Prepare the Way
“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3
The Lord cleared the way for the Israelites to come back from captivity from Babylon. He prepared the way for the Messiah to come. Now it is time that we get back to the countries that we have been working in. Lord, prepare the way!
The teachers from Uganda have sent Christmas and New Year’s greetings. They have said, “We have a number of classes that are trying to finish by March. We need to see you then. We are grateful for your plans; the graduations are waiting for you.”
Staying connected with ministry partners is critical for the encouragement and progress of the work. It communicates that the efforts they have been doing behind the scenes is valuable, respected, and honored.
All of the classes in Uganda were forced to shut down at the beginning, but now they have started to meet again. Makka Steven sent pictures of the classes in the remote Galilaya region south of Lake Kyoga. Last March there were 8 classes that had sprung up from the one graduation in 2018.
The Potential of One
Makka Steven was a very simple and poor man from the remote area of Galilaya. He was the pastor of a small church but had not been trained in the Bible. He joined the first oral class that had been offered in his area and completed two years of training in 2016.
After graduation he immediately started teaching another class while another graduate taught in a neighboring village. Last March he came from Galilaya to the zonal leaders meeting. He had been elected the chairman of the oral classes in his area. When he was asked to share about the training in the Galilaya zone he said, “I have four classes.” He was asked about the other teachers and their classes. “Oh yes, they also have four classes.” So now that one student who graduated in 2016, is a chairman overseeing eight classes. He is transforming his community and is sharing God’s Word in front line missions.
A year ago, his wife was pregnant with their second pair of twins. She called him while he was away doing ministry and he met her at the hospital. Not many hospitals can handle twins or the complications that come with them. They also will not care for you unless you pay first. She needed surgery and it was going to cost them $175 but they never have had that much money. So, Steven called Nate Jore and the ministry team in Jinja. They sent him the money for the surgery and for the healthy birth of their twins.
Steven reminds me of Epaphras, a mostly unknown evangelist described in Colossians. Epaphras has an expansive fruitful ministry even though he is only mentioned three times. “You have heard… the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing… you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf.” Colossians 1:5-7
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