The Gospel in Action
We have started a new Bible study in the next village over from mine, called Butuntumula, a small village with government offices, a prison, but no church. The pastor received a phone call from a Christian nurse at the clinic there a couple of months ago, asking him to come and pray for a Muslim woman and her child being tormented by demons. He went there and found the woman insensible and her young son unconscious. The pastor prayed for them, cast the demons out, and both returned to normal consciousness and behavior. As a result, he was begged to start a Bible study there for the spiritually needy people.
As time has gone by, we have learned the full story of this lady, whom I’ll call Hajjat. She and her family had been plagued by demonic attacks and she had tried every possible remedy, except turning to Jesus. She had been to many witchdoctors. Then she took her son and went to a big church in Kampala where she was told she had to pay a large some of money to receive prayer for healing. So on the day when she went to the clinic in Butuntumula, she’d been urged to once again go to the witchdoctor, but she had refused. She said no, she needed a “born again” to pray for her…
After a few rough weeks and more deliverance sessions with the pastor, Hajjat saw her need to be saved, and she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. Her life began to change and her small business of making and selling food to take out began to prosper. Her husband lives in Kampala, having another business there, and their 14 year old son lives with him and attends school in the city. This boy was growing up without friends and limited in his activities, because every time there was a full moon, he would suffer from seizures. He also seemed to be a slow learner. He also has since been prayed for and is now fully healed and he’s learning at a normal pace. He’s not had seizures for several full moons now, and when he’s in Butuntumula he rides his bike (which he could not do before) with his little brother, to come to church with us 3 miles from Butuntumula.
Hajjat is growing in Jesus, and her face is radiant. She has quit covering her head in the Muslim fashion and has had her hair styled. As her business is prospering, her neighbors in the same building have noticed. Her landlord has supplied her with free electricity because when she sells more foods, his business also prospers. The lady on the other side, who operates a bar, is asking prayer for her son who has similar problems to Hajjat’s boy, and she’s started playing Christian music in her bar.
Because of Hajjat and other ministries we’ve been able to do in Butuntumula, our church has been growing with people who come from there, walking 3 miles each way to come and worship. Our church is changing in its tenor of worship as these people are from other tribes in the northern and northeastern parts of Uganda. Many of them work for the prison and have been transferred here.
Pray for us as we plan and prepare to eventually start a new church in Butuntumula. We are beginning a training program to raise up our young leaders and new pastors so that we will have an effective man to put in that place.
Margaret Nelson