Sullivan Christian Church Group To Mission Once Again In Uganda

It didn't take long for me to realize that things we take for granted in our community, such as water, electricity, sewer, food, and education, may just be everyday life here in Sullivan, Mo., but to the people of Rakai, Uganda, these things are often unattainable.

What upsets us on our society and brings smiles to our faces could be a wrong order in a fast food line or smile when the order is correct but to the people of this small village, just holding the hand of an American, walking with them in there community and conversing about God brings the most gracious of smiles to their faces.

This past week John Blackmore, Sullivan Christian Church Pastor and Development Director of Sheltering Wings, and Dave Thomas, Executive Director of Sheltering Wings, introduced us to Edward Mbuyi, pastor and education leader of Rakai, Uganda.

A town that is working to have their school accredited after students have turned our brilliant young minds, has its school moving forward, water storage for the town, and nothing but smiles when speaking of God.

Sheltering Wings is headquartered in Leasburg and formed some 20 years ago in St. Louis to help those in west Africa. Since a terrorist attack fatally injured a missionary in 2016, the group has provided protection, logistics, and oversight to keep missionaries safe. They also offer training for missionaries and ministers.

One of the first questions asked to Edward Mbuyi was regarding COVID-19 and how the pandemic has affected his community.

"It affected mostly the tourist communities, but with 5 million people, about 4,000 became infected overall, so it was not as big in Uganda," said Mbuyi.

Poverty is very alarming in the area where Mbuyi preaches Christianity. which was finally allowed to occur in the country several years ago, and Many children are orphaned due to the AIDS epidemic, which struck the area hard in the 1980s and beyond. It caused many children to lose their parents along with different diseases.

The area of Rakai has the third youngest population of Uganda, with half the population 15 or younger.

Sullivan Christian Church and Blackmore will return for a mission trip through the guidance of Mbuyi and Sheltering Wings to help construct a kitchen in the school, set up the drinking water collection tank with a filter and spigot, construct a dining area in the school, upgrade the classrooms, dorms and much more.

Eight individuals will accompany them on the trip.

In a trip last year, Blackmore reported that Maggie and Deb Clark, of Sullivan, helped teach the residents how to properly raise their pigs for more profit by showing them proper use of clean water and food to weigh and develop properly.

Blackmore stated, "I love the people of Uganda. They work so hard. It reminds me of the stories of the immigrants that would come into New York City and work so hard to provide a better life for their families. The kids in this town and Uganda have gone through some major trauma in their lives, and America is a mystical place to them. We love to go over and tell them we love you and you are loved."

Mbuyi commented that he is asked all the time from missionaries why the residents are always smiling when they come.

"Because they know, they know God is real, God loves them and God can be reached."

Mbuyi went on to tell a story regarding the last trip Sullivan Christian Church took, and some members decided to sleep at the orphanage with all the students.

Word spread that white people stayed with the village children and adults at the orphanage.

"Dave and I went in 2003 and worked at the village when word spread that white people had come to help the people. A 93-year-old man made a truck to come over a mountain from his home because he had never seen a white person nor had he ever conversed with one," said Blackmore. "We sat and talked with him, and he informed us he did not have a roof on his home, so we traveled with him to put a roof on his home. His wife couldn't believe it."

The local area group, which is not all Sullivan Christian Church members, will leave on July 8 and return on July 22.

Mbuyi has organized and trained ministers in Uganda through Goodwill Ministries. He sees that those with bad intentions do not scam the Christian organization.

"Many who come on a mission trip are amazed that the children and people are not depressed by the conditions and things they do not have, but they tell them with a smile, I have Jesus, how can I get depressed, I'm full of joy," said Mbuyi.

If you would like more information on the upcoming mission trip, would like to contribute, or possibly be involved in a future mission trip, contact Blackmore at 573-468-8142.