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Spending time with friends and family after month’s even years of being apart is somewhat therapeutic (for some); like a back massage after doing manual labors for days on end. I can’t wait to spend some quality time with loved ones all over southern California.

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LEGACY TOUR – SUCCESS!

All of our Ugandan students and staff just arrived back in Uganda after 3 months of touring in the US. The Legacy Tour was by far Invisible Children’s most successful tour since it’s inception. And to top that off we’ve just started the application process for new students and staff to participate in our Fall 2010 Tour.

The genuineness of meeting individuals from northern Uganda has created a wake all across America and I believe the lives of so many have been touch and hopefully changed forever.

There are certain things we don’t know or realize until it’s revealed to us. We’re completely ignorant of so many things, for example, America is ranked #25 in the world for education, but we rank #1 in confidence. We’re confident, but ignorant, such a curious combination that has got my clock ticking.

The good news is that exposure to unseen or an unknown situation in the world increases our ability to change it in the name of Jesus.

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I’ll be arriving in San Diego on the 15^th of May, spending a few days in the Invisible Children office before traveling up to the LA area for my sister Dawn’s birthday on the 21^st and sister Justine’s master’s graduation on the 22^nd. I won’t be traveling back to Uganda until June 5^th and would love to see any and everybody that I can.

I am exhausted, but strong at heart and I know that we must be put through the fire to be refined, shaped and molded to become more and more Christ like.

"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." - Galatians 6:9

Nothing but love [God]

Thanks to my employers I was able take a little vacation time and thanks to my parents I got to fly to China to be with my mom, dad, brother, sister-n-law, nephews and niece.

The pictures below are a peak at all the fun we had.

We all went to Shanghaiguan to see the "Old Dragon's Head" (where the Great Wall started).

"Old Dragon's Head". Skipping rocks and picking up shells.

The very tip of "Old Dragon's Head".

Flying at kite at a park in Shanghaiguan. "Let's go fly a kite. Up to the highest height."

Eating Muslim food in Beijing. A little bit of lamb, bread and some really good caramelized apples.

Wrestling with the munchkins (they call me Funcle).

Riding the subway in Beijing with my parents. Can you tell that we love it?

The Great Wall of China. I was sick this day and couldn't go.

Do you remember the superhero called “The Flash”? He’s the guy that runs so fast you can hardly see him as he passes by. When he runs, it’s almost as if he doesn’t exist.

Well, that’s pretty much how the past few months of my life have been…a flash.

Part of me feels like the past months haven’t even happened. I’m struggling to remember anything, but let me attempt to share some of the moments that haven’t completely flashed away.

Since the motorcycle trip across East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, DR Congo and Uganda) I’ve been working non-stop. About two months ago, Invisible Children sent eight of our staff and eight of our students in the Scholarship Program to the US. All of the students that went have been featured in our different media (i.e. Rough Cut, The Rescue, Bracelet Videos, etc.) and are now in their early twenties. I still remember when I first met Jacob from IC’s first documentary. He was a quiet, shy and friendly little kid, but now he’s a young man full of confidence and a big smile on his face.

Most of my time after the motorcycle trip was spent preparing our Ugandan staff and students to spend three hard months touring different parts of the United States. The purpose of their touring is to spread awareness about the war-affected North and share their personal stories with people “face to face”. As mush as I (and a few others) prepped them for the diverse culture and drastic differences, I was more interested in how they’d deal with the difficulties of being treated like a “celebrity”.

Currently, all 16 are still in the US with only a month of the tour remaining and from what I’ve heard they’re all doing great. It’s hard for me to imagine being in their shoes and seeing the United States with a completely new perspective. I wish I could have followed the entire process and experience, capturing the “aha!” moments followed by the “break downs” and “is that even possible?” type questions.

On one of their first days in San Diego they were all taken to see Avatar in 3D. Yeah, I’m sure we’re thinking the same thing.

Rumor has it that some of them were dodging arrows and ducking under moving objects. This type of experience reminds me of our innocence when we were children and how “green” we were to the world.

Everything was fresh. New. Never been experienced or done before.

Well, now that I’ve been working with Invisible Children for almost five years things just aren’t as fresh anymore. The excitement of doing something that’s “never been done before” has worn off and I’m faced with the reality of what it truly means to live for the sake of others.

There have been many days that I’ve wanted to take the easy road and go home, but I’ll never be able to get God’s voice out of my head, “quit your job, go to Africa and I’ll take care of you.”

What in the world am I suppose to say to that?

No God it’s cool, I’ll just go home now because 5 years is enough sacrifice for what you’ve done for me. I can just go home and live comfortably and forget about Uganda and my new friends.

It’s in the difficult times, the “I want to go home” moments that I’ve really been sharpened by God.

Tested.

It’s through the testing of our faith that we build endurance.

I’m no longer feeling the excitement of doing the “impossible”, the “never been done before”.

My God given endurance has taken over and I know that he’ll take care of me.

“The grace that has been extended to you when you were at your lowest – extend it to others. In the same way that I heard your cry, go and hear the cry of others and act on their behalf.”

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Please know that without your prayers and support that I wouldn’t be able to live life outside the status quo. I’ve said it before, but I truly mean it each and every time I say it.

It’s taken me a while to write and for that I’m sorry. “The Flash” paid me a visit and I don’t think he’ll be getting in the way of me sending updates more frequently from now on.

Also, I know my blog sucks right now. It does. It sucks. But I’ve got Internet at my house now and I’ll be able to upload photos in the near future.

Nothing but love [God]

Jared

PS On Tuesday, I’ll be traveling to China to be with my parents and my brother’s family for just over a week. I’m thankful that though I’m far from family I’m blessed enough to be able to see them and spend quality time with them.

Beautiful sunset on our way to Mombasa

Our last moment together on the beaches of Mombasa before we set off on the rest of the journey.

Fixing and oiling chains on the side of the road in Burundi.

]]> http://jareddwhite.com/blog/2010/04/03/soul-safari-moments/feed/ 0 http://jareddwhite.com/blog/2009/12/18/break-down/ http://jareddwhite.com/blog/2009/12/18/break-down/#comments Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:57:18 +0000 admin http://jareddwhite.com/blog/2009/12/18/break-down/ It happened.

The inevitable.

One of our bikes broke down and it happened to be mine.

My lady Violet died two days ago and I had to turn back with Blake (Violet in a rented truck) to Kampala to try and fix her. The damage is beyond fixable at this point (it would take a month to fix her up), so I'm currently looking at another bike to rent/buy for the trip. It's looking promising, but in Uganda you never know how long things will take

The morning I left Gulu for the trip. All packed up and ready to go.

Really hoping to be on the road again within the next day or so. Check out some photos below of our trip so far.

Almost forgot. Our team of 4 split in 2. John and Eric moved onto Mombasa, Kenya. While Blake and I came back to Kampala to try and get me back up and running. Please pray for their safety as they travel dangerous roads to the coast of Kenya.

Nothing but love. Enjoy the photos.

All of us in Kampala the morning of our departure.

Violet broke down 2 hours outside of Kampala (Jinja). This is her stripped down, her heart gave up on me. Henry (right) helped Blake and I pull her apart.

The four of us just before we parted ways. John and Eric headed to Mombasa, while Blake and I turned back to Kampala to look for another bike (RIP Violet). From left to right - John Niemeyer, Eric Kreutter, Me and Blake Gaskill.

This is my beautiful lady Violet. She'll be taking me all across East/Central Africa on an unforgettable journey with my good buddies John, Blake and Eric (they have their own ladies to ride for the trip).

All my gear for the trip across East/Central Africa. Notice the amount of protective gear;) (that ones for you mom)

The Invisible Children Uganda staff that I get to work with everyday.

Six months?

Is that even possible?

I’ve already been back in Uganda for just over half a year and contemplating on the events that have taken place since I arrived gives me a headache. I can’t remember everything, but…

Here is a glimpse.

I returned to Uganda (again) six months ago to continue working with Invisible Children. I’m currently the Programs Director, which means I spend a lot of time working alongside an incredible management team in Uganda that decides how best to utilize funding and focus on improving the quality of life for our war affected friends in Uganda. In a nutshell, Invisible Children has three main programs in Uganda to help make this happen - The Visible Child Scholarship Program, Schools for Schools and the Economic Development Initiatives. In fact, we just produced three very cool and informative videos to show the ins and outs of our programs. The blonde guy in the each of the videos is my boss in the US – we both play a key communication liaison role between the Uganda and US offices (Adam in the US and me in Uganda – I’m extremely thankful for him).

Visible Child Scholarship

http://www.youtube.com/user/invisiblechildreninc#p/u/6/3msMYU-L2yA

Mentorship

http://www.youtube.com/user/invisiblechildreninc#p/u/5/6m0XCe9tz6A

Schools for Schools

http://www.youtube.com/user/invisiblechildreninc#p/u/4/Eh8m0lKsN78

Economic Development Initiative

http://www.youtube.com/user/invisiblechildreninc#p/u/3/vsod6MzW1gE

LEGACY

The amount of need in Uganda continues to be great and it will take years to rebuild what’s been lost.

In fact, next year visionaries and leaders from Uganda will be traveling to the US to speak to churches, schools and organizations on behalf of their communities in Uganda. They’ll be asking a lot of the people they come in contact with, but they’ve seen the power of sacrificial love and believe that a lot of small sacrifices can alter the course of their countries history.

FAMILY

My mom, dad and sister-n-law flew thousands of miles to see me, which was one of the best gifts I could ever receive. They got to see everything I’ve been working on for the past four years and it was a rich and fruitful time (for all of us). Visiting Uganda is never easy and it can best be described as an “uncomfortable learning experience”. However, you’ll be blessed more than you could ever expect.

STAR TREK

Our recession is making us look inward and though we’re known by many as a generous and giving nation, please pray that more people will help us. Organizations like Invisible Children wouldn’t exist without the generosity of individuals around the world and I’m grateful to have seen how much change has already taken place in northern Uganda. And it’s only because of people like you.

I look forward to the day when Star Trek technology exists and in the blink of an eye individuals will be able to travel to foreign lands to encounter an uncomfortable learning experience to shake up our comfortable and often times stagnant lives. I’m a strong believer in what God is doing in Uganda and I praise Him for allowing me to show up and be a part of the tangibles taking place.

Thank you for your love and support and I apologies for the amount of time that’s passed since my last update. I’ve been going through a great deal of professional, personal and spiritual change, but God is good…all the time.

SOUL SAFARI

I can’t believe that I almost forgot to mention this.

Three of my close friends and I will be traveling across East Africa (Tanzania, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda and DR Congo) during a month long Christmas break. Please pray for us and follow our journey on my blog. http://www.jareddwhite.com

The best part of the trip is that we’ll be traveling on…

Dirt bikes.

“I thank God for genuine friends in a foreign land and a family that loves me and supports what I do.”

Nothing but Love [God]

Jared