Patterson, John - Uganda
Prayer
Letter November 2004 (for Acrobat pdf version click
here)
Dear Friends,
I am writing this first prayer-letter to you in the hope that you will receive it sometime during November. It is one of three per year that Crosslinks will help me to distribute.
Right now I am preparing to finish as Vicar of All Saints, Crosby, on 21 November. If everything comes together I will then have a couple of months to make final preparations, celebrate Christmas and empty the Vicarage. I am due to leave for Uganda on Tuesday, 18 January, 2005.
I have been invited by Bishop Nathan Kyamanywa at Hoima in western Uganda to work in a scheme called ‘Theological Education by Extension’. This has been widely used around the world in different forms, and involves taking Bible teaching to people where they are. The first eleven weeks in Uganda will be a period of training and I hope to learn as much as I can about how the scheme works. During this period I expect to live in some guest accommodation attached to the Bishop’s home.
I return to the UK on 6 April. Towards the end of that month I hope to begin a ten week period of training at All Nations Christian College near Ware, Hertfordshire. ANCC are dedicated to helping Christian workers to cross cultures, both in term of adapting personally and also of working effectively in another culture. A Crosslinks orientation course that I attended in August was held here, so it is nice to have a feel of the place already.
By about July 2005 I hope to have a commissioning service here in Crosby before returning to Uganda to start work. On returning I have been advised to rent a house and will live independently.
I will be based in a town called Hoima in the west of the country, not far from Lake Albert (shades of Uganda’s colonial past!). I stayed here when I visited Uganda two years ago. It is a market town and H.Q. of the Anglican diocese of Bunyoro-Kitara.
Well, that’s the plan! I am, however, keenly aware of how much needs to be done before lift-off next year. The funds are coming in. I think the money for the first year is just about secure. Although I don’t have detailed figures for years 2-4 yet, that figure is growing too. May I say an enormous ‘thank you’ to everyone who has offered support. I have been surprised, touched and humbled by people’s interest and generosity. This last week a local Junior School said that they would like to donate their Harvest collection to Uganda, and I will take their gift to an orphanage in Hoima that I visited in 2002.
I will value your prayers for All Saints, the church that I am leaving, as they are about to be formed into a Team Ministry with two other local churches. I am very grateful for my twelve years here and for the love and support with which I am being sent on my way. The parish is going to provide as a farewell gift a lap-top computer on which I hope to keep in touch with you.
In the couple of months that I have after finishing work in November I need a clear head and lots of energy! Planning, shopping, sorting, chucking – all these lie ahead. I am grateful for the preparations that have already been made and pray for God’s help to do what remains. I am still in two minds about whether to store or dispose of furniture, washing machine ,cooker etc., but a recent offer of an empty garage to store things in has at least meant that is now a choice. This period will also involve helping to get the last of Darren, Paul and Jennie’s possessions to their respective homes. And, lest the practical should loom too large, an Advent Retreat in December will, I hope, help me stay focussed on what it is all about.
If all goes to plan, the next letter you receive will be in March 2005. By then I will have been in Uganda for several weeks. May I ask your prayers for getting ready to go, safe travelling, being in a completely new situation, new people to meet and starting to get to grips with training for a new job. I firmly believe that prayer is the foundation of any worthwhile spiritual work, and offer a short summary of praise and prayer topics at the end.
Finally, a word about keeping in touch …
Prayer Letters
If you belong to a supporting church, Crosslinks will send a number of copies direct to your church for distribution. (If you happen to be the person who does the distributing, and you want more or less copies, please let Crosslinks know.)
If you are an individual supporter and do not belong to a supporting church, prayer-letters will be sent to you by Mrs. Marian Palin, 141 Brownmoor Lane, Crosby, Liverpool, L23 9SF. (0151 931 1669). If you do not want to receive a letter, or know of someone who would like one, contact Marian.
Monthly Updates
In due course, monthly updates of subjects for praise and prayer will be available. These are in addition to the three prayer-letters per year. If you would like to receive these, please let me know and provide your email or postal address . I will then pass it to the volunteer who sees to this.
Personal Contact Abroad
Please send mail to P.O. Box 20, Hoima, Uganda, East Africa.
Email sent to patterson@crosslinks.org will be forwarded to me.
Points for Praise
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Help with numerous arrangements so far.
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The generosity with which people have responded financially.
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Provision of somewhere to store furniture if that turns out to be the right choice.
Points for Prayer
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That God will prepare hearts and minds, including my own, for the work I am going to do.
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For safety and protection at every level.
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For all that goes with being in a completely new situation.
Thank you for your prayers,
Love and God bless,
John
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