Day 4

Hi everyone! Let me start by sharing with you an incredible thing that started yesterday (Tuesday). A baby girl, maybe two years old, kept wandering into the church as our group ate lunch and fellowshipped. She began to stare at the food on Melissa’s plate. Melissa began to feed the child, sat her in her lap, and shortly she got down and wandered out and down the street. Today, we came back to the church to have lunch. The same little girl came back and was staring at the food on Ashlea’s plate. We began to feed her and began to fall in love with her, a very special love that God was putting on our hearts. As I began to feed her and hold her we realized that we had not seen her before, so we asked the ladies from Luzira Community Church whose child this was. We were told that she was a child that wandered in from the street, nor did they know her family. Immediately God put in my heart to have Diane, Krista, and Ashlea join me in praying over her, that her mother would come to know Jesus.
After a while, this precious child became very weary and laid her head on my chest and fell fast asleep. I didn’t have the heart to wake her up. So 30 to 40 minutes went by, and the mother came into the church and was looking for her child. One of the ladies from the church interpreted as I talked to this mother. I began by apologizing for keeping her child so long and causing her fear. Then I began to explain to her that her child kept coming into the church each day because she felt a special love. I asked her if I could share this special love with her. And the mother said, “Yes.” Through my using the Helping Hand to Christ, God began to reveal Himself and His love for her as tears ran down her face. I then asked her would she like to ask God for the free gift of Jesus and this special love. She immediately said yes and prayed to receive Christ. She is coming tomorrow for a copy of God’s Word and has already stated that she will have her children at Fun in the Son Club on Saturday and plans on attending church this Sunday. She left still in tears overjoyed. This is only one of many amazing stories from the past few days. We can’t wait to share more in future blogs.
Helen Schaper

Free Time is not Down Time
By Adolfo Ramirez

I have learned that when Pastor Don (as he is called here in Africa) gives us some time off to rest that this does not mean we cannot minister. So, I stand outside the Luzira Community Church gate and talk to the people who pass by. It is so amazing that when you just smile at them this is like giving them a gift. Ivan, one of our African interpreters says that this is because their lives are so difficult that they struggle day to day just to be sure they have food and shelter and seldom have anyone really stop and take time to appreciate them. I was standing at the gate today when a man named Edward was walking by. I gave him my smile and said hello and he was so happy to talk to me. We began talking and I just felt led to go ahead and ask him if he was very sure that if he died he would go to heaven. He said that he thought he would but he wasn’t sure. I offered to lead him to Christ but he said that he would come on Sunday and make a decision at that time. Please pray for him, it is so hard for me to know that he is not sure about something as important as eternity. He then said something that brought me to tears: he thanked us for loving Uganda so much that we would come so far to tell them about the love of Jesus. I explained to him that Jesus’ love is unconditional and that this is why we were able to love them the same way…because His love flows out of us. Suddenly, on the street this grown man twenty something years old gave me a hug and wouldn’t let me go. I am praying that I will see him on Sunday.

p.s. Annie, I am so sorry we haven’t been able to talk yet, please know that I miss you and I am doing great…I’ve cried a lot but they are tears of joy. Love you.