Do not really know where to start. Time has moved so quickly and God has moved so rapidly that honestly I have just been hanging on to his hand. God has provided the training pastor that we have prayed for. He is now number two at VOHA. His name is Dawudi or David in english. This truly is not a job for him, but a calling. His wife was nervous about him quitting good employment but they prayed for guidance then took the leap of faith. We are blessed to have him. He may know grace better than anyone I know. I have now co-taught with him in the last two monthly conferences. (average of 25 students each) I am so excited to see the change in the Pastors. The pastors are a bit shocked that church is not about religion but about worshiping Jesus, but they are receiving the revelation of freedom very quickly.
The drilling has gone along well. We opened Omoti and Olee last week. We will open Tuku Lwala and Peya by Monday. I have spent every Saturday night in a different village. We worship and then show the Jesus film. After the film they worship until be cannot stand any longer. God has moved in such a miraculous way. The God story has become the number one hit. Although they all know about Jesus, very few have ever seen the creation story or how Satan came into the picture. Seeing pictorially as well has hearing in the Acoli language the story of God from creation to the resurrection of Christ is the most exciting thing that has happened to them. They have a new appreciation of what Jesus did for them. We follow that with the Jesus film which they now get a deeper understanding of his sacrifice for them personally.
God has provided the detail for the agricultural program, it has now begun. Ivan will be the leader of it and the water program. I will attach a picture of the walk behind tractor with plow. We have picked 7 villages out of the 31 we now partner with for our pilot program. From each village we have chosen 3 of the top agricultural groups. Each group will clear a 4-acre central garden which will be plowed by a VOHA team. Because this is new ground it will require plowing twice. To create a self sustaining program we require the following: Each acre plowed will cost the Ag group 100 Kg for each of the two plowings. While they do not have the time or money to do this with there current equipment, hoe and machete, we will receive payment from the first harvest. Each of these groups have proven their accountability on this payback method. With 21 groups we will be able to amortize the small trailer, tractor, plow, and disc, over 4 years. Within a year this program should be self funding. Fortunately the original donations for seed have made this possible. We now have 9,500 Kg of beans in our government warehouse. As you know, we build programs that assume that one day we will get on the plane and not return. Only God knows when that will be. But preparing now with sustainability insures the continued expansion of the Word in Acoli land through Tony and team VOHA.
Our medical program is in its infancy but we now have the logic in place to move forward. For 350,000 Ushs or $160.00 dollars per month we will hire a young man, Walter, whom served with us as a volunteer while he was in school beginning in the spring of 2007. He now works at a Government health center in the village but has no medicine to treat people when they arrive in the center. Most of the villages do in fact have trained local health coordinators that were trained in the camps. Walter, if he joins us, will work to set up village health workers and supply them a simple pharmacy bag. The bag will contain the drugs for the most common illnesses which doctor Dan so graciously provided the data from the hundreds of people that were treated through the medical outreach on the December trip. These medicines will be marked up so that in total, as the program grows, it will be come self funding. We have explained in detail the program to several villages which are so excited to have access to medical treatment. We have agreed to give them the option to pay in cash or barter with beans and G-nuts. There will be no free ride. They are excited and have agreed that this would be very acceptable.
Last but not least VOHA will have a new office soon. Great location, across from the Gulu District office. Two very small rooms. Total tab 400,000 per month. Included in the price is the use of the conference center 3 days each month for our monthly Pastor training. We currently pay 150,000 Ushs. Net office cost 250,000Ushs or a little over $100 US.
I want to say thank you to the many donors that have stood with us to go slowly and let God lead us through this process. You know who you are, while I will not mention your name, I will praise the Lord for what he has done in and through you.
I also want to thank each of you for your prayers, God has been faithful to lead us, we know that he listens attentively to the prayers of the righteous. Not that we are, but we are righteous in Christ. So we know that he is answering your prayers as you pray.
Thank you my loving wife who believed from the first mention of this extended trip that God had spoken to me. Your support and prayers have meant all to me.
Psalms 66:5
"Come and see the awesome works of God on the behalf of man"
David
