University/Tertiary and Vocational Conferences
We praise God for the wonderful time He allowed us to be together with our university, tertiary and vocational students. The university conference started from 16 to 21 January and the vocation from 23-28 January. The turn up was really good in that 453 attended out of 460 whom we expected. 50 students received salvation, 86 students dedicated their lives to Christ and 37 were baptized. Our hearts were filled with joy seeing what God was doing in our midst and in the lives of our children.
Students were introduced to the practice of spending time with God in various ways such as: Quiet time, a moment they spent time with God on individual basis; Group discussions, whose aim was interact and learn from in each other in reference to bible exposition; Worship in song, a moment that prepared the hearts and mind of the us to receive the word of God; Sing and fun which was aimed at giving students an opportunity to expose their talents and introduction to different games.
The theme of the conferences was "Obedience is better than sacrifice" taken from 1 Sam 15:22. We were blessed to be taught by Ps Ambale, Mama Maria, Bishop Lwere and Ps Kaganda. Ps Ambale helped us to understand that obedience is the ultimate test of faith Heb 5:8; Phil 2:8. Our prayer is that God may teach us to be humble and walk step by step in the Will of God.
Bishop Lwere reminded us that young people are the hope and future of our nation. He further emphasized that for us to experience transformation, the beginning is accepting Jesus Christ in our lives. This is because the nation of Uganda needs men and women, who know, love, believe and trust in God. With this they will not bow down to ungodly practices such as corruption, witchcraft and idle worship. Our dependence should be on the Word of God which has the power to change individuals, families and the nation at large; obedience being the source of it all. We talk a lot without living according to Gods word which needs to change by embracing and developing the following habits; Reading God’s Word, Praying, Fasting, Giving and Witnessing Ps 119:99-100 because it is the secret of life. The Word of God should take first place in our lives; this can be done by hearing, reading, studying, memorizing and meditating on it. When we practice these five ways, the Word of God will shape our lives.
Mama Maria in her teaching stated that God is looking for faithful people and it all starts with small things. He is looking for people who are totally (100%) committed to Him. She gave us the 3 areas God tests; money or possessions, authority and relationships. We were reminded to be thankful to God for everything He has given us. A positive attitude is so important in life. She introduced a ‘True love waits club’ whose aim is to promote sexual purity among the young generation.
Ps. Kaganda in his teaching encouraged us to develop a deeper relationship with God and gave us three ways of how that would be accomplished; through the Word of God, worship and communion. Our identity should be in Christ not possessions, academics or achievements for we are made in God’s image therefor we need to look like Him.
Dr. Luboga in his teaching assured us that young people have valuable lives that need to be preserved. Waiting is an investment and those who practice it reap big. Uganda takes the number one position in teenage pregnancies around the world which has led to increased school drop outs contributing to continuous poverty cycle. Students were encouraged to walk according to the Word of God, get engaged in productive activities and believe in themselves.
We thank God for bringing the students and giving us strength to serve them with love. With the help of the entire team led by our Director Mama Maria, Ps Ambale and Mama Thereza, administration, Africa band, primary school, vocational institute, hotel, kitchen, security, youth coordinator Mr Ocen Joram, sponsorship team and all the counselors.
