Highlights from Uganda by Holly Lambert

Highlights from Uganda.

Uganda. We found Uganda to be wonderful place, beautiful countryside, small villages and congested busy Kampala City. This country is on the list of poorest nations in the world. We fell in love with the people there. Before leaving I noted the almost non existence of information on Uganda compared to the usual plethora of information carried at our library on various countries I did find information on seeing Gorillas, one or two travel books of course mentioning the big game animals and a DVD movie called "The Last Scotsman", a few Cd's on African music. The cultural divide between the US, which the people call America, and Uganda is like comparing day with night. Although the people of Uganda, if they go to school learn English, but it's British English. Despite this wide divide God knit our hearts to Uganda. Our mission team felt the call go into the world making disciples of all nations in the name of Christ. One of the best things we brought with us was hope but this did not diminish the importance of daily miracles we saw. Hope is a very strong foundation in which to build our mission teams faith, and the faith of the Uganda people. Just our very presence brought the people of Uganda hope. I noticed this presence of hope everywhere we went to minister we were held in high regard. Our total mission was focus on ministry which did not leave time to see the large game animals or the gorillas. It was a very busy schedule, the best way I can describe our schedule was some kind of time warp in which you might say how could that mission team done so much.

Because of the intensity
of the mission let me just share a few times of ministry that have stuck in my mind besides the visiting children at schools and orphanages where our hearts were stolen by the children singing. We all loved the Ugandan singing and dancing.


Elise, Phyllis and I had just finished ministering to a school which was near to the Uganda style hotel we were staying in. We prayed for each child in the school that was over 75 children plus the teachers could not seem to resist our prayers also. No doubt the ministry conference would be mentioning that we were on another mission as our leader Fran Hallgren was the main teacher of the conference talked about leadership to the Uganda ministers and church leaders from the village of Kyenjojo. The ministers were from different denominations. As we left the school in the van we traveled on the muddy road full of pot holes some which seemed could swallow a mountain at times. Suddenly up head the Uganda Driver part of Pastor Godfrey's mission team said there was a lady up ahead who want us to pray.
We are going to stop, good I thought but the first thing that went through my head was well we can't pray for everyone, but as I saw her sitting on the ground dirty clothes I was eager to pray. We jumped out of the van to pray. She lived in what we would call less than a shack, as I approached her I saw her sitting in the dirt. Of course she was wearing a dress as most all of the Uganda women do. I noticed wooden leg- a crude wooden leg she looked old and tired. Phyllis was on her left and while I was talking to her Phyllis reached down and took her pulse. I want to know a little bit more about her before we prayed.

I began talking to her, I ask her if she was a Christian, if she had Jesus in heart. I just talked to her a little while when I could tell by her movements and her distracted look she was in tremendous amount of pain. She had the urgency look in her eyes please pray right away it was a look of desperation. Phyllis and I prayed for healing in the name of Jesus Christ. I don't remember exactly what we prayed as we laid our hands on her but I do know we prayed in faith knowing Christ would answer. Yes and the Lord did, Phyllis looked into the eyes of the woman and asked how do you feel now? All of the sudden the biggest smile came
on the face of the woman her eyes lit up. She said yes the pain has stopped. It was obvious something had happened to this woman. When we were back at the hotel Phyllis
the intensive care nurse, said to me, I think she was having a heart attack her pulse rate was very irregular. We both reflected how immediately the pain had left this woman sitting on side of the road. We gave praise to God Almighty for his healing power.


On another ministry trip I agreed to go to a jail for ministry along with Robin and Judy. We started out with some Uganda ministers one who had ministered to this very jail we were going to. We met so many minister on our mission trip it was hard to keep all their names straight. The ministers always seem excited to accompany us. We went in expectation most of the time. On this trip it was a distance away from were we were staying probably the farthest we traveled on a ministry excursion from the hotel in Kyenjojo. I wondered is how in the world did they figure out where they were going there were no road signs. We started out on one of the few paved road in Uganda but then found our way on to the dirt pot hole roads, then turned on another dirt road and another. You can almost never expect an Uganda road to be smooth even if it was a main through fare. Some of the roads we traveled on were not much more than two tire tracks. Many of of the Uganda people do not care what the roads are like after all they always walk. At times we saw groups children in colorful uniforms walking or running- many barefoot going home from school.

As we finally approached the jail we stopped and had a time of prayer. The head jailer was not pleased with our arrival because we had not made plans ahead of time to visit. Never the less he allowed us to talk to the men in the jail the women prisoners were also sitting on the side. There were about 25 men in this walled and gated jail. About 7 women also were seated outside. Judy was what I called an expert in jail ministry because she had participated in a jail ministry for quite a few years.

Judy gave a testimony of what Christ had done in her life.
I gave a salvation message. The men responded they heard the message of Christ's forgiveness. They bowed their head and prayed that Christ would enter their lives.
It was a powerful time we saw hardened prisoner's with new expressions on their face.
We ended in praying for all the prisoners individually. All but two of the men agreed to invite Christ into their heart. I am sure it was the first time for many to receive Christ forgiveness experience Christ's love. It was a wonderful time. Robin prayed many beautiful prayers over the women prisoners. Thanks be to God for the wonderful mission trip we had. We could feel the prayers of the people praying for us.