Hello there!

We have some very exciting news to share with you.

We are moving back to the UK this summer!

We’d love to share our story with you about recent events. We are so grateful for your walk with us and all your prayers and financial support, and our hope is that you will help us with this new transition.

The story…!

As you know, for the past nine years we have been serving God in Namibia (via Brazil) and Uganda, punctuated by a sabbatical/training 19 months in Swansea at Cornerstone Church. We have been working in Kampala for close to four years, and have been aware for a while that a transition back to the UK was a whisper from God in our ear. We have loved working in Gaba church and with ARM, what fantastic years and relationships, and we have learnt so much and been privileged to serve in a variety of ways.

Around Christmas time, our home pastor Julian Richards from Cornerstone Church invited us to apply for a post within New Wine Wales, as the existing manager approaches retirement. Julian is the leader of New Wine Cymru, (Cymru is Welsh for Wales!) and felt nudged by God that we would fit the bill. The post will involve travelling across Wales with Julian, helping create regional networks, working with churches and leaders in seeing church become increasingly healthy and poised to reach the lost. This fits so well with all of Jez’s recent role of travelling Uganda and working with Leaders and Helen’s organisational abilities. We attended a series of interviews with the NWC Board and were offered the job. Full-time for Jez as Operations Manager and part-time for Helen, one day a week admin.

We really believe this is of God, as do our sending church, Cornerstone. It is perfect in God’s timing for us to be able to move back to the UK, to do a job we would love to do. It enables us to return to our Cornerstone, as the job will be based there. It is great timing for the children at their stage of education.

We are excited about the new vision, and to be a part of something exciting that is happening back in the UK.

So, we hope that you are as excited as us as we start the move back!

We would like to ask you to stand with us as we transition, if you would still like to help to finance us through this transition in finding a new home and moving all our stuff across the continents that would be so helpful! We are so grateful for your support in making these last years possible and playing a part in all the lives that have been touched.

We will be waged from August, and hope to be moving back in July.

The last 9 years have been an incredible adventure! We see the new role as a continuation in our full-time call to serve God with our lives. We look forward to being able to see you more regularly too! This will be a big transition to western culture once again, especially for the children, and we would really appreciate your prayers.

Our leaders here at Gaba church and Africa Renewal Ministries are blessing us to go and although we are all sad to say goodbye, we all recognise that this is God’s timing. We love Africa Renewal Ministries and know that God will continue to take them on to great things! We look forward to the new things that are in store for all of us. We have learnt so much here and have so much to be thankful for.

Well, that’s our news, we hope you will be excited as we are, and hope that you will stand with us in the next stage of the journey!

Much love to you all, with gratitude in our hearts.

If you’re wondering how last year’s turkey is going to last through 2012, then don’t panic!

Pop in to Quality Hill butchers, Kampala, and simply pick up a spare part!

We’re back and we had a fantastic time in the UK!

Well, it’s been 20 years in the preparation but finally on Saturday 12th November 2011, Africa Renewal Ministries celebrated its 20th anniversary!

What a day it was! The sun was shining down on six enormous tents, sponsored children representing each of the ARM projects marched through Gaba village with a brass band and the huge cake was ready to be cut and shared by almost 4000 people. Speeches were made by the guest of honour, ex-PM Apollo Nsibambi, Pastor Peter and representatives of the ARM board in America.

The church was transformed into a dining hall for the VIPs, complete with colour coordinated tables and a canopy of fairy lights stretching the length and breadth of the hall. It looked fantastic, as did the tents in the main arena with their hanging canopies of red, yellow and black hangings and yellow and red roses.

Mwangaza choir sang and danced and the students of the Next Generation Leadership Programme enjoyed their graduation (which for many was the culmination of child sponsorship which began when they were in primary school)

Jez was busy coordinating the programme (making sure everyone was where they were supposed to be!) and Helen ushered in the VIP tent!

It was a memorable occasion and we were so pleased to be a part of it.

Well done, ARM! Looking forward to what God has in store for the next 20 years.

ARM 20 year celebration!

For the last few weeks, the Gaba campus has become a building site as we share parking with graders and large trucks and office space with noise and dust! But it’s all for a good cause, as the grounds are being prepared for the 20 year anniversary of Africa Renewal Ministries! We are expecting to be celebrating on 12th November with around 3000 guests from all over the world which is all very exciting.

Preparations are underway to feed and entertain all the visitors, as well as creating a pleasant environment in which to spend the day.

In the photos you can see the new guest seating area being built behind the ARM head office- the area in front of the seats will be made into a basketball court for the school!

Ever wondered how we manage to attract so many visitors? They just can’t resist the advertising.

The whole bedroom costs a bit extra. If you’re interested in taking up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, you know where we are!

Vacancies

Uncle Jez, Aunty Helen and cousins Charis, Jonah and Ethan are delighted to announce the arrival of Joshua Anderton White!

A beautiful son born to Helen’s brother Matt and his wife Natalie at around 7am on 19th September. Joshua is very excited that he will be able to see us all on Skype at the weekend! Mum and baby are both doing well and Dad is eager to get them all home.

God is good all the time!

Last month I was privileged to be part of the team from head office who went on a Mercy Network outreach to the other side of the city.

Mercy Network is a part of ARM and is concerned with helping families with very young children; for a limited period of time, a family joins the Mercy Network programme and is given regular food parcels. More importantly an integral part of MN is that the primary caregiver in the family is given skills training so that when the family leaves the programme, the mum/dad is able to continue to provide for their family.

Our team saw many needs- stories of desperation but also of hope. We visited a mother of three who stays in one tiny room, alone with the children; the fathers are nowhere to be seen. She was so happy for the simple things we brought. We prayed with a lady who is taking care of 11 children- three of them her own, eight of them from her sister-in-law who has abandoned them. Through the work of MN, hope is coming to these families and many others like them.

We thank God for the work of Mercy Network as it is really making a difference at the point of need.

We just had a great visit from Helen’s parents, Jan and Martin, who exchanged the UK for Kampala these last 3 weeks. We managed to have some time off to spend with them, travelled to Fort Portal for a few days, visited the equator, toured the ARM projects in and around Gaba and had a few coffees at nearby Quality Hill!

Thanks for coming Mum & Dad, we really enjoyed having you with us. Happy memories indeed!

A brief dog blog this week, just to let you know that on 21st June, Sasha delivered 9 cute little puppies! We’ve gone from strongly disliking dogs, to owning one, breeding her and currently housing 10 of them in our compound!!

They really are very cute, as you can see from the pics, and in about six weeks will be ready to go to their new homes- anyone in Uganda, let us know if you want to buy a genuine German Shepherd pup, they really are rather nice!