Even though it has been a while since I have written, you have been never far from my mind. I am continually reminded, as I see grace and mercy working effectually in people’s lives here as well as in our own, that your prayers and support are the means of supplying that mercy and grace here in the West Nile. Seeing such an outpouring spurs me on to further action. Puritan Thomas Brooks puts it this way, “A man full of hope will be full of action.” Carol and I have this hope because of our Lord and His promises. We also have hope because of so many faithful friends! Thank you for your effectual partnership. Come and see now what the Lord is doing!
“We cannot organize revival, but we can set our sails to catch the wind from Heaven when God chooses to blow upon His people once again.”
Campbell Morgan
I truly feel that the Lord is fanning a fire of revival, especially on Metu Mountain. The physical fires that rage during the hot season all over the mountains, which we saw with our own eyes not long ago, are almost representative of what is happening spiritually there! We have been blessed to “catch the wind from Heaven” and to come alongside the churches that are reaching out with the gospel in the remote villages of Metu Mountain.
The following paragraphs are Facebook posts of outreaches which took place in January and they will give you a picture of what the Lord is doing in and among us. Reaching Africa’s Unreached has a Face Book page which provides an easy and accessible place to post pictures and make short posts. I hope that as you read over these short posts you will be spurred on with your intercession and sacrificial support. This is the link for Reaching Africa’s Unreached Facebook page :
www.facebook.com/ReachingAfricasUnreached
If you click on “Like” you will receive a notice each time I place a short post or picture.
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January 21st
“I am off to the remote villages of Gbari and Arapi with Zorah and Zakeo. A little over a month ago, we partnered with Aya Baptist Church in evangelism outreaches…tukalu to tukalu (traditional homes)…and helped move a young man and his family from Aya to shepherd the new church planted there. Now there are over 80 coming for worship on Sunday mornings with over 60% being new believers (this fits my definition of revival.) Today we will hold discipleship sessions and also give out de-worming medicines. Please pray for this new and growing church!”
January 23rd
“Yesterday, Zorah, Charles, and I picked up John Howarton who flew in from Juba to Arua. We also took care of some business in the town. Arua is very nice and is a bustling town as it draws trade from both South Sudan and D.R. Congo. This morning we headed back to Reaching Africa’s Unreached. The route takes us through the Muslim areas of Koboko and Yumbe. One would have to travel to North Sudan (or nearly there) to find an area as densely populated with Muslims. In Kuru, which is between Yumbe and Koboko, we took a break from our drive, taking advantage of the divine appointments all around us. For the most part, the people of Kuru readily received our gospel tracts (with several local pictures in it) in their native language of Aringa. (Charles is the one who translated the tracts. See a sample here: https://reachingafricasunreached.org/aringa-language/ . We would like to get more of these tracts to be sent in our next container. If you would like to help us do that, see this link: https://reachingafricasunreached.org/fill-the-container-stu ). We are targeting Kuru for our next open air preaching in Yumbe District. It would be in this very same market we were in today. This last Christmas Eve, a small group of Christians from Kuru were “physically” dispersed while celebrating Christ’s birth. Lift up Kuru in your prayers…may Jesus be known and worshiped widely and freely in Kuru!”
January 27th
“Today and tomorrow (evangelism today and discipleship/medicines on Wednesday) we ( John , Zorah and I) are back to Gbari/Arapi (pronounced “Bar-ee” and “uh-rah-pee”) in the nearby Metu Mountain range ( Appalachian size ). The church there is growing very fast in numbers and we want them to grow in depth as well. Geoffrey has moved his family of 8 there from Aya to shepherd this growing flock….On Friday we go with a team from Reaching Africa’s Unreached and Aya Baptist to another village — Cinya (pronounced “chinya”), just a ridge over, which has no church. May the Name of Jesus be also worshiped in Cinya! Pray for us and help if you can…blessings!”
January 27th
“We had a fruitful day of evangelism in Gbari, Arapi, and Duku today. Zorah, John Howarton, and I were joined by Aya and Gbari believers. Duku was very hard to get to and I almost turned around twice. The Land Cruiser was in first gear and 4 wheel drive on some parts but we made it to Duku. I am glad as 13 of the 34 people (not counting children) making professions of faith were from Duku! Many others seemed to be very close (to a decision) in the others places we went to, but continued in their bondage. We pray that, at some point, their eyes will be opened and their hearts made soft and receptive. We are back for discipleship/medical outreach tomorrow. The Lord is adding daily to the number of believers in the 5 week old Gbari/Arapi Church. We are also surveying spots for a permanent site for the new church. Please keep praying for this church plant and, most importantly, that the believers would grow in their faith and love for Jesus!”
YouTube Video from 27th:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGiuNduIofY&feature=youtu.be
January 27th
“We are back in the same area of the Metu Mountains today. Yesterday’s focus was evangelism and today’s focus is discipleship. Yesterday, 34 adults placed their trust in Christ alone for salvation. …PTL! Today John, Zorah, and I will have lessons on the fundamentals of the faith with these new believers and members of the 5 week old Gbari Church. Nothing short of revival has been happening in these rugged Metu hills which envelope Gbari, Arapi and Duku! We have received some more medicines and will be giving them out after the teaching. Basic medical care is very lacking in these remote areas. Here are some special prayer requests: For the Land Cruiser- travel is extremely hard on the vehicle; New believers- not only these 34 from yesterday, but also the almost 60 from the last 5 weeks; physical strength- we are all very tired and sore from yesterday; Pastor Geoffrey, his wife, and six children — he has answered the call and moved his family to Gbari; purchase of a plot of land for this new church and construction of a meeting place. Currently, there is no permanent place to meet. Thank you for your prayers for us and the ministry of Reaching Africa’s Unreached!”
On January 29th I posted this to Face Book:
“We MUST get the gospel out (most especially to those places that are “gospel starved“) using all means: by radio, by vehicle, by bicycle, by walking, by sitting with families, with literature, with medicines, in the market, next to Mosques, in remote villages, and together with others! The fields are ripe for the harvesting…let us go and not just talk about going!”
January 30th
“We are off to Cinya, a village of about 200 in the Metu Mountains. It has no church and no witness of Christ. We are getting off a little late as we had a problem with our solar power, but it is now back up and running…PTL! Whenever we have made a decision this week to go to an unreached place there have been roadblocks, both literally (lack of roads) and figuratively. Each time we have pressed through the Lord has opened the way for the salvation of many. This week the Lord has granted us the privilege of being in Ijujo, Aya, Gbari, Arapi, Duku, and, now, Cinya. Each of these villages is enveloped by beautiful hills…beautiful, even in the dry season. (In the wet seasons it is very green and monkeys, chimps, and gorillas can be seen in the highly forested areas). In our evangelism pray that the Lord opens eyes again today. The last leg of today’s journey we will be footing. Pray also for physical strength (especially for us old guys- John and me! It is the middle of the hot/dry season and trails can be steep). In all our evangelism we partner with a local church or churches and seek to support them in planting other churches in these unreached areas, but try to step out of the way to allow them to carry out the responsibilities of the local church, such as performing the baptisms. Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out harvesters! The fields are ripe! Thank you!”
Roads to and from Cinya:
After our return I posted this:
“We are back from a long hard but fruitful day in some very remote areas of the Metu Mountains. We trekked into 5 different villages. My legs still feel like jelly. The Lord opened the hearts of 26 to respond to the gospel! Thank you for your prayers! I will try to put up more pictures later…. I am fighting a severe sore throat now and am quite dehydrated…your prayers are appreciated!”
YouTube Video from the 30th:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLWrSbIIQRw
While John Howarton was here we also went to Obongi on Sunday Feb. 1st. It is always a joy to stand with Godfrey and to encourage him in his every effort to shepherd his flock well and to enlarge the flock through loving evangelism to those around him.
February 1st:
“Our Sunday in Obongi was a great blessing! Thank you everyone for your prayers. The Lord was in our midst bearing testimony of His greatness and love through Jesus. Three leading Imams of Obongi , a leading local politician, and other Muslims joined together for the preaching of God’s Word along with the Obongi Town Church pastored by dear friend, Godfrey. They heard the CLEAR presentation of the gospel in John Howarton’s (Luke 5:17-21) and my (John 8:12) messages. During the day we also gave out 300 de-worming tablets, 40 anti fungal creams and 50+ reading glasses (tracts were given with the glasses). ESV Global Study Bibles, Bible stories in Arabic, a John Piper book in Swahili and the book Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus were given to each Imam. We went to the RAU Obongi land and prayed over it. This is where we are looking to build a branch of the Hall of Tyrannus and where Obongi Town Church would also meet. Then we visited the largest local Mosque where we talked to the secretary of the Mosque and also gave him a Bible. To see him walk to the Mosque at prayer time with an ESV Global Study Bible in hand made me smile from ear to ear! More seeds were planted in Obongi and previous seeds planted among the Muslims were watered…may the Lord bring about the harvest. Please keep praying for the work in Obongi.”
February 2nd:
“John Howarton left early this morning for Kampala and heads back to Texas around midnight on Wednesday. Having him here last week for all the outreaches in the Metu Mountains (where over 60 people were saved) was a great blessing to God’s people and a great help to Carol and me…thank you John!”
The day after John left we received 15 pastors and church leaders from the Maracha and Koboko areas which are situated close to the D.R. of Congo as well as South Sudan. It was a great group of men which our friend, Joseph, organized and brought. Our friend, Pastor Bob Gad, from Kampala came and helped me with the teaching. He is a gifted teacher and really has a heart to help other pastors grow and be encouraged in their faith. Also, RAU intern Achidrii Onet Zorah taught a session. Zorah received his biblical training in Kampala and is originally from the West Nile (our Northwestern area of Uganda). He has a real heart of a servant and has been a great aid to me. He is helping to fill in the gap since co-worker Sam left to upgrade his medical training. The Facebook posts continue below.
February 3rd :
We have another group of pastors with us this week for a retreat. They should be here in a couple hours. The leaders are coming from Koboko and Maracha. Please pray that the Lord would strengthen and encourage these shepherds!
Teaching:
February 5th:
We are about to start day three of our 11th pastor’s retreat. Most of these pastors are from Koboko along with a few from Maracha. Bob and I have been doing the teaching. Zorah will jump in the line up this morning. It is such an honor to have a part of shepherd’s lives that are on the front lines. May the Lord use our time together and the materials they are receiving to encourage and empower them for their flocks and the multiplication of their congregations in village which do not have a single church!
February 6th:
May this truth be cemented in all hearts on this our last day of our retreat with Koboko/Maracha pastors! “This [Good News] cannot be merely discussed, analyzed, or taught. It must be heralded!” (John Piper)
YouTube Video notes from church leaders at the retreat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iPxwc4v3wo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9h3-S4cP_I
This retreat was our 11th one since Carol and I made our permanent move here. We are currently adding a large room to “Sam’s tukalu” which has an attached bathroom and is near the Guesthouse. This addition will allow us to sleep 8 more church leaders for retreats. We also will have a double bed in the room for any married couples from America which would like to come for short term ministry. As I have mentioned in past letters these retreats are the top priority of RAU’s calling. In these retreats we are able to interact closely with church leaders to strengthen and encourage them through the teaching and resources. Our goal is to better equip them so that they can strengthen their congregations and so that they can be multiplying congregations. 2 Timothy 2:2, with the biblical examples of Acts 19:9-10 (“…so that all…”) and 18:24:24-28 (“…took him aside….”) are our theme verses for the retreats. Your prayers and support help us transport leaders here and back and care for them while they are here. We have other retreats scheduled and we are planning for more.
February 8th (Sunday):
We are back and had a blessed time with the Katrini believers. (Katrini is located in Yumbe District not far from the Koboko District). Their love for Jesus shines brightly! What an honor to proclaim the Word to them. Please pray for her and all Christ’s sheep in Yumbe District.
We have just heard back from our contact in Yumbe District that things have gotten worse for this 16 year old girl. Yesterday she was able to secretly get away to meet and pray with us. It touched my heart deeply to be able to meet with her and try to strengthen her with scripture, prayer and our physical presence and assurance. Her maturity as a new and very young believer reveals the hand of God’s grace in her life. We have definite plans in the works but they are best left unwritten at present. Please keep praying for her, her safety, and her family as well as all of us seeking to be Christ’s embrace in her life!
Here are a few other updates. The security wall around the outside of the veranda is finished. It adds another wall of protection and has not taken away from the beauty of the Guesthouse/Hall of Tyrannus.
Veranda Security wall is complete:
Work continues on the room addition to the tukalu which I previously mentioned. Remaining parts of the land are being cleared for the upcoming growing season. Lord willing we be able to add another 300+- grafted mangoes to the land. This would put their number at 500+. These mangoes will by God’s grace be able to help support the ministry of RAU in the future. We now have hot,rather warm, water for showers. There is a long length of black ¾ inch black pipe snaking around in the attic from our 5,000 liter tank to our showers. The heat in the attic keeps the water the warm. Praise God for warm showers! The downside is that we all will be using more water 🙂 .
We are also preparing a pad for the second container for when it arrives. By faith we are trusting the Lord and working on getting it here packed full of resources for the ministry. The most important item in the container is the 5,000 ESV Global Study Bibles. It is most beneficial resource we give to church leaders. The fruit of such a gift is immeasurable! For $10 one of these bibles can be placed into leaders’ (pastor, elder, deacon, evangelist, Sunday School teacher, administrators, and denomination leaders as well leaders in the army, police, and politics) hands. The money is available for buying and shipping the container. We just need people to step up and help us purchase the bibles. We have $14,600 of the $50,000 needed for the 5,000. Do not let the big number scare you. The number can be reached with many small gifts or several larger gifts. Please pray over this need and do what you can. Receive this word of encouragement from one of my missionary heroes: “I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.” Hudson Taylor
At this link you can find information on the container shipment and how to give:
https://reachingafricasunreached.org/fill-the-container-study-bibles-books-and-more/
Because of specific targeted gifts by individuals we have been able to be vessels of help for a number of children, both medically and educationally. We have written in the past about these children and people have been touched by the Lord to specifically meet their needs. These outreaches are not RAU’s primary mission but we count it a privilege to be a pipeline of help in these ways. The West Nile region is way behind the rest of Uganda in means and places to help the children.
In the last month 8 local primary age children have been sponsored for one whole year of education including room and board at First Presbyterian Covenant School in Kampala. This school is run by the church in which RAU co-worker, Patrick, is a Pastor. In our Moyo area the schools are very crowded (100+ students per teacher many times) and are known to perform poorly in testing. In many cases parents do not have the money to even send their children to school so they remain home with no education. When the Lord opens the way, RAU’s 17 acres has the room to build facilities for a Christian School, but until then this is a way in which we can sow into a young person’s life. It is still not too late to sponsor a child/children for the 2015 school year. Six hundred dollars plus a onetime start up cost of $100 educates and cares for a child for one year at First Presbyterian Covenant! When giving please specify that this is where you want your gift directed.
We also have been able to help children with cleft palates/lips (3), hydrocephalus (2), severe club feet (1), teeth issue (1), severe eye problem (1), and various other smaller needs. Since the beginning of the year we have given out 1,500 de-worming tablets, 150 anti-fungal creams, many malaria meds, and pain tablets. Many, many reading glasses have been given out as well, both to believers and unbelievers. These acts of love touch people/families in a very special way! We only use funds specifically designated for “medical” needs to carry out these expressions of Christ’s love.
Carol just came in weeping. A local child was just brought here by her mother who had an umbilical hernia repair at age 3. She is now 7, but looks as if she is only 4 or 5 years old. She cannot eat well as her belly becomes distended and food won’t pass through properly. She often is unable to keep food down. Carol feels that there may be some kind of intestinal blockage which could become life-threatening without some kind of intervention! The child cannot be helped here but there are places in Kampala or even Gulu. The expense is in getting to the hospital and having the funds to care for themselves while they are there keep them from being brought to these places for care. When you give specifically for “medical” needs these are kinds of things we do with the funds.
In this newsletter I have written about many needs and have asked you to give. Living on a long term basis here coupled with spending most of my life in America gives me a unique experience. Each of our living experiences gives us unique insights. My prayer is that Carol and I can be your eyes and hands here. One of our goals in writing is to “make you aware” of what we see day in and day out.
Effectiveness in doing anything long term does not come as a result of guilt. I unashamedly lay these needs before you, trusting the Holy Spirit to move as He sees fit. As an American and especially as a Christian I know that many “needs” are “laid” before us all. In fact, because of television and the internet we are inundated with pressing needs both in our own country and around the world. What we must all do is ask the Lord in what way we can best serve the cause of Christ with what we have. Most often we do this with those we know and have confidence that our gifts are used properly. As it says in 2 Corinthian 5:10, we ALL, as believers, will have to give an account for our actions at the judgment seat of Christ. Also, our lives are like a vapor; we only have a short time in which to make the greatest eternal impact. It’s not a matter of feeling guilty but being effective.
Here is link where information can be found on giving to RAU along with number of good articles on Christian giving:
https://reachingafricasunreached.org/donations/
May the Lord richly bless each of you and your families! Carol and I are so very grateful for all your love, prayers, and support!
All for Jesus,
Jacob (Carol) Lee
Blog: http://www.ReachingAfricasUnreached.org
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ReachingAfricasUnreached
For those who have asked, small packages and letters may safely be sent to:
Jacob & Carol Lee, PO. 55, Moyo Uganda, East Africa
Our “wish lists” may be found at Amazon (Click on the “Wish List” link and type in our name or email address)
The greatest evil is having the gospel and not doing everything within our power to get it to those who do not have it. May the Lord grant each of us His followers the wherewithal to be obedient disciples!
Jacob W. Lee
Tax deductible charitable donations may be made via PayPal. PayPal also has a way to make reoccurring monthly gifts. To do so please click the PayPal link. PayPal deducts a small amount from each gift as a processing fee. All gifts given through PayPal are now tax deductible as Reaching Africa’s Unreached has 501 c3 tax exempt status as a charitable organization. If you wish to write a check you may write it out to R.A.U. and mail it to Lifegate Missions, 395 Lifegate Ln., Seguin Texas 78155
Reaching Africa's Unreached 