Ministry in Uganda

The Basule Family

My (Andrew’s) favorite part of our trip was living with the Basules. In a small village in Uganda – a village mostly made up of mud huts and a few brick and cement buildings – is a beautiful family who have passionately loved and served Wanenga for many years. Pastor Basule Paul was thrown out of his family as a kid for becoming a born-again Christian; he turned his becoming an “outcast” around and has embodied God’s heart for treating all like “family” – taking care of the poor, looking after widows, raising orphans, and lifting up so many with the love and mission of Jesus. When Art Thomas (the one leading our trip) first met Pastor Paul 14 years ago (before the orphanage or school were ever born!), Pastor Paul and his family had 16 orphans living with them and a man that they had found almost dead on the side of the road. They only lived in a small, cement home and were not rich, but they offered what they had and took responsibility to care for these lives. That gives you a little window into the hearts and love of this family. To see today many of those same orphans they cared for 14 years ago, loving and serving their community, having their own homes and families that they love and provide for, and living in relationship with Jesus and from his heart now themselves is truly, truly beautiful. 

The love of Jesus coming from the Basule family is so infectious. Susanna and I were deeply impacted by it, and we are very excited to see it continue to multiply – there, but also, by God’s grace, here. As we come home, our prayer is that we can bring a little of their bold, joy-filled faith, their radical generosity, and their laid-down love that we witnessed to America too. We have a lot to learn from these precious ones on the other side of the world. 

The Team and Events 

It was really amazing watching the team come together here from America. We are so thankful to have been able to minister along side each one of them! If I would give a theme to the team and our time in Africa, it would be “The Father’s Love.” First, we had Art Thomas bringing his two boys, Joey and JJ, and all the proud dad moments that he had with them. Then, we had Kevin who was given the nickname “Papa” while we were there and became a dad to so many! And then we had my beautiful wife, Susanna, and myself – 7 people in all.

All the finances our team were able to raise not only paid for travel expenses but also to host the events below, rent tents and chairs, buy food, hire cooks, rent sound systems and generators, and to pay for transportation for those coming from distant villages. These were the main events we were a part of while being there:

• A graduation ceremony for the primary school where we were able to celebrate with the children and the whole community. They celebrated with lots of singing and dancing, games, skits, cake, honoring the graduates, and a 5-mile parade around the whole village ahead of time to round everyone for the fun. 😀 I think maybe we should start that tradition here too! 😀 Haha! After participating in all the festivities, we were able to preach the good news of Jesus and the new life there is in Him with all the many parents, children, and community leaders there. 
• A two-day conference where hundreds of Christians from all the churches that Pastor Art and Paul have planted together traveled to Wanenga to be equipped and encouraged in their faith. About 200 – 300 believers gathered. We had times of teaching, worship, prayer, meals together, and so much dancing! 
• A Bible school graduation in Buswiriri. Pastor Art has been partnering with Pastor Paul over the years to train groups of pastors. These pastors often go into villages that currently don’t have a church and begin just by sharing the love of Jesus and being love in that community. As people believe on Jesus and want to learn this new way of life, a church is born and believers are discipled in their new relationship with God and others. A group of pastors were graduating on the Sunday that we were there and were very honored to have us there to celebrate with them and honor their hard work. It was fun to take pictures with the several men and women graduating, shake their hands, worship with and speak encouragement to them during such a big moment of their lives. 
• Playing with the school children and orphans at recess. Sooooooo fun!! 😀 Pastor Art and Paul (with the hard work, financial support, and love of many, many others) built a school and orphanage there in Wenanga that together serve about 450 kids currently. On two different days we went to the school complex to play with the kids at recess and surprise them with new balls and frisbees to keep. The kids were so amazing and fun to be with; it was so wonderful to have that time with them.
• Crusades hosted on two different days in the village of Buswiriri (more details below on this :D). 

The Crusades and the Father’s Love

We traveled to the village of Buswiriri with Pastor Paul during two of our last days there to partner with a new church and share the gospel, pray for healing, and deliver the oppressed. There was a stage in the village where we sang and danced for hours which brought many out to see what was happening!

Art Thomas shared the gospel and Susanna and I shared our personal stories of how Jesus transformed our lives. When I (Andrew) first got there, I asked the Lord to give me His love for the people. As I was praying, I felt the love of a good father fill my heart for the people, and God changed how I was going to share my testimony. God put it in my heart to focus on his fatherly love for me and his present love for Buswiriri. I shared a personal story of how a love for American football as a kid and a need for a good father was met when God’s love transformed my heart. When God saved me, he became my Father who would walk alongside me, bring me into his family, and always be there for me. This loving Father, who created me and you, sent his only son to restore relationship with all who come to Him through his son! Although our sin has broken this relationship with God, Jesus’ death on the cross, burial, and His resurrection has made a way for all to enter his family and have a new dad who truly loves us.

Over the two days that we were in Buswiriri, around 120 people testified to have put their faith in Jesus and wanting to follow Him. Praise God! Around 200 testified to being healed of something. Thank you, Jesus!! Isn’t that awesome?! One of our team members (Kevin) got to hear the village Mayor share that his back got healed. He was grinning from ear to ear. He previously had intense back pain for years that was now gone (and was still gone the next day when we came back!). He was a Christian and was so happy and thankful that this was happening in his village and for how the Lord healed him too. 

A COUPLE MORE FAVORITE MEMORIES 

So many of my (Susanna’s) favorite moments in Uganda were moments of connecting with the people. With not everyone knowing English and me not knowing Lusoga, 🙂 it was often hard to be able to communicate freely without a translator. Even so, over and over again many of my favorite moments were moments of deep connection: looking in someone’s eyes and saying “Jambo” (“hi”) and their face lighting up (mine too :)), warmly shaking someone’s hand, giving a hug, looking at your neighbor and letting out a Ugandan styled “whoop” when something was said or done that was amazing, talking as much a possible with the limited Lusoga or English phrases either of us knew, eating a meal together, praying over someone for their healing or encouragement, late night laughter and worship outside Pastor Paul’s home, hanging out with kiddos who wanted to play or be held or snuggled, conversations with Helen (Pastor Paul’s wife), and more were some of the moments most precious to me. There is something so, so beautiful about getting to meet your family on the other side of the world. It’s hard to describe in words. There was such comradery and joy in being together – and in celebrating that we have the same Jesus who binds us together and gives us both hope, no matter our location or circumstance. The phrase many of the Ugandans would say over and over again was, “Thank you for loving us, thank you for loving us. Thank you for being with us. Thank you for choosing us.” But we were the ones who felt honored and loved by them. 

One thing that deeply impacted me in the village especially was the joy that the Christians carried. Their joy was very palpable. It’s like they have a different view of life – the glass being half full instead of half empty, that Jesus really is enough for each day and each challenge (and they really know about challenges), that to lift their hands in worship, to know his love, to be together were things to so fully delight in. Most of them have been through such difficult circumstances and challenges in life that it would be difficult to grasp for many of us. And, yet there in the midst of the hard and seemingly impossible, God is for them. He is their good in the middle of everything and from Him comes all that is good. His presence sustains their souls and gives them new strength to make it through and to thrive even in the middle of, at times, seemingly impossible situations. Hearing their stories, seeing their lives, feeling their joy, being a recipient of their generosity felt like they deposited some of their beautiful faith inside of me. I’d like to carry just a bit of their joy-filled faith with me wherever I go.

Thank you so much for partnering with us! We are forever changed by the people we had the privilege of meeting and the experiences we had. We are just so thankful. Thank you!

Love in Jesus,

– Andrew and Susanna Biddinger