Travis Emmett: 0:00

Well, I think you're right. It is the opportunity of a lifetime. Not many people can say they've lived in another country. Not many people can say they've lived in the bush of Africa. And Karamoja is still very much the bush of Africa. The infrastructure is improving. You actually have the benefit of still kind of getting to say you live in the bush of Africa and getting that experience, rural experience, at the same time. Things are not as challenging living here as they were when missionaries first came.

David Nakhla: 0:28

Welcome to the Reformed Deacon, a casual conversation with topics specifically designed to help local Reform Deacons. There are nearly a thousand deacons in the OPC alone. So let's take this opportunity to learn from and encourage one another. We're so glad you could join us. Let's jump into our next episode. Hi, my name is David Nakhla. I'm the administrator for the OPC Committee on Diaconal Ministries. Today we'll be talking with my good friend, mentor, and colleague, Douglas Clawson. Douglas has been serving as the general secretary of the OPC's Committee on Foreign Missions for about three years now, after having served as the Associate General Secretary for 20 years or so. Also joining us from Uganda is Travis Emmett. Travis is an ordained elder in the OPC, and he currently serves as the facilities manager in Karamoja. He and his wife Bonnie, along with their four little children, have been serving in Karamoja for a little over a year. The three of us have gathered on the podcast today to talk about missionary deacons in the OPC, specifically about the need for someone handy and skilled to serve in Uganda for four months next year in 2026, while the Emmett's are back in the States for a medical leave of absence. So, Douglas, Travis, thanks for joining me. Hey, glad to be here. Great to be here. Some who are listening may not know what a missionary deacon is. I suspect that some may be learning just now that the fact that the OPC has such a thing as a missionary deacon, but it has been an essential role in our history of four missions and especially in such places as Karamoja. So we'd like to talk more broadly about that, but then also talk a little bit more focused on the specific need and really opportunity to serve next year. So those listening, please, this is for you to consider whether the Lord is calling you to serve in this capacity for a stint next year. Travis, let's begin with you. Thanks for taking the time to share. I know it's late at night there in Uganda. Kids are in bed, and so we got a few minutes of your time before we hit missionary midnight, as they call it. So what's happening with the Emmets that requires you to come home for a few months next year?

Travis Emmett: 2:49

Yeah, absolutely. So first I'll say it's a privilege to be able to talk with you both on a podcast. I've listened to multiple episodes from the Bush of Africa. So I've been following along and I love what you guys are doing. So right now, there's still a lot of moving parts. But like you said, we're requesting a medical leave of absence for really two main needs of our family. First, my wife Bonnie is expecting our fifth child who's due in April. And we would love for many reasons to be able to have the child in the States. Second, we're hoping that this time in the States would give us an opportunity for our third child, Jackson, to have a minor surgery that we're hoping would help resolve an ongoing medical condition that he's been dealing with. So there's really two medical needs we're hoping this time in the states would help us deal with. And then obviously for both, the level of medical care that you can get in the States is still much better than you can get in Uganda. And we would also have our family and our church as a support system as we're going through all these things. So that's kind of why we're hoping to spend that time in the States. And then we might also have to spend some few months in Mbali. The newborn is old enough to move up the Karamoja. So, like I said, there's a lot of moving parts, but it's kind of summarizing the need right now.

David Nakhla: 3:59

Well, congratulations on this joyous occasion in the Emmet family. That's very exciting. Thank you. Douglas, can you take us up to a very high level now and maybe describe the concept of a missionary deacon in general terms, not specifically pertaining to Karamoja, but just conceptually what is this and how it pertains to foreign missions?

Douglas Clawson: 4:21

Yeah, in a way, I want to emphasize that uh when we're talking about this, we're not talking about somebody who's necessarily ordained as a deacon or in Travis's case as a ruling elder. We're talking about D with a small D, the way that we're all supposed to be servants to one another and serve in the church. And I think at first, when we started thinking about this concept, maybe we were a little too overfocused on the whole ordination aspect of it. We've had three ordained deacons over there over the course of time who've been working with the facility. Of course, the work started in a way where there were big buildings that had to be constructed or had to be repaired, major, major, you know, like re-roofing jobs and and uh walls being put up and things being moved around, big ditches being dug, and so and and a lot of stone that had to be moved around as well. And so when that big construction was going on, we needed a certain kind of person to be there. Our next person who was there was a doctor. And then finally we had another man where we weren't doing the big construction anymore. It was more we realized we were moving in the direction of needing to just have somebody who would help maintain what had already been built, and there were no future buildings in view. But in the meantime, you gotta understand that Uganda changed in all of this. Uganda is like many other countries where you get a lot of guys who say, I can fix a car, I can do electricity, I can do plumbing, and they can't fix a car, they can't do electricity, and they can't do plumbing. In one way, Uganda changed because there's been way more education, way more training. Now you can find guys who can actually do construction. So one project that we had done during COVID, for example, was able to be completed by a real construction company. The second thing that has continued to change during the course of this time is the government of Uganda and its regulations. So where you know you go from a government that doesn't have very many regulations with regard to building, now you have a government that starts to put into place requirements for construction and uh requiring site management and figuring out what's going to happen with the water after you've built this building. So those things are still morphing, the government's still morphing with regard to those kinds of regulations as it begins to realize and think about environment impact and and those kinds of things. But that's been a constantly changing thing. We've been in Uganda for 30 years, and we've been up in Karamosia for like 27 or so. All these things have been changing, and so the needs changed, and the kind of guys that we needed changed. In other words, there's all these changes with regard to education and government requirements and the kind of things that we do at the clinic, and now we've realized you know what, there's a lot of in Uganda stuff available, and so we don't need to bring in stuff from the West to do that. One of the things that unfortunately has not morphed is the quality of materials available in Uganda. So I'm not going to name the two Asian countries where most of the plumbing supplies come from, but I will say that those things are pretty much garbage. I mean, they split all the time right on the seams, and they just don't last. I hope that eventually that changes too, but that depends on things outside of our control because we can only buy what we can buy. It's not like Travis can hook into Amazon and get it delivered tomorrow. So when we're talking about Deacon here, we're talking about somebody who comes alongside and help. We need somebody who's going to come and relieve the officers. You know, there are guys who are preaching and teaching. There's the training of women, there's the training of officers, there is the regular work that goes on, and people just can't be occupied all the time by saying, honey, the zinc got broke again. Could you come over here and fix this? So when we talk about deacon here, we're not really referring to it in a super sophisticated way. We're talking about the way it was in Acts, where the apostles needed to be concentrating on teaching and praying and ought not to be distracted by things like figuring out which widow ought to get what and making sure that all those widows get treated equally. So we're talking about relieving people who need to do other sorts of ministry by themselves ministering to those who are there through the maintenance of things, the repair of things. And I think that that's where we're at today. But all those buildings are gonna have to be maintained. The electrical stuff is gonna have to be repaired, the plumbing is gonna have to be repaired, the uh damage from termites is gonna have to be fixed, new roof might have to be put on for one reason or another. So we're looking now for guys who are willing to be servants by helping to allow regular ministry to go on and mothers to be able to take care of their kids while they're taking care of their husband who's doing something else. Just guys who are over there to help. And there's car stuff too, you know. There's not a car repair guy to go to up in Karamojia. If you have to take it to a real guy who can repair it, you got to get it down to an embali. So that means you have to at least get it into the running condition where you can drive it two hours south. And that's another thing that's changed. I I haven't even talked about how the infrastructure in Uganda to Karamoja has changed. There's a paved road, but there are only two spots on the whole road that aren't paved now. I could not believe it. I got a ride from Nakalay down to an ambali, and it took an hour and 45 minutes, an hour and 45 minutes. And I personally remember taking four and a half plus hours to get from one of those things to the other. I've driven it where it took me that many hours. And so getting a ride for an hour and 45 minutes, and my driver wasn't driving particularly fast either. I mean, you know, he was just being efficient, it was just a smooth, wonderful ride. So and you're not covered with dirt when you get to your destination. Exactly. It is like completely different. So things are close that way, but there still is the regular maintenance of life. Think about your own house and things that break down the house, a ceiling fan doesn't work any longer, or you know, you got a faucet that's leaking or something, or a toilet that's running, and you got to repair these and then like multiply that times Ted. That's and it's not because you haven't repaired it. Nobody can say you didn't do it. What it is is it keeps breaking because you've got to use junky parts to fix it.

David Nakhla: 11:29

Well, it's a good thing you don't have to fix any ceiling fans. I've never seen a ceiling fan thermojo.

Douglas Clawson: 11:33

You're right. I was just using that as an example that some that somebody at home here, one of these people we want to volunteer, is just trying to example for them to identify with.

David Nakhla: 11:41

Ceiling fan repair is good to know, but not a requirement for this role. It's not going to help you. Travis, let's segue to you. What would you add to the list of maybe qualifications, gifts, abilities that somebody who's going to come fill in for you for a number of months? What what what are those aspects you think would be good for a man or maybe it could be a gal too to have?

Travis Emmett: 12:04

Yeah, sure. So also just going back to your original question about the history of the role of deacon missionaries at the OBC, one important change, not just the infrastructure and the different needs of the mission, but now we're also working with an indigenous denomination, indigenous church. And so we've handed over those diaconal responsibilities of the church we were working with to the church. And they're really handling a lot of diaconal needs from the community now. So going back, you know, it was kind of an unreached mission's location when we first came here. No infrastructure, no indigenous church. And so, you know, I think the deacon was necessary in a lot of ways, specifically like Douglas was saying, freeing up the missionary evangelist to be able to focus on preaching and teaching and prayer because there was no one else to help repair those things and to take care of all those other needs. So times have changed in a lot of ways.

David Nakhla: 12:59

Yeah.

Travis Emmett: 13:00

But to your question about what are some qualifications or some skills that would be helpful for this type of person to fill this need, I think in some ways, maybe you've gotten a sense of it from just hearing Douglas talk. And this might be a case where it's better to be skilled in a lot of different areas and maybe specialize in just one. Kind of the saying Jack of all trades, master of none, is sometimes actually a benefit in this role because you never know what you're going to face. Oftentimes, especially just like Douglas was saying, the big building projects are mostly done. It's a lot of routine maintenance now. It's actually the title of my role actually fits most of the day-to-day needs as far as the facility goes, facility manager. And so you don't necessarily have to be highly specialized in any one area. You have to be able to adapt and to kind of meet some of those lower level needs that are going to come up. So if you can have a handyman type of person, I think that would be better than maybe just having someone who's really skilled in one area but is not kind of worked in other areas of trades. At the same time, some things you face are a little more intense than just your regular do-it-yourself projects around your house. And for some of those, most guys in the states are not going to come across maybe working with solar unless you're into homesteading or something like that. So, you know, a lot of our buildings are off-grid here. So there's going to be some areas that you may have to be working with for the first time. So you just need to be able to be adaptable and to be able to learn. I'm getting my master's degree in YouTube Academy right now every day. So, but there's other resources too. Christopher Verdick, who's our administrator at the clinic, has lived here for over, I think, 13, 14 years now. He started in maintenance here. And so he knows a lot about a lot of different things. He's been a great resource to me. He knows a lot about solar and areas that I wasn't so strong in when I first came. He was a good resource. Although, you know, a lot of the missionaries here were a small team, and so we wear a lot of hats already. And so, you know, you can't expect him to do all the work for you, but yet he's he's there to to be able to answer questions or to bounce ideas off of. So he's been helpful in that area. But there's a lot of different areas: small engine repair, basic welding fabrication, basic electrical, solar work, plumbing. I mean, you name it. I again, like Douglas was saying, Uganda's come a lot of ways as far as the resources that are available in every place except Karamoja. So there's it's really hard to get skilled labor here in Karamoja. It's it's coming along, but we've had contractors come up from down in Mbali or even from Kampala to come and do some big projects. We've contracted those out, but you're not going to have an electrician in Nemalu 15 minutes down the road who can come and just fix electrical issues. So a lot of those types of things still fall on you to kind of take care of, at least to a point, like Douglas was saying, with the vehicles, you may not be an expert mechanic, but just trying to figure out, okay, how can I get the vehicle down to Mbali or apart from Mbali up to here so that we can get it running again? So you don't have to be an expert, but I think the biggest thing is just adaptability and aid and ability to learn. I mean, because a lot of guys come over here. Jed Holman, for instance, was over here as a short-term missionary and he did a lot of carpentry. And that was one of his specialties. And he came over here and realized they don't do carpentry at all because of termites. You know, all of our building materials are masonry, you know, and metal. And so for me as well, I did some carpentry, but I had to learn some welding before I came over and then after I got here, because a lot of what we're doing is basic fabrication, and then we're doing masonry and different projects like that, because there's hardly any carpentry because of termites. So anybody who comes over, even if you have a background in the trades, you're still gonna have a little bit of a learning curve just because the materials you're using might be different, the parts you're using might be different. They're using all parts either from Asia or your or Europe that we might not be using over in the States. Electrical is different here. So uh basic principles apply, but there's still going to be a bit of a learning curve.

David Nakhla: 17:30

It's very helpful, Travis. Hopefully, somebody listening has maybe had his ears or his heart pricked. He's thinking, wow, what an opportunity. I'd like to go. I think my employer might allow me off, give me a leave of absence, or maybe he's an early retiree or self-employed and has the time to go. But he's gonna need to convince his wife. Travis, share with our listeners what life looks like in Karamoja. There's certainly hard aspects, but there are also great blessings in living there. You're a young family, you picked up and went, you survived, maybe even thrived. So let's look at the positive selling it. We'll have an opportunity to talk about the difficult parts, but how is this an opportunity of a lifetime not to be missed?

Travis Emmett: 18:15

Well, I think you're right, it is an opportunity of a lifetime. Not many people can say they've lived in another country, not many people can say they've lived in the bush of Africa. And Karamoja is still very much the bush of Africa, sub-Sahara. And so just like Douglas was saying, the infrastructure is improving. So you actually have the benefit of still kind of getting to say you live in the bush of Africa and getting that experience, rural experience, at the same time. Things are not as challenging living here as they were when missionaries first came. And so you're not gonna have to deal with some of the hardships that you would have dealt with 20 years ago. At the same time, you get some of the same experiences. It's a really beautiful place. Oftentimes I find that I'm too busy to take advantage of the fact that I live here sometimes. I have a beautiful view right from our house of Mount Kadam and its foothills. And looking one direction, there's mountains. Looking the other direction, you're looking over a plain, a basin that looks right out of a picture book of Africa. We're 15 minutes from Pianu Bay Game Park. So if you get even just a couple hours, you can go through a game park and see giraffes and zebras and all those sorts of things. And so it's pretty surreal for us missionaries. Sometimes you lose some of that excitement over time. It becomes normal for you. But once in a while, you you still wake up and realize uh wow, I'm still in the bush of Africa and experiencing all these things. You get a cruise and a land cruiser down a road all by yourself in Africa. And so you have these moments uh where you realize, wow, this is really a privilege and really a unique opportunity that not many people get to have just getting to live here in Karamoja. And it's still rural Africa that is hard to find sometimes now as the continent and as Uganda is developing. So that would be one thing. The other is, you know, in this role, every day is a new day. No day is the same, no work day is the same, which for some people might be challenging. It's something that I enjoy. And so if you like to learn new things, I'm always learning different skills that I hadn't needed before. I might need the next day, and so I'm learning that on the go. I'm working on a different project every day. You also get to interact with the local Karamajung, which is really neat, and get to interact with Nakalay Presbyterian Church and the church members there and see how they're living for Christ in the midst of hardship. And so it's a really spiritually, it's a special opportunity to get to see the Lord at work, building his church all around the world and building his church and seeing believers live out their lives for Christ in that area where, in many ways, they're suffering much more than we are, even as missionaries, and they're being persecuted, and they're always, I feel like I'm being taught more than I'm teaching them every day. And so spiritually, it can be really impactful. And even just vocationally, I find it can be a really rewarding job. Getting to serve the missionaries and the church and community here, it's a unique opportunity to get to know your missionaries. I know many of you guys are praying for us, and so getting to meet people in person, you've seen the prayer cards and even seen our names, but getting to see the work firsthand and having the freedom that this short-term commitment provides, you know, when you're here long term, there's other necessary and good responsibilities that are on your plate. You're having to learn the language, you have administration responsibilities, all these different hats you wear. But when you come over short term, although I'm sure you'll have to wear some hats in addition to maintenance, that's just the nature of it, but you're a little more free to pour into this specific need in ways that I can't, because I have other responsibilities as well that I have to take care of. And you get to enjoy your time here and the fact that you're living in Karamoja in the Bush of Africa, maybe a little more than even the full-time missionaries get to because of all the other things they've had, and because just over time some of that, you know, excitement and newness wears off. So yeah, I think it's a great opportunity.

David Nakhla: 22:26

That's really great. Can you put on your Bonnie hat for a minute and uh speak to what would she say to the wives of the guys who are listening to this going, man, I don't know if my wife would, I don't think she'd be up for this. What would Bonnie say to them?

Travis Emmett: 22:40

I think she would say, I hear you and I know what you're going through. She was in the same boat when we were first considering coming here. Obviously, for us, we were looking at a much longer commitment, which has its challenges. Although I I have to say I respect those considering short-term ministry too, because you're also going to go through the challenges of uprooting your family. And uh, you know, my wife will tell you the logistical challenges of packing for your family and all those little things that us guys don't always think about, but you know, the wives are on top of. And uh it's it's a logistical feat in and itself to move a family from the States, the Bush of Africa. And so even short-term missionaries are going to have to be willing to do that, but maybe even for a shorter time. And so, you know, we respect that. I mean, the Grimsley family was here for two months overlap when we got up here. They were here for a year, and so they did that as well. But it's also rewarding, it's not just rewarding for me, it's rewarding for my wife. She's also, you know, getting to reap the spiritual rewards of serving the Lord here, just like I am. She's facing the same challenges in many ways that I am. And we get to go through this process as a couple, as a family. The Lord called our whole family here, and so we're going through this together. And so, you know, it can be really strengthening uh for your marriage and your family, even the hardships, maybe especially the hardships that you go through as a family. Uh, you can come out the other side, uh, strengthen and your walk with the Lord as a family, strengthened. It can be, you know, for us, we have four little kids as well. And so you there's hard things there. The transitions can be hard, but it can be also really good for the kids too. I was a missionary kid. So I remember it from the perspective of a child when my parents were missionaries overseas, and that has challenges being what they call third culture kid, but it also gives you a lot of strengths, even into adulthood. And so that was one of the reasons we also wanted to come. We wanted to give our children that opportunity to experience the world and see the world from a different perspective and to see the Lord building his church in another place. So it yeah, it's it can be really challenging. I won't minimize that. It has not, it's probably been one of the hardest things we've ever done as a couple, as a family, but I think it's also been a big blessing. I remember when we were considering coming over here, the Fulkirt family, some of you guys know, you know, they went through many hard things as a family here during their term, but they said they didn't regret it and that they said it overall was positive for their family. And so we thought if their family can go through harder things than we've ever experienced on the field and can still say that it was overall a beneficial thing and a blessing for their family, then you know, we have no excuse either. So no, I think it's Bonnie would even say it's been a really positive thing for our family. Not easy, but a positive thing. But in the end of the day, you know, it comes down to if the Lord calls you to it, then you have to answer that call. So, and that's how she feels too.

David Nakhla: 25:45

Excellent. Very great answer, Travis. Super helpful. I had the opportunity 20 years ago to go as a short term for five weeks, and it's an opportunity of a lifetime. I saw the old Karamoja, the roadless, powerless, off the grid entirely. But uh yeah, it's definitely there's no regrets, and definitely would encourage brothers to consider this wonderful opportunity. So, Douglas, if there are those who are listening to this and their hearts and ears have been pricked, what's the next steps for them, Douglas?

Douglas Clawson: 26:21

Yeah, first of all, you should know the time. The timing, the Emmett's are gonna have to leave the field because of the timing of the pregnancy, you're not allowed to be in the air. They're gonna have to leave sometime around the beginning of March to fly back to the United States. And ideally, I even think for the volunteer, what you would want is you would want a little bit of overlap time with Travis. So, you know, if somebody was of a mind to help out, maybe they can't do the full four months, but if they could do a couple of months, that would be really fantastic. Under a certain uh point, it's just not going to be worth it. I mean, if you can only put in two weeks, three weeks, I don't think that that's gonna be worth it at all because there's just too much adjustment, and you do need to understand that because we have so few missionaries right now, there's no one to give you orientation. So uh if you are I pray that your heart is being moved by this, but it would be good to think in terms of getting over there no later than mid-February so that you have some overlap, can get some ideas of how things are going on, build a relationship with Travis because I'm sure that he'll take your phone calls and he'll answer your emails, make sure you have WhatsApp. And the next step then would be to write to me and ask for a missionary associate application. So you want to write to Douglas D-O-U-G-L-A-S.Clawson at opc.org. I would love to be able to send you that application. So I can also say to this, if you're wondering about finances, we can talk about that, how we might be able to help. I think that that's fair to say we really need somebody. So, you know, we would try to work with you on the kind of need for making sure that you're not paying to fly over there. And there's a whole visa process we would help you walk through. But if you're a general handyman, you have the kind of skills, or you know, you've done a little bit of everything so that you have familiarity, so that you're not afraid to get involved with that electrical stuff and possible rewiring or thing, then please contact us and we'll talk to you about it. You can talk to us, you can ask more questions, and I'll get you an application to do that. Anyway, please contact us, Douglas.Clawson at opc.org, and I would love to be able to work with you and talk to you about this possibility.

David Nakhla: 28:47

Great, thank you. Those of you many who are not able to respond to this, you can participate in this effort by praying that the Lord would raise up the one to go. And thank you for joining us in that important effort. Douglas and Travis, thank you for joining us today. Travis from all the way on the other side of the globe. Thank you, brother. Thank you for having us.

Travis Emmett: 29:08

Yeah, thanks for having us. Great.

David Nakhla: 29:10

And our prayers that the Lord would use this episode actually to bring just that right individual and maybe a family to come to Karamoja in just a few months. This is just around the corner. We're excited with you, Travis and Bonnie, at the anticipated arrival of the new member of your family. Thank you, brother, for responding to the call to go and serve the Lord overseas. We're encouraged by your work and by your humble heart of service. And may the Lord continue to guide and keep you, brother, and may his face shine upon you and give you peace. And go in peace. Thanks so much for joining us. Special word of thanks to our producer, Trish Dugan, who works faithfully behind the scenes to bring this podcast to you. Be sure to visit our website, thereformdeacon.org, where you'll find all our episodes programs. notes and other helpful resources, and we hope you'll join us again soon for another episode of the Reform Deacon podcast.