Surprised by Hope Blog: February 2014

Monday, February 24, 2014

Bibles and Bags for Pastors in the North

All 28 pastors in Paidah at Ojiga Presbyterian Church were very excited to receive their first Bible in the Alur language along with a simple tote bag made by a lovely and obedient woman from Lamont CRC. If that wasn’t enough, 14 pastors in Nebbi received two Bibles each with the commission to give them to active church members who didn’t already have a Bible for themselves.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to spread the Word in the local language because of the sacrificial giving of those loving friends and family at Beaverdam Baptist Church in SC. I pray that God would return your gift tenfold!

Vision for Rural Pastors

Our WAY overloaded pickup stopped in front of Pastor Amos’ house in Nebbi and Emma stood waiting to greet me. Emma is the lovely woman who takes care of all the pastors while we’re lodging with Pastor Amos, but I feel like she is taking care of me alone. Every personal detail was lodged in her memory as she attended to my bed, my food, and my daily ministry needs.

My second time with this group, the pastors were looking forward to our personal ministry time again. We focused on the topic of church budgeting and by the end of our three days together they were easily able to answer their own questions about solving the problems associated with people and money management.

The Financial Management Series was welcomed by all, almost 50 participants (not quite the expected 100+). We studied what the Word says about money management before learning about using a simple cash book. Following a very clear demonstration of understanding, we added the three main financial statements for businesses. Fearing they’d get lost in transitioning from the cash book to the income statement, we took it slowly.

These kids had some seriously adult-sized drum rhythm
going on these empty containers.

When finished, one person testified that even though she was taught such things in school and never understood them she was now able to fully grasp the concept and believed they would help her in her business. Another person testified that math disliked him but that by the end of this teaching he felt confident that he could indeed apply what was learned successfully.

Praising God for revealing what the people need and how to root that teaching in his Word.

The end of the paved road in Paidah demanded that our overloaded boda bodas climb some serious hills in north western Uganda. More than 10 kilometers away, Pastor Charles and I were safely delivered into the hands of a very welcoming pastor. My little mud hut was expertly prepared by single mother Olivia who undoubtedly had the gift of hospitality. Perhaps the only roll of toilet paper within 10 kilometers rested innocently on my bedside table.

The next morning 28 pastors (both from Congo and from Uganda) eagerly waited for their personal ministry time before the bigger workshops began. I love having personal time with pastors. These men of God often feel isolated and bringing them together in this way offers a time of ministry and fellowship with other men like them who have similar trials and triumphs. I feel so blessed to play a small part of facilitating this union.

Our four-day workshop from the Entrepreneurship Series proved invaluable for these pastors. They raved about its usefulness and ease of application before promising to return with powerful testimonies of successes both in their personal lives and in the church. I love the encouragement these men received and am thankful for the opportunity to deliver the Word of God through business teaching.

Ishongororo Community Church

Nestled in a small gully next to the busy highway leading back to Mbarara town, this small church was filled with eager participants. Time keeping proved to be the biggest challenge in a community where time has very little value – you dig in the garden, you go home. As a result, we didn’t cover all that we’d hoped but we still had some very engaged, eager people grasping concepts that were entirely new and entirely useful.

Look what I found on the side of the road.

Pastor George had another opportunity to co-facilitate as he gained confidence and experience in preparation for independent teaching ministry on behalf of Surprised by Hope. Pastor Gerald was a great help to us all as well. We struggled a bit with the translator – just knowing English doesn’t necessarily qualify a person to translate…let alone translate business terms. Pastor Gerald became quite good at helping in this area given that this was his third time in the same week having attended the training.

Pastor Yoram's Termite House

The land where his dilapidated temporary house was erected proved impossible for brick making. Being a creative thinker, Pastor Yoram asked a nearby neighbor if he could chop down the termite mounds covering his plot. A welcome service, the neighbor agreed.

Pastor Yoram used that clay from those termite mounds to make bricks and build his house. Proud of his accomplishment, he wanted the muzungu to sleep in that house at least once before departing. We all shifted to the beautiful mountainside where the unfinished house rested almost four kilometers from the church. Four kilometers may not seem like much but when you hand carry two 20 liter containers of water uphill and downhill to provide for the family every day…you might change your mind.

The first muzungu to visit the entire clan, so says Pastor Yoram’s 80+ year old father, we were gifted with Julia who quickly became the responsibility of Pastor Gerald given that he was already keeping Frank the rooster. Pastor Yoram’s wife had a badly infected finger – probably from using an unclean knife (see the water issue noted above) and so I left all the medicine that remained for getting the last of the glob out of my leg. I told Pastor Yoram that he would most certainly need to take her to a doctor as the infection seemed to me to be bad enough to quickly lead to infection of the blood and finger amputation and all those other nasty possibilities. He received the news graciously and I suspect he wondered how exactly he would manage to get her the needed medical treatment.

Sitting atop one of many beautiful rolling hills in the Mbarara area, Michenyi Community Church boasted stained glass windows (of sorts) which offered a stark contrast to its mud walled exterior. That contrast made this church feel so very beautiful, that and the lush green landscape surrounding it on those rolling hills.

The evening before our scheduled workshop the people gathered inside the church for a time of worship. I joined them with a few worship dance steps and a greeting of welcome. Most attendees traveled for several kilometers to be here and would sleep inside the church that night in anticipation of our time together the following day.

Frank the Rooster has now been consumed.

Between 40 and 50 participants gathered while Pastor George and I co-facilitated the first two workshops in the Entrepreneurship Series. When teaching about asset-based development, Pastor Yoram offered a personal testimony as to how this approach benefited him.

Kishabya United Pentecostal Church

Our night time arrival netted a beautifully lit crusade grounds.

Lights edged the white tents where people gathered for an all night crusade. More than 100 people danced and worshiped the Lord as Pr Gerald and I entered through the flower-filled arch. Pastor Cornelius and his wife are wise to operate an events business where tents, decorations, cakes, and the like are rented and made. Their double use for church related events is most certainly advantageous. The nighttime beauty of this place was awe-inspiring.

These balloons really challenged participants to think creatively.

Two days of Entrepreneurship teaching held on the same site where the crusade took place was thought to make the venue perfect. And yet we learned that all night crusades welcome the morning teaching far too early and that while many Christians are interested in beginning or improving their businesses, these are not always the same people as those who attend a crusade.

From inside the non-venue church, you can see the flag walls.
Beautiful but not stable.

None the less, we saw God moving among the people both during the crusade and during the teaching. Participants enjoyed the exercises to help reinforce learning – especially the balloon animals – and demonstrated an ability to transfer that reawakened creative thinking ability to their business project ideas. We all look forward to their testimonies of what the Lord has done.

Windows for Mountain of Glory Church

Before

After

First, take a look at the blog post that describes how and why Mountain of Glory church in Marikebuni was selected to receive a gift from Surprised by Hope and all of you. In short, the church pastor applied what he learned from the Entrepreneurship Series of workshops and built a permanent structure for his church.

http://blog.surprisedbyhope.org/2013/11/50-boy-and-girl-dollies-to-finish.html