Children of Riwo fascinated by Muzungus

Today was the third day of the conference and Adams finally arrived in Suam to meet us.  It was decided that Nathanael would preach first, Scott would preach second and I would preach third with Pastor Otoo doing an evening session of ministry.   Nathanael spoke on the history of the Israelites and the importance of their story.  Scott spoke on faith and I spoke on knowing your enemy and his work.  After lunch Scott was asked to speak again and he spoke on Paul’s letter to the Romans.

After Scott’s final message we went to explore the village (Riwo) in which Nathanael had spoken on Sunday.  This village has only been inhabited for the past 5 years and we were exploring whether or not this might be a mission possibility for Scott’s church.  The entire village came out to greet us and we were even invited in to a small Ugandan hut.   Scott encountered an elderly woman who wanted to give Scott special blessings.  Much to Scott’s surprise these blessings were given by spitting on him.  This happened twice, causing Scott to inquire as to the meaning of this action.  Once we left the village we went to the army barracks outside of the village.  These soldiers are stationed to ward off the cattle rustling that has caused so much of the tribal conflict.  On Sunday Nathanael learned that the soldiers had killed 4 cattle thieves over the weekend.

As we began back towards Suam another rain storm arose.  The roads became very difficult to navigate and we were very thankful for the skill of John Juma.  When we arrived at one point in the road, the front tire slid off the roadway and we found ourselves sitting at a 45 degree angle.   With great skill, John moved the van backwards and 3 of our passengers jumped out and pushed the front of the van sideways as John began moving forward.  Finally we were back on our way towards Suam.

In visiting with Scott and Nathanael, they had determined that the environment for ministry in Uganda is much too difficult for them to bring a mission team in.  This was especially true, because they will have teenagers as a part of their mission team.

Today was the second day of the conference in Kapkoros.  I started the afternoon session by going through John chapter 21.  I discussed the truth that Jesus will meet you where you are at, but he will not leave you there.

After lunch, Pastor Otoo and his sister began to share and minister.  Their teaching focused on dealing with the sin in your life to experience the full blessings of God.   During this time Scott and our driver John Juma arrived.   As we entered into the late afternoon, Pastor Otoo entered into a time of ministering in prayer.  As he was starting this time, a heavy rain storm moved in and the sound of the rain became deafening.   We paused for a few moments and then continued on with the prayer ministry.  Many came forward seeking prayer for sickness, release from ancestor worship and many other problems.

Our driver had to move his vehicle from the church because the mud had become so slippery.   As we walked towards the main road after the service, each of us nearly fell on the slick mud.   When we got to the road, we found that our driver was not at the expected meeting point, so we called for another pastor to come and get us.  This was my second occasion of being stranded on an African road at night.  At least this time I was around people I knew.

Today was also what would have been my dad’s 71^st birthday.  I found myself thanking the Lord often for his life and praying for my mother to be comforted today.

High Voltage Conference BOC Church Kapkoros, Uganda

Today we began our primary Ugandan conference at Kapkoros.  The title of the conference is the “High Voltage Conference.”  I am the featured speaker conference along with Scott, Nathanael and Pastor David Otoo from Lira.

We arrived around lunch time and after a small meal of chapatti, matoke and tea we started the conference.  Over our meal, I learned that Kapkoros means “the place of sacrifice.”  The site of the church had once been a tribal sacrificial ground.  I spoke in the first session on Romans 12:1, becoming a living sacrifice.  I was followed by a local pastor named David Chemonges who spoke on the glory of God in your life.   I finished out the day by speaking on the importance of taking up your cross daily to follow Jesus.

As we ended the conference we learned that Scott had successfully received his new passport and was on his way to Eldoret.  We also learned that Apostle Adams had become very ill with a cough and high fever, but that he would hopefully be on the way back from Nairobi on Tuesday.

Today is also my 24^th wedding anniversary; I was missing Carol very much as we have never spent an anniversary apart from one another.  I asked Scott to send her a Facebook message while he was in Nairobi.

PCM Mokoyon

Today was a busy day, made even more complicated by the need to get Scott back to Eldoret for an evening flight. Scott, Nathaniel and I spoke at 3 different churches in combined worship services. Scott spoke at the Assembly of God church near Kapchesoy, I spoke at the PCM Church in Mokoyon and Nathanael spoke at the BOC church near Bukwo.
I was welcomed warmly by Pastor Patrick Sabila. Pastor Patrick has led the church for 26 years. He is a primary school teacher by profession, but hopes that at some point the Lord will allow him to focus full time on his ministry work. When I entered the building many people were praying and they prayed with great passion. We started the service at around 10AM with testimonies. Many people came forward and talked about the ways in which God had been at work in their lives. This was followed up by musical numbers from the youth choir and the women’s choir. I was tickled by a young woman who would come up midway through each number yelping and throwing confetti.
After that the keyboard player came up to speak. As he came up, I realized that he was blind. I had not noticed this beforehand. He challenged the people to live in their anointing and to consider the power of their testimony. When he had finished all of the guests were greeted. Each one came forward to introduce themselves. This was followed up by the offering. Gifts given included a live chicken and several bags of crops.
When it was my time to preach, I was led to the pulpit by the pastor and a group of young women who celebrated and threw confetti. I spoke from 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 on the power of your testimony. I challenged the people to consider not only their individual testimonies, but the testimony of the church as a whole. When I finished we prayed for a woman in the church whose child had been kidnapped on Saturday. I was asked to pray specifically over this abduction.
The service ended with a few more testimonies, greetings and announcements. It was now shortly after 2PM. I always marvel at how short our attention span is in America when compared to other parts of the world.
Since Scott had to return to Eldoret, other travel arrangements needed to be made for Nathanael and myself. I had lunch with Pastor Patrick, John Chebures and Bon Labu. I have spent time with both John and Bon on my previous visits, so we used this opportunity to renew our friendship. Once lunch was over, John and Bon departed and Pastor Patrick and I made our way to a porch along the roadway to await my transportation.
Over the next few hours we were joined by several of the local pastors and we discussed a wide range of interesting topics. This in fact became the highlight of my day. Much of our focus was on the needs in the region. There were 2 things that were very prominent in the discussion. The first was for a need to bring the pastors together to work through some Biblical understanding of some of the challenges facing the church. The second was a need to identify and raise up a new generation of leaders to come behind men like Pastor Patrick.
About 6PM, my ride arrived with Nathanael. Nathanael was overjoyed by what he had seen during the day. The service he had been a part of lasted for nearly 7 hours and many had given their lives to Christ during that service.