Empty Tent
Emanuel had worked hard for this day. How should he respond?
Emanuel looked sadly out at the empty chairs. Despite almost two years of house-to-house ministry and person-to-person evangelism, the tent stood empty, and Emanuel preached to a vacant audience. All his efforts seemed in vain. His feelings vacillated between despair and hope. Could his faith in God’s promises stand up to this test?
Emanuel thought back over the times he had prayed with people in the community and ministered to their needs. People in Karaaro are hard nuts to crack! he mused. Their cultural beliefs and practices—a mixture of Catholicism, superstition and witchcraft—seemed to obstruct their minds, making them less receptive to new ideas. Even worse, fear gripped the community. “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world,” Emanuel reminded himself (1 John 4:4). “Never give up your faith and hope in God. Cling to the promises. Do not trust in your feelings, but in the naked Word of God.” The Upward Look, 176.
I will commit to three days of prayer, Emanuel decided. But God answered the following day! Emanuel had set up a food display at the marketplace, where he sold healthy food and shared principles of good health with those who came by his table. Evla, a young lady who had come to the market to buy salt for her mother, stopped by and talked to Emanuel about the food he had for sale. Emanuel turned the conversation toward the spiritual to see if this young lady had any interest in the Bible, but Evla did not really seem interested. He told her about the evangelistic meetings he was holding, but she went on with the conversation as if he had not mentioned the meetings. “I was only thinking of my neighbor who had been sick for a long time,” Elva later confessed. “I realized that the health principles Emanuel had to share might help her, since medications had not.”
Back home, Evla told her friend about the evangelistic meetings, which included health lectures. Her friend told another friend, and the following day more than 20 people attended Emanuel’s tent meeting!
Emanuel sighed with relief to see people from the community coming to attend the meetings. Thank You, God, for answering my prayers, he said in his heart. His faith strengthened, he prayed that God would touch more hearts to receive the gospel.
More people kept coming to the evangelistic meeting, including Evla and her friends. After the evangelistic meetings and follow-up Bible studies, she was baptized with three of her young friends and two adults. Evla’s friends have been healed from their sicknesses by following the health principles that Emanuel taught them. Emanuel continues to nurture their spiritual growth through weekly prayer meetings. Evla and the others desire to become soul winners for the Lord!
Emanuel no longer preaches to an empty audience. In fact, so many people are attending his daily Bible studies that the group has outgrown the rented room where Emanuel lives. So many come to worship on Sabbath that they have to meet under a tarp outside his home! Many of these are people from the community who have heard the gospel message but have not yet decided to be baptized. All are welcome!
Please pray for this new congregation in Karaaro as they search for land to begin constructing a church building. Thank you for your prayers!
Location
Uganda
Author
John Kaganzi is a district pastor in the Ruhandagazi District in Uganda and the manager of Messenger Radio.
How You Can Help
Pray for Emanuel as he shepherds the church in Karaaro and begins new church plants.
Pray for Evla as she shares Christ’s love and truth with her friends and community.
Give to the work in Uganda. Needs include church buildings, Bible worker training and support for church planters. Send your gifts marked “Uganda Evangelism” or “Uganda Churches” to:
Mission Projects International
PO Box 151
Inchelium, WA 99138
To give securely online, visit: www.missionspro.org/donate
Thank you. Your gifts sustain eight Bible workers and one full-time evangelist who are bringing God’s last warning to Uganda. Thank you so much for your support of these workers!