Adalyn’s Baptism

/ Gina Sawyer / 2 Comments

Adalyn made the decision to be baptized last month – May 28th, 2025! We are so thankful for her growing faith and for her commitment! We are so thankful for salvation given to us from Christ’s sacrifice! And we are so thankful we were able to share the event with close friends. Adalyn shares about her baptism and what it all means to her…

It all began when I started asking questions about baptism before we went to Israel two years ago. We discussed what it means to be baptized and what following Jesus means. I was still unsure whether or not I was ready to commit my life to Jesus, but going to Israel really encouraged me. I went to the places that Jesus talked about baptism and where Jesus talked about what it meant to follow him. Honestly, I don’t remember a lot of the specific conversations that happened on that trip but I remember being moved to think and pray more about baptism. In the discussions that I had with my parents, my dad gave me something to think about: “Why now?” And my reply was, “So that I can share The Gospel and the love of God while I still am in Uganda.”

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Women’s DiscipleMaking

/ Gina Sawyer / 1 Comment

It is exciting to see how God’s kingdom continue to expand not just with pastors and men, but also with women. Since 2018, there have been three women’s discipleship groups that have concluded their meetings, and there are two women’s discipleship groups that are currently meeting in two different villages with women from area churches in the same cluster. These clusters are made up of area churches who come together for encouragement and helping one another.

At the end of April, the first two women discipleship groups met together for a time of prayer, encouragement, and spurring on one another to making disciplemakers. These groups started in 2018 and 2019, so we moved together through two Covid-related lockdowns and restrictions that delayed our group meetings, extending our time together for more than three years. It was a challenging journey for both groups, and we completed the groups unsure how the ladies would take disciplemaking to their churches and villages.

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A Little Glimpse of Heaven

/ Gina Sawyer / 1 Comment

One of my favorite things about living in Uganda is hearing the many different languages. While sometimes it’s a little overwhelming to be surrounded by languages I don’t understand, I am reminded of how diverse our world really is. When I hear other people praying to God in their native tongue or are singing worship to our God in a variety of languages, it makes me think of heaven.

This world has so many different people, cultures, and languages. What an amazing God we have to create so many unique people! And while sometimes we get distracted by our differences, it is so refreshing to share the unity in Christ when I come together with brothers and sisters in Uganda and recognize there are so many amazing things we can celebrate about one another.

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Highs & Lows of Mission Work

/ Leland Sawyer / 1 Comment

I remember when I used to play high school football in Texas. Every Saturday I was a different person because every Friday held its own highs and lows. Many times, my family didn’t want to spend time with me the Saturday after a Friday night loss because I was a different person. It’s silly now, but they were right: my identity was wrapped up in what happened in the Friday night lights, so the high or low greatly impacted my Saturday (and often Sundays).

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Retreat is a Good Thing

/ Gina Sawyer / Leave a comment

In a life that is so busy, we often forget to make time to retreat, to get away, to intentionally rest. We don’t make the time or we feel guilty because we think maybe we should be doing other things with our time. But I have learned I need retreat. Not just the Sunday afternoon naps, although those are very restful and needed, but also the intentional time with God, by myself, and with others. A happy balance of all those elements is so refreshing for my soul.

Throughout scripture, Jesus gets away to be by himself and with God. If Jesus saw the importance of that time, why don’t we also make that time a priority? In Mark 1:35, Jesus went to a solitary place to pray after a long day before of healing many people. He spent the night praying to God in Luke 6:12 before appointing the twelve apostles. After a long day of ministry and the miracle of feeding the 5000 in Matthew 14:22-23, Jesus spent time alone to pray. Even at the end of his earthly ministry, he knew he needed time alone with God in prayer. In Mark 14:32, Jesus took a few of his disciples along with him to pray in Gethsemane. We all need that time of prayer, refreshment of our soul.

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Disciples Expectations

/ Gina Sawyer / 1 Comment

At the beginning of 2024, I asked the discipleship ladies to write down their expectations – how they wanted God to be moving in their lives, in their families, in their churches, and in their communities. When I looked at the expectations, they were common prayers I had heard before: they wanted God to help them by providing school fees for their children, provide ways for them to pay off loans or get money for various needs – seeds for the garden, building a home, etc. These were – and continue to be – ongoing needs, but my hope for these ladies was different. I wanted them to seek God for more than just physical needs. In a country of poverty, there will always be these needs.

So at the beginning of 2025, I asked them to reflect on what they had written in 2024, and prayerfully write down their expectations for how they wanted God to be moving in their lives, in their families, in the churches, and in their communities for this upcoming year. And man, was I blown away….

The expectations are so different than in 2024, and it’s a testimony to the spiritual growth and maturity I have seen in each of them this past year. What these ladies wrote down gave me chills. I am excited about how God will work in their lives and use them in 2025 because they are open and seeking Him.

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Focused in 2025

/ Leland Sawyer / Leave a comment

This year is flying by already…but not without some big plans and some big goals for the Mission here in Mbale. In December, we reflected on what God had been doing through and in the Mbale Mission in 2024 (Read HERE if you missed it). We are excited about what is ahead in our 10th year working with church leaders in Uganda. Instead of breaking down the nitty-gritty, I want to share with you the BIG things that are going on here:

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We Can Do Hard Things

/ Gina Sawyer / Leave a comment

Over Christmas break, our family took a trip to Indonesia, and we spent 4 days trekking in the Sumatra jungle. Why, you ask? In hopes to see orangutans in the wild, as well as some other wild animals. We did see orangutans and their babies, several different types of monkeys and lots of leeches (which we were NOT expecting). The trek was HARD! I have never done anything this hard before. I’ve hiked mountains in Colorado, Utah, Dominican Republic and Uganda, I live in Africa, I’ve had a baby, I’ve had lots of adventures… But I have never experienced anything THIS hard. I don’t usually push my body to its limits; that just doesn’t sound enjoyable to me. Some of you thrive on intense challenges, so this post is not for you. 😉

So when Day 1 started with steep climbs up a mountain and then steep climbs down another mountain, and up and down again, it was intense! Then rain poured down on us for several hours as we were trying to climb down the mountain to our campsite. We were carrying all our clothes and things for camping in backpacks of about 25+ pounds, and they were soaked! Everything was soaked! When we got to camp while it was still pouring rain, I tried to hang out all our wet stuff in a cramped space with 6 people in one tent area to air it out some. I thought I had reached my limit. I was exhausted, smelly, soaking wet, and overwhelmed with the day… I wanted to quit. We still had 3 more days of this, and I wasn’t sure I could make it.

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Living in Uganda – Adalyn’s Perspective

/ Gina Sawyer / 3 Comments

To celebrate our 9th Uganda-versary, we thought it would be fun for Adalyn, our twelve year old daughter, to write a blog post about living and growing up in Uganda. We moved to Uganda when she had just turned 3 years old, so she really doesn’t remember life before Uganda. Here are her thoughts about living in Uganda:

Living in Uganda means that I feel at home and safe. It has been the best 9 years of my life and the best place to grow up. As I have grown up, I now realize that one day I will have to leave, and I don’t think I will ever be ready to leave. It also scares me to think of leaving because I have grown up here and I am used to Uganda.

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Looking Back at What God Has Done in 2024

/ Leland Sawyer / 2 Comments

Garth Brooks is one of my favorite all-time musical artists. Sure, some can say that he ruined country music, but it can also be said that he SAVED country music. And one of my favorite songs is “The Dance.”

“Looking back on the memory of the dance we shared beneath the stars above. For a moment all the world was right. But how could I have known that you’d ever say goodbye…”

No one is saying goodbye but I love the way he looks back on an experience with such love and passion, knowing that the joy of that dance was worth the pain and heartache. And in some ways, that’s how I feel about looking back at 2024.

The year was too busy…not in a healthy way or a way to celebrate, but in a way that could have really beaten us down. And that’s something we have to address in 2025. But at the same time, 2024 was FULL of amazing God moments, both in family and in ministry. Here’s to “looking back…”

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