Changing Lives - One Stove at a Time

What do you picture when I say “stove”?  A large metal contraption with four burners and an oven?  In rural Uganda a “stove” is typically three bowling ball-sized stones on the ground placed close enough to support a cooking pot.  Small sticks are fed into a fire built between the stones, which boils the family’s water and cooks their beans and matoke (green bananas).  While this type of stove is simple and costs nothing to make, its use has multiple negative consequences.  1) It consumes a lot of wood, which equals time and energy for the women because firewood is scarce. 2) Many small and large trees lose their lives to the urgent need for daily sustenance. Consideration for the future is a luxury not easily afforded.  3) The “three-stone” stove causes respiratory problems for women and girls who use them in tiny smoke-filled, mud-walled huts that serve as kitchens.

So how is ACTS changing the lives of these women and girls? ACTS introduces the use a fuel-efficient stove constructed from locally made bricks and some mud.  In our current project, the ACTS environment staff has trained four local volunteers, who will build 200 of these stoves for households that will demonstrate the benefits of the FES.  We hope that neighbours and family will also build them when they see the difference. 

I watched an FES being built last week.  It was a fascinating process, taking no more than one hour.  While I was the photographer for this stove-building, I hope to get my hands dirty in the next round.  It looks like too much fun to miss!



In February I interviewed 30 families that now use ACTS fuel-efficient stoves that are very happy with the change that the stoves brought.  Here’s what a few respondents said:

• “The food can't be contaminated by the smoke with FES and the smoke can't cause you to have cough, flu and cancer.”
• "Much, much has changed [because of the FES]. When we were not using the FES the smoke would be a lot; people could not sit in the kitchen; now it uses less firewood, less time to cook, and there is less cough.”
• “Children can't be burnt by the saucepan... and also you can [cook] two dishes at once.”

The Only Certain Thing in Life Is...

How would you finish the title sentence? The common adage says, “The only certain thing in life is change.” I’ve certainly seen a good bit of truth in that statement over the past six months.  Case in point: three weeks ago I was moved to a new assignment and location – just when I was starting to settle into life at Bwesumbu. (The reason I’ve been quiet recently is that this new place has no internet and little cell phone reception.) I am now conducting an “impact assessment” in Rubingo, ACTS’ biggest project area.  From 2001-2006 ACTS built various pipelines and ran health & environment programs. Now my job is to go back to find out if ACTS has brought the change it proposed. We must prove this to be true in order for ACTS to get funding for future projects. (I’ll keep you in suspense about my findings until a future date. :-))

A woman tells about how ACTS has impacted her life during a community meeting we conducted.

 

Bird’s-eye view of my new location, Rubingo.  My young friends Praise, Rachel and Judith (caretakers of co-worker’s children) accompanied me on this climb up the highest nearby hill.

So two weeks ago I packed up my tent/home in Bwesumbu, said goodbye to the staff and neighbours there, and was on my way to the new assignment. I thought that my previous job had me packing and moving a lot, but I have discovered a whole new level of nomadic living.  At first I resisted it, grasping for stability. Now I’m learning to swim in the ebb and flow of relationships, locations and responsibilities, and not search for stability in where I lay my head at night.

And that brings me back to where I started – the only certain thing in life. While the saying holds some truth, it is lacking theologically.  I am finding that the faster the whirlwind of change blows, the more I find God to be steady, faithful, never-changing and always there – just like he said. 

I hope this has given you a little picture into my life recently, and if you also find yourself getting tossed about by the craziness of life, don’t forget the One who is certain!

The most incredible sunrise I’ve ever seen. It took my breath away, and even my “point-and-shoot” camera captured some of its magnificence. The sunrise reminds me of God’s consistency and presence as well as one of my favourite verses – Lam. 3:21-23 “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Cardboard Lessons

Just what exactly is this picture about? If you’ve been well “churched” you might recognize my co-worker modeling the “armor of God.”  Hey, don’t laugh.  I fashioned this classy suite with limited supplies - cardboard, duct tape, scissors and a Sharpie marker.  It also happened to be quite a hit with the discipleship class I’m teaching. 

Each Monday night 18 of my ACTS co-workers gather to discuss how to follow Christ in our lives.  I have never met a group of people in North America who have been so eager to learn.  When my co-workers found out that I would be continuing where someone had left off, they were so excited and told me, “We did not know how we would finish the book.”  They all come in their free time after a long day of work. Yes, we all battle natural tiredness, but they come anyway and thank me over and over again after each class.  Faith's eyes lit up when I asked if she wanted to join the class and she exclaimed, “This is the opportunity I have been looking for!”  Another student, Maate, waited patiently for two months to receive his workbook, and when I gave it to him last week he hugged it and thanked me profusely. 

I am always humbled by their thirst for God and desire to learn.  I simply pass on the knowledge and good teaching that has been poured into my life, and they drink it up. I pray that I will also pursue God like they do, and not take for granted what I have been given.

 Enid tries on the "helmet of salvation". 

 

Oh, and about the armor? Well, I loved the plastic "armor of God" we could wear as children, and I simply wanted to share one of my favourite biblical analogies in a memorable, experiential way with my class.  I think they’ll remember it for a while.