Jinja, Uganda

Five months ago I came before Equip Intl. to ask to be sent to a mission field for three months that I may see what a missionary is, and to experience the poverty on a longer time scale than a church based mission trip. I figured three months to be long enough to get past the happy go lucky feelings and to sit down into the poverty. I have never been on a mission trip before and never seen a missionary work. This is an important first step towards being a full time missionary. Jinja is the result of my request. It is the second largest city in Uganda. Located on the banks of Lake Victoria, Jinja is at the headwaters of the Nile River. It thrives upon agriculture, and reliable rainfall. White water adventure rafters frequent this town for its intense rapids. I must remain prayerful and submissive to God through all of this, so I don't damage the ministry of the missionaries already at work. It is so easy to hurt when you're trying to help. I will observe and shadow Chris Sperling, an Equip missionary, who is implementing an agricultural process called Farming Gods Way. This is a no-plowing prayerful way to farm which yields unparalleled crop results! I have raised $640 dollars towards a goal of $3,000 that is Equip's estimate at this point. I added $1,000 to the cost for vaccinations and an extra $500 for visa, passport, health insurance and any extra surprises that may crop up to bring in us to a grand total of $4,500 for a three month mission trip to Jinja. Not bad for getting across the Atlantic, but the figure is subject to change. I need your prayer right now this moment, that God may send out His Holy Spirit to go before me to prepare a place for Himself in the hearts of those He calls, that He may use me a lot, in Jinja or wherever He calls me.

Matt 28:18-20

- 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." - NIV

In Christ the son of God,

David Greene

Missionary Education Part 1 C.H.E (Community Health Evangelism)

This week I have been attending full day classes with Equip Intl. learning the basics of mission work. The class was taught from 8:00am - 5:00pm.  Each hour was a different lesson. It is very difficult to put a class like this into words. Topics were always open for discussion and the multiple solutions for problems were what we as a group of 10 evangelists could think of. Every answer was written on a board, no matter how well thought. The class was arrayed in a circle with no tables or podiums. Our leaders, Harold Bracken II and his wife Brenda, sat in different seating arrangements every day to keep us from a feeling of their authority. The whole process Harold and Brenda were modeling is a teaching strategy to use in other cultures. We learned as much or more from each of the missionaries' experiences as we did from the curriculum. This made the assimilation of mass quantities of knowledge easy. I took several pages of notes that earned a special place in my black journal. I used pictures I drew alongside the notes for further retention; scrolls were for verses of valuable scripture that I needed to memorize. Spider webs were networks I can use and such like that. I learned how easy it is to hurt when you want to help. When we sent shoes to Haiti, we put the local cobbler out of business and the same with food and clothing handouts. I learned that you need to assimilate with the culture and learn the language (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11bxy9bSYG4 ß a funny demonstration of why). It would take two weeks to post all the knowledge and experiences I had in one week of CHE. Definitely the best education I have ever received! The classes at Equip are so on key with what is practical in the field. We need a delicate balance of meeting peoples' physical needs: water, medicine, food, and sanitation and their spiritual needs: evangelism, follow up, and discipleship. Equips' main focus is to meet God where he is working. Their main goal is Christ’s Kingdom. Thank you, Lord, for sending me to this place! In a few weeks I plan to pick up a missionary trade to take to the field. I am hoping for Pumping water tech taught by Keith Larrimore, and if I have the funds at that time, a well drilling class will be added. But in all this I must remember "A man may plan his ways, but the Lord prepares his steps". I need to spend time in prayer to see if this is the direction of the Lord our God.http://chenetwork.org/index.php

Prov 16:9 In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps. – NIV

In Christ,

David Greene

EE-Taow! The Mouk Story

This is the powerful story of missionary Mark Zuck and a Papua New Guinea tribe called the Mouk people, a must see for those with a soft spot for evangelism. The celebration when the Mouk people come to Christ makes me cry every time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFQQ5TvrzsU&feature=related and this is the "follow up" and discipleship of the Mouk people. EE-Taow! the next chapter... the villagers teach the story of Jesus to other tribes.

Rev 5:9-10
"You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth." - NIV

In Christ,
David Greene