What’s So Different About Your Class?

Many highlights were shared during the recent debrief with the test teachers of the Obedience module on the Lower Primary level. Let me just list some of them in bullet points. Some will be duplicates because several teachers mentioned that highlight. I’m sure you will join us in praising God.

• Warm reception by school; administration said “programme must be part of the school timetable”; Head Teacher and other classrooms teachers attended the Values Education Class (VEC).
• Children loved the songs and began singing as soon as they saw their VEC teacher coming
• Bookmarks (usually given during the 6^th lesson to pupils who completed all their Activity Sheets) were so special that Head Teacher asked they be given when parents pick the grades
• The Ms in his class participated very well, including completion of the Activity Sheets. One M student prayed in Jesus’ name.
• One M girl who lives with her grandmother asked her grandmother to sign the Activity Sheet (to indicate that the child had kept the Values Promise that week), but was refused for two weeks. On the 3rd week, the grandmother signed which thrilled the pupil.
• Many parents told the school that VEC is a good programme and must continue. Administration wants all classes in the school to be taught.
• Madam Susan asked “why are the children so eager to learn in your class? That’s not true in other classes.”
•  M girl showed keen interest. Her parent wrote on an Activity Sheet, “Thanks for what you are doing; it is good. But don’t give her the Bible to read.”
• Parents came to him with testimonies of how the VEC had “completely changed” their child and others asking what were they teaching that made such a big impact on their child.
• Some requested that the VEC programme be extended to the entire community.
• The school administration showed much interest in VEC. The Head Teacher wants it to continue because the discipline among the pupils has improved. That change was felt, not only in the school but also in the community which is known for being hard.
• One M pupil cried when he missed getting a Bookmark because he was one Activity Sheet short (he later was given one).
• Five children were members of families involved in a cult. Following the first day, 4 of the children were not allowed to go to school on Friday, the day of VEC. The 5th child attended but did not take home his Activity Sheet. Each Monday, the rest of the class retold the VEC lesson to the four who were absent.
• From a class of 187, 87 were selected to attend his VEC. Other pupils who weren’t chosen would jump through the window to join the class.
• Even after just two lessons, the administrators and parents began talking about the big change they saw in the pupils. Parents came to the school to ask about this new programme that was affecting their child’s behaviour. Administration said the atmosphere of the whole school was changed by VEC.
• One school wrote a letter to Scripture Union requesting that the programme continue “forever.”
• Most of the pupils from one school were from rich families and were quite naughty and hard-headed. The teachers recommended that the VEC teacher take a stick (commonly used for discipline) with her when she taught. She didn’t and her VEC was quiet and orderly; the pupils loved it. The teachers witnessed that the class had changed and acted better even in their other subjects.

God’s Truth Impacts Pupils and Their Families

A week ago or so, our colleague, Beth, was in Mbarara, western Uganda, and “just happened” to find a Values Education Class (VEC) being taught by a student of Uganda Christian University (UCU), Lorna, whom we had trained a couple of months ago. Beth was impressed with the quality of the teaching and thrilled to witness God’s Word being shared in the classroom.

During yesterday’s VOICE Africa staff meeting, our male member of the staff, Chris, shared his joy for the opportunity he had to join the final meeting of a VEC fairly near to the Scripture Union office. It was taught by another student of UCU, Elizabeth, whom we had also helped to train. The children eagerly sang the songs and repeated the Values Promises for their visitor, Chris. It was obvious that it had been a good experience for everyone.

Distributing Bookmarks to Elizabeth's Class (Chris as the photographer)
The pupils in the back were not part of her class
but who wished they had been.

Elizabeth with the cake she made for her two classes of VEC.

In preparation for a meeting later today at UCU, I put together a short report of this first time pilot project from our point of view. I decided to phone both of the students whose classes had been observed recently. Lorna chose two schools, one in a more rural area and one in a Municipal area. My initial question, “How did your teaching of the Truth Module go in an actual classroom?”  was answered by her describing a sense of being being overwhelmed by the positive feedback from both pupils and parents. In the rural school, two M pupils showed keen interest plus three others trusted Christ as Saviour. In the Municipal School, the administrators were so pleased with Truth being taught to their pupils that they photocopied the Activity Sheets so that all 135 students could have their own copy.  

Elizabeth also taught two classes but in the same school, a Grade 4 and a Grade 5 Class. In answer to my question, she shared the thrill of witnessing a visible difference when her pupils embraced the truth that each one of them are special, created by God and precious to Him.  Elizabeth who bakes and sells cakes, decided to show her pupils how special they were by baking a cake (a very rare treat) for them on the last day of VEC.  Pupils were thrilled to not only receive a bookmark but cake as well.

Labourers for the Harvest

Three weeks ago I joined Chris, one of our VOICE workers, for a meeting at KEST (Kampala Evangelical School of Theology). Our meeting turned out to be a bit different than we had thought and in some ways the actual meeting was not directly helpful to us.

BUT…while doing some small group work, we got to know new acquaintances and it doesn’t take long to “spot” others who may be “kindred spirits.” Two such people especially stood out to us and this past week, I met with each of them and enjoyed the opportunity to dialog further. Both have a big heart for children and youth and one especially has a potential large network.

Earlier today I met with the second one, Judith, for the third time! She’s a librarian and children’s worker who is in between jobs right now. As we chatted, Judith expressed her desire to apply as a Scripture Union volunteer for VOICE work. The plan is to do a trial period of working with VOICE to the end of January, 2017. Praise God for Judith’s availability and burden to make her life/weeks/months count. She has agreed to spearhead the mobilization/promotion for the January 14, 2017, Kampala Training featuring the Honesty Module, as well as possibly assist in other trainings.

Thanks for praying with us for laborers for the white-unto-harvest-fields here in the Ugandan schools...and please keep praying! God, the Lord of the Harvest, has unpredictable ways to connect us to those He’s chosen!

Sighting Our Creator’s Created Lions

We had just seen the last component of the Forgiveness module come off the press putting us at the half way mark of 3 modules printed, 3 more to go…plus Ruth’s birthday was approaching—two good reasons to celebrate. We talked about a one-night get-away idea but hesitated making reservations. Then, less than a week before the birthday, we learned that our neighbor and her 3 visiting friends were going for a 4-day trip to western Uganda, spending a day (which “happened” to be right on Ruth's birthday) at the Queen Elizabeth National Game Park…and there was room for us to join if we’d like. With amazement we agreed that we could take time for a break and celebration.  We felt God had arranged this for us.

The 2^nd and 3^rd nights found us at the Simba (Swahili for lion) Safari Camp and of all things, Laura and I were assigned to stay in the Simba cabin. God has gifted us with the opportunity to enjoy two other day safaris, in Kenya and in Northern Uganda, but the lions in the wild eluded us both times. The night before this safari, we determined to be delighted with whatever animals God allowed us to see.

As we purchased our entrance passes the next morning, we heard the news…hours earlier, lions had killed a water buck close to the road! Obviously, that’s where we headed first, and YES, we saw lions—7 of them in all! The ranger told us that she hadn’t seen a kill so close to the road. We were so handy we could hear them lap the water as they drank and crunch the bones plus get a whiff of the raw meat. For about an hour, we observed these amazing creatures at work, play and rest. Some of the medium sized cubs playfully cuffed each other, some rolled over on their backs, some rested in the tall grass with only an occasional swinging tail seen, some drank from the near-by water, some stretched out for a nap, while some, one by one, pulled and devoured the meat. We didn’t see a mature male lion, but the ranger told us that two were young male lions who are just beginning to grow their manes. We returned to that spot twice that day and continued to be delighted with the activity of this pride of lions.

Our notes reveal that we saw 15 species of wild animals that day, plus zebras the day before, and 58 species of birds (our driver was a knowledgeable "birder") over the four days. Pictures try to capture some of the amazing sights, but nothing fully describes the thrill of this wonderful celebrative “hug” from our God—the Lion of Judah!!