Wed. JUL 23, 08 Kelsey reports from Dulles airport

Kelsey Young wrote:
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:32:21 -0600From: "Kelsey Young" Subject: Writing from DC
Jambo everyone! Mukama Yebizibwe- (Praise God) I am alive after our 17 hour flight from Ethiopia to DC! As I am waiting for my next flight home to Denver, I thought I would fill you in on a few of the adventures!(I wrote this for you all two days ago...enjoy)The KeyThe mist rises up from the rapids of the Nile. The birds sing to the tune of dawn. The fish surface onto the lapping water against the rocks. As I swing in this amazingly comfortable hammock overlooking the Nile, I am surrounded by untouched beauty and I'm reminded of God's intention for earth: Peace. Looking back on our week in the village of Mawanga, I can honestly say that I experienced unconditional love in its purest form. One of the team members asked me, "What gives you the most joy?" I said, "This. Bringing people together in unity under Jesus Christ gives me the most joy." Friends- you have to understand. This was no ordinary team! Two of the "older" :) women recently had strokes. One younger guy, who I didn't even know until this trip, used to be a major drug dealer and believe it or not...be ridiculously racists against blacks. One team member is 14 and she had never left the country. 19 of 20 team members were all were from my home church- which was the best blessing. I had never experienced such unity. Such love. Bringing my home church and my African family/church together was an overwhelming time for me! What did we do? Nothing. the Lord did it all and, well, we just helped. Come walk with me as we peek into a typical day...ready?The rooster seemed to still be on daylight savings time because this year he shouted his beak off around 5am instead of 6. If that didn't wake me up, Brian's singing would! I stepped outside and ran into Tom (team member) grabbing the water basins and cycling down to the water hole with Pastor Paul's kids. Dolly and Laura were already washing dishes with Mama and a young man from the village, Eddy, is out sweeping the dirt! :)Three women from the team would be ready to go visit a widower with 7 children and a new church meeting under a mango tree. Four men from the team would finish breakfast and head down to work on the new ROWAN office building (Rural Orphans and Widows AIDS network). Two nurses from the team would already be at the clinic working hard at building relationships with the Ugandan nurses and assisting a young boy who was bitten by a Black Mamba Snake. His heart had literally stopped!! If the clinic wasn't there with the anti-venom, the boy would have died. The young team members would be out in the front yard playing with the orphans, two of which have full blown AIDS. Laura was in her room preparing her lesson on the Creation story, and when Diane (older lady) wasn't falling out of the latrine in the middle of the night- she was painting Pastor Paul's house green! Dave was on top of the clinic hoisting up a 7 foot Solar panel! And TA-DA! On the third day, there was LIGHT!!!! ANYWHERE you looked, a team member was there building relationships with the people. Where was I??? Everywhere. You'd find me visiting with the teenage girls I have known for years- one in particular just had a baby last week because her teacher decided to take advantage of her...You'd find me walking with Pastor Paul discussing Big plans for ROWAN (a ministry Pastor Paul and I began together). You'd find me in Martha and Ida's small bedroom dancing and laughing about their "girl secrets." You'd find me gardening with the team and the widows, assisting bible studies with the widows and most of all: standing back in awe. I would stand in front of a fully functioning clinic with light- and praise God. i would look at a new office Building for the Orphans and Widows in the community- and praise God. I would see each team member hand-in-hand with the people- and praise God. I would walk down the path and hear, "Kelsey, Jambo!" from the corn fields- and praise God. I would be jumping and dancing at Jane's traditional African wedding in the Church- and praise God.Well if you are STILL reading this, this is the part of the story that blew me away. Earlier this year I was seeking after the Lord one night and asked Him, "WHAT is my role in this world? What is my purpose?" ..............I shut up and listened...........and immediately I heard the Lord speak..."You are a key." I had No clue what that meant. Not until this trip. As I was saying goodbye to Beatrice, a local pastor's wife that I have known for years, she said, "Kelsey. Thank you for loving us. You are the key. God used you to bring these visitors." Her words hit me like a brick. Next day at church, Pastor Paul gets up and tells the Entire congregation: "Today, in 2008, Kelsey has yet received another name. She is: Kelsey Young Namugombe Key. She is the key..." The team had NO clue why I broke down in tears. I blamed it on my cold. :) In reality, it was a moment where I received yet another glimpse of how God wants to use me in this life. Bringing people together brings me joy. And I can see that it brings the Lord joy to use me as a key to unite His people....and that is all I know thus far. But that is enough. :) From the nurses monthly salary, to oxen and plows for the widow's garden, to literacy programs, to university scholarships for orphans- the needs are overwhelming. I fly home with the memories of much laughter, smiles, joy- but also testimonies of daily hardships and challenges.For those of you who have walked with me in Mawanga for the last 6 years- the village greets you!! They know I am supported by you all and I felt your prayers and love this week. thank you.ROWAN will soon become it's own non-profit and we are working on finding medical partners in the states to sustain the clinic. There is much work to do- and plenty of room for more people to get involved. If you want to know more about my trip- or more about these ministries- email or call! I would LOVE to tell you more. :) I will post pictures on my blog this week and you can see for yourself how much fun we had :)I'm off to Denver. Can't wait to hear from you all, and for now, I'll be back in the states until my next adventure! love you all,KelsProverbs 16:9 "The mind of a man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps."

Mon JUL 21, 08 a thank you from Eria Nyende

Hi mum it was great to be with the team.the team has done great work towards the people of mawanga i really appreciate for that. i was toled you struggled alot to c that the team could come.
i miss your name though i have the name in my memory otherwise God has a good plan for you.
Thank you 4 allowing Sonia and miriam to come i really enjoy'd there services they did, Time has come to begin miss'g tham and i have now begun my work of praying for them that the com'g year they be among the people who may wise to come though Sonia told mi that it takes alot of time and money. They left yesterday to jinja so i hope your to meet them within faw days
cu mum.

Sun, 20 Jul, '08 ITEM report

Hello Everyone, (See new ITEM pictures HERE )
Kiribu, Kenya (Welcome to Kenya). That is the greeting we are giving to five men (plus one Kenyan) who are arriving to spend two days training in ITEM doctrine, methodology, and philosophy of ministry. I mentioned in a recent report a possible theme of "10 down and 10 to go" or "The next 10." Let me explain for those of you who are not sure what I meant.
THE LAST TEN
I came to Africa the first time in January 1998 to teach one course at the Nairobi International School of Theology. God changed my life. I started coming twice a year to teach at the school and at the invitation of some of my students I was soon helping to plant churches in Congo and help with pastor training seminars in Uganda. On top of that I was doing evening and weekend teaching seminars here in Nairobi.
By 2003 we divided that task between church planting and training pastors. The church I was attending at the time assumed the responsibility of the churches and I began to concentrate on training pastors in basic Bible and theology. And it was in 2003 that this organization/ ministry was born: International Training and Equipping Ministries. The step from half-time to full-time with ITEM was made early in 2005.
For the past three years I have been moving between five countries regularly and two others a few times. But there is too much for just one guy to do and finding men from the US who are willing to raise support to help full or part time is not easy. Only one, Bob Allen, has raised some support in order to make one trip a year to the French speaking portion of Africa.
That generally covers the past ten years, that is "10 down." What about the next ten, and why even think of referring to them as "10 to go"? Let me explain.
THE NEXT TEN
I just turned 60 and it is my vision and goal to turn this ministry over to Africans by the time I am 70. That gives me ten years. For ten years we've been building the base. Now it is time to build the structure.
If it had been a 20 year plan in 1998, the "10 down and 10 to go" statement would make more sense. But who could have known (besides God) where we'd be in this ministry 10 years ago? It blows me away to consider where we started, where we've been, and where we seem to be going. When I stop and reflect, I shake my head and think "God has done exceedingly abundantly above all that I could have even dreamed about."
THE PRESENT HOUR
That brings me to the present hour. Instead of having three seminars on this trip, we decided that in place of one of them we would bring our coordinators from six countries to Nairobi to begin training them in ITEM's doctrine, philosophy of ministry, and methodology. We will also be spending time thinking about strategy. My concern is that we continue to develop ways to preserve the fruit our seminars are producing.
IMAGINE
Look down the road with me to the year 2018 when ITEM will have trained regional coordinators in east, west, south, and central Africa. We are not ruling out the north but as of now we have no strong contacts in northern Africa. See also national coordinators in 15 African countries doing ITEM seminars, and envision 4-5 regional directors based here in the States working with the African regional coordinators. And envision thousands of pastors a year going through ITEM's Bible and theology seminars.
So that is where we are going, Lord willing. Many things must fall into place. It isn't going to happen without prayer and diligence. But I am ready to press on in order that I "may finish the course" (2 Tim. 4:7) that the Lord has placed me on.
Thank you for partnering with us in the pursuit of this vision through your prayers and support. Let's keep moving forward with energy and faith.
By His grace,
Steve

Remember When we were praying for the Medical Clinic to have Nurses?

[This info is from Kelsey's blog - see link to right]
Monday, August 20, 2007
Nurses, Anyone???
JUST got this from Pastor.... Isn't this AMAZING?? Everyone told me working with the government in Uganda will take FOREVER, but PRAISE THE LORD the He works in amazing ways:"Hai daughter,Hope you are doing fine,busy preparing to go back.Greetings from your mum, Thank you for your prayers,God is caring for us.Today i was in the office of the District Health Officer. in our discussion he has agreed to give us the Nurses because he is the person responsible to recruit nurses in the District. So he has told me to write to him requesting for the nurses. He has also given me some one to come and inspect the building. I thank God for this!! God bless."This is a GREAT first step! Pray with us as they begin to inspect the building. I know the road may still be long, but the District Officer's friendly assistance is a Praise!! No word on anything from Pastor concerning the Julius situation. Let's keep praying about that as you never know what can happen-To Acton Faith Bible: (and any others) I just got the HUGE bag of necklaces the widows made, and they are beautiful! Get the Christmas Boutique ready!Kels
Posted by KelseyInAfrica at 5:56 AM 0 comments

Friday, August 17, 2007
On the Up-Side...
Another project we are working on in the Pastor's village is getting the clinic up and running. Missionaries came a few years back and built this beautiful building, and yet it has been standing desolate ever since. This summer when Jessi and I were there, the Lord put it on our hearts to research how we can get this clinic functioning.While I have been in Africa, we have already had one of our widows die of simple causes, mainly due to the fact that she had to ride a bicycle for 17 kilometers to the nearest clinic. Pastor said, "Kelsey, my people are dying!" Something has to be done.Seeing how I have NO clue about how to get government staff in the clinic, I just looked up the Ministry of Health in Uganda online and told Pastor to make an appointment. The meeting there went really well, and they said we need to start at the regional level.I JUST received a text message from Pastor this morning saying that his meeting with the District Health Officer went GREAT- He is going to be Very helpful in this process. The officer even tried to call me to thank me for ???? not sure! BUT he is going to help! And I praise God for that.In the midst of the difficulties Pastor is facing, he continues to serve his people and focus on issues like this. If any of you have any contacts with the Ministry of Health in Uganda (hey, you never know!) or have any advice.... let me know! :)Have a GREAT Friday...... [from Kelsey's blog]

Fri JUL 18, 08 a late report from Sonia Grifith in Mawanga

Friday, July 18, 2008, 12:32 AM
Jambo Dad! ....... We are doing great! Today all the men come back from Jinja. The Pastor's conference is over at noon today. (It's 10:30 on Friday right now) Miriam says that she is NOT tired. :) (but she sleeps really really hard at night) turns out she doesn't like the same foods that I do here. go figure. Today we carried up the materials for the roof of the ROWAN office. Now they are waiting for the carpenter to show up so that they can actually put the roof on the building. Wev'e been just kick'n it during the afternoon, playing cards with Andrew and Shawna, sometimes Tom and Brian
People are surprisingly different than we thought that they would be. Tom is rediculously chipper...all the time. So is everyone else for that matter.
We've been doing VBS with the kids every day. Laura is getting the hang of working with a translater and kids who don't really get many english words. The kids are having fun with all of the toys we brought. Yesterday I was literally mobbed! I made the mistake of chasing down a crying child to give him a tootsie pop and the whole village ran after me. You would have laughed your head off. I ended up screaming for help.
Brian is doing great. They think he was stung by a bee and not bit by a spider. HIs hand is back to normal size, it is just red now.
We miss you all, give Mom and Okla a hug for us. We might not be able to write you again.
love ya Daddy!........
Sonia Griffith & Miriam

Sat. JUL 19, 2008 report from Wayne Wilson in Mawanga, Uganda

Thank you for the information [re: Jon].
It is Saturday, and I have only now been able to get at a computer again. I am at Pastor Paul's school. The wedding of Jane Wafula is starting soon. Everyone is well. Brian healed quickly, and Dave Reed did an amazing job getting the solar panels working at the clinic. Dogged diligence did the job. Patients are coming regularly. Ann Wright has been able to care for some serious cases, such as a baby whose cheek was pierced by a bicycle pedal. Very ugly wound. She treated it. Much more to tell, but we'll be home soon. God bless you all.
AFBC is shining here, and the people here are most impressed by what our little church was able to put together. The conference pastors especially, when they heard about our size, and not having a building of our own, and the car washes and sales, and fund-raisers --- they are impressed. So am I.
Pastor Wayne Wilson

Fri JUL 18, 08 Steve reports on completion of Jinja pastor conference

Dear beloved ministry partners,
We have now completed this seminar in Jinja and I want to use this Friday report to do some reflecting. This has been a very good, well organized, high class seminar. We were willing to spend a little more money in order to put on a top notch seminar. And that is what it was.
(see new pictures at ITEM Picasaweb Album by clicking HERE )

WHAT MADE THIS SEMINAR HIGH CLASS?
1. Room and board for pastors
We have never had a "sleep over" seminar for 100 pastors who stayed 5 days. We were only charged $5/man/day for room and 3 meals. But when you figure there were 100 men for 5 days you see how things add up. In an area like Jinja you can't rely on commuters to fill a conference.
2. Begin on time and stay on schedule
But having them sleep here has its advantages. You start every morning on time! That is a big plus. Things run on schedule all day.

3. A full compliment of lectures covering several crucial topics all at the same time
This is only the second time I have presented the ITEM church growth seminar, and the first time in more than three years. That was made possible because I had a team with me who could handle the basic and advanced lectures. And since the church growth seminar took up only one-half of the week, Pastor Wayne Wilson was able to plug in his inductive Bible study curriculum. So we had the basic, the advanced, church growth, and inductive Bible study all going this week. There were 38 lectures given in a five day period. 19 to the group taking the basic and advanced, and 19 to the returnees who attended the church growth/inductive Bible study lectures.

"In a perfect world" (as we say) this is what would take place every time ITEM conducted a seminar. Praying for this is a worthy request. It would take additional teachers at each stop and adequate funds to house the pastors for a full week.

THE ONGOING EFECT OF THE TRAINING
Is the training having an effect? I have good reason to believe it is! This is the third time we've worked with this group. We took about 40 of them through the basic seminar about 18 months ago. Then we came back and took about 60 through the basic and the 60 plus the previous 40 through the advanced. This time we had about 35 back for the third time for the church growth and 75 were here for the first time taking the basic and the advanced.

OBSERVATIONS:
1. As the word gets out and as we return for the second and then the third time, the numbers keep increasing.
2. They guys who are coming back for the third time are giving us evidences that they are doing things differently because of the training.
3. All of this verifies what we have thought for years. Coming back to the same place, continuing the training with the same group bears fruit. You can see the maturity. You can see the growing confidence.

COMMENTS:
*One pastor who has been with us 3 times said he no longer tries to rebuke and bind and cast out Satan every week at church. He commented how seeing the verses about "binding and loosing" in context moved him to stop that habit.
*Another pastor said that the training helped him to see how to exercise church discipline properly and now his church is not filled with sin.
*Another pastor said it helped to see the qualifications for leadership and now they use the qualifications to choose their leaders.
*Several said they no longer preach the way they used to preach. Now they are more conscious of the context and the importance of preaching and teaching the Word only.
*The leader of the women's ministries for the Church of God in Uganda is now requesting a seminar to help the women in their ministries.
*When I shared that with one of our coordinators he immediately said, "Our families are hurting. A marriage seminar would be helpful."
So I am pleased with the feedback and it verifies the importance of continuing the work the best you can with individual groups, and taking them through a sequence of seminars not just one.


QUESTIONS:
1. Pastors are to have one wife but the Bible doesn't say that a man who is not a pastor can't have many wives. What is your comment?
2. How can we know what part of the Bible is specifically for us and what part is not specifically for us?

FINISHING UP
The final lectures today included one on "sermon prep" where I spent a lot of time in Nehemiah 8 showing the principle so expository preaching as they are outlined there, how the people shouted "bring the book," then how it was read, and explained so there was understanding, how the people repented then rejoice, and celebrated because they went away with understanding.
Chris, reviewed the book of 1 Timothy, and I finished up with Titus and 2 Timothy. In the final lecture from 1 Timothy, it becomes a passionate appeal to "keep the faith, finish the course, and keep the faith."

SAYING GOOD-BYE
We concluded with many warm "thank you-s" and some warm embraces. I find myself getting attached to the men we have worked with for three seminars now. And from the words and hugs, I think the feelings are mutual.

ONWARD
Acton Faith Bible Church
The team from Acton moved on to the village they've had a relationship with for a few years. I got a little emotional when I thanked them for their part. Their small church in the high desert of So Cal sponsored about ¾ of this seminar and has helped in the previous two seminars with this same group. They don't have their own building but they are giving sacrificially to missions. "THANK YOU, ACTON FAITH BIBLE CHURCH!"

For me, tomorrow I fly on to Nairobi, Kenya. After a weekend of receiving ITEM coordinators from five countries, plus a man from Rwanda who might become our coordinator, we will spend two full days in sessions planning the work of ITEM in their countries, going over doctrine, philosophy of ministry, and methodology. In ten years I want to be able to turn the ministry over to men like the ones I will be meeting with Monday and Tuesday.
Then on Wednesday I will fly to Nigeria for a four day seminar beginning Monday, July 28. I will be home, Lord willing, August 3.
I am at the end of page two so that is enough for today. There are always more things to communicate than there is time or space. Thank you for enduring all of these pages. I appreciate each of you.

PRAYER
*Continued good health (my back is feeling normal as it always does after a week of standing on cement floors)
*Safe travel to Nairobi
*Good, productive meetings with the men coming to Nairobi
*The final preps for the training coming up in about 10 days in Nigeria.

Thank you for your prayers and everything so many of you do to make these trips and these seminars possible.

By His grace, Steve Van Horn [Intl. Training & Equipping Ministries]

Thur JUL 17, 08 Report from Steve Van Horn in Jinja

See new pictures HERE
Dear family and friends,
I have been lecturing 4 hours a day Mon-Wed, but today and tomorrow I only have two sessions, and since I needed to bring my computer to the seminar today because we had to create certificates to give to the seminar attendees on Friday I can get today's report started during some of my down time.

SPIRITUAL WARFARE APPROACH SET STRAIGHT
I have finished my church growth material so Wayne is with the veteran group all of today and tomorrow covering inductive Bible study. I had the first hour this morning with the new group and my topic was spiritual warfare. Our main points are: Satan cannot touch the believer (1 John 5:18), he must use schemes, tricks, lies, causing doubts (Eph. 6:11), we don't rebuke or bind or cast out the devil when he is troubling us, we repent (all through Revelation 2-3). So we perform spiritual warfare by being strong in the Lord, putting on God's spiritual armor, standing firm, and resisting (Eph. 6:10-17). I told them that if a believer is being troubled by a demon then they need to repent.

THE PRAYER WAS EFFECTIVE BUT THE BINDING WAS UNNECESARY
I say all of that to say this, a pastor came to me afterwards and said they really needed this. He said he could see people around the room responding to what we being taught. Then he told me that there had been a place in the road near a village that had been the place of several accidents in just a short period of time. He said they prayed and rebuked Satan and that stopped the accidents. He waited for my response and I told him, "The prayers were effective, the rebuking were unnecessary. " We accepted that answer without question. Then he said that he was going to go back and teach this to his church and tell them they needed to repent. He said, "We have a lot of problems in this country and the world because we have listened to the doctrines of demons (lies from false teachers) and we need to repent and follow the truth." Amen and Amen.

ANOTHER PROSPERITY DECEPTION
I had another conversation with a pastor who commended us for teaching a true gospel. He said that so much of what is being preached is to make people feel good, to attract them to the church they are leading, and get them to give their money. He told me about one "preacher" who carries his own oil around and will tell people that he will anoint them with the oil he is carrying and they will be rich in 40 days. Of course he charges for the anointing. These stories are never ending here on the continent of Africa .

= = = =
I am continuing this report at 4:30. We've finished the sessions for today and the men from e3partners are showing the seminar attendees here their program for AIDS awareness, evanglism, church planting, and follow up. So I stepped outside to finish this report.

CATCHING UP WITH GEORGE WHO HAS BENEFITED FROM THE TRAINING
This is actually the 14th seminar I've been involved in, in Uganda . The first eleven were between 2000 and 2005. A pastor showed up today who attended several of those seminars and began thinking me for all that he learned back then and how it has helped him in his ministry. He introduced me to two of his disciples were already here without him. He didn't even know I was here until they told him. He now is developing a training center in this region and wants me to help him with materials. These are the kinds of stories that make this ministry worth it. I plan to get his testimony on video to be able to share this "success" story with others.
My afternoon session was on the themes of the New Testament (Pt. 2). Dan took them through part 1 a couple of days ago.

Q&A
But once again, one of the main highlights of the day was the Q&A time. Here are the questions I remember:
1. What does the Bible teach about herbal medicines? I knew this was a cultural issue and after answering it from a western perspective I asked if this was asking about witchdoctors who use herbal medicines. The answer was, "yes, it does."
2. What should the pastor do if a Christian wants to marry a nonchristian and the pastor says "no, it is not God's will." Then next week they both show up in church, they are married, and they say the one who was not a Christian became a Christian?
3. Why do we celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25? In Jeremiah 52:31 it says Jehoiachin was born on Dec. 25. Is that why? (This is a JW argument against celebrating Christmas.)
The big one of the day and almost any seminar:
4. Should a believer drink alchohol?

ALCOHOL
In this culture, all drinking is seen as sin. Serious sin! I know that. So I try to tip toe my way through Scripture while respecting the culture. Then I turned it over to the local guys to tie in the local cultural perspective and one talked about alcohol being thought of a "local brew." And that is always associated with evil people and therefore all Christians should abstain. Then the guy who coordinates the seminar, David Wafula, said the permission given to Timothy was intended for him ONLY. Then someone else said "there are five types of wine in the Bible" and went on to explain all five, then someone talked about the history of wine, then a woman got up and did the emotional thing, "we are new creatures in Christ therefore we shouldn't drink like nonchristians. " Oh, it was fun!
I ended the discussion by appealing to them to be sure to separate what their culture holds to and what the Bible teaches. I told them that if they didn't have freedom in this culture then they shouldn't drink at all. But at the same time they should not condemn a culture that allows some drinking as long as there is no drunkenness.
(I always let them know that I don't drink and my conscience will not let me. But that I do not condemn someone who drinks a little but never gets drunk.)

BODA BODA
One of the "taxis" around here is a motorcycle that is referred to a boda boda. I have NEVER asked about the etymology of the word but Dan Horner asked today when we were driving to the seminar site. Here is the story. In years past the mode of transportation across the border was on the back of a bicycle. And when the traveler would call for a bicycle the would wave their hand and call out, "Border Border!" Well, Africans don't really pronounce the letter "R" in words. So it is chuhch (church), pastuh (pastor), wud (word). So "Border, Border!" became "Boda, Boda!"
Now you know the rest of the story.

WE FINISH TOMORROW
We have one more day then it is on to Kenya for me and the team from Acton will join their teammates in the Mawanga village some 2-3 hours from here.
This has been an ideal week. This seminar has been a model seminar, in many ways but it has also been very costly. VERY! But top quality requires top dollar. Maybe I can remember to explain my comment tomorrow. I am into the third page so I'll stop for today.
Thanks, as always, for your prayers and support!
By His grace, Steve Van Horn [International Training & Equipping Ministries]

Thur JUL 17, 08 a note of thanks from Eria in Mawanga

[a note from Pastor Paul's son, Eria Nyende]
mum the team is doing well. i was so happy to meet Sonia and miriam there so so good and they are doing well.
mum i have no words to tell only to appreciate for your support
thank u very much
may God always stay with you and bless your hands

Wed. JUL 16 report from Steve in Jinja

New pictures can be found " HERE " (If I can get them uploaded which is not happening at the moment but I will keep trying)

Hi Everyone,
It is almost 5pm. I am sitting in the office of e3partners waiting for my turn to use the computer here.
I am quite sleepy tonight. We came here last night so the power was out. By the time we made our way back to the hotel, and I prepared email, sent it in town, ate dinner, met to discuss finances with our seminar coordinator, and finished some details and got to bed, it was 12:30am. I was awake at 5pm so I didn't get much sleep.
We've finished 3/5 of the week and as the week goes on I think it is safe to say that the enthusiasm of the pastors, who are in attendance, grows.

TODAY'S CONTENT
In the basic/advanced group the men from Acton covered NT Themes through Colossians, Paul's Advice to Elders in Acts 20:28-35, and the Health and Wealth Gospel. Then in the afternoon I went through the theology of Ephesians and Romans with the same group.
In the morning with my veteran groups (those who have been with me before) I covered 1 Corinthians 12 in two sessions. The purpose of the two lectures was to show how spiritual gifts are designed by God to bring unity to the body of Christ and make it possible for every believer to be involved in the church's ministry causing the building up of the body.

UNITY OR DISUNITY BECAUSE OF GIFTS?
When I finished up the first of the two early lectures, defining each of the spiritual gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12, a pastor talked about how spiritual gifts were causing people in his church to become proud and argue and look for status and influence. He asked me to comment on what he should do. I pointed out that they needed to teach what the Bible says about spiritual gifts and show that if they are causing division the Holy Spirit is definitely not in control.

APPLYING A PRINCIPLE FROM YESTERDAY
This gave me a great opportunity to talk about an emphasis from yesterday's lectures. Namely, that the pastor is supposed to equip the saints . . . . .until we all come to the unity of the faith. That means that the pastor is to keep teaching the Bible to the believers until there is a unity of what the church understands about the truth of God's Word. I used this as an example. I told them to teach the doctrine of spiritual gifts to the church so the church will understand the purpose, and will learn that there is not gift that is more important, etc.
This advice can be applied to every potential divisive issue in the church. Time after time I get questions about issues that are dividing churches and my advice is ALWAYS the same. "Teach them what the Bible says."
My third session was a review of the book of Jude with an emphasis on verse 3 "Contend earnestly for the faith." It was another warning about false teachers and what to do about them.

Q&A TODAY
We had people write questions yesterday so we had a stack we could go through. We went through quite a few but not all of them. I'll pass on as many as I can remember.

1. Why did you tell us that it is best for a man not to counsel a woman? Jesus preached to the woman at the well and He's a man and she is a woman.
2. Comment about Romans 14:22 which says "The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves." I was preaching to a prostitute and she asked me to comment on these verses. She said she held her own conviction and approved of what she did.
3. How do you distinguish between a preacher and a teacher?
4. Gen. 1:28 says be fruitful and multiply what do you have to say about family planning?
5. Leviticus says we are not supposed to eat a pig. What is your comment on that?
6. The Bible says "judge not" so why do we take people to court where a judge is present?

But not all of the observations and insights came through questions asked. They also came through conversations. The other guys had conversations about how the prosperity gospel is swallowing up Uganda and how pastors place themselves into places of power, handpicking their elders, and refusing to receive rebuke or advice from anyone. This is all too common here in Africa. It is not unusual for a pastor to receive correction with, "The Bible says `I will not lift my hand against the Lord's anointed.'"

PROGRESS? I THINK SO
The men who are with me from the Acton church notice the difference between the beginning group who is going through the basic and advanced seminar and the "veteran group" of pastors who have already gone through the basic and advanced. They notice a maturity and capability difference. I believe this is at least partly due to the fact that they have been introduced to many things and are now building on the basic and advanced seminars they have been through. We are lining up a few testimonies of pastors who have benefited by past seminars and are doing things differently because of the seminars. We hope to bring back some videotaped interviews with some of these men.

I CAN'T READ THE BIBLE, WILL YOU HELP?
One pastor handed me a note after one of the lectures. It reads: "Due to my blindness, please may your Do me a favor and assist me with reading glasses numbered 1.50x0.00x180. Now days I don't read the Bible! Thanks a lot."
We often hear about the lack of Bibles here in Africa but we don't often think about those with poor eyesight who cannot afford glasses. I know of an organization which recently handed out about 200 pairs of reading glasses and each recipient tested their new pair by reading portions of the Bible.
I could probably think of other things to add but my sleepiness is overpowering my ability to think right now so I'll just send what I have.
Thanks for your prayers and friendship and interest and support.

By His grace, Steve Van Horn

Wed. JUL 16 a note from Pastor Wayne Wilson in Jinja

Hi Elaina,
Thanks for keeping up with Jonathan [his son Jon is in the hospital here in California]. Tuesday evening, all the pastors here sang and prayed, imploring the Lord on Jonathan's behalf. It was very moving. It has been very hard not being there for him.
Today (Wednesday) is the first time we could get to a computer with e-mail since we've been in Jinja. Communications are proving very difficult. Everything is going well here...very well. Dave and Brian came through yesterday looking for batteries, and Brian had a nasty (spider?) bite of some sort. Painful! Fortunately, our training is at a huge nursing school, and they checked him out. We heard good reports from the village through Dave and Brian.
There is a line to use the computer, so we will try again with more information later. Steve is filing his small books on our experience here. God bless you.

Wed. JUL 16, 2008, a note from Pastor Paul in Mawanga

Hello my sister Elaina,
Hope you are doing good, Thank you for your prayers,This is great we are really enjoying the fellowship with the visitors, per now i do not have the words to explain my inner appreciation, GOD Bless you sooo much.
Today we are working on the roof of the ROWAN Office, tomorrow we shall put the iron sheets,
Another group will go for home visitation in the morning, and in the evening the ladies will meet the widows and the orphans.
Edith says hello you all she says thank you for the Huge blessing we are seeing them as a blessing and not aburden.
Good night to you.
God bless you all.
pastor paul

Tue Jul 15 news from Jinja Pastor Conference

[excerpt from Steve VanHorn]
For new pictures click HERE
= = = = = = = = = =
Dear ITEM friends and partners,
Once again I am squeezed for time so I will try to be brief, to the point, yet capture the highlights of the day.........
TUESDAY LECTURES
In the basic/advanced track the other men covered the role of the pastor and two lectures on the preaching ministry of the pastor.......
SMALL VICTORY
One woman, who referred to herself as a pastor yesterday, told us today that she would like us to provide a seminar for women the next time. She seemed to be acknowledging that the Bible teaches that only men are to serve as a pastor then followed it up saying that women needed training of their own so they can be effective in ministry as well. AMEN, HALLELUAH......
UPDATE ON PROSPERITY TEACHING
A couple of days ago I told you about a prosperity teacher on the TV. I heard the whole story now. He looked into the TV and told the audience, "I need 1139 of you to send your monthly house payment to me. If you will do that you will own your house in one year." We don't know where the 1139 came from. But this is the kind of deception the undiscerning people here hear all of the time and why we are doing what we are doing. We are here contending earnestly for the faithI'll head for the internet café and hope there is a decent connection.
Keep praying for open hearts, understanding minds, and a willingness to give up traditional beliefs for the sake of the truth. Thanks!
By His grace, Pastor Steve VanHorn
(to see the entire letter, visit his ITEM site, link on right column of links)

Tue July 15, 2008 - email excerpt from Vicki Scribner in the village

[Here is an excerpt from a note from Vicki Scribner, feel free to share as you see fit. -Monte]

Hello Family!

What a blessing to be able to write to you!!!!! I have so much to tell you and I cannot decide where to start, and I also want to be courteous with the internet usage. Pastor Paul brought me to the Compassion International office across from the Clinic where we are working. The connection here is very primitive, so I had to realize that it was not me, but I was worried about messing up their ONLY system with my Vicki-jinx.

We are literally out here in the middle of nowhere, away from any civilization as we know it. We travelled about an hour and a half out of the town on a dirt "road" to get here! We have no electricity (except here in this office which is about a mile down the road from where we are staying. We have no running water...the water that we do get comes from a pond down the road, and the young men and children go down with bicycles and jugs to bring what we get for the day. The women boil the heck out of it (for germs) and make tea for us every day twice. The homes here are like mud huts. I have seen one being built, and I think it will be fun to build a small one (dog-sized) with all the leftover dirt that I have dug out of the gardens when I get home. It will be a look into how the people here live. I have so many stories already, and it is only Tuesday morning. (It is 1am Monday where you are) I will have so much to tell you when I get home. I try to journal daily, but there is so much! God's hand is definitely on this little village. Five years ago, they had never seen a white person. Now Compassion has an office here, and I am here with Acton Faith Bible through the relationship that has been built based on one young girl from that church who was first here five years ago. This is a great story which I have to share.

Yesterday, we went to the church for a welcome from the children and the locals, and the whole village surprised me with a birthday party. Pastor Paul had found out from someone before we even came, and had arranged a cake , a hat, confetti, and a beautiful gift which brought tears to my eyes. They put me in the middle of the church in a chair out in front of everyone and honored me for 30 minutes. Every time I thought they were done, there was more. I must have cried a gallon. I was so blessed. By the way, there are no ovens here, and there is no baking at all. He went through a lot , including a journey into town just to buy a cake. These people are so amazing.

It is difficult for me to leave now, and know you can't write back, but what fun it is that I even had the blessing of coming into this office. I am going back to work. We are stocking a clinic that has been in the works for five years (started when Kelsey came with three other people the first time). It is such a blessing to see how far they have come. We have two nurses with us, so one is training the local nurse how to use a scale, a blood pressure machine, and how to take a temp with one of those electronic readers. We are building shelves to stock the things we brought, like sterile dressings, IVs, tape, syringes, etc. I'll just have to tell you when I get home about the ROWAN office that we are building. (Rural Orphans and Widows Aid Network). We hope to be able to dedicate the building at the end of the week. They are working on the roof now. One of the guys on our team is an engineer, and is quite helpful to this team for that work. God put together the PERFECT mix of people on this team to meet the needs of this village today!!!

I have to go. Please forward this to everyone you can think of who would like to hear. Maybe Pastor Terry could share in Church on Sunday. Please also look in my sent items to Elaina Griffith to find the list of email addresses that I sent to her with people who wanted to be updated.

I love and miss you very much. God's presence is all over this place. I wish you could be here. Please remember when you pray that we are 10 hours ahead, and think of what we might be doing at the time. -email excerpt from Vicki Scribner

Report on Sun eve - Looking forward to Monday

TOMORROW'S DUAL TRACKS
If you've been getting reports in the past, most of the lecture titles will be very familiar. Tomorrow the men who are with me will be instructing the pastors who have not been to any of our training here. Their topics on Monday will be "Defining Revelation, Inspiration, and Illumination, " "The Authority and Sufficiency of Scripture," and "A Biblical Philosophy of Ministry." That is in the morning. At the same time, those who have been through the basic and advanced seminars in the past will be with me and my three lectures will be "Review of the Basic and Advanced Seminars," "Intro to Church Growth – Matt. 16:18" (Jesus said "I will build my church" so we don't have to worry about the size. We concentrate on the spiritual depth.), and "How the Early Church Grew – Acts 2:42-45" (The concentrated on studying the apostles doctrine, the breaking of bread, fellowship, and prayer, and THE LORD added to their number.".

After lunch I'll be covering the "Biblical Qualifications of Leadership" with the new guys, and Pastor Wayne will begin his series on Inductive Bible Study. We finish the day with a joint Q&A session.

PROSPERITY GOSPEL IN YOUR FACE
One story from TV tonight and I'll sign off. While I was at the internet café the men were having dinner here at the Zamo Hotel and the TV was on the religious station and besides the unbiblical false teaching of Joyce Meyer, they watched a pastor tell his audience that if they would send a certain amount of money to him monthly for a year that they would own a house in that amount of time.

This is why we are doing what we are doing. The untaught, undiscerning Ugandan or African will hear that and many will believe it because "the TV evangelist said so" and send the money. Paul wrote to Titus in Titus 1:10-12

"For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach, for the sake of sordid gain." These false teachers are not "of the circumcision" but their motives are the same. They do what they do and teach what they teach "for the sake of sordid (corrupt, filthy) gain."

= = = = = = =

MONDAY, 4:45PM: DAY ONE IS FOR THE MOST PART OVER
I have a ride waiting for to take me to send this report so I'll try to be brief and to the point. Some of you wonder if that is possible for me. I said "I'll try." :)
We have about 80 here so far. I have about 20 in the repeat group who have been with me for the basic and advanced seminars in the past. We have about 60 here for the first time..........
The group is responding well. One thing I think I notice is that the return group who has been with me twice before are not asking the questions they asked before. My point is that they are accepting what is being said rather than questioning our statements because it is what they have heard or believed before.
As always, the training is being appreciated and we are being thanked.
I could think of more to add but the indicator below says I am into page three so I'll stop.
TONIGHT
Pastor Wayne wanted to add evening sessions where he could demonstrate preaching so we are adding that. I am not sure I am up to it. I was active for five sessions today and I like time to be alone and unwind. Plus I have things I need to do for the seminar and for things back home. So I like some hours in the evening to do all of that.......
By His grace,
Steve Van Horn

Sat.& Sun, Jul 13 & 14, excerpt from Steve Van Horn

Sat night Jul 13, a report from Pastor Steve Van Horn
Hi everyone,
It is Saturday night about 9pm and the team from the California church which has been out of bed for over 48 hours is now heading for bed. So I'll make this brief and get to bed also.
This has been a day for me to have fellowship with long time friends and to make a new one.
OLD ACQUAINTENCES: LAZ AND JULIUS
This morning I spent time with Dr. Lazarus Seruyange. He picked me up and the airport last night and took me to the guest house where I spent the night. Lazarus and I did our masters work together around 1980. He is with Campus Crusade and became the principal of the Nairobi Intl School of Theology in the 1980s. Brenda and I started supporting him back then and have been friends ever since. He is the one who pestered me over the years about coming to Africa to teach. As most of you know, it was in 1997 that he asked me again and led to my first trip to Africa to teach at the school in January 1998. That got it all started and, as they say, the rest is history.
Actually, before Laz showed up for a visit, Julius Twongyeirwe, his wife Grace, and two of his four children. Julius was in the first class I taught in January 1998. He was a pastor from here (Uganda). We became good friends quickly and began working together at pastors seminars in 1999. He's been to the States a few times and has a degree now from Western Seminar in Portland. Julius is back here in Uganda pastoring a church and he heads up his own organization, The Proclamation Task. He, too, is training pastors.
I have included pictures of these people in today's collection of pictures.
My contact here in Uganda picked me up at the guest house around 12:45 and we headed to the airport to meet up with the team arriving from the US, and to pick up Joe Michael Kamau. Joe Michael is with e3partners, the church planting group that is considering ITEM as a ministry partner. They plant churches. We train church leadership.
A NEW ACQUAINTENCE
Joe Michael and I got acquainted and found that we have a lot in common. He is here to take part in our training as one of the trainees and is expected to report back to the e3partners leadership in the US.
A LITTLE CULTURAL ENTERTAINMENT
The team was packed onto a bus with their luggage and brought here to a guest house run by a Christian group. After settling in the team was treated to some singing and dancing performed by a group of elementary children. It was a cultural show, if you will. They were excellent and fun to watch. They sang some of their cultural songs, danced some of their cultural dances, and sang a couple of Christian choruses. They were a blessing.
I've also included a picture of them in today's collection.
Then it was dinner and time for bed.

TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY
Tomorrow we'll rise early, have breakfast, and head to our ministry locations. The seminar will be about 2 hours from here. The rest of the team will be another couple of hours beyond that.
I hope to be able to send this Sunday night. I am hoping an internet café will be open Sunday night. If I can't find one then I'll have to wait until Monday.

PRAYER
*My back seems to be doing better. Keep praying.
*Pray for Pastor Wayne, Chris, Dan, and myself as we give the lectures to the pastors. Chris and Dan are not pastors but are accomplished teachers. *Pray that they will be able to relate to the pastors.
*Pray, of course, for our health and welfare. Especially for the team who will be in a village sleeping on mats.
*Pray for the receptivity of the pastors who will be in attendance. We are praying for 150 in attendance. If they show up it will be our biggest seminar yet.
*Pray for schedule coordination. We have two sessions going on side by side and Wayne and I flip flop back and forth between the two tracks of lectures. We need to finish at the same time so we can flip flop without holding things up.
*Pray that Joe Michael (and Joseph from Uganda, also an e3partner church planter) will see clearly if/how this training fits into their church planting program. (I'll introduce you to Joseph after I meet him.)
Well, that is about as short as I can keep it and still cover the day.
Thanks for the prayers and the support.
By His grace,
Steve Van Horn

- - - - - -
SUNDAY JULY 13, 2008

It is now Sunday, about 4:45pm, 6:45am PDT.
TRIP TO JINJA, UGANDA AND THE WEEK AHEAD
This has been an on schedule day. I won't get detailed at this point. No reason to. Breakfast 7:15, team meeting 8:15, left Kamapla at 9:30, arrive in Jinja 11:30. Had lunch with the entire team. The men who will be teaching at the seminar stayed here at the Zamo Hotel (where I've stayed during my two previous seminars here in Uganda), and the rest of the team jumped back onto the bus and headed to Mawanga village where they will be sleeping in tents all week and doing various odd jobs to build up the village. They have construction, medical, widows, orphans, and families to be involved with for the next 5 days.
While they are in tents I am at a nice hotel (more like a large guest house) with a TV in my room that gets BBC news. It won't be like this in about 10 days when I arrive in Nigeria so I'll enjoy this now.
MY SITUATION IN JINJA, UGANDA
There are five of us men staying here. I was given the single room by the team of men. I appreciated that because I am usually so busy when I am on trips I like the privacy so I can think and plan.
THE UPCOMING SEMINAR: MAYBE ITEM'S BIGGEST
Our seminar this week might be the largest ITEM has ever had. It is certainly the first time we've run simultaneous seminars. It is the first time we've offered everything we have at one time. We are running one track covering the basic and advanced seminars (18 lectures). We are also running a second track covering the ITEM church growth (spiritual growth is the emphasis) and Pastor Wayne Wilson's inductive Bible study course. Those two together will also include 18 lectures. Wayne and I will be involved in both and will flip flop back and forth. The two men
from Wayne's church will concentrate on giving some of the lectures in the basic/advanced seminar. . . . . . .

By His grace,
Steve Van Horn

Sun. Jul 13, 6am in Kampala

The team reports arriving safely and stayed at Adonai Guesthouse, Sat. night, to rest before heading off to Jinja on Sunday morning, while the sound of the call to prayer from the local mosque is heard in the city of Kampala.

Kelsey in the morning, Sat. Jul 12,08

Sat. July 12, 2008

Hello everyone! Jambo Muzungus!

Well the continent of Africa is moving and shaking, even as early as 3 A.M.! I had the privilege of being involved in a leadership meeting for PACWA (Pan African Christian Women's Alliance), which was around 35-40 women from 15 different countries of Africa. The theme for this group is, "The Time Is Now," and let me tell you- that is the truth! From Nigeria to Madagascar, these powerhouse women are embedded deeply in their culture to mobilize and transform their nation! My role was to write their stories and to lead a session on "How to Tell your Story." These are no ordinary stories. I heard from the Royal Princess of Swaziland to dancing with the Maasai women of Kenya, it was a culture explosion! :)

So the first night they put me in a hotel room with a Ugandan women (who by the way birthed 15 children!) We spent hours in our room talking about the state of Uganda, the orphans, widows, her passion, and how she had Never flown on an airplane until this trip! But as we were getting ready for bed, she said, "Now, we will get up and pray at 3 am..."
I thought, "awesome. Ok. 3 am. Then we will fall back asleep..."

Now, I think i'm pretty culturally sensitive.
I think I'm pretty flexible.
Fairly adaptive.
But this tested the waters of Kelsey Young's limits. :) hahahah

I wake up at 3 a.m. to Jane fervently praying in Luganda for over an hour. So powerful. Great. Loved it.
Then she gets up at 4 a.m. and switches on the I am laying there (pretending to be sleeping) and think, "hmmmm ok, maybe she is looking for something." Then she leaves the light on as she goes to bathe. By 5:00 am she comes out all ready to go for the day! By this time I am realizing there is no going back to sleep for me. She says, "Kelsey, It is time to get up. Aren't you coming to the Conference?"
hahahahahahahhahahah. She was acting as if I was running late. :) What I said was, "yes. of course." what i WANTED to say was, "Are you Serious! It starts in 4 Hours!"

Needless to say all the women that day looked at me and said," are you feeling ok? You look tired..."

All joking aside, these women are disciplined and determined to seek the Lord day AND night. :)

To be the only person outside Africa to attend such a meeting was a joy. You felt the Joy of the Lord being around this group. As I write up and edit there stories, I'll share them on my blog when I return. They are just to miraculous to keep to myself. They Must be heard!

As I am in the heart of uganda today I feel at home. In just a Few hours, the team of 20 will arrive and we will begin our adventure to the village tomorrow. This team consisting of 14 year olds to 65 year olds- I hope each will be truly enriched, I know. The local clinic in the village has 3 local nurses and a secretary ready to be trained and supported by the team. The ROWAN (rural orphan and widows AIDS network) ministry in the village is something this group supports, and in one week we hope to finish a small office for this ministry. We pray we can really work with the widows and orphans to assess their needs identify what we can do to join their community to meet those needs.

Pray with me as this group, who most have never ventured this far- will be strong, healthy- and open to what God has in store for them. And if you think of it, say a little prayer for me for wisdeom as I lead them for the next 10 days.

John 6:63 says "It is the Spirit who gives Life, the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken are Spirit and Life." I pray the team will be able to speak Life into the lives of those we encounter and to each other through this process...I wish you all could be Right next to me, but I will hopefully write back soon and make you feel as if you are right there too!

Thank you all for your friendship, love and support~~ Kwaheri!
Kels

On to Africa July 11, 2008 Pacific Time Post

TEAM AFRICA got off to a good start last night, with some church members sending them off with prayer, and a smooth journey to LAX and bagged checked in. Here is the latest news from Pastor Steve Van Horn - below. ~Elaina Griffith

Stephen Van Horn wrote:
To: ITEM-Reports@yahoogroups.comFrom: "Stephen Van Horn" Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:25:44 -0000Subject: [ITEM-Reports] Steve transiting through Amsterdam
Hi everyone,
Quick word: I am in Amsterdam 12:15am PDT (9:15am here). I am on my way to Uganda - arrive around 9pm there tonight. They are 10 hrs ahead of PDT.
I'll spend the night in Kampala, meet the team coming from Acton Faith Bible Church tomorrow around 1:30pm. We'll spend the night together in Kampala (Sat night) before making our way to the seminar and ministry locations. Three of the men will join me at ITEM's most aggressive seminar ever. They will be doing most of the basic and advanced lectures, and I will concentrate on the ITEM Church Growth lectures. Pastor Wayne Wilson will be supplementing the Church Growth Lectures (attended by those who have previously been through the basic and advanced) with an inductive Bible study series.
Saturday I will also meet Joe Michael Kamau, the e3partners rep who is coming in from Kenya to take part in the seminar.
You will find pictures HERE Right now there are maps and captions giving details of each stop. Thanks for the prayers.
PRAYER REQUEST: Last Sunday before church I pinched a nerve in the sacrum area on my left side (back) which is about belt level right above the left pocket in the back. I could not stand straight Sunday or Monday. Monday eve things started to relax. I went to a chiropractor on Tuesday and he worked me over. Things are still not perfect. I am still experiencing some discomfort in the lower back. It is not an unusual situation for me. I've dealt with it for 25 years off and on. With all of the standing I'll be doing in the next 3 weeks it would be best if things felt normal. Please pray for relief and/or jsut the grace to endure.
Thanks. I'll try to remember to let you know how it feels.
Thanks again.
By HIs grace,
Steve

Steve VanHorn is on His way

July 4, 2008
From: Pastor Steve VanHorn
Hi everyone,
I am leaving July 10 for Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria. I will be sending daily reports and pictures (Lord willing) to let you know how things are going and how you can pray.
The pictures will again be seen at www.picasaweb. google.com/ dr.slvh or you will simply be able to click HERE and it will take you there. Once you are at the picture site just click on the ITEM Logo to see the pictures.
Thanks for your support and prayers!
By His grace,
Steve
p.s. If you do not receive the ITEM Updates newsletter, the latest can be found by clicking HERE
If you would like to receive the ITEM Update monthly by either email for regular postal mail, please let me know by responding to this email

Kelsing is on her way

Thurs. July 3, 2008
From: Kelsey Young

Hey everyone! Ready to head back to Africa with me? :)

In a mere few hours I will be off to Kenya and Uganda once again! This is just a short 3 week trip (not 3 months like last summer)! The morning has been filled with packing, re-packing, running off to grab that last minute duct tape and string, and now writing all of you! Typical Kelsey Young! :)

In Kenya I have the privilege of meeting with a group of women leaders from all over Africa. Within their 4 day conference I will be leading a session on the importance of story. Each women is out on the field in full time ministry and God is moving in Incredible ways. I hope to bridge the gap between the ministry on the field and those who want to know what is happening by working with them on how to write/tell their stories.

From there I head off to Uganda July 10 to lead a team of 20 from my home church in California. Part of the team will lead a Pastoral Training Conference in Jinja while the rest of the team will venture off to the village with me to partner with Pastor Paul, my African father and local pastor, to:

1. Finish a clinic and get it fully functioning!
2. Build a small office for our ROWAN ministry (Rural Orphan and Widows AIDS Network)
3. Conduct daily programs for the orphans and widows
4. And most importantly, build relationships with the people and encourage them however we can!

Please pray for this team as most have Never ventured this far before! I KNOW that the Lord is going to work in unfathomable ways in each team member. Pray for me as I lead this team- that I would be open to how the Lord wants to use us despite our plans. God loves surprises :)

I will do my Very Best to keep the bog up and running with pictures at: www.kelseyinafrica.blogspot.com

Thank you all for your love and support,
Kels

TEAM AFRICA 2008 - Our Mission

TEAM AFRICA 2008

Acton Faith Bible Church is
Going to Africa in 2008 ! ! !

This is an exciting opportunity to visit our sister church in Africa, travel with friends and minister to those men who are hungry to be godly pastors, women who desire to serve God’s church according to his word and widows and orphans who need our encouragement!

We will be serving with Dr. Steve Van Horn of International Training and Equipping Ministries and Pastor Wayne Wilson of Acton Faith Bible Church.

The estimated cost is $3,000 per person.
A deposit of $110 due Feb. 1st
A payment of $1000 due May 1st, with the balance due May 30th
Destination: Uganda
Itinerary:
July 10 Depart LAX
July 12-13 Arrive Uganda - travel days
July 14-19 Pastor Conference & Ministry
July 20 Worship
July 21 Travel
July 23 Depart
July 24 Home

Estimated Costs:
Airfare $2100+/-
Passport $100
Visa $75
Immunizations $400
Taxis $100
Souvenirs $50
Entire trip approx. $3,000

Est. Pastor Training:
Train Pastors for 5 days $2,000

Medical Supplies
each Package is $150
contains $1500 worth of meds
Train Pastors

Bring medical supplies to clinic

Women’s Conference

Build House for R.O.W.A.N.

Children’s ministry

Visit widows and orphans

You can Donate a tax-deductible gift
to: Acton Faith Bible Church,
memo: TEAM AFRICA 2008
Send to: P.O. Box 122. Acton, CA 93510
For more information call 661-269-4041
Elaina Griffith, Deaconess Treasurer

GO TEAM !