MBARARA MISSION SURVEY REPORT

INTRODUCTION

This survey was carried out with a view to establishing the spiritual needs on the ground, as a forerunner
to the main mission to run from 24th May 2nd June. The survey team (Tom Olwangu,Jeff Kiio and Fridah
Nindi) left Nairobi on the 16th April for Kampala, had an overnight and proceeded with the journey to
Mbarara on the 18th April, having been joined by John Musinguzi. The team spent three active days on
the ground was hosted by John Musinguzi and his family. The research survey was centered around
Rushere area of Kiruhura District, formerly part of Mbarara District.

OBJECTIVES OF THE MISSION

To find out the spiritual needs in the area.

To establish areas of PBC engagement.

To establish logistical details for the main mission

RESEARCH METHODS.

The team heavily relied on one-on-one interviews with key leaders in Rushere and observation through
visits to different shopping centres and establishments in the areas of interest. Of specific interest were
discussions with the North Ankole Diocese Anglican Bishop, Full Gospel Churches Overseer, Bishop
Kwefuga, Pastor Wilson of Full Gospel Church,Robert,the youth coordinator at the Diocese of North
Ankole, Rhoda,an employee of Life Ministry Uganda and our hosts, who are long serving members of the
Anglican Church.

FINDINGS

History of Christianity in the area.

Rushere lies within North Ankole Diocese of the Church Of Uganda, one of the oldest church
denominations in Uganda. In the past, the larger Uganda was administered through Kingdoms, Rushere
thus was a part of the Ankole Kingdom. Christianitys first entry point into Uganda was through the
Buganda Kingdom. It was well received by the then King and people embraced the word of God.

With time, however, there was a change in ruler ship and the new King (Kabaka Mwanga) could not
stand to the teachings of the bible as it enlightened his subjects and laid what he thought was undue
scrutiny on the then cultural and administrative vices within his rule. He therefore banned Christianity
and any teachings of The God of the white man as he would claim. The king wanted an unquestionable
authority and as such, any person who professed Christianity had to be persecuted or worse still,
beheaded. A great number of those who fled Kabakas intolerance to the Gospel went to neighboring
kingdoms .Ankole Kingdom was thus one of the greatest beneficiaries of the persecution in Buganda
Kingdom as most of the Gospel found a landing ground in the area and was embraced. Generations later,
there seemed to have been a lot of undue familiarity with God for the people started blending
Christianity with ancient African religion. This was not however to stay long, for in 1937,a great revival
swept through the area, drawing multitudes to the true worship of God. People gave their lives to God in
multitudes,Tukutendereza Yesu became, and still is, a common phrase among the Banyankole. Parents
named their Children after names that signify reverence and glory to God, e.g. Asimwe, Tumwebaze,
Tumusime etc, all which mean Thanks be to God but such names were unheard of before the Great
revival. Great leaders in the country, including the president come from this area. The area is one of the
richest areas in Uganda and 80 percent of the countrys milk consumption is drawn from this area. This,
the leaders say, can only be attributed to this great revival and the commitment and steadfastness of the
people who received in those early years.

The current generation, just like the one preceding the great revival seems to be heading back to the old
ways. Our discussions revealed an infiltration of cases of Cultism,witchcraft,Spiritism,materialism and
religious hypocrisy.Currently,the region has close to 50 church denominations.Islam seems to be slowly
creeping into the area and majorly targets the less affluent in society.

Ministry gaps.

Evangelism

The Gospel, leaders say, has been watered down as to bring an effect of materialism. As such, the earlier
appeal of the true gospel of salvation seems to have lost ground. Gospel crusades are frowned upon, as
an idling point for town idlers. Everyone seems to be busy running for more wealth and little time, if any,
is given to worship God.

Discipleship

There seems to be serious gaps in structured discipleship in the local church. Interactions with the
regular congregants revealed a lack or disinterest in fellowships among believers and leadership. In the
Anglican Church, for example, the administrative structure recognizes and envisions a vibrant youth,
mens and womens fellowship. The womens fellowship however is the only active group, through the
Mothers union. The same is true of other churches. Regular bible study meetings and discipleship
meetings have been almost impossible to establish.

Leadership

The church leadership is by and large drawn, not from commitment to serving God, but from affluence
and the ability to influence opinions and support the church. As such, willing, available and committed
Christians are not involved in leadership since they dont match up to the churchs approach on
leadership. Young people too are far much left behind in church leadership.

Intercession
The fire for intercession evident in the earlier revival seems to have died down and an active prayer life is
no longer emphasized.

ACTION

Evangelism.

There is a great need to evangelize in the area in ways that will reach to the community without
excluding any people group. The more affluent can be reached through invitations to workshops that will
be conducted in the morning hours covering specific topics e.g. Biblical principles in wealth creation,
One-on one evangelism,re-awakening the fire for revival etc.

Other people can be reached through planned crusades at Rushere, Nyakasharara and Kiruhura
shopping centres.The crusades will also encompass a Jesus film in the local dialect; or any other gospel
relevant films.

One-on-one and door to door evangelism will be an important tool in reaching the people during the
day, in the run up to evening crusades in the mentioned centres.

A planned leaders prayer breakfast will be key in bringing area leaders, both religious and civil together,
for a time of reconciliation and the need to work together.

The mission will also cover other aspects of mission like prison mission and school mission.

In all the meetings, the message of revival will be emphasized.

Discipleship and Leadership development.

A long term discipleship plan and strategy will be key in addressing the lack of interest in discipleship in
the area. There has to be a deliberate effort to jumpstart the slowly fading need for discipleship among
church leaders and congregations. Both time tested tools and area specific innovations will have to be
employed in order to bridge this gap.

Discipleship seminars will be conducted during the daily workshops, targeting the youth, men and
women drawn from all denominations. Some of the issues to be addressed should include; Fellowships
and their importance in the Body of Christ, small group bible studies and their dynamics, follow-up
mechanisms.

Leadership development sessions should include an aspect of biblical stewardship, responsibility, unity
of the body of Christ, commitment and balance between the pursuit for wealth and the need to serve
God. Discussions on spirit led leadership cannot be over-emphasized.

The pillars of a vibrant church reaching out to others in ministry have to be brought to the fore.

These seminars and workshops will be held every day during the mission.
It is strongly recommended that even after the mission, a ground team spearheads the process of long
term discipleship in conjunction with other organizations, e.g. Life Ministry, Word of Life, etc.

LOGISTICS

Mobilization and publicity

For optimum planning, two teams will work on facilitating a smooth mission; the Nairobi Team and the
Mbarara team. Church leaders on the ground tasked John Musinguzi with the leadership of a ground
committee that will oversee the implementation of ground logistical plans. Names drawn from a
diversity of congregations were floated on the composition of the committee and a date for the first
meeting settled on (29th April). Of specific urgency to the team will be publicity and mobilization. The
team will hold some Radio talk shows at a local radio station as one of the ways to publicize the mission.
Other details on publicity will be discussed by the ground team. The Nairobi team will have to be
furnished by the resolutions in good time for facilitation.

Accommodation.

A range of accommodation options were looked at, and it was the survey teams unanimous opinion that
the missioners be accommodated at The Hospital guesthouse in Rushere. The Guesthouse however only
has capacity for 32 people.Addittional accommodation will be sourced in the event the team exceeds the
guesthouses capacity.

In Kampala, the survey team held discussions with Word of Life team on the possibility of the same, and
the response was positive. At word of life however, unlike on the ground, the team will be
accommodated in a dormitory setting.

Transport

In the event the missioners opt to travel by public transport to Kampala, they will be picked up by a hired
school bus from Kampala to Rushere .The bus will stay for the whole duration of the mission.(see
quotation attached).This is subject to further evaluation of other options.

Conclusion.

It is worth noting that the ground team is excited about the mission and adequate preparation will be
key in meeting all the missions objectives.

PRAYER CORNER.

There is need for an investment in prayer, with the following in mind.

Pray against the Spirit of materialism.

Pray against the infiltration of Islam in the region.

Pray against infiltration of cults.

Pray against witchcraft.

Pray against religion and hypocrisy.

Pray for the fire of intercession.

Pray for the unity of believers (Anglicans & Pentecostals) in the area to work together in one accord as
they serve the Lord and in particular as they prepare for this mission.

Pray for the success of the mission, that it will bring with it a new revival.