It’s the end of January, and we’re halfway through our time in Kiburara. After leaving the freezing temperatures of Maryland, where they are currently bracing for another big “dump” of snow, the warm African weather eased us back into life here, even as we ramped up our activity.
We arrived just days after Pastor Moses’s Annual Youth Conference concluded, which left us a week to settle in and rejoin village life while preparing for SMI’s first Bible & Fitness Camp. For four days, children in the community, of all faiths, daily learned the story of the Gospel, played a variety of Awana games, and learned easy steps toward healthier lifestyle changes. Joan, Andrew Okello’s wife, was an outstanding addition to the camp staff and is now interested in getting the Child Evangelism training that Joseph, our camp director, has had.
Offering practical suggestions for better physical health alongside the hope of Jesus felt like a good blend for the camp because death from diabetes and high blood pressure complications is common here. Mary taught about eating a ‘rainbow’ of fruits and vegetables and making exercise more a part of their lives. She also showed campers how to make a simple “sand oven,” and everyone baked some healthy banana bread to share. Next week, she and Joan will give classes to teach the parents how to make this simple, low-sugar treat for their families.
At the end of our camp, we invited the parents to come see what their children were learning. Eight campers got up to share what they had learned daily, along with the memory verses that were the focus of the lessons. When Pastor Moses got up to close our camp, he told the parents they had all heard the Gospel message eight times directly from the Bible, and let that stand as his message. God’s Word did all the “preaching,” and 10-12 campers asked to receive Christ afterwards. An amazing finish to an exhausting but joyful week!
We mentioned in our December news that we would be starting a new C.O.M.A., inductive Bible Study group in a remote village called Nyakera. Because the distance is far and the roads are very rough, we’ll have some LONG days, but the church is excited to start! We’ll study the book of Titus, one chapter per week, and get a good kick-start on what inductive Bible study is and how to use it. Andrew Okello has been invested in this community for over 10 years and will
continue to help them master the techniques.
We have also visited our leaders in two other distant villages where we had established bible study groups. They are going strong! We plan to regroup with the COMA study group here in Kiburara and encourage those who’ve gotten busy in other ways to return. This investment in their own growth in Christ can only strengthen the church in Kiburara, and hopefully build future leaders who will follow Pastor Moses’ footsteps in Bible-driven ministry!
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