Greetings family & friends
Time flies by; just three weeks to my annual holiday in England (and Wales for the family holiday). I’m planning for refreshment at PIH Europe, which is again hosted by Oasis Church, Colliers Wood, London; hoping to have a coffee with Wendy Parker who has just started her new job as administrator of a Church in Blackheath, London. Apart from spending time with the Well Church I hope to visit Fusion Church, Morecambe and link that with seeing my sister Dorothy, who lives in Morecambe. Entebbe to Brussels on Monday 2nd October, then onward to Manchester arriving Wednesday morning.
Are there still farms around Lancashire/Yorkshire offering farmhouse gammon and eggs or high tea?
My house is a bit quiet now, with only five of us; plus Alex Guhungu, for a few nights, as he has returned from USA to be married next Saturday. Ali and Alex (Modi) sleep in Alex, Esther and Benjamin’s house, but eat and bathe here. So sleeping here is Malik, Stephen and myself. Malik is now in his final year of Bachelors Medical Laboratory Science at IHSU; Ali is in his preparatory year of nursing also at IHSU; Alex M is continuing developing his English language skills. Recently I started mentoring Stephen, so he spends most days here and some nights; other nights he is teaching four families (9pn till late) who are hungry for the Gospel & live near Zion Blessed Church. Some of you will remember his mother has pastored Zion following the sudden death of his father in 2013. I spoke at his funeral.
Edward, following his graduation as a Clinical Officer, worked for a few months at the CMS Ireland hospital in Kiwoko, Lowero District, but has now started his Bachelors Medicine & Surgery at St Augustines University, Bunga Hill, Kampala.
Kennedy is back at Eldoret College of Aviation, Kenya, preparing for his final exams in Aeronautical Engineering. He then needs a placement for 4 to 5 months; it had been arranged for MAF, Uganda, but most of the senior engineers are retiring, so it may not be possible.
Safari is back at Ndejje University starting his final year of Bachelors Sustainable Agriculture.
Elisha is at boarding school, preparing for his “O’ level exams in November.
Finally Emma is at Vienna International College preparing for his Cambridge International Year 12 and 13 exams.
Please use the above for prayer pointers.
Last week we had another nine Church leaders in our Retreat House for the Encounter course. Amazing testimonies, in the areas of forgiveness, unGodly sex
and other things being brought from darkness to light. One student we kept back for an extra day to minister more deeply than is possible with Encounter.
This course was also somewhat of a breakthrough for my team, as I did the teaching when we started on Monday afternoon, then Tuesday and Wednesday I left the teaching in the capable hands of Emmy and Alex; and translation and ensuring understanding at ministry times with Andrew and Stephen. (Working myself out of a job by releasing the ‘African’.
The week before I had set myself an almost impossible schedule, with teaching in Tororo (in east near Kenyan border; and a Village mission with friends of Iris, Lowero deep in the bush of Western Uganda. So to avoid being overtired with driving and ministry, Emmy and Alex went by bus to Kingdom Seekers Church, Tororo and Stephen and I went to Nyakalongo village 1 hour beyond Ngoma town. The schedule got crammed because original Carolyn of IRIS was teaching on the Friday and I was to teach on the Saturday, but the SS Government were visiting IRIS, so it was not possible for Carolyn to go on this mission and I taught both days.
Here are two health & hygiene project that I would like to undertake: First replace the existing latrine at Emmy’s family home with a sceptic tank, due to rising water levels in the valley occasionally causing sewage to spread over his compound.
Secondly the Health department have condemned the Agape Nursery School pit latrine as ‘full’; this is also used by the Church evenings and weekends, out of school hours. Here we can build a brick chamber that can be emptied by the sewage collection vehicle. I forgot to take a photograph, so use your imagination :). The cost of each project is £1,800.00 and £650 respectively. Maybe you are interested in health and hygiene and able to assist with financing these two projects?
Finally random photos: Helping Benjamin into walking around our compound and Benjamin preparing to teach the Encounter course; also varied Encounter ministry times:
Love & Blessings
David T Atkinson