Greetings from Africa!

By |Published On: June 13, 2014|Categories: News|

Short-term Missionary Mark JankowskiMy name is Mark Jankowski and I am blessed to be partnering with Cause 4 Life in Kampala, Uganda. While here my team and I are working at the Kampala School for the Physically Handicapped (KSPH). I have to say the experience has been like none other. The children are great, the staff and teachers are wonderful, and the people of Uganda are top notch. When I first went to the school and met some of the children, I saw two sides of the children. I saw children who are kind, I saw children who are considered outcasts, and I saw children who need to be loved. I also saw children that are handicapped. After getting to know the kids and seeing how they acted and played in day-to-day life, my view of the kids changed. Instead of seeing handicapped children who need to be loved, I saw children who need to be loved. Disability is not something that defines these kids. Disability is not something that tells you where you are going to go in life. Disability is merely another challenge in life that some people have to beat. Disability is the chance to see God work in extraordinary ways! I write this blog with a little authority being an individual with a physical disability myself. A friend back home some time ago saw me struggling to get out of a fishing boat and after a few seconds of struggling he reached out his hand and said, “Oh I’m sorry, sometimes I forget you are disabled.” This simple quote has had an impact on my life in profound ways.

With time, I learned to look past the disabilities of the children at KSPH and see them for who they really are. I saw a little boy who wanted to be a physician. I saw a girl who really liked learning about foreign places. I saw children who laughed and joked like everyone else. However, there was a dark side to this new view. I saw a girl who craved for attention. I saw a boy who wanted someone who cared enough to play with him. These children need love and care just like everyone else. We must care for the soul, and not just the body.

During my time at KSPH I got to love on the kids and show them that someone cares for them. I had a blast playing with them and listening to them, but alas I leave shortly. Even when I go to board the plane home, I know that I am leaving behind a message that will never leave them. That message is that God is always with them, God always loves them, and that God has a plan for them. God will always love these children; it was merely my commission to let these kids know that.

My time at KSPH has been transforming, and I pray that I will be able to keep this transformation going as I journey return home.

– Mark Jankowski, C4L Intern, Uganda

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