Off the Beaten Path

Today was a day like no other, since we have been in Uganda.  We were scheduled for a day of rest.  What that really meant was that we would be able to do some of the things we had not been able to do so far.  We visited the Uganda Baptist Seminary, in Jinja.  Our church supports this seminary, through our missions giving to the Southern Baptist Cooperative Program.  We brought them some study Bibles and got a tour of the campus.  Although it was very modest, it was the nicest facility of any kind we have seen in Uganda.  They are currently training 400 Ugandan pastors to preach the word and lead God’s church.  The need for trained Christian leaders is one of the greatest needs in Uganda.  That’s why we came.  But trying to train over 300 pastors in a 5-day conference was something like trying to give someone a drink, from a fire hose.  We know we made an impact.  But we wished there was a better way to slow things down and truly mentor these leaders.  At the Seminary, they are doing just that.  I am excited about what God is doing at the Uganda Baptist Seminary.  But for me, that was not the highlight of the day.

We also made a tourist stop at the source of the Nile River.  The place, where the Nile begins flowing out of Lake Victoria and begins its 4,000-mile trek to the Mediterranean Sea.  There are natural springs bubbling up that add perfectly fresh water to the lake water and begin the flow of the river.  The Nile is such a significant river and the source of so much history, that it was really cool to be there.  It’s only a couple of miles from our hotel.  We paid to take a 30-minute private boat ride to the source of the Nile, complete with a tour guide.  It cost us about $4.00 each.  But that was still not the highlight of the day.

The best part of the day was a bumpy van drive to a small village on the other side of the Nile, where we visited “Amazima Ministries”.  We had heard of a young American woman who came to Uganda at the ripe old age of 18 and began a ministry to Ugandan children.  Her name is Katie Davis.  Katie was a high school homecoming queen from a wealthy community outside of Nashville Tennessee.  Smart, pretty, well-to-do, Katie had a promising future.  But she had been on a short-term mission trip to Uganda and heard the call of God to invest her life in needy Ugandan children.  So, upon graduating high school, she got on a plane and came to Uganda.  She began as a Kindergarten teacher.  But she soon founded a ministry called “Amazima” (Truth).  This ministry began feeding a few kids and helping their families to support and educate them.  Since then, Katie has adopted thirteen daughters and the ministry now includes over 600 children and their families.  They have bought a fairly large piece of land and developed the land for ministry to the kids and their families.  They get sponsorship for these children at $300 per year, and with this, they make sure the kids are fed, schooled, discipled, and kept in their family homes.  It is a ministry like no other I have seen, or heard of here. Today, we played with the kids and helped them feed over 500 of them.  They all got a large helping of chicken and beans.  Poor people in Uganda never eat meat.  But these kids get it from Amazima every Saturday, along with a worship service, medical aid, the care of a social worker, and a huge dose of love. In addition to all that, they get a bag of food to take home that will help their families feed them for the week.  Amazima also pays for their schooling.  It is an incredible ministry, led by a 22-year-old single woman who came here as an 18-year-old, with a heart to change the lives of Ugandan children. She and her staff are doing just that.  Her story is becoming well known as she recently wrote a best-selling book called “Kisses for Katie”.  It will be the first thing I read when I get home. I am so blessed to see that she has the courage and faith to follow God’s calling, regardless of her age.  I pray that the young people of Grace Fellowship (including my own kids) will follow her example of doing great things with God, while they are still young. After returning home, some of us went into a coffee house in Jinja that serves actual, drinkable coffee and American style food.  We have missed it!  While there, we ran into Brad, Katie Davis’ right hand man.  He joined us for an hour or so and helped us understand their ministry.  We were able to encourage him, but I think he encouraged us more.  I am so excited about what God is doing through Amazima.  I am humbled and challenged by the sacrificial lives being led by people like Katie and Brad.  Lord, help us all to be more like them.  They are living the adventure.  But then again, when you walk with Jesus, it’s always an adventure!

 

Baby Steps

We completed the conference today. It has been an amazing week of almost constant ministry. We are always either teaching, preparing to teach, visiting orphanages, or making other preparations for the conference. There has been little else for us to do for the past 5 days. So, we are really tired. But we are also really energized by the power of God to change lives. As we distributed certificates of completion to the conference participants, many of them were overjoyed. For most of them, this was the most formal training they have ever had.

Today, I explained the doctrine of the Trinity to a group of pastors, many of whom had never understood this foundational truth of Christianity. We answered questions about the nature of God, the work of the church, and the reliability of the Bible. Every day, these pastors wrote down questions for us to address during a question and answer time. Many of the questions were the kind you would expect from a Junior High Bible class. But they sat and took notes as we explained the most basic truths of Christianity. Many were amazed to hear truly biblical preaching during the evening worship services. When I taught a session on how to interpret the Bible and prepare a sermon, many pastors told me that their lives and ministries would never be the same. Many of the pastors don’t have access to a good Bible, let alone Bible study tools.  I have included a picture of one of the pastor’s Bibles.

These dear Christians are quick to break into song and dance of celebration before the Lord. We have all been moved by the way the people here praise God. Today, when the power went out during my message, and they could no longer hear me through the sound system, I had to stop speaking and stand there awkwardly. Within 5 seconds, a lady in the crowd stood and started singing; “I’m so glad that Jesus set me free”. Before I knew it, the whole place was ringing with this song of praise to God. The people sang and danced until the power came back. Then they cheered for God, and I continued my message. It was a powerful experience. But we have also noticed that their songs are all very simple songs of celebration. They are the kind of songs you might expect in a Sunday School class for small children; “Yes, Jesus Loves Me.” These are the songs of people who love God, but know little about Him.

I am so thankful that God sent us here to help them learn more about who our God is and how to serve Him by leading His people and preaching His word. After only 5 days, these pastors are saying that their lives and ministries have been changed forever. But the work here has only begun. We have planted some seeds, but God is going to have to water these seeds to bring about growth. It was hard to leave these dear people, today. But it is comforting to know that God has been responsible for all of this ministry, and He will complete what He has begun. As for me, I am just thrilled to be on this adventure with Him. When you walk with Jesus, it is always an adventure.

 

Gettin’ Sweaty

Sometimes, when you walk, you get sweaty.  As I type this, it is 9:20 p.m., Monday, in Uganda.  And I am so sweaty, I can hardly stand to be near myself…

…That is the way my blog started yesterday. It was a great blog too. You would have loved it. But as I tried to publish it, I lost all but those opening lines. By the time it crashed, I was way too tired to start again. So it is now Tuesday night at 8:45 local time in Uganda. And today was almost as sweaty as yesterday. The humidity here is pretty amazing. I am drinking at least 10 large bottles of water every day and still losing weight. Maybe ministry in Uganda is the perfect diet plan for my life. There are very few fat people here! Nobody has too much food and nobody has too little exercise.

We are staying in a hotel right on the banks of the Nile river. It is pathetic by American standards, but by Ugandan standards, it is the Ritz. I share a 10X12 room with my friend, Jim Poorboy. The shower hardly works. The power goes off regularly. The internet comes and goes. But just when I started feeling like it was rough, I got to go to a small village nearby, to preach on Sunday morning. It was some of the worst poverty I have ever witnessed. I was invited to the pastor’s home for lunch afterward. He lives with his wife and 8 children in a “house” that is half the size of my bedroom at home. They served me 6 platters of food (for me alone). I knew that it represented a week’s food for his family, so I nibbled a little bit and explained that I had eaten a big breakfast, and I gave the rest to his family. The kids could barely hide their excitement. That evening, we went to visit a children’s home, outside of Jinja, that is run by an old friend of mine, Eadie Miskel. They invited us for dinner and we got to meet some of the most precious children I have ever met. They performed for us and led us in worship. Then we ate and spent time with the kids. It was a wonderful experience. These kids are so terribly poor, but they have more joy and happiness than most rich people I know. Hmmm, I wonder if that means that money is not the key to contentment (Nah, couldn’t be).

On Monday, we began the conference. I preached twice and taught for three additional hours. I was spent! Today, I didn’t preach at all, and only taught for three hours. It was only slightly less exhausting. But the ministry is bearing fruit. The pastors are learning so much! And they are so grateful for our ministry! It seems like there are about 300 pastors there, attending the conference. 120 of them have come from out of town (many on foot) and they are sleeping on foam rubber mattresses, on the dirt floor, each night. They are thrilled for the privilege. That is a nice little shot of perspective! God is doing a great work here and I can’t stop thinking that this may be an historic week for God’s kingdom in Africa. I am humbled to be a part of it. Each day, I take a class of 30 senior leaders into a small room for 3 hours and teach them advanced leadership. The room is the size of my office and we are squeezing all of those people in there. It is stuffy and the smell is (how can I put this?) unique. But they are all learning and growing so much. They have promised to teach what they are learning, to the other pastors, after I leave. I am praying that they will understand the principles well enough to convey them to others. One of my students is a Bishop in the Methodist church, overseeing some 40 churches in the area. He is also the President of the Ugandan Baptist Seminary, here in town. This is a Southern Baptist school supported by our church, through the Southern Baptist Cooperative Program. We are planning to leave some resources for the seminary library, before we leave. These pastors have influence. Please join me in praying that they will grow and maximize their potential for changing the world.

So, yes, I am getting sweaty. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. When you walk with Jesus, it is always an adventure.