Uganda 2015: Days 8 and 9

Sorry for missing a day but the time change is starting to catch up to us! Yesterday we went white water rafting on class 4 and 5 rapids on the Nile river. My raft was excellent because Mark Acre and I quickly got Ms. Karly Buer in it (she basically has a degree in outdoor activities). Despite being scared on the first drop, I had an absolute blast! I found it a lot easier than I expected and I felt like I was in control the whole time. The team bonding was great last night and I believe that everyone on this trip is here for a reason. 

Today we went to Mitch Hauschildt's school (Bethel Junior School) to play with the kids.  It was so much fun playing hard with the kids even though I probably needed a shower by 10 a.m.. After talking to the Masese women (more on them in a later note), we made our way to the first day of men's conference in Jinja. Despite frustrations over the two and a half  hour delay in the sun, God continued to bless the team by showing us who really is in control. Today, eleven men (ages ranging over 30 years!) gave their lives to Christ after our first session. It was such a blessing to see these men wrestle with the thoughts in their minds but ultimately let Jesus have their hearts. 

We closed the session with prayer. During the partner prayer, I joined up with a Ugandan man named Moses. It was cool that two men from completely different parts of the world who spoke completely different languages, were bound together by Christ to pray for a generation of men. I keep having visions of Moses and I together in heaven, talking up a storm, with no cultural or language barriers.

Tomorrow we will have the final men's conference from 11 a.m.- 5 p.m, so we still have lots of opportunity to share the gospel. I am excited to try out a project I have been working on this week so prayers for God's will to be spoken through us would be much appreciated! God bless. -T

Uganda 2015: Day 7

We are beyond the halfway point now! Today was such a successful and fruitful day. The morning men's conference was very encouraging because we had 110 men come even though it was a work day. Our numbers dropped dramatically last year, so it was good to see that they thought our message was important enough to stick around for. Despite some team members feeling under the weather, I feel like we have started to hit our stride. 

The women led the school children in bible games and by their accounts the kids were quite receptive. Eric and I went to Victory Day School after lunch to preach a message to 110 young men and women. We were accompanied by a youth pastor, Dennis, who translated our (fast and heavily accented) English into more Ugandan English. Despite Eric being from the worst place in the world (Wichita, Kansas) we made a great team. After sharing testimonies and how Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies in the bible, we shared the Roman's road to salvation. Pastor Dennis invited anyone who wanted to devote their life to Christ to come forward for a prayer and about 90 kids came forward. Praise the Lord! Very few kids stayed in their seats. It made my heart soar that these kids were making a decision this early in life and it makes me believe that our mission of having more families and less orphans can some day be a reality.

Afterward we went to Kerith Children's Home where fellow man upper and longer term missionary, Katie McGinnis, had helped open up a health clinic. The kids were so fantastic and wore me out with their incredible dances. The living quarters were a lot nicer than other places we have seen, but it is very hard to provide for orphans on top of a ministry and school. Their rooms were very clean, but besides a sheet there weren't any pillows, clothesline, or suitable shoes and clothing for the kids. Only 4 out of 30 kids are sponsored and I know for a fact that I'm going to be adding to that number. I encourage anyone else who wants to help to contact me for more information.

Pastor Samuel has done such an incredible job and he really invests in the youth pastors as well. We met Bruhan through Sam last year and now he's starting his own ministry (and doing fantastic by the way). So it is encouraging to see yet another youth pastor (Dennis) speak with so much conviction and power that you know he's going to reach people. 

Palissa has a special place in my heart. The team this year is just so great! When we aren't planning and sharing the gospel, we are probably crying from laughing. In less than 24 hours new man upper, Brandon, has successfully taken down a bat and the largest beetle I have ever seen in my life! Tomorrow will be a team building touristy day when we travel to Jinja to go rafting on the Nile River! God bless! -T

Pastor Dennis and I at Victory Day School

Peter and I at Kerith Children's Ministry

Uganda 2015: Day 6

We are officially half way through our men's conferences! Today we had 153 men show up for our conference which is an improvement over last year's total. This group was older and more mature spiritually than the group in Kampala which makes it even more meaningful. The men Man Up taught in Palissa for the first time three years ago, are now pastors and leaders at their respective churches where they are able to share what they learn with their entire congregation. I spoke on spiritual leadership again with a strong focus on mentoring and relationships.

We also went through our prayer module today like we did last year and it was just as cool this year. My partner in prayer was Pastor Samuel and his words of wisdom meant the absolute world to me. I put him at the top of my list of men I respect.

This morning I went to the River of God Church with Mitch and Eric. Unfortunately my talk didn't go very well due to a translator issue (imagine thirty teenagers staring at me for 30 minutes because they couldn't understand what I was saying). 

The worship they have before church is just incredible though. It's truly worship in every sense of the word. It is so incredibly genuine. It is amazing to see the people's love for God. It was particularly powerful to witness their tithes and offerings. We see the conditions these people live in and know that every schilling has to be extremely valuable to them. But instead of worrying about themselves first, the entire congregation got up and offered some amount of money to support the church.

At first I was amazed at the progress of Pastor Samuel's church/school but the more I think about it, who wouldn't want to get behind this man and try to help in anyway they can? This man is a true leader of men and he is on the front lines of God's battle daily. This area has significantly more Muslim people than the other places we visit but Samuel engages them in theological debates and converts people to Christianity. Despite the threats from men in the community, Samuel proudly does God's work on a daily basis.

Tomorrow, fellow man upper, Eric, and I will go speak to a high school in the area. We are planning on elaborating on the Roman's road of salvation before doing an altar call at the end. This will be a huge opportunity for these young men to hear about Christ and mold them into future Christian leaders. Pray for God to bless us with His words tomorrow! God bless. -T

Uganda 2015: Day 5

As I lay here in the hotel (I use the term hotel very generously), I can hear the party going on outside that sounds like it's directly beneath me. Yikes! Anyway, it's been a long day, but tomorrow brings many opportunities. I just finished preparing a sermon for 30 teenagers tomorrow about Christian dating. It will focus on respect, purity, and putting our Risen King first and foremost. Lauren was sweet enough to send me to Africa with a picture of us, that also has a verse on the back, which I will gladly show off to my audience tomorrow.

We will also hold Day 1 of our men's conference tomorrow afternoon which will bless us with the opportunity to share our Lord's message. It was through this conference last year that Pastor Sam Msweigwa instilled in me the courage to speak up about my faith. His simple advice to "be bold" has stuck with me and helped me tremendously. Thank God!

I'll never forget the first day of last summer's conference in Palissa. We were having a group prayer before dismissing early due to an impending rain storm. We first prayed alone for different subjects, then with a partner, followed by a small group, and finally one person out loud to the entire group. We were praying for strength in our group of four when I experienced God's touch for the first time in my life. I remember thinking that the rain was pounding on Pastor Sam's roof but when I looked up I realized it was the sound of all the different pastors praying in their native tongue vibrating off of the walls. I then felt what I thought was Mitch putting his arms around my shoulders from behind. I turned around to see nobody behind me, and all the hair on my arms sticking up. It was truly incredible!

On our drive we stopped at Ebenezer Children's Ministry for a few hours to play with their kids. The amount of work that they have gotten accomplished around their property this past year is just astonishing. It hardly looks like the same place. The kids were beyond excited to see us. When Derrick (the child my mom and Mike Dougherty sponsor) recognized me, he didn't let me stop holding him for the rest of the evening.

Tonight, the men that will be preaching tomorrow prepared their sermons while the ladies prepared vacation bible school supplies for about 350 kids tomorrow. Pray for our safety as we are on the Western side of Uganda now, and for the hearts of all the men that will hear messages over the next 24 hours to Man Up and have more families and less orphans. God bless! -T

Me and Derrick at Ebenezer Children's Ministry.

Uganda 2015: Day 4

Today was our last day of men's conference in Kampala with Return Ministries and God decided to bless us with a round of liquid sunshine (rain, and lots of it!). So unfortunately besides the Q&A, we had to stop our conference at lunch time. During the downpour the kids gathered on the stage and treated us to Man-Up themed raps.

When we went to pickup team #2 from Return Ministries I was able to find the girl I sponsor. Her name is Mirembe Winnie and she is 11 years old (and she's so tall!). I met her last year on my first day in Uganda and she impressed me so much with how attentive she was to her younger peers. When I walked in she started dancing up and down and ran immediately to me (my heart melted) and she pulled out a picture of the two us together that I had sent her at Christmas time. She wrote me a letter and told me all about her school, friends, and family. It was such a special moment for me and it is one of the highlights of my year. Mirembe (which means peace) continues to impress me with her selfless heart as she told me that if I send any gifts, to send a ball because her brothers would love to play with it as well. It was hard to tell her goodbye after such a short time together, but I was able to tell her with confidence that God willing, I will be back again!

The Man-Up soccer team improved to 3-0 all time against the locals with a 5-2 victory in the muddy death trap of a field we played on. At the end of each session with our ministry partners, we pool together money to bless them with. We will bless Pastor Sam Bubonero tomorrow, but tonight we were able to bless Bruhan greatly as he works diligently to begin his own ministry.

Unfortunately this will probably be my last post for awhile as Palissa (and possibly Jinja) will not have wifi. Pray for us as we will be driving over 7 hours tomorrow to get there. On the way tomorrow, we will be able to see George and Sylvia at Ebenezer Children's Home. My mom sponsors little Derrick there and I am excited to be able to see him again and also find out more about his interests. Ebenezer's is one of the hardest, if not the hardest place we travel to. All 25+ kids live there as orphans and are affected by HIV (either they themselves are infected, or their parents have passed because of it). Pray for George and Sylvia for their brave mission to better these kids' lives while raising them in a Christian home. I will continue writing these but it may be a week or so until I am able to post. God bless! T

Reunited with Mirembe!

Mirembe holding the picture I sent to her at Christmas.

Mirembe and her friends.

Mirembe's brother Judias with Mirembe and I.

Children from Return Ministries.

Uganda 2015: Day 3

Today was the day of our first men's conference. My talk went incredibly well and 19 young men committed their lives to Jesus today. Praise the Lord! 

Our good friend Bruhan Rafael, joined us on our panel (round-table) (inside joke) and his testimony was incredibly convicting for the young men. Raised Muslim, Bruhan converted to Christianity and is still the only one to do so in his entire family. He talked about his life of sin prior to converting, his road to redemption and how he has even fought his own brother who has 30 children and multiple wives. At 28, he is a pastor at a church in Kampala and his fire for The Lord is just incredibly evident. Thank God for placing men like Bruhan on the front of his battlefield.

The boys today seemed very engaged as I spoke to them and the questions they asked me afterwards were comforting in the fact that I know they listened. I really believe that they will take some of the points in my talk to heart. I'm so thankful that God has given us the ultimate playbook on earth to instruct us on how to do everything in life. I had trouble sleeping last night but it was a blessing because I was able to dig into the bible for biblical truth in order to be prepared for today. We have prepared for tomorrow to have a Q&A session, along with talks on women, children, and work.

Also tomorrow we will have our 3rd annual soccer match with the locals (we're 2-0) and as goalkeeper I am pumped to do what I was destined to do... Be large and in the way!

Anyways, thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers, and encouragement! God bless, T

PS: Tomorrow will probably be my last day with wi-fi until I return, so if you need to contact me your time is limited!

I can't believe how big they've gotten! It is nice to see familiar faces and I really enjoy spending time with  Pastor Sam Bubonero, his wife Sarah and children Israel (5), Pearl (3), and Bella (1).

Uganda 2015: Day 2

Last night we got into Uganda around 11 p.m.. By the time we got through customs and traveled from Entebbe to Kampala it was about 1 a.m. Today we ate a late breakfast followed by sorting through all of our donations to be split between 5 ministries(18 bags x 50 pounds of medical supplies, clothing, games, etc.) Thank you so much to everyone who has made this trip possible from prayers to donations, to financial support. 

After lunch we headed out to My Father's House for fun with over 450 kids! (A ton by ministry standards.) Their choir sang many beautiful songs to welcome us and after a reenactment of David v. Goliath (Mark Acre v. Me), we split into different stations to play with the kids. Mark and I were in charge of Simon Says. Later on I was surrounded by a group of about 25 kids where I taught them kung fu, dancing, and how to roar.  After the 2 hours of playing I was completely worn out and had sweat pouring off of me, but man I had fun! (I totally didn't coach them to say "Tyler is the best")

Tonight after dinner the seven men in our group developed a game plan for our first men's conference tomorrow. We will talk to 300 school kids, ages 15-25, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. I've been handed the responsibility of teaching "Successful Manhood = LEAD by FOLLOWING CHRIST." In that hour I plan to talk about:

• what I do specifically everyday to lead people to Christ;
• how I follow people;
• how I abstain from the world;
• sexual purity; and 
• most importantly why (my biblical evidence)

 I am extremely excited that my prayers have been answered by this incredible opportunity to be intentional and share the all of God's breathed words with this group of young men. Pastor Sam (Bubonero) said that most of the young men will not be believers and he stressed the importance of sharing personal stories and sexual purity. Pray that these young men will have open hearts tomorrow. I know that God will find me the words tomorrow. T