On Tuesday, a few of our leaders taught Walk Pure to 200 youth at Compassion Int’l office in Nateete. Compassion Int’l assists underpriviledged youth with school fees. Some of the youth they support went through the Walk Pure program at another school and came back to Compassion telling them about it and how much they liked it. So, the leader of this Compassion branch contacted us and asked us to come and teach the other students they support who attend other schools and didn’t get a chance to go through Walk Pure. These youth on Tuesday who attended the Walk Pure training at Compassion really enjoyed it and look forward to hearing more of the lessons on their next school break.  

Here are some photos of the beautiful nation of Uganda…people, land, culture…it’s a place you must visit and experience!

Some youth at Lubiri High School, one of the schools where we are teaching Walk Pure.

One of the many uses of the boda (motorcycle used for public transport of people and goods.) 

One of the market vendors in our neighborhood.

Children’s ministry at Pastor Africano’s church.

She has no idea what Hersheys is, but she sure looks cute in the shirt.

Pastor Africano’s Church, a pastor we work alongside of in Kampala. 

Even the young ones can keep a beat!

Pastor Africano’s son.

Lubiri High School is one of the many schools where our leaders are teaching. Rachel and Cathy are teaching Walk Pure at this school. My father and friend, while they were visiting us, went to this school with us to see the work the leaders are doing. One of the things from the teaching that stuck in their minds was the idea of teaching the youth to “bounce” their eyes; that is to look away from sexy images, billboards, people, etc. This is one of the many methods we teach the youth to use to help them manage their sexuality in a godly way.

We have 8 other schools where we are teaching the message to Walk Pure, to more than 2,600 students!

In spite of the slow start this term with elections interrupting school programs nearly every week, we are pressing on. Walk Pure is going on and more and more youth are being educated on how to live a life of purity and to save sex until marriage. The students are delighted to receive their very own Walk Pure book! Even Muslim youth are participating in this program. Thanks for partnering with us as we raise up next generation leaders in Uganda!

The February Frayo service went great. With this being only our 3rd service, we were excited to see about 50 young people attend the service! We had a great time of praise and worship, the Word and hanging out after. Every Friday, our Frayo evangelism team hits MUBS and Kyambogo unviversity campuses, sharing about the upcoming service on the last Friday of the month. Looking forward to another great time worshiping God with a dynamic group of young people.

Frayo is a gathering of young vibrant 20-30 year olds, seeking God in worship, learning how to handle real life issues through the Word of God and making friendships.

Our Faithful Friends curriculum is touching lives in King Fahad primary school! This book teaches youth how to make godly friendships, how to handle peer pressure and how to be a positive influence in their friends’ lives. And most importantly, we teach the youth how to be a friend of God. We are grateful for this opportunity to cross cultural and religious barriers to touch lives for the Lord.

This is the second largest mosque in Africa, located in the center of Kampala.

Revolution leaders invited me to speak to 120 youth at their church on Friday. There was singing, break-dancing and lots of fun! I enjoyed sharing with them about the story of Joseph and motivating them to persevere in hard times. At the end of the message, I asked those who are going through a hard time and need prayer to come forward. Needless to say, the altar quickly filled with young people, wanting a touch from the Lord. It was great to stir them up and give them a spiritual boost as they start a new school year.

Matt recently met this young man (see photo below) who leads an ultimate frisbee team. A former Muslim, now a Christian, he formed this team to engage troubled youth into a fun activity, which serves as a way for him to minister to them. He was thrilled when we gave him an ultimate frisbee. We were happy to be a part of reaching youth in our community.

Christmas is about giving and we were excited to join our Pastors in distributing shoes to children for Christmas. Our pastors have a school for underprivileged children in Nakalnda and wanted to give them a special Christmas. So we joined them on the trip to the island. To add to the shoes, we contributed cookies and candy to make the day extra special for the children who otherwise wouldn’t get any gifts or treats for Christmas. After a 20 minuted drive, followed by a 20 minute boat ride, we reached the island. The children, parents and teachers were assembled on the lawn, anticipating our arrival.

After greeting everyone and appreciating them for being there, Pastor shared a bit about the year and encouraged the parents to continue to support their children. Then, as the children sat down on the ground, Angela shared the Christmas story with them and led them in singing Baby Jesus. Next, we had the children form two lines where Matt and some of the teachers helped each child to find the right size shoe. Then Pastor gave them cookies and Angela passed out the lolly pops. The children and their apprents were very appreciative. 

What a way to tangibly share God’s love. In the same way that we gave them a gift, God gave Jesus as a gift to them.

Alexis, our little missionary 

 Pastor Butch (our pastor in Uganda)

We enjoyed attending the staff and leaders Christmas party this year. Usually, we are in the US at Christmas time so we miss out on this event. It was a fun and lively evening with entertaining questions and answers, merry dancing, delicious cake and food and joyful fellowship. We had a truly fun time celebrating Jesus’ birthday as well as what He has done through us this year…touched 7,000 high school students lives!