What are you used to? (December 2013)

 

The rainy season has stopped and its suddenly started to get very hot. A couple of days ago I was walking through the hospital, sweat trickling down my back in the 34 degree heat, when a local man passed me wearing a big thick quilted coat! I couldn’t believe he could possibly be comfortable but I was told it’s all a matter of what you get used to.

 

In Britain shops are full of Christmas goods, children are writing present lists and parents are rushing around to get in enough supplies for the descending relatives. Here nothing has changed. For Christmas, if they are fortunate, children will get a new top or trousers, and parents have strived hard for weeks to try and provide a scrawny chicken for Christmas day. There is no commercialism, no Father Christmases, no Christmas lights just a low key celebration of Jesus birth, it’s what they are used to.

 

When you get used to something you take it for granted and don’t really think about it at all. How easy it is, particularly for those of us who are long past our childhood, to tune out of Christmas. To do things automatically because that’s what we always do and forget what the real meaning is all about, we are too used to Christmas days.

 

This Christmas think of those whose experiences will be very different from yours. The homeless, those who would be persecuted for celebrating their faith, refugees, victims of natural disasters and even us celebrating in the heat!  Looking at Christmas from a different perspective may make us think again about what it really means and how amazing it is to be able to celebrate the Son of God coming to earth for us.

 

Work wise Malcolm is just coming to the end of a very busy and stressful time. The hospitals Strategic Review coincided with an external audit and his Finance Manager’s resignation!  All of them difficult situations on their own but when coming all together. triply so. We thank God that despite a tricky start the Review went well and many people felt that they got something useful from the time. The auditing reports are being finalized and interviews have been held for the Financial Manager’s post. Unfortunately no one was found suitable for the role so further interviews will need to take  place.

 

Irene has been working closely with the H.I.V. manager and together they have been making changes to job descriptions and moving personal around to positions which best suit their skills. They are still waiting to return to the refurbished H.I.V. department building. Unfortunately just as it was almost ready to move back into the  building, the funders came to see the work and were not happy with the standard, so many of the work surfaces have had to be  pulled down and made anew. For the first time the office and the clinic will be in one building which should make it easier to keep track of files which often got lost before. Hopefully it will be ready to move into in the New Year when new job changes will come into operation.

 

Prayer points

 

• Thank God for the safe return to Kiwoko of Dr Corrie and Dr Natasha, after their sudden visits home for family reasons
• Thank God for the visit here of Sarah Shelley (a worker from our church) and Stephen Burgess (our CMS Manager) – for the fellowship and fun-ship
• Pray that a suitable candidate will be appointed for the Finance Manager’s post to be able to take on more responsibility when Malcolm leaves.
• That the move from the temporary building to the refurbished HIV building will take place smoothly, and a reliable internet connection established for sending vital statistical data to Kampala
• For all Mission workers as the celebrate Christmas apart from their families