We were in Jinja Uganda as a family on Easter Sunday, March 2007. We set up a little used computer lab for AOET and distributed some swag. It rained. It poured. It rained so hard that day that I thought God had glitched and launched the Nile up into the air. Daughtry was in Jinja that day, too, recording a video cover of What About Now for the “Idol Gives Back” episode of American Idol. Check out the video. Check out the rain. See? I’m telling the truth. We were there. Cool story, huh?

Of course, that’s not the end of the story. Flash forward to May 18, 2009. We’re in the final stages of planning for our departure to Uganda and I’m rounding up some gear for our trip. The vision was to install two BIG brand-new computer labs for AOET: one to replace the beat-up one we installed at the primary school in ’07 and another bigger, nicer lab for the AOET high school. I had been keeping an eye out for a deal on Acer Aspire One netbooks for the high school. I was prepared to drain the HFC classroom budget on $300 times 40(!) units when I stumbled on TigerDirect’s refurb deal that dropped the price to $200 per unit.

I grabbed the HFC credit card, picked up the phone and punched the digits for Tiger Direct. On the brink of spending the largest chunk of cash in the history of HFC to build a kick-ass school for some of the most marginalized and vulnerable kids on the planet, I felt…anxious.

The past months have been insane. Many of you have been following my journey, and you know parts of the story. You know about the journeys to Africa, Jen’s sickness, my “unplanned retirement” (self-inflicted, really), our financial bottoming out and the upcoming move to Uganda. What you might not know about is the stress, the doubt and the fear. Yes, I have faith that this will work out. We’re had tons of open doors, but this purchase brought it to a head for me.

Was this the right move? What about the logistics of getting the stuff there? Were these machines too nice? Would they be stolen? Maybe we should just get more beater boxes.

As the TigerDirect stream of “you’re so important that we put you on hold” propaganda wound down, I was sent a clear message. The talking head stopped, and Daughtry’s What About Now began to play.

With every word, my mind jumped back our Easter day in Jinja, to the kids, their plight and their spirit. I chuckled a bit as I remembered the millions of American Idol viewers that must have commented how even in Uganda, kids love Chris Daughtry because in that one shot there’s like twenty kids hanging off him. I chuckled because the kids are like that with EVERY visitor. It had nothing to do with his certified rock star status. Everyone that steps into that community is embraced, and those that make a difference get more than an twenty-child escort–those people get soul-tapped.

I got goosebumps as Chris belted out the powerful chorus in all it’s hi-def phone handset goodness:

What about now?
What about today?
What if you’re making me all that I was meant to be?

Those words were filled with so much meaning, especially in the context of Uganda. I heard the voice of a Drill Sergant (“Get off your butt!”) and the soft whisper of a child (“Can you help me?”) intertwine, and I’m not softy, but the chorus captured me, especially when I remembered the Ugandan children singing along with it.

But the rest of the song was a strange fit. Chris was singing about a girl, and a broken relationship. Then, halfway through the song, half-hidden but gleaming, came some words custom delivered just to me.

Just hold on.
There is nothing to fear,
For I am right beside you.

There’s nothing original about those lyrics. They’re a succinct rendition of Psalms 23:4 (The Message):

Even when the way goes through Death Valley
I’m not afraid when you walk at my side.

In the midst of all the noise and stress and chaos, Psalms 23 dropped into my life through a pretty circuitous route. I’m glad it did.