Uganda: Update #7

A team of our brothers and sisters in Christ - men, women and children from West Texas - are in the east Africa nation of Uganda for Christian mission. Here is a report from Midland's 2008 Uganda Mission Team.
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Uganda Update 7

Today was our last day on the trail. The sheer magnitude of what we had encountered this week was brought home to us as we arrived at the church. As we stepped out of the vans, a wave of people began pouring out of the church. It seemed unending; so many people and so many babies who needed help. People pressed in on all sides as we walked to the church and met up with our translators and began a very long day.

In the medical outreach today we encountered a 14-month old girl extremely malnourished and close to death. The baby had been abandoned by her mother and brought in by her stepmother. This particular woman had 9 children to take care of, children of her own and of her deceased brother. Because of the home situation and lack of assistance, baby Bessy had little chance. Dr. Patrick and his wife Helen assessed the home situation to see if this baby really could survive. They realized they couldn’t just say “Feed the baby” and it would happen, there were no resources to buy the food and medications for the baby and there was a lot of anger in the marriage. The adults were too focused on themselves and not the baby. Patrick and Helen counseled the family and prayed and witnessed to the family. After almost an entire day of counseling and many, many tears, this couple accepted Christ. The family received the vital medical care they needed. Our prayer is that the family will make a new commitment to care for their family, both spiritually and physically.

We don’t have the numbers from today as yet, but the medical clinic numbers from yesterday were staggering.

Patients seen & meds given 532
Children immunized 124
Children dewormed 539
Women given TT (tetanus) 136
Children given Vit A 604
Mosquito Nets Distributed 400

Jeff Darr continued his reign today as “Mosquito Net Nazi” as we passed out over 400 nets again today. These nets will be such a blessing to the families and almost everyone received one amid the “controlled chaos” of the net distribution area.

The numbers of people that we saw today seemed to be larger but we won’t have the exact numbers from the clinic until tomorrow. It is so encouraging to see how far a dollar will go here. It’s remarkable how much medication we have been able to distribute, especially considering that in the US each one of us had to get a prescription filled for a malaria prevention medicine that costs $120 per person. The cost of that one prescription could treat 50 people at our clinic.

Joey, Vicki, Page and Sam visited two schools today. The first one was Makhai Primary, started in 1936. They had approximately 750 students and they were so well behaved. Many of them (about 200) go without lunch everyday because the parents don’t send it with them. They were the most excited to learn of Jesus and readily accepted Him. The secondary school at Kamchorwa had 1108 students, the largest one we have visited this year. After our singing and testimonies, they asked us to sing – so – “Momma and the Mazungus (white persons) Band” fired up! What was so amazing about the number of kids, plus the setting (being up in the mountains) was the way the children had to “layer” themselves in tiers up the side of the mountain. Four layers of children on a mountainside made them think of a scene from the New Testament when Jesus preached to the multitudes.

It was another special day for the prison mission team. This time the team consisted of Louisa, Ralph and Robert; none of whom had been to a prison. The team picked up Pastor Stephen on their way to Kapchowa. Pastor Stephen has a passion for prison ministry and may be one of the more powerful preachers here. We witnessed to about 40 male prisoners who were seated on the ground in front of us. Louisa felt uncomfortable standing because she didn’t want them to think she was looking down on them. The Warden provided a chair for her so that all the prisoners could see her. Louisa gave a wonderful lesson on the “Lost Sheep”. She has such a loving spirit. Pastor Stephen did a masterful job of reinforcing each of the team’s testimonies and messages. The best part came at the end of our time there. Pastor Stephen asked the prisoners “Who would like to receive Christ into their life?” and nearly every hand went up. What an awesome sight! Instead of having the prisoners come forward for the alter call, Robert, Ralph and Louisa went into the crowd of prisoners, placed their arms around their shoulders, and prayed the prayer of confession. One of the aspects of the prison ministry is to bring gifts of needed items with us. They are so excited as we unload the mats, blankets, plates, soap, and some bags of sugar. They seem to sense that we care for their needs, both spiritual and physical. What an incredible day!

On the trail Lisa Zachry and her translator, Rogers, were sharing with a group of people that consisted of a couple of families. A man came upon the gathering and asked several unusual questions. Eventually, the entire group prayed the prayer of confession, including the man with all of the questions. After Lisa and Rogers returned to the trail, Rogers told her that the man who asked all of the questions had been a witch doctor. What an unexpected opportunity!

Hannah and Susan were on the trail when they encountered a family who wanted to hear the story of Christ. In the family was a blind man. As they began telling the story, the blind man, who was sitting away from the group, came closer to hear. When they were finished sharing, he began excitedly talking about how grateful he was that they were there and how appreciative he was that they had shared. Before they left, Hannah and Susan gave the man a hug and he had the biggest smile on his face. When they began to leave, they heard a noise in the corner. As they continued out to the trail, they saw a pure white lamb sitting in the bush and they knew that God had sent them a sign to show He was present. Susan had asked God for a sign that what she was doing here was truly His will. From now on, in the group, the lamb is referred to as the Lamb of God.

This evening Al Spinks was scheduled to preach. The custom here is that the preacher wears a coat and tie. Al was prepared to preach wearing his tie but didn’t have his coat on yet because it was so hot and he wouldn’t preach until later in the crusade. However, after a long day on the trail his pants had stretched and were quite baggy. He had even folded them down one turn so that they would fit better. He was standing listening to Ben share his testimony when Pastor Dennis came to him. In a most bashful and humble way, he asked, “Please accept my offer.” Al asked him to explain what he meant and Dennis politely stated that he would like to offer Al his belt. Al’s first impulse was to refuse but the offer was so kind and genuine that he accepted. Al tried to explain that he was a large man and the belt may not fit but Dennis led him into the pastor’s home and took off his belt to give him. Al threaded the belt through his belt loops. Unfortunately the belt fell at least 6 inches short of even meeting ends. Poor Pastor Dennis stood there looking at Al in disbelief! Thanking him for the gracious offer Al explained that once he had his coat on everything would be okay… and it was.

The last night of the crusade was very powerful. Elle Spinks, Missy Grimes and Ben Spinks gave their testimonies. Al Spinks gave a message on The Parable of the Sower and you could see that the Ugandans were relating to Al’s love of farming and the land.

The day offered many opportunities to reflect on the devotional led by Pat Hunter this morning on “Humility and Holiness”

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Please, keep them all in your hearts and on your minds, in your thoughts and in your prayers.

Want to know more about Uganda? You can visit the Uganda entry in 'The World Factbook' maintained by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. You can also visit the official Uganda tourism website maintained by the Uganda Tourist Board. And Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church of Houston, Texas, has a webpage devoted to Mbale Presbyterian Church of Uganda.