Robert & Mary’s Ministry Newsletter 2013/1
We open this letter with the news that RBM-Gospellife International will be now known as ‘GOSPELLIFE INTERNATIONAL’ having successfully completed its application for charitable status and is now an officially registered Charity
That very first run taking Aid to Romania in 1989, which birthed the ministry, to the present work we are undertaking in Uganda, God has taken us on an amazing journey.
From that time we have been so blessed in missions; we have seen God work in so many ways not only for ourselves but the people we have taken with us also the people we have had the privilege ministering to.
The many nations we have been privileged to visit and the countless friends we have made could have only come about by God’s wonderful grace.
The excitement is new every day, now we are in the planning stage for the Annual training mission where we take Students from Carmel Bible College, Bristol, UK, onto the mission field.
This will be the 10th consecutive year we have had the privilege of escorting the students of Carmel Bible College on missions and we have seen many of their lives change.
Gospellife International has been working in Uganda since 1997. This year 2013 will be the 6th consecutive year for the students of Carmel Bible College there.
The mission will consist of Seminars for Pastors and church workers.
In working alongside the local Pastors and Teachers we discovered a desperate need for Bibles, Local pastors share theirs around to each other and in some instances it may only be a few pages they have, in 2012 we were able to supply 18 pastoral study Bibles. This year we aim to increase this number.
As the delegates walk many miles to attend, we also undertake to supply a meal at lunchtime. Those that stay over night because of the distance they travel would also receive a breakfast.
Each School day we visit and spend time with a school. We take and distribute to Teachers, curriculum teaching material that they are so lacking, for the students we take text books, pens and pencils.
In these schools there may be only two or three Bibles for the whole school, last year we distributed around one hundred and fifty Bibles between the schools we visited. This year we plan to increase the number of Bibles we take.
We have observed over the years that children attending school, leave home around seven am, some they walk anything from two to four miles on the dirty dusty roads, these are children from as young as six years. Then leave school around four pm to walk back home.
The majority of these children have no food during the day and very little when they get home.
Not only do they not have food but drinking water is not available either, if water is available then it is contaminated and not safe to drink. (Second to Malaria, death in children is caused by unclean drinking water).
We also notice that many of the villages also do not have fresh clean drinking water.
Our purpose is to locate specific areas where the sinking of Wells would not only benefit the children but the communities alike.
We have done this in the past where we provided a Well for a local school and village and supplied tin sheets for the roofing of classrooms.
In the area we are working, there are many schools scattered over a very large district with about 1000 children per school.
The roads are very poor and take up to an hour to travel a few miles.
We are also working with the teachers to overcome the tradition of Girls being taken out of school by the time they are twelve or thirteen years of age to be married or given into some form of service. Many by their 13th birthday have their own family.
We have been able to help in this, parents in Uganda have to pay for education and it is compulsory. The families are very poor they have no money, teachers do all they can to keep children in school at a great sacrifice to themselves, the first to drop out are the girls; sadly, in some respects they become a commodity.
In our work in this area we have seen a very small light, through the work of the teachers a very, very slow headway is beginning to show.
With our supply of curriculum teaching materials for the teachers, plus the text books for students, education is slowly improving.
Before, where the teachers tried to buy the materials out of there meagre salary we have been able to underpin their work.
The evenings we hold open air crusades, where we have worship from many of the church choirs. This is always a joyous occasion which is well attended by those that are saved and unsaved. Many give their lives to Christ.
One of the highlights is in the showing of the Jesus Film in their local language. At the end of each day we show a segment of the film, this creates a strong interest for the next day; this film has a powerful message and is an invaluable Mission tool.
With more people attending the crusades we now have to upgrade the equipment this means we are now in the need of a new projector and a 4 meter square rear projector screen.
This cannot stop there; we cannot pull away after demonstrating what is possible.
In the year 1998 Gospellife International undertook its first Conference and Crusade in the village of Sibanga of Mbale District.
That year we saw the church rip out its walls to cater for the influx of new converts then following the second crusade of 2002 the church was pulled down and a larger brick construction made. We returned in 2011 and the third phase of extension is now under way.
In the year 2000 we witnessed the same in another village.
2008 a two thousand seated church was borne again out of a conference and crusade held by Gospellife International in Kitintale, Kampala.
2012 whilst holding a crusade in the village of Bugobero in the district of Mbale the pastor shared his vision of a larger church to cater for the increase. 2013 Construction is now underway.
To build is not easy; first the bricks have to be made by hand, the timbers cut and shaped, all the groundwork is done by hand, then the sand and cement has to be carried to the site.
All the work is by manual labour there are no cement mixers or mechanical shovels, no electric saws or electric drills, no dumper trucks or steel scaffolding, just wheel borrows, shovels and sweat.
1Cor 3:7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
In the coming months leading up to the mission the students will be raising funds for their cost of the mission and funds to purchase more supplies.
Many people comment that they would like to go on a mission but it is not possible.
We have many that say I cannot go on a mission physically but I can go practically, that is, I can send someone where I cannot go, I can provide school materials to improve the education of children, I can provide for food for empty stomachs or I can be a source to help sink a Well and supply fresh clean drinking water that would save many lives.
I remember that first time I walked into an orphanage in Romania and saw up to five one year old’s in a cot the size for one baby and seven to ten year old’s still sleeping and living in the same size cots.
Every one there wanted to see change; it is no difference in Uganda or any other nation where people are struggling to survive day to day.
The team we have there give their time freely to make that change; all they need is a little help. Help us to be the link they need where they can make a difference.
We at Gospellife International want to make a difference.
There is a wonderful Scripture in Proverbs that I will close on:
Pro_19:17 He who has pity on the poor lends to the LORD, And HE will pay back what he has given.
All I ask is that you search you hearts and seek God if you are able to assist in these projects.
I would also respectfully ask that you consider forwarding this to a friend.
Above all we value your prayers in all we do.
Your servant in Christ
Rev Robert Baker & all the Gospellife team
Gospellife International
Charity No 1150705
email – rbm@gospellife.co.uk
Donations can be made via; www.gospellife.co.uk/giving
STOP PRESS
We have been donated our first four wheel drive vehicle for the work of the ministry in Uganda and now need to accrue the export fee and import duty to send the vehicle.
