DAY 3 IN MBALE, UGANDA - KIDS GAMES & SOUL WINNIN' IN THE MARKET:
The team awoke to some pretty heavy news. Many know that Karen Vaca, Patty's sister has had a heart condition since birth, has undergone 2 open-heart procedures, & was nearly prohibited from even coming on the trip. After a lot of prayer it was decided she would come. Karen has been the backbone of the missions group at our church, & had been on every short-term trip we'd taken, but her health condition was real - she had been ill as recent as 2 months before the trip. Anyway, that morning it was revealed that Karen had had a rough night, & was feeling very short of breath probably due to the altitude. Pastor Robert had actually planned to take us to another village in another part of the mountains, but we decided it'd be much wiser to head back down to Mbale. Bishop Alex & the entire team prayed & layed hands on Karen & off we went back down the mountain (Karen hasn't had any further problems or symptoms since).
We returned to the hotel where we'd been, had a shower & prepared to hold Kids' Games (the sports ministry we'd also done in Kenya) in a nearby neighborhood. 3 local community clubs would be participating & to our delight there were Christian & muslim kids competing. It was a blast, God really spoke directly to the kids through the teaching, & as in Kenya, the trophies were highly coveted. The boys & girls played hard, greatly enjoying the day. We did run way over schedule though, & Pastor Robert had been awaiting us at the platform in the large open-air market, a stone's throw from the railroad tracks, to go ahead w/ the presentation of the gospel.
The Kenyan team we'd traveled w/ was leading worship & sharing with the crowd that had gathered in the market. The platform was very... um... 'rustic' shall we say, & this was the same place, where 2 days before we'd felt such a spiritual heaviness. We were exhausted, but could sense the importance of the moment. The team had to perform down below the platform, but gave a very inspired presentation of the drama & dances which told the gospel story in a way everyone watching could understand.
Larry had the honor of giving the invitation to receive the Lord following the drama, & felt moved to give a short message of grace & restoration. God was a God of forgiveness & new beginnings. And Christ had come to cut through, bridge the gap to God & forgive our worst sin: murder, sexual abuse, witchcraft, marital unfaithfulness, even crimes committed in war. God also wanted to heal the victims of those sins: the abused, wives who'd been cheated on, & those who'd been locked into addiction for years. The Spirit was definitely present & stirring people's heart, & that very evening, while rushed to close before our permitted time elapsed, between 15-20 men, women, & youth gave their lives to the Lord!
It was a marvelous ending to a whirlwind evangelistic campaign and we all felt in awe to have been a part of it.
Oh yeah, & Karen felt fine & had participated that evening in the presentation!
God is wonderful
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