Well, It has been quite some time since we have been on the ground in Uganda. Since the addition of our beloved Kingston to our family, our
home has been a place of immense growth and learning… One thing is for sure.
With the new love that has developed in our lives through parenting Kingston
the capacity of our hearts has grown too. Over the last two years we have
thought of our friends and ministry in Uganda often and now we feel ready to
take new steps ahead in this journey with our Ugandan brothers and sisters.
We have really been thinking through and praying about the right
opportunity to get back to Uganda. It’s been hard because our time together as
a family is so limited and precious due to the demanding times of this
generation along with our 2 full time jobs. As an answer to our prayers, a
unique opportunity has come that will allow us to continue the adventure of
investing in our friends half way around the globe. We wish we could say that the three of us
were heading out together but it is with
great excitement and anticipation that we tell you that I, Jason Kanapkey am
planning on going back to Uganda in representation of our family on July 23rd -
31st with our team from Preston Trail Community Church!
Our team will continue our work with local Uganda ministry
partner, Foodstep and Native partner, Hesed International. We have been serving
along side and supporting both of these partners for several years and this
will be my fourth time being a part of their ministry and care for the Ugandan
people.
Our team will begin their
time serving the children and leaders of Footstep before I arrive four days
later. With Foodstep the team will be visiting a children’s prison where we have personally been able to serve, love, give and share
the gospel of Christ. Our team will also spend time with Foodstep at the Home
Coming, a home of about 103 kids that Nathalie removed from a children's prison. Here
the team will spend time, loving the kids and showing them they are valued and loved by God.
I will be joining the team before they journey further east to
Jinja where we will be investing in local Ugandan pastors and putting on a
discipleship and ministry conference with Hesed International. I am so excited
to get back to Jinja because I have really developed a passion for working with
the pastors of this areas to grow in discipleship and the ministry of Christ. In
the past we have worked with pastors and leaders from the Anglican Church. This
time we are starting what will be the first of 3 conferences for a group of
independent pastors. These pastors are a bit more evangelistic in nature so I
am excited to see how we can partner with them to help broadcast God’s word and
the love of Christ into their communities. During our time with the pastors and
women leaders, we will pour resources, training and encouragement into these
amazing people. We will be teaching on biblical marriage, foundational church
forming principals, recovery programs and biblical interpretation. These
leaders will take what they learn into their own churches, communities and
villages to expand their knowledge of God’s word, understanding of the gospel
and even vital health and hygiene practices for the community. On our past
trips I have developed some cherished friendships with these pastors. I can’t
wait to meet this new group of brothers and sisters in Christ!
We like to say that some of the best ministry opportunities happen
“In between the lines” of our formal ministry endeavors. That’s another reason
we are anxious to get back to build on some of those precious friendships we
have developed as we forge new ones Our team of about 7 are beginning to prepare the teaching
materials and activities for the July trip and conference. Please pray for
God’s wisdom, truth and love to be reflected through all they will do and say
while in Uganda. We will be praying a great deal about the Men, women and
children we will meet along the way. We can’t wait to see what God does in our
hearts and through us on this journey.
As always your partnership in this ministry in a crucial element
to the success of this mission. We would
love to hear from you… We value your words of encouragement, your prayers, and
of course,.. your financial support also keeps us moving. The trip costs an average of about $3200 per team member. Please consider how
you will be a part of this next trip, which is less than 2 short months away. You can contact Jason through email at imcreated@gmail.com Also, you can follow our
progress during the trip by going to facebook and “like” our page called Uganda Ministry at Preston Trail and see the right side of this page for ways to help. We are looking forward to
continuing to build on relationships and forging new ones. We are expectant to
see God continuing to change all of our hearts and transform our lives.
Serving With You,
Jason
& Carrie Kanapkey