THE OPEN HOUSE

Someone once said,"You can give without loving but you can not love without giving." God best illustrates this statement in John chapter one.....For God so loved the world that He gave......Yesterday,my wife and I got to experience this truth in a profound and special way.

For starters,we have been reflecting on why anyone would welcome two strangers from another part of the world into their lives and home.Denis,Susan,Daniel and Natalie have in the last 10months been nothing short of God's instrument of love to us.As our time to go back home draws near,they decided that they would host a send off to celebrate us and the baby.
(As of now we refer to the Baby as Baby O) this kid has received so many gifts and is loved even before they have an made an appearance.We had over 45 people come and bid us good bye.













The fun part for us was that people actaully did come and they brought gifts.Of the several things from Veags that we get to take back,Joy and I both agree that the greatest of them all is going to be the relationships that we have grown to treasure.And so for all the people here in Vegas who have made our time special,who have loved us and taken care of us,this is our way to say thank you,a BIG one.

OUR MOST HILLARIOUS GIFT
This morning we woke up to open the gifts and read all the cards and the experience reminded us of the day after our wedding:-(gift opening) My wife loves gifts,its her primary love langauge.So right now her tank is flooding!Our favorite gift was from the Canyonridge artist community......here is a picture:



Another thing that we loved so much was the gift registry and cards,plainly put it was an american cultural experience for us (My Ugandan friends,trust me,this is the coolest innovation as far as gift giving is concerned)
People felt free to come and go at their convenience because we were open from 11am to 4pm.There was lots of small little things to chew on and drink,lots of conversations and for the kids and swimmers, the pool was open.

In all this we thank God and His people who have spoiled us with Love unconditional.

Love
SP,Joy and Baby O



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HERE WE GO

A lot has transpired since my last post....many apologies for my delay.I need to become better at being consistent with blogging.My trip to Mexico was very successful.We managed to build 2 houses(Very basic houses) The part of Mexico we went to reminded me of Uganda...the dust,the slums,the poverty and just the tough reality of life.I have some pictures that will help tell the story better than I can.




I was happy to come back home to my wife who is doing much better now with the pregnancy.She officially finished her first trimester and apparently life should return to normal, atleast.We are also actively starting the process of preparing to go back home....Uganda,so we are doing alot of meetings with friends and packing stuff.

Our host family here,organised a send off party for us and they called it the SP and JOY open house party.Am looking forward to this so much.There is over 40 people coming.In one sense we miss home but we are beginning to feel like we will miss the people of Canyonridge and Vegas who have become family in this part of the world.

Joy will be doing scripture reading for Pr Kevin as he preaches in all 4 services this weekend and I will be speaking on James 1 in the next gen ministry.So covet your prayers.

Yesternight we had an awesome meeting with some college students that I will tell you about in my next post.

Love you,
SP

TO MEXICO

Just wanted to let you all know that tomorrow (5:30am) a team from Canyonridge(50+)including Pr Kevin, will be headed to Mexico,TJ where we will be working with Amor ministries to build some houses.I am really looking forward to this long trip.

I will not be able to blog...but will update you all on what happened.This global leadership thing has an interesting way its finding fulfillment.I never ever dreamt that i would be building houses in Mexico for God's people.

Pray for safety for the entire team as we travel and that God will use us to rain his love on TJ,Mexico.Pray also for my wife who is staying behind.She actually is having a baby shower on saturday.

Have a great weekend and see ya on Monday

SP Onaba

FROM MY DESK

This week has been one of those weeks.....Started on a slow note but is going to pick up.Lots of things to process,get done and decisions to make.

I leave for Mexico first thing on Friday morning with a team of others from Canyonrige for the annual memorial weekend mission trip where we will build houses.I am looking forward to this.Yet at the same time a part of me is remaining with Joy and I hope and pray that she will be OK without my physical presence.

This past Sunday was a highlight.My talk at New Community(Church of 55+)was great.I talked about the mandate that the older people have and that they should not neglect that.After this we went with a dear friend of ours(Jayme)to a womens prison where Joy and myself were guest speakers.My wife shared her story and how God has changed her.By the time we left, the place was fired up.The sense of hope and faith was very tangible in the room.There was not a single dry eye in the room,except mine, as we all listenend to Joy.At somepoint I felt like something else had come over my wife.She was in the flow....ver very powerful.

Our time here(Vegas) is nearing its end and so we are entering a wrap up phase.Pray that this will go well.Will share with you more as time unfolds.

Blessings
SP Onaba

LOVE FOR A LIFETIME

Just got back from a two day marriage conference that Canyonrdige put together.My wife and I both enjoyed Dr Bob Moeller and Dr Gary Chapman...very solid men.

Everything they said was great.Some of the topics the speakers covered included:

Communication 101
Creating closeness thru an accepting heart
Understanding and Expressing love
Seven secrets to great sex
Initiating positive change
How to share the things that bug you

It just got me thinking about our couples ministry,3hearts and our vision of being cycle breakers in a culture that has been damaged by polygamy and HIV.Joy and I are excited to see the fruit so far,of young people who have chosen to live sexually pure lives,get engaged,get married and start the chapter of having babies.We are seeing with our eyes the beginning of the transformation of an entire generation.

I liked the application for the couples at the end of the conference:

1. Work through a marriage book together
2. Once a year attend a marriage event/conference
3. Read a book on marriage together every year.

Once we get back to Kampala,we want to pioneer these kind of ideas.Rewriting history is what God has given us and others the opportunity to do.
I encourage you like I have been to seek to be a better husband and invest in your marriage that Christ may be glorified.

MEET IRON CHEF-SP Onaba

I had no idea that some of the benefits of my wife becoming pregnant was my forcefully becoming a specialized pregnancy chef...and so I now present you with myself;SP Onaba,the African iron chef.

You may not agree but atleast give me some credit.(those of you who have not experienced a pregnant wife,have no idea what I am talking about.)

Some of my speciality dishes include:

Plantains from Mexico that must be cooked and taste like the Ugandan matooke.Of course the Mexico ones are an imitation of the real thing...matooke! Now both my wife and I know that they are different but apparently she likes them...My cooking made the difference and for this reason I am iron chef.

The second dish is turning peanut butter (binyebwa) into some sort of gravy cooked/steamed with onions and tomatoes,served with either rice,potatoes or plantains.I tried it last night and when I gave some to Joy to try....it did the trick,again reason for my title; iron chef.


I am yet to experiment on others.....I hope I don't turn out with something dangerous thru these experiments.

I am enjoying and being stretched as I serve my wife during this time of our life.It has caused me reflect more on Jesus and the church,His bride and all the things He did and continues to do as a way of serving her,that He may present her to himself pure and blameless.

Pray for me on this new journey that God would grow me and enable me to serve Joy better.We will also be speaking at New Community(service for the young 55+) and at a women's prison here in Vegas this Sunday.Pray that God will bless this time of ministry.

TIRED AND EXHAUSTED

I have not had time to sit down and blog.....lots of things to do and thinking happening.This mental process has a way in which it drains my energy.
Its coming to 10pm,here and these are my last words before i hit dream land.Tomorrow though, I will share some upcoming things.Joy is doing fine...and she says hello.Miss you all,especially my UG crew.

SP Onaba

WE SAW THE BABY!

Yesterday we were able to see a doctor who run several tests on Joy and the baby.....and he said they were both in perfect normal condition.So thank you for praying.As a matter of fact Joy ate more food yesterday than she has in a long time.....

The fun part for me especially,was the ultra sound.What I saw simply blew me off.And the reason is very simple,hearing and seeing are two different things.The baby's head is big,the feet and hands are starting to form and the heart beats fast....173(whatever that means) For me it means my baby is alive.

According to the tests the baby is 9weeks and 5days and we are due on October 10th(a day after our country's independence day)

The exciting part was when the baby began to move its entire baby.I think the baby got excited and started to laugh.I nearly cried.
Life is so precious and I was reminded of the scripture in Psalm 139:13-14

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Once again thank you for sharing in this joy with us...it is a wonder.

SP and JOY

PLANNING AND FOOD

PLANNING
Today was rather a long but memorable day.I was part of the Canyonridge annual staff retreat meeting.Several things happened but i thought one of the coolest things for me was to hear Kevin,the senior pastor clearly share afresh the heart beat of Canyonridge...to seek and save the lost.There was just so much energy in the room.Our day ended with staff bowling at one of the bowling alleys here in Vegas.I was not bad for a beginner.I did not stay to the end because I had to go pick my wife.

JOY and FOOD
Things have kind of flipped for Joy regarding her eating habits.She hardly has an appetite to eat anything and this is getting us a little concerned.Today she felt like eating beef stew made the Ugandan way,so being the good chef- husband that I am,I went to the kitchen and did my Ugandan thing.I basically boiled beef and added some onions,tomatoes,carrots plus potatoes.(these are the specific ingredients she asked for) The result was a dish that surprisingly, Joy ate.As I type this blog,she is laying peacefully by my side having sweet dreams.Please pray that God will give Joy an appetite for food.

TODAY,I AM THANKFUL FOR, JOY MY WIFE

There are a zillion things to be thankful for but today,I am grateful for my wife Joy Hadassah Onaba.We have been married 3yrs and 4months.

I remember the very first time I saw Joy at Primetime,(the biggest abstinence party ever)I immediately liked her.I also vividly recall a conversation we had shortly after we got engaged about children,her concern then was...."SP what if we get married and I am not able to have children?" Another time she wrote me a card and it has taken me forever to forget one of the lines..... ,

"SP one day my womb will carry your babies"

I have not stopped thinking about this line especially now that she is pregnant.I know that Joy will make the best mother for our kids.She is a very loyal and submitted wife.God has allowed us together to experience His love and healing in ways that are special and unique.Joy's commitment to Jesus inspires me to be a better man,husband and father.

Joy you are one of a kind and today I thank God for bringing you into my life.My life is much richer because of you.I love you deeply.


SP Onaba

GOD HAS A SENSE OF HUMOUR

Who knew that one day I would be in Vegas of all places sharing about this Jesus who changes lives.If you had told me this several years ago I would have laughed my head off.Of course i do remember as a freshman, day dreaming about being a Hollywood celebrity,but this was just a way to escape the questions that I was facing regarding my future and the purpose of life.

Today I would not trade what I am doing for anything.God has been good to me.To see Him at work in the things we do,to witness Him change lives and be invited to be a part of this process is to me more than an honor.And so, because of His goodness I am deliberately committing this week to be my week of thanksgiving.So I will share with you this week some of the things I am thankful for.

As for me and my household we will serve you, Lord.

SP Onaba

RED ROCK HIKE

I just got back from our hike this morning....(turtlehead peak-2000ft) I thought it was going to be easy!I wish i knew,i would never have gone in the first place.Half way the hike,i felt like someone was slowing cutting off my waist.I nearly told the guys i was with to find me on their way back from the top of the mountain.They did not give up on me and yes i made it to the top successfully. The view is awesome.I could literally see the whole of Vegas and a bit of Lake Mead.Red rock is an awesome place.



Right now I am headed to church to finalize my communion med thoughts....Blessings

SP Onaba

THIS WEEKEND

Tomorrow morning a good friend of mine (Craig) and another of his good friend who i have not meet will go hiking-Red Rock- first thing tomorrow morning.It is going to be my first hike ever.....but i am not sure it is going to be the first because back home we pretty much hike daily except that its on plain land not mountains.

After my hike i should be set and ready for communion med.....short for an inspirational brief talk on the significance of remembering the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ which is done before communion is taken.I will be doing this at all the 4 services at Canyon ridge.Pray that i have my thoughts ready and set.I am wondering what colors to wear so the camera does not vomit me.

SP Onaba