FHLM August 2018 Newsletter
Greetings from rainy Masaka! Yes, rainy season has finally started and that is good for everyone here, as Masaka produces so many fruits and vegetables for the country! During this month God has brought me back to a verse He gave me back in 2010, as a “mantra”; Hebrews 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. He has been saying all month, ENDURANCE! I am to endure for Him and for the Kingdom.
Director’s Update:
Our FHLM 3rd Quarter Board Meeting was held on 11 August. Once again our Board put in lots of effort and expertise. Because of this we have added several new financial policies to stop “money leakage”. I also want to commend all of the board members for their assistance with the youth outside of regular meetings and for their encouragement and wisdom to me. They are truly a blessing to the organization and because of them we are raising to a new standard.
Mini-Retreat: With the secondary SOAR Youth at SU Camp and the others at university I got to have a mini-retreat. I went to Kampala and spent a few days with the Easthams’. Lily and I had a wonderful day relaxing by the pool and enjoying each other’s company. The next day I wanted to have a “retreat day” at the beach, just me and God, but it was rainy the whole day. Instead I stayed home and read, which was good too! We went to Calvary Chapel Kampala for Sunday service and God again spoke to me about “Endurance”. James 1:2-4 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.(NLT). He is the One that has given me endurance and with Him I can endure all things. God is good!
Youth Update:
Round 2 of Back to Success was on 04 Aug and Faridah continued with teaching Chemistry. She really dug deep into the Mole Concept and had the youth practice multiple problems on the black board. Because of these study sessions our youth have improved their understanding of Chemistry and Maths and it was reflected in their 2nd Term reports that they picked on the 30th. Praise be to God!
They’re Off to University: On the 6th Babirye, myself and two of Abanna Uganda’s young men, Sseb and Meddie, headed to Ndeeje University to start their 1st Semester. Of course with a tear in my eye and a prayer in my heart I said good-bye to them. We’ve been in contact a lot since they arrived and in their first week, and they told me much about Orientation Week, the lectures that started on the 13th and how they are now settling into their new life as university Freshman. Babirye said that her dorm mate, Viola, is a good Christian girl and they have already been attending nightly Campus Fellowships. Joseph was off to Africa Institute of Music (AIM) on the 23rd. I accompanied him to AIM, got him registered, and settled into his temporary housing. Since AIM does not provide dorms, we ask for you to please keep his housing in prayer as we are yet to find “permanent” accommodation for him. Thank you!
End of Term 2: Our secondary youth, Joshua, Oliver, Justine and Eddy broke off studies on 16 Aug. They all said that their end of term exams went well. Three of them will be on Holiday for a month, until 17th Sept when 3rd Term starts. But since Joshua is a secondary 6 candidate he will only have 2 weeks break, reporting back to school on 3rd Sept for “special classes” and Set B of Mock Exams to prepare him for the national exams in November.
Term 2 Holiday Programs Start: We kicked off their 1st day out of school with a chill day and played a rousing game of Monopoly!! We had many laughs and much fun and in the end Eddy with crowned King of Monopoly, taking the crown from Oliver! We have started our “Life-Skills Crafts” with refining the crocheting skills they learnt last holiday and they are making beanies and scarves. I want to send a shout of thanks out to our Care Prayer Team Ladies and my step Mom for the yarn and crochet hooks they sent. You have been a blessing and helped to make our crafts possible. We will continue programs into Sept., so be ready to read more about our Holiday fun in the next newsletter!
Movie Day: We held our monthly Movie With A Message Day on the 18th and we watched the classic Chariots of Fire! If you have never watched it or it’s been a long time there are so many encouraging, inspiring and spiritual messages in the movie, that you should see it. Here are a few things the youth had to say about the movie:
Justine: What I learnt from that movie is that we should not give up so easily on simple things which seem to be difficult with us. Yet if we give it to God it becomes the simplest of all. And another one that we should stay on the truth we know, like when Liddle refused to work on the Sabbath, because he knew the truth. We should also put in mind that the little thing you are yarning to do on the Sabbath, God has a very big thing he has prepared for you on another day, but not the Sabbath. So you should not yearn for that thing and you should wait and know that God will give you another one better than that.
Eddy: I learnt to focus on what I want and to keep working hard until I achieve what I want, like Abram’s & Liddle. I learnt also to be patient in all ways because God knows the right time to give you what you want in life, so we should learn to be patient as we pray to God, because if you are not patient you will end up running away from God. We should also learn to be faithful as we pray to God and believe that always God will be there to answer our prayers like he did Mr. Liddle’s.
Scripture Union Camp: Oliver, Justine and Eddy attended S.U. Camp at Kako Secondary from 24th -28th of Aug. Of course Alpha was a camp Facilitator for the Junior S.U. Campers (kids). This year’s theme was “Consider Carefully How you Listen” Luke 8:18. Consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more, whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken from him. They all said that this year’s camp was wonderful! Oliver couldn’t stop smiling when we picked her up at the end of camp and said she was so happy to have experienced camp this year. She wrote down two pages of things she learnt. Here are just a few items: From the “parable of the sower” I learnt that if we don’t have good roots there is no way to grow. Jesus wants us to be good soils because that is the way to grow. In all this, I got to know that whoever is a patient searcher of the truth of God’s word will be rewarded with understanding. Then those who become careless in their hearing of the word will experience loss. Also I was Team Leader for games and I participated in every game leading my team to be #1 in all of camp! What a BIG accomplishment for her! Justine sat with me on Wed. after camp and just poured out all the things she learnt. She shared with me how impactful this camp was for her and that she took away much information from the workshops on career guidance and sexual purity. She said her favourite memory verse was James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves, in which she memorized and received a prize as the best in camp. All in all our youth really grew in the knowledge and understanding of the Word and the Lord this year at camp.
Life Skills Workshop: We held a Forgiveness Workshop on the 31st. Alpha asked me in July if we could hold this, as he felt that our youth needed to have a better understanding of Forgiveness. He came up with the bulk of the workshop sessions and between the two of us we developed the materials for the day. The workshop was quite amazing as many of us, me included, examined our hearts and minds for things and people that we had been holding unforgiveness toward. I thank the Lord for all that He accomplished through this workshop!
As you have read it has been another full month of learning, growing and fun! We thank you ALL for your continued prayers, love, encouragement and support! May the Lord richly bless you ALL!
Love and Blessings,
Rita
Missionary & Director-Faith Hope Love Missions
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