After two very stressful hours of dodging holes large enough to swallow a car, we found ourselves in Kamuli. The newly rented home of Augustine and Joel, and now Joel’s wife Rose too, was a small but nice structure with a large sitting area. This is the area where the two men are building a home church – Calvary Chapel Kamuli. Having moved here after their work in Paidha, where I brought teaching to the business people and ministry to the women last July, they finally feel settled and hopeful about their ability to be effective in growing God’s Kingdom.
Lots of debate surrounds the question of whether or not this type of gathering would really be considered church. Can you really find God in the sitting room of a house? Can you meet God without a worship band? Can you meet him without a steeple or hymn books or pews? These questions and so many more swirl around some American minds, while the people in Uganda seem quite satisfied inside, outside, with or without speakers, and with our without music. I’m sure the loving atmosphere Augustine and Joel can create will make this church experience for new believers the best meeting with God they’ve ever had.
We discussed the value of beginning a skills development program in Kamuli under Augustine’s care as a way to reach out to the community and to establish relationships that might have otherwise been more difficult. I trust these men to be responsible and upright in shepherding such a project as well as to bring the love of God using the parallels found in his creativity and the creative skills used when learning to sew.