First of all, we would like to update you on the situation in Kenya. We received very good news last week! As most of you may have heard by now, President Kibaki and Opposition Leader Mr. Raila Odinga signed a deal that will see them share power through the creation of a Prime Minister position in For us, these past few weeks have been full of activity, ministry and sharing the Good News with many. As Christians, whether in Africa, America or New Zealand we are called to be the hands and feet of Jesus. We are thankful for how God continues to open doors for us to minister all over Northern Uganda and beyond.
One of the surprising places the Lord has opened for us to minister is at Uganda Christian University. Erica has been able to teach the children of the students there on a weekly basis and because of this relationship they asked me to come and preach in their chapel service last week. It was a real privilege to be able to speak to this group of university students who want to grow in their walk with God and trust Him for their future plans.
A few days later we were off to Gulu, Northern Uganda for a follow up survey trip to continue to explore the opportunity of ministry there. Billy, Mark and I drove in from Arua and were able to meet Jonathan (our field director) and Rick and Janie Burkhalter (our pastors to the missionaries) from Kampala. It was a short trip but we were able to see many different ministries in Gulu and were able to spend time with our Ugandan friend, Pastor Chris. We were able to attend his Wednesday night church service and preach the Word to a small fellowship. Rick and Janie came back to Arua with us to encourage us and also help with the pastor training in Nebbi a few days later. We are so thankful for their ministry to us. As missionaries, having someone come all of the way to Africa just to encourage, counsel, and love on us is an amazing gift! We have really enjoyed having them with us this past week! (Rick & Janie Burkhalter, John, Mark, Jon Mayo, & Billy pictured above)
Also for the past two weeks, Billy, Joanna and baby Elsie Jayne have been staying with us since their house is having some work done on it. They found out a few weeks ago that termites were eating not only their roof away, but the beams that support the roof too. In Uganda, the construction is a bit different from back home to say the least. The workers had to not only replace the wood beams of the roof, but had to destroy the concrete ceiling all over their house to get to the wood that needed to be replaced. It has been a real messy process, but the workers are about finished and it looks and is a lot safer house to live in now! The Coppedge family moved back into their home today, but we truly enjoyed having them in our home these past two weeks!
Another part of living here in Arua, Uganda is the fact that we have had very little water at our house since January, due to the crisis in Kenya hindering the water company's supply of fuel, which is necessary to pump the water to the town. Apart from praying for water to come to the house every day, a regular part of our routine has been going to get water from the water company. So every few days when our water is getting low, we head over and fill our 15 jugs, that hold 20 liters each and then bring those back to dump into our 5,000 liter water tank. Thankfully, water has come the last three nights~ we are so thankful!
God continues to bless the pastor training in Nebbi and it was wonderful having Pastor Rick along with Billy, Mark & myself to continue giving these pastors practical Biblical training. These pastors always ask great questions and we can really see in them the hunger to know God more and to communicate that passion to their congregations. Thank you for your continued prayers for the work that God is doing and that we get to help out with. (Pastors Cosmas, Billy, David, John, Benson pictured left)
1 comment:
Keep up the good work. Love to both of you. Hope to see you home soon.
Post a Comment