I have had a very interesting and busy month this Lent Season. Last Saturday, I attended the consecration of Stuart Bell at Aberystwyth University. Bishop Stuart will assist Bishop Andy Lines in the Anglican Convocation in Europe, particularly in Wales. Please pray for Stuart as he leads faithful Anglican ministry in Wales. The presiding minister was Archbishop Foley Beach of the ACNA (Anglican Church in North America) who is also the chairman of GAFCON (GAFCON stands for Global Anglican Future Conference).
Archbishop Foley Beach and I met briefly and exchanged ideas about further dialogue. On behalf of TICCN, I have written to him this week and I ask that you join me in prayer that the Lord’s will be done as we consider our future. I believe that Bible believing peoples should, if possible, join together in some practical way to strategically support each other and further our Kingdom commission.
Fast forward to 2020 and at this point I came to believe I wasn’t able to travel abroad, maybe my desire to go back to Africa wasn’t where God needed me to go or maybe my two missionary trips were my only missionary trips. Little did I know that God had kept that little flame flickering inside me and it was about to grow! We were in lockdown and I was asking God to help me use my time wisely. I felt prompted to write a children’s story, one that would be used to share the gospel, God’s love, and bring peace in the uncertain times we were living in. During one of my church’s midweek teachings on Facebook God showed me in my mind the book drawn out in a child-like drawing and I started writing what I could see. Before too long there it was “Sammy the Sunflower Snail”. I didn’t really know what I was going to do with the book or rather what God was going to do with it so I gave some out to children I knew and put the rest away.
About a month later I got the urge to take up knitting, I only knew the basics so I started to practice using online videos and seemed to pick it up quickly. I came across a group on social media that collect knitted baby clothes for different charities so I made that my aim. I felt God had yet again answered my prayer and given me the gift of knitting to help people and gave me another great way of using lockdown time. After a few months when restrictions were being lifted some of the items I had knitted were getting sent out to different hospitals and charities. One charity started to reach out to charities in other countries and one of them was ‘Pass it on Trust Uganda’; before I knew it I had sent off my first box of baby clothes and knitted toys to Uganda. Around five weeks later I received photos of babies wearing clothes that I had made and it was then that I knew God was using me to make a difference in Africa! I couldn’t wait to send another box out and then I found out ‘Pass it on Trust Uganda’ were in need of children’s books.
I got the books I had put away and wrapped them up with knitted snails and off they went on their journey to Uganda. When I received photos of children with their books I thought my heart was going to explode with joy knowing not only were the children receiving clothes, toys and books but they received the gospel too! After sharing with Archbishop Steven it all clicked into place. I am a missionary in Africa without leaving home. That small flame inside of me has now become a roaring fire. Children across the world are wearing clothes I’ve knitted, reading books I’ve written, playing with toys I’ve made and it’s all been orchestrated by God! He made a way when I couldn’t see one.
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