The Mombasa West Mission in Kenya is the first one to be conducted in the year 2021. The mission is scheduled for 1st to 11th July. The mobilization of missioners and preservation facilitators took place in the month of May. The AEE Kenya team intends to host 300 visiting missioners in 9 zones. The rest of the missioners will come from within Mombasa. This month, there has been a series of continued mobilization and trainings.
The Kayonza Mission in Rwanda was scheduled for 20th – 27th June but following the Volcanic eruption in the neighboring DRC, the mission was postponed to 15th – 22nd August. Preparations for the same are ongoing. At least 127 homes are targeted to be trained to conduct Home Based Evangelism (HBE). Though this is an ongoing activity, 42 households were reached in May this year using HBE and 9 people accepted to follow Christ.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), preparations for the Mont-Amba Mission, which is set for 16th to 24th October, are ongoing. Mont-Amba is located South East Kinshasa in DRC. AE DRC Team conducted School of evangelism in the targeted location of the Matete, Ngaba, Kisenso and Lemba districts and a total of 276 participants from 99 local churches were trained. Currently, the team is mobilizing for prayer and funds for the mission. Earlier, 19 different local churches were equipped for further church members’ mobilization in the target area.
AEE Tanzania is set to have its mission between 22nd and 29th August in the capital city, Dar es Salaam. The team has been meeting the Pastors, equipping them through trainings towards the mission and conducting prayer for the 2021 Mission. Mobilization of evangelists and partners to participate in Dar Back-to-God Mission has as well been ongoing. In the month of May, a group of intercessors from different Churches gathered to purposely pray for the mission preparation and all programs at AEE-Tanzania.
In September, AE Uganda will have a mission in Jinja from 19th to 26th. The AE Team conducted a Vision Casting seminar for the mission where 52 leaders from Jinja City attended. This meeting brought together both the Anglican church leaders and Pentecostal church leaders in one house for the same purpose bridging the gap and dealing with misunderstandings that have always been there. Mobilization teams have been established and tasked to draft their strategies to aid achieving the mission targets. An overall steering committee with 18 members was constituted in May to help oversee the preparations. AE Uganda facilitated a training held in Entebbe for 120 evangelists by our partners in ministry who are planning a citywide mission in that city. The training was organized by the Joint Pastors Network in Entebbe city.
AE Southern Africa Region (AESAR) which is comprised of the Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe teams is set to hold a mission from 19th – 25th September in Zomba, Malawi. AE Malawi held three training sessions in Zomba ahead of the mission where 85 people were trained. The second phase of training the same group was set for the month of June. In April this year, task team leaders for the Zomba Leadership Mission were successfully appointed and a meeting with Church leaders in Zomba to review mission plans was held.
The AE Zambia team continues to go through the AE Manuals to adequately prepare for both the Kitwe and Lusaka mission scheduled for this year and next year respectively. The AE Zambia team visited Kitwe at the invitation of the Maranatha Pentecostal Assemblies of God church to help with the mobilization of the church for evangelism. Close to about 100 church members turned out for the evangelism outreach in Kalulushi.
In Ghana, the AE team is preparing to have a mission in Lome, Togo from the 15th to the 25th of October. An online meeting with the leaders in Togo was held earlier to aid preparations. The leaders were also able to meet the working committees in person. A HBE online training is scheduled for 30th June.
Preparation is ongoing for AE Ethiopia’s mission scheduled for 22nd – 26th December in Kotebe, North East of Addis Ababa. Last month, the AE team held a Home Based Evangelism training as part of the preparations steps for the mission.
African Evangelistic Enterprise Uganda (AEE-U) has been doing urban evangelism for more than 45 years.
This year’s Makindye mission which took place from 22 – 29 November 2020 was greatly affected by the global pandemic. In Uganda, severe lockdowns paralyzed every sector of the country, including limiting gatherings such as church congregations.
Where AE Uganda would normally receive funding and support from various churches, now churches themselves needed support to reopen after a long period of lockdown. This in turn forced a scale down on the mission field and reevaluation of the mission strategy. AE Uganda had various ideas but after meeting with police and the security agencies enforcing the COVID-19 restrictions, only door-to-door evangelism was approved.
The Makindye mission kicked off with prayer sessions held on Friday 20/11/20 at Gospel Messenger Church led by Bishop Mitchel Mukasa. It attracted over 90 Church leaders and evangelists who sang praises and prayed over Makindye Division.
As usual, trainings were carried out as a way of preparing for the proclamation and subsequently discipleship of new converts. From the 22nd to 28th November, many foot soldiers were moving in different places, homes, workplaces markets and many other places with the aim of sharing the Good news of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The mission ground was divided into four (4) Zones. The zonal evangelists were fully trained and prepared for the proclamation week. Each zone had on average 35 evangelists each day who were strong enough and courageous to go out there and share their faith and good news of Our Jesus Christ despite the continued growing numbers of COVID 19 patients in our country. This brought the total number to between 100 and 140 evangelists who took up this mantle with courage.
By the end of the mission, 7,041 people had been reached by the good news, out of which 1,378 made commitments to accepted Christ as their lord and savior and re-commitments to salvation.
On the 2nd of December a post mission meeting was held with coordinators from each zone to discuss effective follow up and how the churches and evangelists can continue to encourage those that made commitments. The meeting was ended with a plan in place for all new believers to receive regular phone calls, messages and encouragement from nearby churches and evangelists.
Testimony from the mission field – Nagudi Doreen
Nagudi’s had to drop out of school at a young age and started helping others with house chores in Kampala for an income. She often suffered from epileptic fits at work, this used to upset her employer tremendously and resulted in them casting her out of their house.
No one wanted to employ Nagudi because of her epileptic seizures and she had no other option but to start begging on the street. During one of her epileptic fits, a Pastor from a nearby church picked her up and took her back to church where he could pray for her.
Nagudi stayed at the church for over 3 months. With the Makindye mission preparation in full swing, many evangelists were stationed at the church getting ready for door to door evangelism. Nagudi desired to go out and spread the gospel but others were not so sure if she should do it because of her epileptic fits. On the second day of Mission, she approached Brian who was a coordinator for the region and requested to be part of the team.
Brian allowed her to take part and when she returned from the field she had a dream with a voice telling her to keep it up her healing would follow. She stepped out in faith, knowing that God had a plan and a calling for her life and with God she could overcome any obstacle in her way.
Maternal health in Uganda, and at AE’s Milne Medical Centre
Pregnancy can be dangerous. For every 100,000 births in Uganda, 343 women die. In Australia, that number is 5.
In Uganda, over 400,000 women each year deliver their babies without a skilled birth attendant. These women are at risk of excessive bleeding or infection after delivery, either of which could cost them their lives.
Many women in Uganda opt to use traditional birth attendants (TBAs) rather than delivering their babies in government facilities. However, TBAs have recently been banned by the government due to their lack of formal training.
Women in Uganda prefer traditional birth attendants for several reasons. TBAs are said to be kind and polite, while staff in government facilities have been described as rough and uncaring. In some areas, the nearest maternity unit may be far away, or overcrowded, and some women trust local customs and traditions more than hospitals.
AE’s Milne Medical Centre (MMC) is a community health centre that is passionate about maternal health. MMC aims to provide dignified care, inspired by Matthew 11:28:
“Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”.
MMC provides care during and after pregnancy. Pregnant patients attend the clinic for check-ups, sonars and basic blood tests. The women also receive important health education, and fathers are encouraged to participate. Patients that deliver their babies at MMC are attended to by trained midwives, and a doctor when necessary.
One patient who recently delivered her baby at MMC, named her baby girl Mercy Favor, because of the “mercies and favour” she experienced at MMC on a very difficult journey of an unplanned pregnancy. She says,
“All my pregnancy journey since late February to November, I have been favoured by all the staffs of Milne Medical centre.”
She now anticipates a future of mercy and favour for her baby girl.
Missions in a COVID-19 world.
Our teams have refused to give up on the Great Commission, despite incredibly challenging circumstances in Africa.
Evangelism is the heartbeat of African Enterprise. We exist to share the eternal hope of the Gospel, and this hasn’t changed. In 2020, AE has developed a home-based evangelism (HBE) approach to share the Good News of Jesus, in spite of COVID restrictions.
The HBE model equips believers to share the Gospel with their families and neighbours, in a structured and effective way. The approach focuses on personal evangelism, on a large scale. Mission volunteers facilitate home gatherings, where a pre-recorded or live Gospel message is shared using television, radio, mobile phone or social media platforms. The Gospel broadcast is followed by a personal testimony and an invitation to follow Christ, extended by the HBE facilitator.
Between mid-April and July 2020, our AE teams trained 2,590 pastors and volunteers in the HBE approach, and have found the approach holds enormous potential for evangelism, as well as discipleship. For example, one church in Lukunga, DRC, was able to share Christ with at least 945 people, in multiple homes, on a single Sunday.
One mission volunteer in Kenya, Nancy, has shared the Gospel with over 300 people since the HBE approach was implemented there in May. When she shared the Gospel with a Facebook acquaintance, the 24-year old Margaret, Nancy had no idea that Margaret was suicidal. Nancy describes:
“I shared the Gospel and she made a commitment for salvation during one of our phone calls. The following day we met and from that time, we have created a relationship that is exceptional. It is wonderful to see the great transformation Christ has brought to this sister. She is now happy in the Lord. Today, as I see her smiling, I often have the sobering thought that, if the Gospel had not come her way, she would possibly not be alive!”
Our brothers and sisters in Africa are passionate for the cause of Christ, and our support means so much as they choose to “preach the word of God” and “be prepared, whether the time is favourable or not” (2 Timothy 4:2).
“Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed” (Proverbs 19:17).
Through your recent gifts, you have shown God’s love in action amongst communities that are reliant on a hand-up in difficult times. Through you we were able to send emergency funds to each of our teams in Africa as a part of a local community led response to ensure sustainable approach to Covid-19 prevention. These funds were much needed as poverty-stricken communities were in urgent need of food and hygiene supplies as they continue to develop much needed vocational skills to support their families in a healthy way.
Below follows a short update of what you have helped make possible through the work of our various teams to address community needs during this crisis period.
AE DRC have worked hard to give hope through TV engagements, and distributing sanitation stations to 96 communities which included a bucket, soap, sanitiser and reusable facemasks and food hampers.
AE Ethiopia have given out 300 facemasks, food hampers and hygiene and sanitation products to date.
AE Ghana have distributed food to 5,000 families with the assistance of the women’s training project in Akropong, Akuapem and their successful Cassava plantation.
Our Soweto Kayole Clinic at AE Kenya has given medical assistance to 1252 patients so far. The team has also distributed 1345 food hampers and 700 facemasks. In addition to this, the team is working hard to give messages of hope and educating people through TV, radio and social media on COVID awareness and prevention. They have reached 6907 people through media engagements so far.
AE Malawi have distributed 110 facemasks and hygiene and sanitation items to families in need. The team has also donated blood which is such a great gesture during this time of need. They have reached 3000 households through media engagements and continue with training pastors and home based evangelism for their upcoming mission in September.
Initially AE Tanzania had challenges due to government regulations. They have only recently been authorised to start distributing food and other supplies. So far they have provided 3 schools with hand soap and buckets and they have also distributed sanitiser and facemasks to bus and boda (taxi) drivers.
AE Rwanda has been very blessed and very busy, distributing 23 560 food hampers, 1000 facemasks and 3200 hygiene and sanitation items. They have also been able to reach 98 000 people through media engagements.
The Ngezandla Zethu Sewing project run by AE South Africa are currently busy sewing 2500 reusable facemasks for distribution. The AE team have also given out 4956 hampers with food and hygiene and sanitation products. They have distributed 300 facemasks so far and have reached 68 000 people through media engagements.
AE Zambia distributed water buckets, soap and hand sanitiser to a local school and have also given out 300 facemasks in Kaunda Square.
AE Zimbabwe have distributed 150 facemasks and 5000 hygiene and sanitation items. They have also given out food hampers and sanitation items to people with albinism who were in dire need of such provisions.
Thank you for partnering with us to help those in need in Africa and show the love of Jesus in word and deed. Please continue to pray for our teams as they carefully and faithfully serve in their communities in the desperate time of need. Our teams in Africa are so grateful for your love and support.
Prayer is such an important part of supporting African Enterprise. It’s one of the gifts you can give Africa – your time in prayer. And Africa needs your prayers now more than ever.
A couple of months ago when we compiled our Prayer Diary for May, June and July, we did not know the challenges that we would be facing. As always we look at our calendar and prepare the prayer points around the mission activities happening during that month. This time however, what we planned three months ago has changed enormously from what we are currently facing. The number of coronavirus infections are increasing drastically daily in Africa and more than ever we need to pray for our teams and the people in Africa.
As our CEO, Ben Campbell mentioned in the Prayer Diary:
“Please pray especially for the vulnerable refugee populations, and other marginalised communities, that have less access to help. In all things, our hope and confidence remain firmly in the Lord! As Isaiah 40:31 (NIV) says: “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” May God bless, strengthen and encourage you today, as you continue to pray for the salvation and healing of people in Africa. “
Throughout June and July, please join with us in prayer for all of our AE Teams. They are all facing unprecedented times. We will keep you up to date with all the latest articles and responses from our teams as far as possible on our website and facebook page.
Updated prayer requests will also be uploaded to the PrayerMate App.
We are also in the last few days of our Prayer and Fasting Season ending on Pentecost Sunday with a Global Day of Prayer.
Additionally, let us know if you are interested in starting or joining a prayer group. It can be among you and your friends, families, colleagues or members of your church. You can meet face to face or online and as frequent as you want. Let’s gather in the name of Jesus and pray for Africa. Please send an email directly to ae@aeint.org if you would like to be part of or to start a prayer group.
Thank you for spending time in prayer for African Enterprise.
