Uganda Trip February 2009
12/04/09 19:15
Having arrived late into the night on Wednesday 28th January, we went straight into preaching and teaching at a large women's conference (250 delegates) that took place at Great Faith International Christian Centre, Makindye district, Kampala. This conference took place over three days and we both preached and led discussion groups with the women during this time. It was a transforming time for all who participated and many had been transported in from villages outside of the area. The conference was sponsored by PFJ ministries in Bolton and they contributed over £2000 to make the event possible, costs which covered the hire of chairs, a generator for electricity, transport for the women to travel from villages, accommodation for 80 women in a hostel, and food for all the delegates for the three days. Most of the delegates would not have been able to attend without this generous sponsorship from PFJ. In fact the conference would not have been possible without their support. Each day between 5-7pm, the gathering transitioned in to a prophetic gathering for all and we taught key lessons in hearing the voice of God and being activated in the prophetic.
Many were baptised in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues for the first time and many prophesied for the first time. It was an incredible time of impartation from the Lord! On the Sunday morning, we divided ourselves between two churches and shared the Word of the Lord with the people in those local congregations.
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The second phase of the trip was challenging but so rewarding as we embarked on our first real experiences of prison ministry. We were faced with shocking conditions in the prisons; many prisoners without access to basic human provisions like soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, and sometimes even shoes. The men were required to sleep on hard concrete floors in dormitory sized rooms and both women and men did not have access to basic washing facilities, having only a bucket to wash in. We went into 4 men's prisons, 1 mixed prison and two women's prisons over the course of 3 days and during that time shared testimony and preached the Gospel. We were so privileged to see 56 men give their lives to Christ, standing up and publicly confessing Him before their peers and other believers. Within this group three Muslims became Christians and we are so grateful to God for the
opportunity that we had to share in this adventure with Him. He moved us with His compassion and we know that we will be going back to take provisions and the love of Jesus to many more men and women in prison in Uganda. We took toiletry packs into the women's prisons and they were so appreciative for what they received. One important thing we noticed everywhere we went was the warmth of the people and their desire to embrace
and welcome us in their nation.
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On the last day, we visited the home and ministry of Pastors Mary and Duncan Kibaya in Masaka which is about 2 hours drive from Kampala . This was a real joy as the Lord allowed us to see how from the small seed of a vision He has supplied all their needs to reach out and touch lives radically with the transforming power of Jesus. They have now established two homes, one for "street boys" and the other for orphan girls. Their
testimony of being led by the Holy Spirit for each phase of the journey, from feeding the youngsters once a month, to weekly to taking them in was inspiring. Every step of the way the Lord has been there and we are looking to support them in the continuing expansion of their ministry as they continue to demonstrate the love of God in word, deed and demonstration of the Spirit's power. We had the privilege of20meeting Mercy, a two year old, orphaned and left by the road at 3 months old in a frying pan and an
incredible testimony to God's saving power and grace.
We are so grateful for the prayer and support that we received during this journey and we believe that the Lord will lead us back to Uganda in the next twelve months to preach and teach but also to take Bibles, teaching materials, flip flops, soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste to meet some of the physical needs of those we meet and visit in prison. It has been an awesome privilege to partner with the Lord and each other on this journey and we
will keep you updated regarding our future plans.
Thank you for walking this journey with us.
Love and Blessings
Jenny & Maria
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