Button, Dan & Rosie, Uganda
Prayer Update March 2007
Dear Everyone,
Thank you for your prayers for last month. The theology department retreat went well. In Uganda, retreats are not quite the same as we might envisage. They are seen as times for a group to get away from everyday life, but not for quiet prayer and contemplation so much as for teaching and group prayer. So, we had speakers all day each day, speaking on various topics to do with ministry and spirituality. The speakers were excellent. We were fortunate to have our Archbishop Henry Orombi for a morning, speaking on maintaining a personal spiritual life as a pastor. As usual he was very inspiring. We also had our former staff member, now Bishop Joel Obetia, who gave some very wise and helpful sessions. In the evenings, there was praise and worship and prayer ministry, which the students found especially helpful. In general it seems that everyone found the retreat a good bonding time where relationships grew. We thank God for that and pray that there would be continued openness between students and lecturers and that morale in the department would continue to improve.
The university mission was also a very positive week. The purpose of this mission was not only to evangelize, but also to spur believers on into ministry (in all its different forms). Phineas Dube gave some excellent talks on Christian ministry and leadership. The students loved him and the sessions were amazingly well attended. Now follow-up is being done by the university Chaplains, Rebecca Nyegenye and Frederick Baalwa. It seems that many were encouraged to take further steps in their spiritual lives. We personally enjoyed seeing Phineas again very much, and were glad to hear his first-hand accounts of friends and of course the situation in Zimbabwe, which at present seems to be deteriorating rapidly.
After those two busy weeks we then went camping with another family for two nights, near Lake Victoria, for the children’s half term. It was very peaceful and relaxing – also good for the soul! Abigail and Alex are very well and enjoying their school and various activities.
We are thankful that our lectures are going well. Attendance and response to my OT course is great so far. I found out that one of the students is a Muslim. He told me he finds it interesting and he asked me a question about genealogies in the OT. I see him listening intently – pray the course will have a positive impact on him.
Please continue to pray for Alfred Olwa, our dean of the theology department. He has a stressful job trying to meet the demands and needs of the bishops, students, and university administration. And for the rest of the theology lecturers – Olivia Banja, (whose baby Faith is now six months and absolutely gorgeous), Edison Kalengyo (formerly head of department, but having completed his PhD in S Africa has come back as a senior lecturer in the department) , Moses Isabirye (who is still waiting to move into a house big enough for his family, having been in a tiny house as a temporary measure since he joined us last year), Christopher Byaruhanga (who was Dean of Education, but decided after a sabbatical to come back as a “normal” lecturer), Milly Erema – and us of course.
Please also continue to pray for Shearsby, our Zimbabwean student whose wife Beauty, 5 yr old daughter and 1 yr old triplets remain in Harare. He is of course concerned about them all the time. The Women in Ministry fellowship has met three times so far this term, having quite diverse sessions – one on the role of the Mothers Union and how clergy women should relate to it, and the latest on personal health and fitness, where the speaker sent them on a ten minute walk and then took pulses! The women entered into both subjects with great enthusiasm and lots of questions. In the discussion on Mothers Union the issue of single women in the church also came up, and two Kenyan women in the group asked for prayer that they could find husbands, as they anticipate that being single clergywomen will cause difficulties. So please also pray for them – Lydia and Jane.
Crosslinks had a great representation in the film The Last King of Scotland, with me (Rosie) and Alex appearing as hostages, as well as Jem Hovil and Mark Meynell and Dan’s backview (!) in his flight navigator uniform. It is very good but not for the fainthearted, giving a powerful picture of the charisma and brutality of Amin.
Thank you for your continued interest and prayers.
With our love,
Rosie Dan Abigail and Alex.
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