Categories
Uncategorized

November 2014 Report

Hello Beloved

Greetings in the mighty name of Jesus; I pray that all is fine and well.

As we come to a close of yet another phenomenon month, we have been privileged to once again affect communities through our transformational and discipleship programs fulfilling the great commission of reaching the world with the great good news of the gospel. This month, we have been able to do follow-ups, reach new communities through schools outreaches, leader’s trainings, movie shows, distribution of Christian literature, and above all making arrangements to yet again reach new districts. I am thrilled therefore to bring to you this report and updates on what’s transpiring.

THE PURITY CAMPAIGN

In our purity campaign program this month, we were privileged to reach out to six Schools in Kampala, Jinja Buyikwe and Bugiri. These include Kasubi SS, Shiperoy Primary School, Makonge Modern P/S, Bugiri Modern P/S, Day star and God’s Gift primary schools. We addressed the issue of sexuality highlighting the value and benefits of keeping sexuality pure and why God requires of us to stay pure until marriage. Through this session, we also addressed the challenge and dangers of Homosexuality. We encouraged the students to commit to staying pure and abstain from sex and its misuse highlighting the costs of doing so. We introduced Christ as an enabler who empowers us to stay committed to his will by the Holy Spirit a moment we used to also ask the children to commit their lives to Jesus.

A total of 925 children from the upper sections were reached through this program and 431 children surrendered their lives to Christ.  As a measure to seal their commitment to staying sexuality pure, we encouraged them to sign the commitment cards which would remind them of their commitment to stay pure until marriage. 914 True Love Waits Commitment cards in these schools were signed by the students. We are set to undertake follow-up programs as a measure to help them stick to their commitments starting next term. A consignment of 925 life skill booklets was distributed during the program.

THE COMMUNITY FILM MINISTRY

The Jesus film is one of the tools we use to reach to the communities. Through this ministry, we engage and share the gospel through the Jesus film which has proved to be great success as we have witnessed many people come to the saving knowledge of Christ over the years. Two communities were reached this motn using the Jesus film and these include Kiyindi in Buyikwe and Namuganza in Bugiri district.

Kiyindi is located in Eastern Buyikwe district along the shores of Lake Victoria, the community is densely populated with the populace settling in the different slum communities on the shores of the lake. Fishing is the major economic activity in the community and numerous small scale businesses are carried out in the different market areas in the slums found in this community. We strategized to show the Jesus movie in one of these local slum markets in the community. The show attracted 523 people being predominantly children. As the movie commenced, the market was filled up with people encouraging the market vendors prolong their stay in the market. Tracts and booklets were some of the literature we distributed throughout the show.

A total of 1,223 people were reached through the two shows and we saw 672 children, youth and adults give their lives to Christ.  1,000 children booklets were distributed to the children and youths and 300 tracts distributed before and after the movie.

 LEADERS TRAININGS

We have been privileged to conduct two leaders’ trainings in two districts of Buyikwe and Namayunga. Located in the eastern parts of the country Namayunga is the newest district we have so far reached this year. We engaged the Nsoona community conducting a leaders training at Nsoona Child Development Centre. This vision casting training attracted a total of 48 leaders from 21 churches with the leaders being trained on how to engage communities through children and youth ministries. This training was organized courtesy of a compassion project in the community that caters for community children. During the training, the participants were challenged to reach and affect communities around them through the different programs introduced during the training. We are scheduled for the next training early next year.

A similar training was conducted in Kiyindi Buyikwe district that saw 43 leaders under the rock church ministries from the Eastern, Western and Central Uganda trained on how to affect communities through establishment of community bible clubs. Through this training, we shared on how to establish a community club, why and when to set it and the benefits there of to the community and the church in general. The participants subscribed to this ideology and committed to start clubs in the communities as we availed them with the necessary resources required to run the clubs including the curriculums.

A total of 91 leaders were trained through these programs with 500 booklets, 1, 000 tracts and 91 teachers’ booklets given to the leaders from the 28 churches represented at the trainings.

SCHOOL OUTREACH

In our school outreach this month we managed to reach six schools through the evangelistic programs this month on the school assemblies in the different schools in Kampala, Jinja, Buyikwe, Namayingo and Bugiri. A total of five primaries and one secondary school were reached through the programs. Through the programs, our emphasis was put on sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the children that saw 2,455 children reached through the program. This is an initiative aimed at seeing that children are reached with the gospel and help to make the right decisions through the life skill programs conducted in the schools.

One particular school where this outreach had the greatest impact was at Makonge public primary school in Kiyindi Buyikwe district. The school hosts over 1,000 pupils coming from the different slum communities in this vast village. Located on the shore of lake Victoria, the school provides education services to the many children found in the communities belonging to fishermen and businessmen who inhabit the community. We shared the salvation story being that it was our first time to encounter this school. They had knowledge on the Jesus story as we later got to realize that the teaching staff is comprised of some pastors from the community churches. We distributed a consignment of tracts and booklets to the children to aid in their discipleship and better understanding of the commitment they had just made. At the end of the sharing, 533 children raised their hands to make a commitment to the Lord.

A total of 1,113 children gave their lives to Christ and 2,200 booklets and 500 tracts to the teaching and non teaching staff were distributed through the school outreaches.

THE ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT PROGRAM

In our economic empowerment program this month we brought together 50 paticipants from Day Star Primary school, God’s Gift primary school and “Awammu Ne Katonda” Women’s Group from the Kikalamoja Community. The training was based on manufacturing homemade petroleum jelly/Vaseline using both local and industrial raw materials. This two hour training saw the participants who comprised mainly of pupils from both schools, staff and women learn how to make both ordinary and herbal Vaseline locally. At the end of which the participants walked away with Vaseline of their own. They were encouraged to share this knowledge with the other children and staff.

From lessons learnt from the previous trainings, Day Star primary school has resorted on manufacturing their own liquid soap which is being done on a large scale. This has greatly reduced on the coast of buying liquid soap from the market. The school is already seeking tender to supply soap to other schools both in and out of jinja. With this lesson learnt, the school is planning to start on a program to make “Day Star Vaseline.” We bless God for this tangible returns from this program.

PRISON OUTREACH

Through our prison outreach this month, we have engaged five prisons of Bugungu, Luzira, Maluku, Bugiri and Kasangati Prisons. During our outreach to Bugiri prison, we shared the gospel with 135 inmates. Through this outreach, we also got the opportunity to talk to the OC of the main prison who thanked us for the job well done. He encouraged us to improvise for the police officers as well noting that as much as the inmates need spiritual and physical help, the inmates are in need as well something we will take into consideration on our next visit.

Through the outreaches 3,121 were reached with 1,112 inmates giving their lives and rededicating their lives to Christ and consignments of humanitarian items were donated to the inmates and 10 Bibles.

MINISTRY TO STREET CHILDREN

In partnership with Julie’s Heart Foundation and OneHope Uganda, we engaged in an evangelistic/humanitarian outreach cu rrently catering for over 200 children. Prior to this outreach, we were able to mobilize some mosquito nets, blankets, baby and children clothes, sweets, booklets and some financial gifts towards this cause. The outreach involved a moment of singing, dancing, games and fun. Trough this time, we sang and taught new songs and also that we danced to together with the children and youth at the facility. This had an embedment of fun and laughter. We also had moments of children speaking the karamojong dialect brought from the streets singing praise and worship songs to the team and the whole congregation. The sessions had moments of introduction, sharing and a bible story telling with a story told from the Raising Hope Curriculum about Nehemiah with the emphasis put on the rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Through the lesson, the children were urged to develop the habit of working together towards achieving the set goals at the centre and in doing so; they will develop the lifestyle of living in unity and supporting one another. With the help of the administration, this culture is to be introduced and maintained with every incoming child at the facility. The session was concluded with a moment of prayer with the children raising their hands to be prayed for, for God to change their stories and deliver them from their predicaments. It’s also during this time that we gave them the opportunity to make Jesus their Lord and Savior to which 86 children responded to and raising their hands to make Jesus their Lord and savior.

To crown the moment, we officially handed in all the humanitarian items bought to the administration at the facility in the midst of cheers and shouts from the children. The children sang songs of jubilation as they received the items from the team. The administrator thanked the team for having thought and reached out to the institution through this program and requested us to continue doing so as the need is still vast. With this in consideration, we scheduled our next visit to be on the Tuesday 16th December 2014 when we look forward to celebrate Christmas with the children at the centre.

PRAISE STORY

The first recorded case of HIV in Uganda was recorded in Rakai district and the district has been hard hit by the disease. Since the disease was discovered in Rakai in 1982, millions of people have died, leaving behind more than 1.2 million orphans. For this reason, the district has been labeled ground zero. The scourge has reduced life expectance, depleted the country’s labor force, reduced food security and weakened educational and health services in the country.  As a result, poverty has terribly encroached on the population affecting almost all the spheres of influence especially the education sector.

After the scourge hit in the early 80’s many adults died leaving behind many children and as a result, today, the children do not go to school because they do not have money to cater for their school dues. Generally, the children have no one to turn to, to cater for their food and clothes and so have found a safe haven on the streets living as street children. As a result, these factors above have lured the energetic slum dwelling youths into venturing in crime related activities like drug abuse, robbery, prostitution, demonstration and strikes, murder, child sacrifice, rape and defilement etc. in a measure to cub this vice, the capital city authority together with the police have engaged in a campaign to round up these children and relocate them in the outskirts of the city at one of the places the children dread; Kampiringisa rehabilitation Centre.

Uganda may have reduced the rate of new infections per year, but the current infection rate of 375 young people (15-24) per day is still very high. This year’s World AIDS Day theme is: “Getting to Zero; My responsibility.” We are already walking this theme through our ministry outreaches to the rehabilitation centre. We believe when we do empower these children at the centre, we will help bring this scourge to zero. The rehabilitation centre is so strategic because at least once in a life lifetime, every street child gets to be detained at the centre. This is one catchment area where these children can be reached. Using the “Raising Hope” curriculum and Life Skill programs at the centre we are set to rehabilitate and nature these children into becoming better people in the future. We are currently working with approximately 500 children and youth at the rehabilitation centre and Naguru Juvenile home a detention centre for juveniles. Through our first ministry outreaches to the centre, we have donated humanitarian items to the children including blankets, bed sheets, mosquito nets, clothes, shoes etc. we are currently raising support for a Christmas party for the children at the facility on the 16th December 2014.

One greatest challenge in line with running this program is the Raising Hope curriculum. We ran out of the booklets and manuals after the outreach to Adjumani and have since had challenges using the curriculum. So please pray with us in this area.

 PRAYER REQUESTS

As we come to the close of the year, our prayer requests are as follows

  1. Pray for the next outreach program to Eastern Uganda
  2. Pray for the forth coming Church planters training in Uganda
  3. Pray and believe with us for new doors in new communities.
  4. Pray for commitment and strength for the different partners in the communities where we have programs running.
  5. Pray for the program at Kampiringisa Rehabilitation home.

We still believe God for ministry car (Four Wheel) so please believe God with us for this.

WAY FORWARD

We are set for a

  1. Follow-up program to Namayingo District
  2. Christmas party at Kampiringisa rehabilitation Centre
  3. Eastern Uganda Outreach
  4. The Church planters program

 We are truly grateful for all the support and encouragement we constantly receive as we embark on these ministry outreaches. You can continue to support these programs by financially or giving in kind by clicking the DONATE button and using any of the options provided.

May the almighty God bless you

Yours faithfully

RobertDIRECTOR