Seemingly...a Perfect Fit

Moral Purity...so misunderstood and misrepresented by the world. In the Philippines we tackled that value only on the high school level. Here in Uganda, all of our consultants urged that it be taught on all three levels, including Lower Primary (kindergarten - grade 3). The emphasis for these younger children would continue to be that of lifting up God's excellent plan--abstinence outside of marriage and faithfulness within marriage. But it would also need to help children who are vulnerable for being abused and those who are already being exploited, primarily by family members that they trust. Not an easy assignment for any writer, especially since it will be taught in school classrooms.

Our first writer who worked on it last December had her heart in the right place, but lacked the experience that comes with age...and university studies gobbled up more time than she anticipated. Humanly speaking, we had no one else to turn to. We prayed and sought the Lord together. During our first staff meeting with our "new" VOICE Operations Assistant, Martha, the matter came up for prayer. Martha immediately offered to consider her contacts and search for someone who would do this. Her first contact declined due to lack of time, but her second contact said she would welcome the opportunity to help in that way. A meeting was set and a couple days later we met Noeline. Currently she is in a ministry helping unemployed but self-motivated young people find employment, many of them actually beginning their own small business--amazing story in itself. But previously she worked for several years with children at risk, including many who had suffered or were suffering exploitation. The more we talked, the more I was convinced that God had prepared her for this assignment. So, she's working on it and feels it can be completed in two weeks' time! Maybe we're counting our chickens before they hatch, but it's been a huge encouragement for us to see God answering this prayer. He is able!

Pray and Play

Today both of us disconnected from the computer and VOICE Africa work and gathered with fellow WorldVenture missionaries for their quarterly time of prayer and fellowship. Our first hour together centered on God’s promises—a wonderful time of pondering, praying, and praising Him through spontaneous hymns/choruses for His faithfulness to keep His promises. Then we moved into a time of intercession for personal, family, and ministry concerns among us. From there we “lifted up our eyes” to our region and world.  I came away with a reminder of how dependent we are on our great God and that our work IS prayer.  We are kept here by those who partner with us in prayer, asking God to open doors and turn hearts toward Him.  (Thanks to each of you on our prayer team!) 

We closed our morning of prayer by doing something so common in North America but until very recently, unheard of here--“ordering in” pizza (on-line via computer) and having it delivered to our door. You would have laughed at all of our expressions of amazement that it worked, they found us (addresses are not as simple here!), the pizza was still warm and it arrived only 25 minutes later than we requested…not bad for African time! We then “kicked back” and shared a hilarious game of Pictionary.  Praise God for a total break from the usual routines to spend time with our colleagues and missionary family in praying and playing.

A VOICE Africa Friend is Promoted!

Although we deeply appreciate our partnership with Scripture Union Uganda (SUU), our contacts with a number of the staff and especially the Board has been limited.

Kedrace during the VOICE Africa Launch, Nov. 22, 2014
where she served as the guest speaker.

It seems that God is answering that desire of our hearts. This past Sunday was SUU’s AGM (Annual General Meeting), an all-day event which begins with a Worship Service and proceeds to business and reports and ends with the election of new members of the Board and leadership Board positions. The event is held at nearby Mengo Secondary School, walking distance from the SUU Headquarters. We attended with a volunteer, Olivia, and besides sitting in on some of the meeting, did some promotion of VOICE Africa and the June 6, 2015 planned Training. Scripture Union Uganda's  2014 ministry report states that 620 schools were included in SUU ministry during 2014 with a total of 136,448 students reached and 50,144 professions of faith! Amazing and praise be to our God! Another plus was meeting some of the spouses and children of the SUU staff. But, the greatest highlight was meeting up again with Kedrace, our speaker from the November 2014 VOICE Africa Launch, and to witness her being elected to the Board (as the only female member)…and then made Chairperson of the Board of Scripture Union. We congratulated Kedrace following the meeting and rejoiced in God’s sovereignty and appointments. She and the Board have many heavy matters to deal with, including lagging financial support, but we sense that God has her there also to help integrate VOICE in a deeper way into the SUU ministries! Our God works in amazing ways!

Holding the Fort Solo

Although weather at the “fort” was great, I realized as I watched my co-worker disappear at the Qatar Airlines check-in counter on the 5^th of Feb., her absence during the next weeks would prove to be a faith stretching time for me.  Indeed, I became aware of all the things Ruth does at her laptop in managing our communication and prayer updates, the curriculum soft copy reservoir, drafting the agenda and writing up the minutes of our meetings, sending soft copies and preparing paper masters for volunteer test teachers, encoding our financial ministry expenses and sending those through the proper channels, facilitating test teacher training, discussing and processing with me on cultural and VOICE Africa issues, evening vesper and prayers, and much more.  But God is faithful and He proved Himself more than able!  Our VOICE Africa Admin Assistant, Susan, was on top of things, coordinating the flow of ministry.  Beth was there to talk things through, often by email or cell phone.  Just when I wondered how we would get the test teaching packets ready for the Feb. 7 Training, neighbors and colleagues rallied to give helping hands, also a Uganda volunteer, Babs, who patiently did so much of the counting of Activity Sheets.  When I needed to “talk Canadian” volunteers Muriel and Cheryl were there to connect with and update me on family and home area. God also answered prayer in a closer relationship with a Scripture Union staff who called on my help for a camp he ran to teach an elective on baking banana bread.  (New experience for me.)  Later he needed help in teaching a group how to begin a puppet ministry.  Just when I needed to disconnect and enjoy some R&R, a cancellation of a participant of a Ladies Retreat allowed me to take her place and enjoy a couple of days meditating and reflecting on Psalm 91 with fellow missionaries, Living Under God’s Umbrella.  Was I ready for Ruth’s return?  You bet, “holding the fort” is much less stressful with two.