Hi, it's me Daddy Dan on a lovely day in Kampala. It's lovely for several reasons. First of all it's just gorgeous out with a cool breeze. But mostly because we went to the embassy this morning with no idea whether they would see us or even let us in. I was 50/50 as to whether they would let us in the gate or turn us away without an appointment. They did let us in, and with very few people waiting I was seen very quickly. After 10 minutes, we were on our way out with an appointment for the interview this afternoon and a promise of visas in our hand by Wednesday. Our flights are currently set for Wednesday night (actually very early morning Thursday) so we should not have any trouble getting everything we need prior to departure.

Thank you so much for your prayers for us here and for Shelly and the kids who are hoping to be able to leave NC in the morning if the snow and ice subside enough. Thanks to Judd for getting here last night and for your prayers for his safe arrival.

This is short and sweet as we now have to get some snacks for the kids, rest and play before a potentially long afternoon back at the embassy.

“But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name.” – I Peter 4:16 (NLT)


By comparison to many of my brothers and sisters in Christ around the world, I am really not suffering this week. But by comparison to my usual nice, comfortable, predictable life, I am totally suffering this week. I wish I could tell y’all that I’m just walking around praising His name and thanking God for the privilege of participating in His work. But to be honest, I’m struggling here. I miss my husband terribly. My children miss their Daddy terribly. We’re all sick with colds and I’m running seriously low on patience.

Absolutely nothing about this week has panned out as I thought it would. Even today – I was planning to head back to Atlanta with the kids first thing this morning. We’ve been in North Carolina all week and it’s been wonderful to spend this time with my dear family – indeed, I don’t know what I would have done without them this week. But it’s time to get home. I have things to do, bills to pay, the usual stuff of life… But no, I’m not going home today. Because the stinkin’ snow storm of the century has overtaken Eastern North Carolina. And in case you’re wondering, I’m not feeling sorry for myself or anything.

And then it occurs to me... I'm stranded, just like Dan. Well, not "just like" Dan. His situation is a bit more intense than mine. I'm "stranded" in a large city in the good ol' USA with my Dad and three of my children. My sister and her family are right down the street. Despite the snow, we have power and phones and (obviously) internet access. We built a snowman, went sledding, now we're sitting by the fire eating lunch.

On the other hand... Dan is stranded (really stranded) in Africa right now. He spent Christmas on the other side of the world away from his friends and (almost) all of his family and has very limited access to internet, email or phone. He's caring for our two brand new children who he barely knows and who speak only a few words of English. He is washing their clothes (and his) in a bucket. He's sharing a bathroom, living room and kitchen with an entire group of people he just met last week.

And is Dan complaining? Is he wandering around like me asking God to hurry up and teach him this lesson so we can move on already? Nope. Dan is not having an easy time and he is suffering -- but he is praising God and he is thankful to participate in His work. He's taking time to learn what he can and what God wants to teach him from this experience. Take a look at the email I woke up to on Christmas morning, from Dan:

Subject: The Curse of Abundance

One of the families we are staying with at the guest house brought

bubbles for each of the kids for Christmas morning. They were so
excited at breakfast about blowing bubbles they didn't even want to
finish their food. That in itself is big.
After eating Hannah and Joseph went outside and I showed them how to blow bubbles
and they took to it immediately. Each bubble was valuable and had to
be pointed out to me. "Daddy, you see. Daddy, you see." Especially the
ones that landed in the grass and didn't pop right away.

Dan has had a restful and sweet weekend with our new little ones. Their Christmas was not full of toys and Santa Claus and everything we associate with Christmas here in the States. It was just about being with each other and with our Lord. May we all take time to learn these lessons and to get our priorities straight.

 Please pray for my dear, awesome husband as he pushes forward tomorrow and tries, once again, to secure a visa appointment with the American Embassy. Please pray that he will be granted this appointment and that they will all be on that flight late Wednesday night. Pray for our friend Judd (who has just arrived in Kampala!) to help Dan this week and for his wife and family at home in Atlanta.

Blessings to all and stay tuned. We'll keep you posted on anything that develops this week.

Dan, Hannah and Joseph are not making it home for Christmas. The American Embassy in Kampala just closed for Christmas and H & J's visas have not been issued. We'll try it again next week.

We're disappointed that we can't all be together but we're trying to make the most of it... after all, this is Hannah and Joseph's first Christmas ever spent with their Daddy!! They are no longer orphans -- at home in Atlanta they have a Mommy and a big sister and a big brother and a baby sister waiting on them. This Christmas there are two less orphans in the country of Uganda -- and that is great cause for celebration!

Dan's friend Scott is returning home tonight to be with his family for Christmas. Thank you so much Harty family for sacrificing for us this week! We could not have done it without you!! And get this... we have ANOTHER friend who is planning to head over on Saturday night to spend next week in Uganda with Dan and help him bring the children home (now scheduled for next Thursday afternoon). Talk about an amazing Christmas present... Dan and I have MUCH to be thankful for. Thank you Judd and Valerie!

I just keep thinking it would have so incredible... such a fairy tale ending on Christmas Eve of all days! Well, I'll still get my fairy tale ending -- just not this week. And here's the bottom line: it's not about me. It's all about Him. We can nag our children until we're blue in the face trying to drive home the message... "Listen kids, Christmas is not about presents. It's not about Santa Claus. It's not about candy in your stocking. It's about Isaiah 9:6... and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Might God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." But when the rubber meets the road, do we, the adults, really believe it? Guess I'll find out this year.


Thank you so much for keeping us in your prayers. Please especially remember Dan this weekend -- he's awful far from home and I know he's missing us. Merry Christmas to all -- we'll post an update when we have one!

Hi friends -- Just a quick post. I hate to say we're losing hope -- but at some point we do have to face reality. And a Christmas Eve arrival is just not looking likely for Dan and the children.

I mean, please keep praying. There's still a slim chance that it could all come together tomorrow. We've made all the arrangements for everyone to come home. This morning I spent over an hour on the phone with Delta airlines booking skymiles tickets (thanks Mr. H for nearly cleaning out your skymiles account for the lil ol' Owens family!) and getting everything set up.

At the same time, we're making arrangements for everyone to stay. Just keepin' it real -- the Embassy is probably not going to be able to get all the paperwork processed by close of business tomorrow ( that's 8:30am EST tomorrow). Dan has had many Christmas Day invitations from our wonderful friends in Uganda and he, Hannah and Joseph will be just fine. I'm here in North Carolina with my family and I'll be just fine too.

I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I'm sad and disappointed. But I do know our God is sovereign and His plan and timing is way better than mine. So we do it His way -- and I'm going to try my best to do it joyfully. After all, there are many families who have to spend Christmas Day apart for reasons beyond their control -- including the amazing men and women who serve our country in the Armed Forces. What I'm experiencing is just a little taste of what those families experience year in and year out. Lord, forgive me my selfishness and feelings of entitlement.

Dan, Hannah and Joseph will be home!! But at this point, it's looking more like a New Year's Eve arrival than Christmas Eve. I'll update and give y'all the final word tomorrow.

By the way, speaking of entitlement... I read the most amazing blog post yesterday, written by my nephew who is serving as a missionary in Bogota, Colombia with his wife, my niece, Sara. My nephew Stephen is actually the same age as me -- he may even be a few months older than me now that I think about it -- but I am technically his wise old Auntie. I nearly burst with auntly (is that a word?) pride when I read his post from yesterday. If I could write as well as him, I could have written these words myself. They're certainly written all over my heart. If you have an extra few minutes today, this is well worth the read:
http://www.bridgethelove.com/

Merry Christmas friends!

I wish Dan could write this update himself but he's had really flaky internet access today. And now it's the wee hours of the morning in Uganda and I pray that Dan, Scott, Hannah and Joseph are all sleeping peacefully in their beds at the Bridge House Africa.

Today was quite a day. It was the real "gotcha day" for our new babes... Dan's first full day with Hannah and Joseph. You will not believe the sweet pictures he took and the fun they had! Today was also the day that Dan and the children showed up at the American Embassy to beg for an appointment.

I can't share all the details of the day... but wow. It's been pretty amazing and God has shown up, big time. Earlier today Scott sent a private email to our small group with this subtext... "After hearing and seeing [all that I have today], all I honestly want to do is worship." And that about sums it up.

Details and pictures to follow at some point -- but for now please know that Dan was admitted to the Embassy, they did agree to open his file and begin the paperwork AND... they have already made some significant progress... A Christmas Eve homecoming is still a very real possibility. And it's all nothing short of a miracle. Rejoice with us!

"Shout with joy to God, all the earth!
Sing the glory of His name;
Make His praise glorious!
Say to God, "HOW AWESOME ARE YOUR DEEDS!!!"
-- Psalm 66 (Thanks Joy for encouraging me with just the right psalm for today!)