Organizational development seems to me to be a rather unusual approach to ministry. Yet God continues to affirm this direction by putting people before me who have a heart to serve but would like help in some aspect of developing their ministry. Vickie is one of those people.
Vickie grew up in this archipelago called Ssese Islands, in the northwest corner of Lake Victoria, Uganda. Of the 84 islands, just over half are said to be inhabited. The Kkome channel separates the two main groups of islands. Bugala is the second largest island and home to the Kalangala district offices. This island, our destination, measures 67,000 acres. Not surprisingly, fishing is the main industry in these islands and the Nile perch is delicious here. A few monkeys can be found on the islands if you look carefully.
A ferry used to make its way between Entebbe and Bugala island but it’s been down since at least August, which severely limits the commerce transacted on the island. The current mode of transport, still boat, requires a three-hour journey among clusters of islands where one could easily find him or herself lost or misguided. I can completely relate to the crew and passengers from the S.S. Minnow and, at a stretch, might even see how they could so easily be overlooked for so long.
The hazy weather and multitude of islands made me feel as though I was on a small inland lake such as Reeds Lake and I couldn’t possibly see where one island met another or how there could have been any passageway between two different land masses.