Through the years Jesus our Lord and Savior has led us into various ministries of compassion and mercy. We have taken the gospel to prisoners, missions, the sick, the homeless, and to churches. We have presented the gospel in various ways. This has included church planting, children’s ministry, preaching, teaching, music, one-on-one friendships, food distribution, and leadership training.
The Lord planted a desire in our hearts for overseas ministry. Our desire has increased and we see God's call clearly now to serve Him Africa wide to the urban poor. Jesus has given us a love for Africans and a zeal to see souls saved and served here in Africa. We believe the Lord anointed us + called us to serve in the country of Uganda and other African nations. The need for ministry to the peoples of these countries is urgent. Matthew 25 and Isaiah 58 compel us.
Our vision to reach the Africans is through ministry to street children, to the AIDS afflicted, to prisoners and to orphans. We are preaching the gospel as well as caring for their physical needs. We are training national church leaders and planting churches. We are also developing care ministries for the poor.
Hope Christian Fellowship International church’s Church Planting
The Lord has led us to assist in planting about 40 churches in Malawi, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan with African pastors and churches. Numerous fellowships have also been started in Uganda and other countries. We recently had a timely and strong encouragement in church planting as Hope’s Sustainable Church Multiplication Conference that was held in March 2012 and taught about in Kampala.
We hope to take part in a regional Conference next year as God allows finances, ministering in all African nations.
We seek to plant, then assist the new church plants and assist in leadership development and help the church plants to a point of self-sustainability and more support to church pastors in branch offices to meet their needs, plans and objectives.
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.” 1 Corinthians 3:6 NKJV.
Pray for God’s grace as we engage in this important work of church planting.
Hope Christian Fellowship international Church’s Pastoral Development
In this ministry we seek to disciple, inculcate good character, instruct and train Pastors and Ministry Leaders Africa wide. We do this in personal fellowships and counsel and in teaching in class and conference settings. In our Hope Pastor Training Fellowship times we meet regularly with a smaller number of Pastors and Ministry Leaders and especially encourage godly character development. Every after two weeks on Friday at Kitiko fellowship. Pastor Training Conferences are often coupled with Bible Distribution. We co-operate with national lecturers and professors in Bible e.g. from Africa bible college and African bible society of Uganda.
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16,17 NKJV.
PRISON MINISTRY
We are currently serving HIV+ prisoners in the form of an evangelistic and discipleship Bible Study and in providing much-needed food supplements. There is a shortage of food and nutritious supplements for these people and we hope to assist them in the Word and in this care.
Statistics available from the Uganda Prisons Service reflects that 80% of the offenders incarcerated or committed or remanded to Prisons are below the age of 20 years and 95% of the offenses committed are money related.
It’s upon these disturbing statistics that our ministry has decided to venture into Prisons Outreach Ministry. Our Prisons Outreach Program is established and guided by the biblical committee as found the Holy scriptures in the Gospel according to Mathew 25:35-40, “Jesus states that people who minister to those in prison are ministering to Him and that people who do not minister to those who are in prison have not ministered to Him” Further the book of Hebrews 13:3 tells us to remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners. We visit two main country (Uganda) prisons. Kigo prison and Luzira prison. As pictured below.
We aim to:
1. To help inmates know & accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord & Savior and nurture them into spiritual growth.
2. Post-Prison Community Based Care, Support & Counseling e.g. HIV Prevention
3. To offer spiritual & material support to the families of the incarcerated in the event where the (Bread Earner is the Offender).
4. To establish and coordinate a vibrant, strong & effective forum of ministries caring & supporting offenders
Activities:
• Evangelize & disciple inmates in and out of Prison through a weekly Prisons Outreach Program designed to share the Gospel of the risen Lord with inmates, to help them grow & mature spiritually.
• Mobilize/Source & distribute gospel tracts, Bibles, Magazines etc to inmates. Similarly, source & distribute to inmates clothes, shoes & sandals etc many inmates walk on bare foot because they don’t have shoes, slippers or sandals.
• Provide Post-Prison community based care & support to former Prisoners, by helping them get back to their communities, provide temporary transitional shelter, Prayer & Counseling etc
• Facilitate Life & entrepreneurial Skills development among former prisoners as a way of rehabilitation to help them start income generating activities to gain financial stability. This will help curb down the rate of recidivism, because no body tends to care & support former prisoners, many of them find themselves back to prison by committing the same offenses.
• Minister to & support families of inmates especially those who have been found guilty by the law and are sentenced. In the event where “a bread winner is sentenced to serve a long term in prison” there’s great emotional breakdown, families breaking down, children dropping out of school, no food, house rent, such are the problems faced by families of inmates. We will help through our Child Sponsorship program provide education support to such Children & as God provides, we will also provide for such families food, clothes, bedding and also help them start income generating activities to help them sustain their families.
• Coordinate a very vibrant and active network of Prisons Outreach Ministries; this will help bring down the problem of service duplication.
• Through the weekly Prisons outreach program, we will continue to source for material resources to distribute to inmates such as soap & shavers to improve on their hygiene & for the young women provide sanitary pads & also provide mosquito nets to reduce the spread of malaria. Some inmates spend long periods of time without anyone visiting them.
• Initiate victim – offender negotiations & out of court settlements as a means of reconciliation & forgiveness, Mathew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions”.
As we’re very new in this Ministry our major and number one need is staff development and training to gain skills on how to handle & minister to inmates.
Further, the Prisons Outreach Ministry is in great need for:-
• Material donations such as Gospel Tracts, Bibles, Magazines, Books, etc
• Similarly we also need clothes, you find many inmates in tattered clothes
• Blankets many inmates do not have anything to cover themselves as they sleep
• Similarly we need mattresses for prisoners, many of the prisoners sleep on bare floor, as a substitute and less costly for US$ 4 you will buy a papyrus mat which is able to accommodate 2 inmates
• Shoes or sandals or for a substitute we can buy sandals made out of used car tyres they’re very long lasting and less costly, for US$ 2 you will buy one pair which will last for 2 years without breaking.
• Donations are also needed to support families of the inmates. For those interested in sponsoring inmates Children to school, this costs US$ 24 per month, however to reduce on the costs involved in transferring funds we always advise our sponsors to transfer this money at once e.g. US$ 96 for a full term or US$ 288 for a whole year. These funds are for tuition, school uniform, feeding, scholastic materials & medical care.
As a ministry, we need:-
• Financial support & partnership to operate & coordinate the Prisons Outreach Ministry. The financial needs before us range from transport, telephone expenses, and email & internet services
• Salary expenses to employ full time Prisons Outreach Ministry & Volunteer Coordinators, Social Workers etc
• Sound or public address system
• A Prisons Outreach Ministry Van
• Funds are needed for stationery
• Funds to reproduce & print materials and print ministry T-shirts & Ball Caps to promote the Prisons Outreach Ministry.
• Funds are also needed to organize training seminars & workshops for all those ministries & organizations involved in Prisons Ministry; this is something that is non existent here.
For Further details you can contact us:- Tel:+256787478212
“The the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food: I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’” Matthew 25:35,36 NKJV.
Pray for God’s grace as we serve the Prisoners.
PREACHING AND TEACHING
Pastor Samuel Waswa serves in this capacity as an itinerant minister and usually preaches in friend's churches on the some Lord’s Day and in Conferences. Our hope in this ministry is to influence churches to better doctrine, discipleship and edification. We seek to minister God's grace as the pastor preaches and teaches the grace of God.
"Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching." 2 Timothy 4:2 NKJV.
Pastor Samuel Waswa ministers the word in ‘Saturday’ sermons about Youth’s morals and general preaching and testimonies on African Bible College Radio at 99.3 FM in Kampala- Lubowa (Radio ABC). And also recorded Sunday sermons presented on Air to Uganda and Africa (In English, luganda, lusoga, lunyankole) Languages. The Lord has blessed and guided this ministry since 2007. At my church- I normally go away when other preachers are on the preaching list.
Pray for God’s grace as we engage in Preaching and Teaching.
ORPHANAGE +STREET KIDS OUTREACH
In this work we evangelize, disciple and seek to integrate Street Kids into the church and then eventually to reconcile them with their families, as God allows. We also minister to the Street Kids in a drop-in center and day shelter which meets in a church building where the Kids are served shelter, friendship, food, baths, the gospel, sports and counseling.
“Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
To loose the bonds of wickedness,
To undo heavy burdens,
And to let the oppressed go free,
And that you break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out?
When you see the naked that you cover him,
And not hide yourself from your own flesh?”
Isaiah 58:6,7 NKJV.
Pray for God’s grace as we serve Street Kids.
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