October Update from Uganda

Hello from Uganda! 
We have had an amazing trip and time is flying!  We were in just a few days before the first mission team arrived.  We had team members from a church in GA come as well as some team members from Germany.  It was so neat to see God mesh everyone together to be His hands and feet here in Uganda. 

The team members worked in two nearby villages last week – Nangwe with Pastor Patrick and Myumbe with Pastor Mike.  Each day the team split up, half doing hut to hut evangelism and the others doing children’s ministry.  Then each afternoon, the team held a church service for the community, giving an opportunity to connect all the new contacts to the local church.  We lost count through the week, but we are estimating over 100 became born-again Christians through the love of this team!  We are truly praising God for His mighty work in each of our lives! 



I am, of course, doing my work with the children at our school in Busia as well as our bush schools.  HHFM has a Child Sponsorship Program and the child sponsors in America sent in extra donations for school supplies for all of the children.  So, I have been busy shopping for and distributing school supplies for the children.  In Busia, our main school, all the children are receiving school notebooks, pencil packs, calculators, and mathematics sets.  

In Syonga, one of our bush schools, they didn’t even have curriculum to teach the children.  So, I was able to purchase the government-required curriculum and teacher books for every subject in each grade level.  We also had a local church donate flip-flops, so every child at Syonga received shoes!

Here’s some more great news, too!  Arafat is thriving!  When we arrived almost 2 weeks ago, Arafat had turned a corner.  His wounds are healing, he is off all medication, and he is regaining strength.  We brought some hand and ankle weights for him to start building up his muscles again.  And we found a cane for him to use when he gets tired.  He is doing so well!  He is now up to 64 pounds – that’s a 12 pound increase since we arrived!  Mike also measured his arms to check the malnourishment level, and he is now out of the danger zone.  God is doing miracles in this young boy’s life – he is growing stronger physically and spiritually every day.  He is also developing quite the personality, as you can see from this picture!   

This week, we are continuing our work and preparing for the next team arriving on Thursday night.  Here are some things we are working on and how you can be praying for us. 

• Mike is studying and preparing to teach the local pastors coming in for training next week.  Mike, along with 4 other pastors from the US will be teaching/training district pastors, who will then take the material to the pastors under their care.  We will have pastors here from Uganda, Kenya, Congo, Tanzania, Sudan, and America!  I know it will be such a special time for them all to grow in their faith and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ!   
• This week, I am continuing to make visits to the 5 bush schools sponsored by HHFM.  I am meeting with the teachers and pastors, seeing how the schools are operating and what their needs are.  Please pray for me as I hear and see the many needs.  So many needs are so basic – food, curriculum, latrines, roofs, walls.  Pray that I will hear God’s voice above all others and will use our resources in the way that He most desires.  
• The Busia church is having a revival in the marketplace every night this week.  Please pray that many will hear and accept the Truth and that God will be glorified.  We still have one team member (Joshua) here with us this week.  Mike and Joshua may be going to the revival to preach or give testimonies throughout the week.  
• On Thursday, Mike and I are meeting with a probation officer, Carol, in Kampala.  As HHFM prepares to build the Village of Eden orphan village, we have to get guardianship of all the children who will be living with us there.  So, we were given Carol’s name, so she can help us go through the process.  Pray that we ask all the right questions.  Pray that our meeting with her will be effective and that there will be a clear and easy path.

Thank you all so much for your prayers during this month.  We are so grateful for each and every one of you!

~ Mike and Sarah