Travelin’ Man

I’m a Travelin’ Man—

Made a lot of stops

All over the world

—Ricky Nelson

Gee but it’s great to be back home—

Home is where I wanna be.

I’ve been on the road so long, my friend

—Paul Simon

The “made a lot of stops” part certainly is right. Three years ago off to Uganda—Palermo to Newark; Newark to Boston to Amsterdam to Kigali to Entebbe; then back again. Thankful for safety and good connections.

Though I had no interest, along with Ricky Nelson, of “in every port winning the heart of at least one lovely girl,” it was fun to meet people along the way. What about the Idi Amin emigrant who trained in Canada as a psychiatrist, then returned to Uganda to start a hospital? John, a U.K. Ph.D., undertakes agricultural projects throughout Africa. Chrysostom directs the Lweza retreat centre where I stayed. Dixon will pastor Generation’s Hope Christian Ministries until Edward returns [we need to pray for him]. Henry is constructing a building for the Bukenyas. What about those kids, who loved to be photographed and then see themselves? A 28-year-old woman at the Entebbe airport was flying home after five solo months in Uganda—building a house for a local pastor, serving as the first missionary in an orphanage, suffering through malaria. What were the odds that I would sit next to a Ph.D. from Westminster seminary?

But now “it’s great to be back home.” Or am I? We Christians are “pilgrims and strangers” here on earth. As another moldy-oldie put it, “This world is not my home; I’m just a-passin’ through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.” Enjoy your trip.