2009 TRIP: Building the church - one brick at a time

I received this email the other day from Pastor Moses at the Kiburara Gospel Centre Church:

Hi Brethren,

Your precious contribution has so far done this. Here is the attachment of church pictures. Please pray with us and find an opportunity to invest in His kingdom as we serve in His will.God bless you all.

Pastor Moses Nkwatsibwe,

Kiburara Gospel Centre,

Box 384,Ibanda,uganda.

The faithful brothers and sisters of the Kiburara Gospel Centre have far outgrown the mud walls and tin roof that houses them every Sunday. As such they are seeking to build a new and larger church believing that by God's grace He will continue to grow His church in Kiburara. And I have no doubt that He will. I had heard from someone on the team that approximately 4 years ago, Pastor Moses went door to door sharing the love of Christ and the spreading the knowledge of the gospel. For months he did not see any growth. But God is faithful to build His church and when we visited, the walls were practically bursting with folks that had come out on Sunday to hear the gospel being preached. Speakers had to be placed outside to minister to the crowds that had gathered outside the doors.

The foundation for the new church had been dug adjacent to the current building. The money for this had been acquired during a Covenant Life group trip last year. I talked to Pastor Moses about the cost of building his new church. He told me that it would cost 80,000,000 Uganda shillings (at that point ~$40,000). He told me that they have no building fund that they are keeping nor do they have a plan to raise X amount of money before continuing the building. No, the building plan for the Kiburara Gospel Centre is simple: raise money than use it immediately to build.

On our recent trip to Kiburara, we were able to raise ~$1200 to help in Pastor Moses's efforts to build a new church. His email showed what he has done with the money. The trenches that had been dug around the field are now being filled one brick at a time. What a tremendous picture of God at work in Kiburara. He is building His church there one brick at a time and one person at a time. As the mortar combines the mud bicks into a foundation for a new building, the town is alive with "living stones" that shine the knowledge of the glory of God.

As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1Pe 2:4-5)