Scott Fillmer

My dear family, friends, and supporters: As most of you know by now, I am on a team headed for Africa this Monday, July 25th (see Google map of Bulboa, Uganda). As I have prepared for this trip, especially over the last few days I have been thinking about all the people that have actually made this trip possible and I wanted to say thanks. In many ways I feel God has been leading me to take this trip for more than 15 years, and in some form or fashion you have played a part in making it happen, and for that I thank you very much.

As we fly out of Atlanta on Monday I would specifically ask for you to pray for our team, for my strength both physically and mentally, and for Deborah at home while I’m away.

Our team follows many others as our church continues to strengthen our ongoing partnership with Buloba Community Church and African Renewal Ministries (ARM), and that’s what this trip is about. It’s not an attempt to bring a western Christianity to an African community but to partner with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as they do the work for God that only they can do. After talking with the team that just arrived back on Thursday I know a lot of our time will be spent installing rain catch systems for local residents during the day (think cisterns for rain water) and holding soccer camps for the kids in the evening, two things I know very little about. So please also pray that our words and actions towards all those we meet along the way will be filled with Christ’s love.

Our 10 days of travel takes us from Atlanta to Amsterdam to Rwanda into Uganda and back again. Travel time from the church to Uganda is almost 24 hours each way and is almost 16,000 miles round trip. For those of you who have sacrificed financially for our team I thank you from the bottom of my heart. For those who haven’t had a chance yet, there is always time (especially since I’m raising money for this trip and my October trip together). Even if you can only give $10 it’s still helps tremendously, and is greatly appreciated. You can give online here and it goes straight to the church and is tax deductible. I will attempt to post brief, precise, non-rambling updates, on my blog as I can at http://scottfillmer.com as time allows each day.

As I think about the sacrifice Jesus made for each of us I recognize that we all sacrifice anything that hinders us from attaining that which we most cherish. So to live differently, as we are called to do as Christians, Christ must be what we cherish most (see Psalm 42:1-2, Psalm 73:25). This is why we renounce the world, so that we may pursue Christ. It’s not about making lists of do’s or don’ts. It’s about finding what helps us pursue and gain Jesus, and when we do, we will look at the lesser pleasures we have forsaken and say “I have sacrificed nothing.” I have heard that put so many different ways but it doesn’t cease to be true and is just one of thousands of reasons for me personally going on this trip, to pursue and gain Jesus and to offer the same to others. I earnestly thank you for your prayers and support.