Okutendeka abayigiriza, abanatendeka abagoberezi ba Kristo.

Making disciples that make disciples of Jesus Christ.

That is what we are working toward here in Uganda, and God gives us many opportunities to do it.

• Bible studies
• Bible classes
• Biblical counseling
• Medical outreach
• Sunday church services

(Pic: Deborah, Beverly, and Timothy the prison leader)

We go into prisons each week, not simply to conduct a program, but to meet people where they are and point them to Jesus Christ.

Today, we want you to meet one of those people, his name is Waiswa.

Waiswa is in prison, and he will be there for quite some time. Four years ago, he began attending our weekly Bible studies. Over time, God began moving in his heart in a way that led him to serve others. For more than two years now, Waiswa has been serving as a translator for our Bible studies.

Think about that for a moment.

Each week, Waiswa sits and listens to the teaching. Then he takes what he has heard and retells it in Luganda so that his fellow inmates can understand the Word of God. Week after week, he has been helping others hear about Christ so they can know Him—and know Him more deeply.

He was serving.   He was listening.   He was helping others understand God’s Word.

And then came another ordinary Bible study.

Just Another Day in the Bible Study

A few weeks ago, Timothy was teaching through 2 Corinthians 10. There was no special outreach. No big event. No unusual program. Just our regular weekly Bible study, working verse by verse through God’s Word.

As the Bible study came to an end, Timothy gave an invitation for anyone who wanted to respond to what God was doing in their heart. And then something happened that surprised him.

Waiswa came forward.

The man who had been translating the Bible teaching for more than two years walked to the front. Timothy listened as Waiswa explained why.

Waiswa realized that he had accepted Jesus as his Savior. But there were still areas of his life that he had not surrendered to Jesus. He had trusted Christ to save him. But he had not yet given Christ access to everything.

That day, Waiswa came forward because he wanted Jesus to be not only his Savior, but also the Lord of his life.

Hallelujah!

And then something else happened.

As Waiswa shared why he had come forward, other men began coming forward too. One after another, they responded. They wanted Jesus to be their Savior and their Lord.

Can we stop for a moment and praise God for this?

Praise God!

The Day That Looked Ordinary

From the outside, it probably looked like just another day. A group of prisoners. A Bible study. 2 Corinthians 10. A teacher opening God’s Word. A translator helping others understand it. Nothing particularly unusual.

But God was at work.

What looked like an ordinary Tuesday to us became THE day for Waiswa. And it became THE day for other men in that Bible study too.

That’s something we are learning again and again in prison ministry. We don’t always know when THE day will be. We don’t know whose heart God has been preparing. We don’t know who will suddenly understand something they’ve heard many times before. We don’t know who will decide today is the day they will surrender another part of their life to Jesus.

But we do know this:

   Every time we step through those prison gates, God has a purpose.

Every Bible study.

Every Sunday service. 

Every counseling conversation. 

Every Bible class. 

Every medical visit. 

Every conversation. 

We faithfully bring people to Jesus.

And then we let Him do what only He can do:

     He is the One who saves.

     He is the One who changes hearts.

     He is the One who transforms lives.

We simply want to keep bringing people to His feet and saying, “Lord, do what You want with them.”

God Is Working Behind Bars

God is working in prisons and we want to invite you to be part of what He is doing. We are sharing the Gospel behind bars. We are making disciples. We are teaching people how to study God’s Word. We are counseling people through difficult circumstances. We are serving people through medical care. We are loving people who are often forgotten by society.

We are pointing them to THE ONE who can bring lasting change. Because prisoners are people too. They are people created in the image of God. People Jesus loves. People who need a Savior. People who need to learn what it means to follow their Lord. Would you join us?

• Would you pray for Waiswa?
• Pray for the men and women we meet in the prisons around Jinja.
• Pray for those who are hearing the Gospel for the first time.
• Pray for those who have believed but are still learning what it means to surrender their lives to Christ.
• Pray for those who are already serving others, that they would continue growing as disciples who make disciples.
• And pray for us as we faithfully walk through those prison gates each week.

Because we never know when an ordinary Bible study will become THE day someone chooses to surrender everything to Jesus.

Mukama yebazibwe! (Praise the Lord!)

 The Jinja Team

P.S. Prisoners are people too. Will you join us in loving them right where they are and pointing them to THE ONE who can bring lasting change to their lives by praying for us and them? Thank you for praying.