Always where I fail, God steps in. 

And we are so lucky that He does.

Kansiime

When one of the boys(Kansiime) joined the home, I begged him to go to school.  I knew how smart he was and that he would do really well in school.  The problem was he was 18 years old, had never studied before and is one of the tallest Ugandans that I have ever seen.  He had to start at third grade and he was taller than absolutely everyone in school, including his teacher.  He felt so bad about it, that he begged me not to make him go.  We tried encouraging him, bribing him, everything we could think of but nothing changed his mind.  These boys face such difficulties at school and everyone makes fun of them, including their teachers.  He couldn't handle it.  So he begged to go to vocational training. 

Another boy(Davis) had studied recently but didn't like it.  He still couldn't read even though he had been at school for 2 years before he joined us.  He begged not to go back to school because he claimed he wasn't good at it and would waste everyone’s time.  School here can be pretty awful.  It is all memorization and no critical thinking.  If you can’t read or speak English well, you will just get pushed along.  There are usually 50-100 other students in class with you and the ONE teacher doesn't have time to care if you can read or not.  He is also 18 years old and asked to go to vocational training.  No amount of begging could change his mind otherwise.

Davis

Maybe it was God’s plan all along for the money for vocational training to never come in and all of our plans to fail.  Who knows?  But the boys have been waiting patiently since the beginning of this year.  The apprenticeships are so expensive and it just hasn't happened.  We are all frustrated by it but no one more so than the boys.  They were eager to get started and start life on their own.  They are ambitious and want to work, so they have been passing time by finding odd jobs around our community.

Then God showed up.

The beginning of last week, I was teaching Kansiime at home.  In a matter of 10 minutes, he learned how to tell time perfectly.  The next day after seeing 2 problems he learned how to add when you have to carry.  I told him how smart he was and begged him to go to school again.  He agreed if he could join 7^th grade.  There is a lot of work to be done to get him ready for primary grade 7, but at least we have hope now.  I never thought he would agree, but I know God changed his heart.

The same day that Kansiime agreed to go back to school, Davis went with the uncle to get firewood for cooking.  They found an older man there that started counseling them on going to school and wasting their chance.  He told them that he didn't have the chance to study when he was younger, so he is going back to school now even though he is so old.  He talked and talked to them and Davis just sat there quietly listening.  On the way home, he told the uncle he heard the advice the man gave him and realized he had been making a mistake and wasting time and he should also be in school.  He told me the same as soon as he got home.  It is a rare day when Davis is home during the afternoon.  He helps at a shop at the end of our street almost every day.  God definitely stepped in to make Davis home and make him go with the uncle that day. 

What are the chances that in the same day, both boys realized that they should be in school?  Also what are the chances that just two days prior, we learned of an accelerated school for adults where students can move through each grade in only a few months?

I know it was God’s plan all along for these boys to be in school but they just weren't ready for it before but they are now and everything is coming together for them to go.  We are working at home with them to better their English and reading skills and plan for them to start school in January. 

Would you like to help them go back to school?  $50 a month will pay for their school fees each month, transportation to school and all requirements.  Visit here for more information on sponsorship or to sign up.  Feel free to email any questions to lot2545 at gmail dot com.

Thank you in advance for your help!