For most of February my grandparents and our friends the Ritsemas visited us in Uganda. While they were here, we visited two ministries in Soroti - Amecet and the Freedom Boys.
Amecet is the Ateso word for "shelter". They have two homes in Soroti - amecet n'amun (shelter of hope) and amecet n'ainapakin (shelter of peace). A lady from the Netherlands, Els, began the shelters over 20 years ago because of a little girl named Sara who was left to die. Since then, Amecet rescues, receives, and cares for babies and children who have been abandoned, abused, orphaned, or are critically ill. Their goal is to reunite these children with family members. However, some of the children go up for adoption.
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| Welcom to Amecet n'Ainapakin |
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All the children that Amecet has helped. They call it their hall of fame. You may notice some of the pictures have stars next to the child's name. Those are the children that died while in Amecet's care. All of Amecet's staff love every child that enters the shelter. Though every time a child they cared for dies hurts the staff, they also recognize that the child's suffering is over and they are now with Jesus.
Standing in front of these pictures, looking at their little faces, reading their names gives me shivers. No child should suffer in such ways. They are victims of living in a broken world. Their stories are painful to listen to. Many times, I cannot even imagine how someone so little and vulnerable could have gone through such painful experiences.
Some of the babies currently at Amecet. They currently have three sets of twins! The twins pictures above are actually older that the twins pictured directly below. They are currently in Amecet's medical room but are growing slowly.
Sweet Babies
Freedom Boys is a ministry focused on resettling street boys. Lead by a man named Denis and his team, 25 boys ranging from ages 11 to 18 participate in a year long resettlement program. During that time, the boys will receive either a year of education or a vocational skill. The boys are also required to attend regular Bible studies and disciple training. The social worker on staff works with each boy to learn their story, why they ended up on the streets, and where their village is. The difficult process of locating family then begins. Before resettlment, each boy receives a resettlement package to help them adjust back to life with their families.
Each of the three bedrooms has six beds.
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Some of the boys shared part of their story and how they ended up on the streets. For most of the boys, one parents either died or left. The new spouses did not treat these boys well. One of the youngest boys, age 11, told how his step mother treated him harshly and threatened to kill him. He began to cry after telling his story. Each of the boys described how they were desperate to get out of such a horrible situation so they left home and ended up living on the streets. Some of the boys live with relatives after parents split or die. Because Ugandan families are quite large and impoverished, some boys feel there in not enough money for all the children. Land is divided among the boys when a father dies. If a boy's father leaves, there is no inheritance for them. Therefore, they are seen as worthless. However, once a boy moves to the streets, life is no better. While on the streets, the boys are vulnerable to disease, abuse, rape, drugs, hunger, and so much else.
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After our tour around the compound and listening to the boys' stories, we had a prayer time. Praying that these young men would believe in their identity as child of God and would relate to Him as their eternal Father.
A few weeks after our visit, we went back to visit the Freedom Boys. This time we brought lots of gifts, paid for by money from generous donors. We brought rice, beans, clothes, shoes, eggs, tea, sugar, soap, bed sheets, games, a soccer ball, etc.
They were very excited to look through all the bags. They were mostly excited about the rice, games, and the soccer ball.
Thank you!
In a world enslaved to sin, the devil tries to break and destroy what God has made good.. Relationships break. Marriages break. Families break. Trust breaks. Our hearts break. Sin has developed a culture blinded by selfishness and hate. We want what is best for ourselves at the exspense of someone else. The culture today has no problem breaking someone else in order to get what we are searching for most - security. Financial security. Physical security from harm. Spiritual security. Security of our family, our possessions, our future, our success, our reputation. Searching for security co-exists with living in fear, which further breaks relationships. Life is not valued when we desire our own security no matter the cost. Each of these babies, every toddler at Amecet, all of the Freedom Boys are victims of a broken world that does not value life. They have experienced broken relationships, broken marriages, broken families, a broken culture. The trauma they have experienced cannot be fathomed.
However, the truth that nothing can be reconciled unless it is first broken still remains (see Romans 5:6-11). Individuals like Denis, Els, and their teams are working as ministers of reconciliation in a culture that desperately needs mending. By reaching the most vulnerable, these ministries are teaching by example what it means to value life no matter what has been said or done. Through Christ-like love, gentleness, and compassion broken hearts are being healed and lives are being changed.
I could tell you countless stories from Amecet and the Freedom Boys; but they are not my stories to tell. Take a few moments and look at the websites below to learn more about these ministries and read individual stories.
Visit Amecet's blog: https://www.amecet-childrenshome.com/blog And learn more about and donate to the Freedom Boys: https://globaloutreach.org/giving/project-details/freedom-boys-ministry
Watch a short, inspirational video about Denis, the leader of the Freedom Boys: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jRVqEN7Mpg
For more individual stories from the Freedom Boys, read missionaries Tim and Angie Sliedrecht's newsletters: https://sliedrechts.wordpress.com/
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