Only one week left in Uganda

Oli otya, mukwano! (Howdy, friend!)  We have had another great week of ministry here in Uganda!  Thank you all so much for the prayer and support.  Most of the issues I mentioned last message have cleared up.  Praise the Lord!  What we accomplish here truly wouldn’t be possible without the help of people back home.

This week, I had the opportunity to share the Gospel in ten schools with almost 3,000 students and more than 1,600 of them said that they were willing to turn from their sin and follow Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior for the first time!  God is so good!

Also, our Ugandan leader, Pastor Apollo, had been driving our van, a vehicle provided for him three years ago with funds from our DSEA ministry, with balding and bulging tires. (These African roads are VERY hard on tires!) But this week, thanks to the generous gifts of friends like you, we were able to purchase brand new tires for our van. Apollo was overjoyed to think about the thousands of students that he will be able to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to, driving from school to school on new tires!

Thank you once again so much for all the prayer and support!  I only have one more week of ministry in schools.  So, we have scheduled a busy five days.  I plan to do like my football coaches used to tell me, and “leave it all on the field!”  Please continue to pray for peace in the area and God’s blessing as we minister during this upcoming week!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Galatians 2:20

P.S. keep up with us through the photos we have taken! Please go to www.knowYES.org to find out more about Youth Education Strategies! and don't forget to like YES on Facebook!

Bumpy Road, but God is good!

Well, it has been an interesting week to say the least!  The situation hasn’t improved in Kampala.  We were forced to cancel 5 days of school ministry in the city.  We travelled 3.5 hours on “African” roads to a small village called Bbaale that only has one “hotel” to stay in.  I fought through a “minor” case of malaria.  And I am still struggling with some problems caused by a wisdom tooth.  But God is in control, and we had a great week of ministry in spite of everything else!

Monday, I woke up at 5:30 to leave at 6:00 for a school assembly at 7:00.  We arrived to find out most of the teachers weren’t there because the mini-bus drivers were on strike.   We soon realized that school ministry would not be possible, so we decided to have a day of fun!  We travelled to Jinja to see Lake Victoria, the start of the Nile River, and beautiful Ssezibwa Falls.  We had a great day and took some wonderful pictures!

Tuesday, we made a plan for what to do the rest of the week and spent the day packing and sending Paul and my father back to Texas.  It was decided that I would travel Wednesday to a rural area called Bbaale, or The Rock, with a pastor called Eric and minister in schools and in the village for one week.  It turns out that Bbaale is in an area dominated by a particular religion I’m not going to mention by name.

We have had a great time of ministry here in Bbaale! We shared the Gospel in three schools on Thursday and two on Friday.  We also hosted a two day crusade in the town center.  Overall, more than 1600 people heard the Good News and about 700 made professions of faith in Jesus Christ!

We are planning two more days of ministry in schools in the surrounding rural areas, but I’m honestly not sure what is next after that!  If the situation in Kampala doesn’t get resolved, it might be best just to head home.  Please pray for Uganda and that God will show us what to do and enable us to do it.  Also, please pray for a double portion of discernment for all of us.  Thank you so much!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Galatians 2:20

P.S. Please visit www.knowYES.org to learn more about Youth Education Strategies!

Amazing week of team ministry!

Praise the LORD!  What an amazing week of ministry!  Despite striking city workers, illnesses, and many other problems, our team was able to share the Good News of Jesus Christ in 26 schools with thousands students and many of them said that they are willing to turn from their sin and commit their lives to Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior!

It never ceases to amaze me how open and hungry Africans are to the Gospel.  We even saw a great response from many students that belong to a certain faith I’m not going to mention by name.  Around 1000 students made professions of faith in Jesus Christ at the school directly across the street from the largest Mosque in Uganda!  This week, I had the opportunity to share the Gospel in 12 schools with 4500 students and saw 2300 commit to give their lives to Christ for the first time!

We also completed our Victorious Life leadership and evangelism training conference.  About 100 local pastors, evangelists and other leaders attended the conference.  Almost all who attended made commitments to do a better job of fulfilling the Great Commission and winning the lost for Christ.

Monday, we will be sending 4 of our team members back to the states while 3 of us continue to minister in schools through Tuesday.  Of course, I will be staying in Uganda until August!

I am so excited about what God has done this week!  But I am even more excited to see what He will do in the near future!!  Thank you all so much for the prayer, support, and love!  Please continue to pray for Youth Education Strategies as we continue to share Jesus in Uganda!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Galatians 2:20

www.knowYES.org

Doing Well in Uganda

Friends, it is amazing to be in beautiful Uganda!  Our team arrived in Kampala Wednesday with ALL our luggage and no major problems through travel.  Praise the LORD!  It is always a blessing to start a project so smoothly.  After spending one night in Kampala, we drove three hours to Ekitangaala (translated “The Light”) Ranch where African Children’s Mission is based.

The past two nights, our team has hosted an open-air crusade -- we call it our CityCelebration -- in a nearby village called Kakooge.  This is one of my favorite parts during all our projects.  It is always great to bring the Gospel to remote areas that are sometimes skipped over by larger organizations.  We have had about 1500 people attend the conference these two nights and 150 made professions of faith.  We are expecting tonight to be even better!

We will stay one more night at the ranch to finish our CityCelebration; then, we will head back to Kampala to begin our school programs Monday morning.  We should have a very busy week ahead.  Our Ugandan leader, Pastor Apollo, has our team scheduled to speak in around 60 schools with tens of thousands of students!   We are expecting God to move mightily here in Uganda!

Thank you all once again so much for standing with YES and praying for us during this project.  Please continue to pray for our team members and the thousands of people we will be speaking with.  God bless!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Initial Reactions About Osama Bin Laden's Death

Friends, I have heard many reactions to the news that Osama Bin Laden has been killed.  I would like to give my two cents worth on the issue.  Many people I know posted angry, hateful, and racist comments.  I believe this is definitely taking it too far.  However, some people also said things like, “I can’t believe anyone would celebrate another man’s death!”  I feel this is not the proper reaction either.  In my opinion, there has to be something better that is somewhere in the middle.

First, I heard several of my friends say things like, “Now he is burning in Hell just like he deserves!”  I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Osama IS indeed burning in Hell as you read this.  However, we must remember that according to Romans 3:23, 6:23 and many other Bible verses, we are all sinners and we all deserve to die and burn in Hell for those sins just like Osama Bin Laden.  No one can have eternal life except by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  We negate God’s grace and promote salvation by works if we say that he deserves to go to Hell but we don’t because we are good people.  Salvation can never be earned by good works nor made impossible by any number of evil deeds.

So, how do I feel about the fact that he is in Hell right now?  I’m not happy about it, but I definitely don’t feel sorry for him!  Osama Bin Laden had spent a lot of time in western cultures.  I can’t prove this, but I would be shocked if he hasn’t heard the story of Jesus at some point in his life.  But as we all know, he CHOSE to reject Jesus and follow Muhammad and his version of god they call Allah.  These beliefs led him to cause the deaths of thousands of people around the world.  The world is a better, safer place without him in it.  I think he got exactly what he deserved in this life and the next.  

So, am I just a cold-hearted person?  Absolutely not!  As a Christian, I feel a tremendous burden for the billions of lost people around the world who would be sent to hell if they died today.  The people I feel the greatest burden for are those who have never heard the Gospel!  The billions around the world who have absolutely no access to Scripture or another human who could tell them about Jesus are the ones I feel sorry for.  This is summed up in Romans 10:13-17:

 "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed?  And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard?  And how are they to hear without someone preaching?  And how are they to preach unless they are sent? … So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

It is my goal in life to get the Gospel of Jesus Christ to these people!  These people are not able to hear the Gospel because religious leaders like Osama Bin Laden refuse to allow their people to hear anything other than their own radical beliefs.  Thousands of missionaries and evangelists are willing to go into these countries and spread the Good News if only the doors were open!

Anyway, rather than focusing on Osama being  in Hell, I choose to focus on the purely positive fact that a major threat to the United States and people around the world can no longer do us any harm.  In summary, I believe that as Christians we should never celebrate someone being killed and sent to Hell because we all have sinned and deserve the same fate.  However, as an American i am immensely full of joy that one of the greatest threats to our lives and freedoms has been eliminated.  GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!

Thanks so much for reading!  Please let me know what you think!  Have a great week.

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Galatians 2:20

P.S. I thought I had found him last summer in Africa! This mural was on the side of the road in the 99% Muzlem town I was arrested in last summer!

Zimbabwe 4/7/2011, home safely!

Dear friends in Christ:  Our mission to Zimbabwe was truly an amazing trip, but I am glad to be back in Texas safe and sound.  I can now say I know what it feels like to be on the longest commercial flight operated by any American or European airline!  Once again, I can’t adequately describe just how amazing this project was, and how powerfully God moved while we were there.

I had the opportunity to share the Gospel in 25 schools with over 20,000 students; over 16,000 of them made public professions of faith, saying that they were willing to turn from their sins and put all their trust and faith in Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior for the first time!  We were also able to speak in training conferences, churches, and crusades.  In total, our team shared the Gospel in almost 60 schools to 54,000 students with over 45,000 making professions of faith! We were also able to distribute about 35,000 tracts and 200 Bibles.

We could sense the Holy Spirit guiding us and helping us the entire way.  We faced many challenges and difficulties along the way, but the ultimate victory was won by Jesus Christ.  I will cherish the memories from this mission for the rest of my life!

My lasting prayer for the thousands of people who heard the Gospel is from the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. I know that some of the seed was sown on rocky soil, where the enemy came and snatched it away.  I know that some will quickly sprout up and then be scorched because it doesn’t have good roots. And we know that some will grow up but be choked out by the struggles and thorns of this world. However, we also know that God’s Word doesn’t return void.  So my ultimate prayer is for the seedlings to grow strong roots and mature into the vine and produce fruit 30, 60, or 100 times what was sown!

Please join me in prayer for our NEST (National Evangelist Support Team) partners, and the pastors, leaders, and Scripture Union members, as they go back into these schools and continue the discipleship process that has begun.  Please pray for the many Christian teachers and administrators we met in the schools to step up into a leadership role and to guide these students down the right path.  Our prayer is for this generation of students to grow into mature disciples who will go out and reach the nations with the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

God moved so mightily this trip!  And the doors are open for us to do missions like this throughout Africa and in many countries around the world.  What we need is for the Holy Spirit to direct us, people who will pray for us, and for more people who are actually willing to help send us.  I can’t possibly describe how ripe for harvest many places in the world are.  We all need to follow Jesus’ advice in Matthew 9:38 - “Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

Thank you all so much for the prayer and support throughout this mission!  I hope I have the opportunity to sit down with each of you, and share with and thank you for everything in person.  Thank you once again, and may God richly bless you all!

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell

Galatians 2:20, Crucified with Christ

Almost Finished

Hey friends.  Just got back from an amazing week of ministry in Rusape, Zimbabwe. God is so good! I had the opportunity to share the Gospel in ten schools with over 6300 students and more than 5000 said that they would turn from their sin and put their trust in Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior!

 

 I am sad that my time here in Zimbabwe is coming to an end, but I am even more excited to come home and share our experiences with everyone in person! I’ve been to many places where the doors are open and people have been hungry for the gospel. But I don’t think anywhere I’ve been can compare to Zimbabwe. I am earnestly praying for an opportunity to come back here and to other regions to minister with all the people who live in this nation.

 

Tomorrow, we are finishing our mission with one more day in churches in the Bulawayo region. Then, Monday, Scott and I are heading back to Texas.

 

Thanks again so much for all the prayers, support, and love you guys have given us during this trip. We obviously couldn’t do this without your help.  Love you all! And I can’t wait to see everyone in person (-:

 

In Christ,

Steve Stockwell