THOUGH THE WAVES ARE ROCKING THE SHIP, DON'T WORRY, CHRIST IS IN IT -
HE WILL CALM IT FOR US
 

Words of encouragement from Fr. Robert S. Aluinzi, AJ
Founder of E3  Africa

Growing up as an orphan from age six, I am no stranger to hard times and difficult moments, as I faced many hard moments, hard days, hard years — in other words, a hard life. At times I felt my ship sinking, but it never did because Christ has always been in my boat and always calmed the storm when I thought my boat was sinking and at that moment turned to Him.
 
So, I realized from that incredibly young age that life was going to come with many and frequent hard moments and challenges— and it certainly did. In most cases in my life, I had to choose how to cope with bad news, being expelled from school due to poverty or unfortunate life events of various kinds. I had to choose either to face these challenges with self-pity or with resilience and hope. And I chose the latter. Whereas for my nine siblings and me, a coping mechanism was imposed on us by natural tragedy, for our E3 Africa kids, we now made that choice to make their lives better through providing them an education. For all these, I am eternally grateful to all of you, dear board members, and staff of the E3Africa/EENU family because I am confident, we shall not let them down. And I know from personal experience what this means to them.
 
Regardless of how insignificant or severe the challenge, over the years, I also often heard Christ tell me, Robert Aliunzi: “The waves may be high, but your boat is secure.” This inspiration comes from Mark 4:35-39, which reads:
 
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” He got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down, and it was completely calm.
 
You see, the storm was violent and sudden, but it did not surprise Jesus. He was sound asleep while many of the disciples were frantically looking for a solution using their best skills as fishermen under those circumstances. It was only when they turned to Christ that everything changed. Friends, I have found great comfort in knowing that our boat will not capsize if we always turn to Him. However, the high waves such as we are living in can be scary.
 
Today, the COVID-19 pandemic has come with these robust, scary, and sudden waves rocking the global community with a vengeance never witnessed before. How we react to this pandemic can vary from person to person, country to country, but I want to remind you that as E3 Africa family, our sponsors and our supporters, we have one common bond and confidence: Jesus will calm the waves, and the wind will die down.

While saying this, again, I am aware that as human beings, we cannot ignore the fear and uncertainty that come with the furious waves. We may be right now anxious about our finances, the condition of our children, of our school, of our staff and families. However, do not be overwhelmed by fear. The devil loves chaos and discouragement. Fear is the gasoline for the devil. As we go through this challenging time, let us not let fear take the helm – Let Jesus!
 
Therefore, as we navigate these uncharted waters, let us stick together and lift each other as a family. Some of you might be good at swimming. Others might have access to reliable life jackets. Or you might be like me - terrified of water- because you cannot swim or, in my case, because it claimed my mother’s life. Regardless of your ability, we are on this journey together, and our best hope is that our boat is secure because Christ is in it. I assure you, once we pass these stormy waters and we shall, we will return to smooth sailing, and we will emerge more reliable, better, trusting, and humbler. There is already evidence of this.

Despite this pandemic and the lockdown in Uganda right now, our long-awaited transformer is being installed and will hopefully be completed this week so when the students return, they will have reliable electricity!
 
 Meanwhile, take care of yourself, be healthy, be smart, and be holy.
 
God Bless you all most abundantly!


Rev. Fr. Robert Seraph Aliunzi, AJ