A week-long mission effort in Jinja, Uganda has been yet another success story for African Enterprise. A variety of methods were successfully used to engage with the community, including going door to door, street evangelism and a targeted leadership event.
The mission combined leaders from many denominations to promote their goal of unity in the body of Christ. Over 400 evangelists were trained to participate. Church leaders came together to hold a targeted TV broadcast, in which they were able to discuss why unity in the church is so important.
Perhaps some of the most impressive outcomes came from going door to door. In just 6 days, evangelists were able to reach 30,552 people! They also employed methods such as street evangelism and mobile trucks, where public address systems were used in open air to broadcast the gospel message. Preachers travelled alongside and were on standby to pray with anyone who accepted the alter call.
A leadership event hosted by community leaders attracted a large number of attendees from Jinja. The theme was centered around how to be a leader of integrity in this era. At the conclusion of the event, 5 leaders accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Most notably was the Mayor of Jinja himself, Mr. Kaslo Alton Okocha.
Encouraging numbers of people were reached through mass media. Mobile trucks are estimated to have connected with 250,000 people throughout the mission. The street ministry engaged with approximately 70,000 and TV with another 15,000. These figures demonstrate the ability to evangalise safely during COVID. The message was shared with enormous numbers of people in a way that didn’t require mass gatherings.
Despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, God continues to equip us with new and innovative ways of making sure we can share the gospel, and have an effective impact on our communities.
My role at Milne – Ayesiga Dianah Mebra (Center Administrator)
I work as the administrator; I coordinate operations and promote the mandate of AEE to evangelise in Word and Deed. I lead
partner engagement, coordinate and ensure adherence to partners and MOUs between Milne, AEE and clients. I lead community engagement and provide overall guidance of overall community development initiatives. I am responsible for all financial controls and monitoring of the health centre and operational performance and HR effectiveness.
I also establish and maintain relationships and lead community dialogue key for the growth of the ministry of AEE through Healthcare provision. I provide periodic updates and reports in accordance to report schedules of AEE or/ and partners.
What a typical day looks like for me?
I usually start my day at 06:45am, that’s the time I get into office. It’s not that I am forced to come in that early, but because I must beat traffic, I must be on the road by 6am. The official working hours are; 8:00am to 5:00pm (Monday to Friday).
When I get at the health center, I usually have personal devotions before the general staff devotion which starts at 8:00am to 8:45am. Thereafter; I sit at my desk and answer some phone calls and reply to various mails. I also liaise with heads of departments, to ensure they have whatever they need for their departments, I review and sign requisitions, run some errands like purchasing items for daily or routine use.
What is the current Covid situation in Uganda?
In Uganda, from 3 January 2020 to 24 July 2021, there have been 1,445,413 tests done and 92,115 cases of COVID-19 confirmed with 2,526 deaths, and 74,418 recoveries reported to WHO. As of 19 July 2021, a total of 1,110,867 vaccine doses have been administered with 4,129 fully vaccinated.
Why do you love going to work every day?
There are so many wonderful things about my work as an administrator and working with AEE-Uganda (Milne Medical Centre). My favorite is probably the flexibility I have with my hours. I also love the organization culture (evangelizing the city of Africa through word and deed) and I enjoy working with everyone at the facility. I specifically enjoy;
- Contributing to a larger purpose as individuals, we all have unique talents and things that we are good at. If we feel that our work is meaningful and what we do makes a difference for others, this gives motivation to me to keep doing it even though there may be times when the going gets tough.
- Variety of work and people, travel, flexible work hours during non-event days. Versatility of being able to do a variety of tasks including being able to work virtually. Having a forward-thinking, supportive leadership that realizes employees are their greatest asset.
- Meeting deadlines, targets or goals.
- Mentoring and coaching others.
- Learning new things.
- Coming up with creative ideas to improve the facility, or make something new.
- Analysing complex data in order to draw clear and simple conclusions.
- Working well as part of a team.
The Mombasa West Mission in Kenya is the first one to be conducted in the year 2021. The mission is scheduled for 1st to 11th July. The mobilization of missioners and preservation facilitators took place in the month of May. The AEE Kenya team intends to host 300 visiting missioners in 9 zones. The rest of the missioners will come from within Mombasa. This month, there has been a series of continued mobilization and trainings.
The Kayonza Mission in Rwanda was scheduled for 20th – 27th June but following the Volcanic eruption in the neighboring DRC, the mission was postponed to 15th – 22nd August. Preparations for the same are ongoing. At least 127 homes are targeted to be trained to conduct Home Based Evangelism (HBE). Though this is an ongoing activity, 42 households were reached in May this year using HBE and 9 people accepted to follow Christ.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), preparations for the Mont-Amba Mission, which is set for 16th to 24th October, are ongoing. Mont-Amba is located South East Kinshasa in DRC. AE DRC Team conducted School of evangelism in the targeted location of the Matete, Ngaba, Kisenso and Lemba districts and a total of 276 participants from 99 local churches were trained. Currently, the team is mobilizing for prayer and funds for the mission. Earlier, 19 different local churches were equipped for further church members’ mobilization in the target area.
AEE Tanzania is set to have its mission between 22nd and 29th August in the capital city, Dar es Salaam. The team has been meeting the Pastors, equipping them through trainings towards the mission and conducting prayer for the 2021 Mission. Mobilization of evangelists and partners to participate in Dar Back-to-God Mission has as well been ongoing. In the month of May, a group of intercessors from different Churches gathered to purposely pray for the mission preparation and all programs at AEE-Tanzania.
In September, AE Uganda will have a mission in Jinja from 19th to 26th. The AE Team conducted a Vision Casting seminar for the mission where 52 leaders from Jinja City attended. This meeting brought together both the Anglican church leaders and Pentecostal church leaders in one house for the same purpose bridging the gap and dealing with misunderstandings that have always been there. Mobilization teams have been established and tasked to draft their strategies to aid achieving the mission targets. An overall steering committee with 18 members was constituted in May to help oversee the preparations. AE Uganda facilitated a training held in Entebbe for 120 evangelists by our partners in ministry who are planning a citywide mission in that city. The training was organized by the Joint Pastors Network in Entebbe city.
AE Southern Africa Region (AESAR) which is comprised of the Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe teams is set to hold a mission from 19th – 25th September in Zomba, Malawi. AE Malawi held three training sessions in Zomba ahead of the mission where 85 people were trained. The second phase of training the same group was set for the month of June. In April this year, task team leaders for the Zomba Leadership Mission were successfully appointed and a meeting with Church leaders in Zomba to review mission plans was held.
The AE Zambia team continues to go through the AE Manuals to adequately prepare for both the Kitwe and Lusaka mission scheduled for this year and next year respectively. The AE Zambia team visited Kitwe at the invitation of the Maranatha Pentecostal Assemblies of God church to help with the mobilization of the church for evangelism. Close to about 100 church members turned out for the evangelism outreach in Kalulushi.
In Ghana, the AE team is preparing to have a mission in Lome, Togo from the 15th to the 25th of October. An online meeting with the leaders in Togo was held earlier to aid preparations. The leaders were also able to meet the working committees in person. A HBE online training is scheduled for 30th June.
Preparation is ongoing for AE Ethiopia’s mission scheduled for 22nd – 26th December in Kotebe, North East of Addis Ababa. Last month, the AE team held a Home Based Evangelism training as part of the preparations steps for the mission.
African Evangelistic Enterprise Uganda (AEE-U) has been doing urban evangelism for more than 45 years.
This year’s Makindye mission which took place from 22 – 29 November 2020 was greatly affected by the global pandemic. In Uganda, severe lockdowns paralyzed every sector of the country, including limiting gatherings such as church congregations.
Where AE Uganda would normally receive funding and support from various churches, now churches themselves needed support to reopen after a long period of lockdown. This in turn forced a scale down on the mission field and reevaluation of the mission strategy. AE Uganda had various ideas but after meeting with police and the security agencies enforcing the COVID-19 restrictions, only door-to-door evangelism was approved.
The Makindye mission kicked off with prayer sessions held on Friday 20/11/20 at Gospel Messenger Church led by Bishop Mitchel Mukasa. It attracted over 90 Church leaders and evangelists who sang praises and prayed over Makindye Division.
As usual, trainings were carried out as a way of preparing for the proclamation and subsequently discipleship of new converts. From the 22nd to 28th November, many foot soldiers were moving in different places, homes, workplaces markets and many other places with the aim of sharing the Good news of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The mission ground was divided into four (4) Zones. The zonal evangelists were fully trained and prepared for the proclamation week. Each zone had on average 35 evangelists each day who were strong enough and courageous to go out there and share their faith and good news of Our Jesus Christ despite the continued growing numbers of COVID 19 patients in our country. This brought the total number to between 100 and 140 evangelists who took up this mantle with courage.
By the end of the mission, 7,041 people had been reached by the good news, out of which 1,378 made commitments to accepted Christ as their lord and savior and re-commitments to salvation.
On the 2nd of December a post mission meeting was held with coordinators from each zone to discuss effective follow up and how the churches and evangelists can continue to encourage those that made commitments. The meeting was ended with a plan in place for all new believers to receive regular phone calls, messages and encouragement from nearby churches and evangelists.
Testimony from the mission field – Nagudi Doreen
Nagudi’s had to drop out of school at a young age and started helping others with house chores in Kampala for an income. She often suffered from epileptic fits at work, this used to upset her employer tremendously and resulted in them casting her out of their house.
No one wanted to employ Nagudi because of her epileptic seizures and she had no other option but to start begging on the street. During one of her epileptic fits, a Pastor from a nearby church picked her up and took her back to church where he could pray for her.
Nagudi stayed at the church for over 3 months. With the Makindye mission preparation in full swing, many evangelists were stationed at the church getting ready for door to door evangelism. Nagudi desired to go out and spread the gospel but others were not so sure if she should do it because of her epileptic fits. On the second day of Mission, she approached Brian who was a coordinator for the region and requested to be part of the team.
Brian allowed her to take part and when she returned from the field she had a dream with a voice telling her to keep it up her healing would follow. She stepped out in faith, knowing that God had a plan and a calling for her life and with God she could overcome any obstacle in her way.
Maternal health in Uganda, and at AE’s Milne Medical Centre
Pregnancy can be dangerous. For every 100,000 births in Uganda, 343 women die. In Australia, that number is 5.
In Uganda, over 400,000 women each year deliver their babies without a skilled birth attendant. These women are at risk of excessive bleeding or infection after delivery, either of which could cost them their lives.
Many women in Uganda opt to use traditional birth attendants (TBAs) rather than delivering their babies in government facilities. However, TBAs have recently been banned by the government due to their lack of formal training.
Women in Uganda prefer traditional birth attendants for several reasons. TBAs are said to be kind and polite, while staff in government facilities have been described as rough and uncaring. In some areas, the nearest maternity unit may be far away, or overcrowded, and some women trust local customs and traditions more than hospitals.
AE’s Milne Medical Centre (MMC) is a community health centre that is passionate about maternal health. MMC aims to provide dignified care, inspired by Matthew 11:28:
“Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”.
MMC provides care during and after pregnancy. Pregnant patients attend the clinic for check-ups, sonars and basic blood tests. The women also receive important health education, and fathers are encouraged to participate. Patients that deliver their babies at MMC are attended to by trained midwives, and a doctor when necessary.
One patient who recently delivered her baby at MMC, named her baby girl Mercy Favor, because of the “mercies and favour” she experienced at MMC on a very difficult journey of an unplanned pregnancy. She says,
“All my pregnancy journey since late February to November, I have been favoured by all the staffs of Milne Medical centre.”
She now anticipates a future of mercy and favour for her baby girl.
Missions in a COVID-19 world.
Our teams have refused to give up on the Great Commission, despite incredibly challenging circumstances in Africa.
Evangelism is the heartbeat of African Enterprise. We exist to share the eternal hope of the Gospel, and this hasn’t changed. In 2020, AE has developed a home-based evangelism (HBE) approach to share the Good News of Jesus, in spite of COVID restrictions.
The HBE model equips believers to share the Gospel with their families and neighbours, in a structured and effective way. The approach focuses on personal evangelism, on a large scale. Mission volunteers facilitate home gatherings, where a pre-recorded or live Gospel message is shared using television, radio, mobile phone or social media platforms. The Gospel broadcast is followed by a personal testimony and an invitation to follow Christ, extended by the HBE facilitator.
Between mid-April and July 2020, our AE teams trained 2,590 pastors and volunteers in the HBE approach, and have found the approach holds enormous potential for evangelism, as well as discipleship. For example, one church in Lukunga, DRC, was able to share Christ with at least 945 people, in multiple homes, on a single Sunday.
One mission volunteer in Kenya, Nancy, has shared the Gospel with over 300 people since the HBE approach was implemented there in May. When she shared the Gospel with a Facebook acquaintance, the 24-year old Margaret, Nancy had no idea that Margaret was suicidal. Nancy describes:
“I shared the Gospel and she made a commitment for salvation during one of our phone calls. The following day we met and from that time, we have created a relationship that is exceptional. It is wonderful to see the great transformation Christ has brought to this sister. She is now happy in the Lord. Today, as I see her smiling, I often have the sobering thought that, if the Gospel had not come her way, she would possibly not be alive!”
Our brothers and sisters in Africa are passionate for the cause of Christ, and our support means so much as they choose to “preach the word of God” and “be prepared, whether the time is favourable or not” (2 Timothy 4:2).
