to work for Ekisa, too. We have a friend moving to the US and leaving an amazing apartment vacant, and it just made sense for Ekisa to use our house for interns who come and go regularly and for me to take the apartment. I do love living with Esther, but I am excited to move into this new apartment on the Nile (you should see the view from the balcony!). On the compound I'll be moving to there are four attached apartments housing a friend from GSF, the Amazima medical director, and a friend from Ekisa. There will always be someone close-by to call if I need help, so this is the ideal living-alone-but still-together-with-friends-situation. Please pray that moving would go smoothly (on July 20th) and I would find the last few things I need to furnish the apartment (the biggest need right now is finding a good refrigerator).

Thank you for continued e-mails, texts, prayers, support, and other forms of encouragement. I'm so blessed by you all and thank God for the people He's placed in my life!

💜 Jaci

*This has been my song for this season and goes with the scripture I'm starting to memorize (John 15).