The following update is from our dear friends, Randy and Alisa Varga.  They are currently in the process of preparing to go to Uganda to serve with Show Mercy for the long-term and help facilitate the Field of Dreams project.  They have traveled to Uganda two times now and have been very involved state side too.  We are very excited to have them as part of the SMI team!

After our last team left Uganda in January, Randy and Alisa stayed behind to make preparation for their up and coming move. Here is what they wrote:

Isa 1:17 – Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

These are the things God calls His people to do; these are things that are good in His sight. As we are here in Uganda we see the need so clearly. There is much injustice. There are many who are oppressed. There are more orphaned children than adults and many of the adults have been abused so much in their lives, they don’t know any other way. So, the cycle of abuse continues on. Then there are the widows…too numerous to number, who have been left alone from the ravages of war, aids, malaria, and other harsh realities of life in Africa. Their lives are a struggle, they need help.

Driving through the streets you see so much need. The need is greater than we can comprehend. We ask ourselves “Where do we begin?”

Then, we drive into “Hope Children’s Home.” Things are not perfect here either; at first glance you see 94 children, orphans, living in one large home and one smaller one. But they are children who after being rescued from horrible circumstances are now being fed, clothed, cared for, schooled, bathed and loved. Children who once had no hope of a future are now filled with hope. The Lord has looked down upon this small corner of the world and reached clear across to the other side of the world to touch the hearts of men, women and children who are willing to answer the call of injustice, respond to the oppressed, defend the cause of the fatherless and plead the case of the widows. This is the work I have seen here; the work Show Mercy is doing in Uganda. But Show Mercy is not just a humanitarian organization started by two well meaning people. It is a movement of a God who says “The plight of my people in Africa is not OK with me”, it is the obedience of His children to hear the call and lay down their lives to follow Him faithfully. Show Mercy is all of the people who give to sponsor children, build buildings, feed hungry people, help those in need or join a team to serve as missionaries, short-term and long-term here in Uganda. We together are Show Mercy; a family of partners working to raise a family of children who will one day be the new face of Uganda, end the cycle of poverty and abuse, and usher in a new day in Uganda.

We can see in our minds eye a day when all the good seed that has been sown into these children will come to a day of a fruitful harvest. We see a day when they are grown, schooled, working and returning to their community the goodness that they have enjoyed. These are the faces of the new Uganda. Your sacrifice is making a big difference. Thank you.

Together with Him,
Randy and Alisa Varga

Click here to find out more about our upcoming trip in July 2009 as well as find out the latest news.