Hope Herald September 2022 Edition

FAMILY

A place of belonging

Have you ever felt a great sense of belonging towards a group of people with whom you mostly share something in common such as values, interests or beliefs? Different things often bring different people together. Continuous interaction between people creates a bond to the point that you start to function as a unit. You share deep affection, respect, loyalty, commitment, and a healthy attachment in your heart for that particular group.

“And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother’” (Matthew 12:49-50). Jesus in this scripture uses the analogy of family - “brother”, “sister” and “mother” – to describe His disciples. The familial bond of believers goes beyond biological blood relations. It is sealed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. As believers in the body of Christ, we are one, and God is the Father of us all (Ephesians 4:6).

In this edition, you will get to read more about what family really is, and what it means to be part of the great family of God. The Lord has worked mightily in our midst and for that reason, we testify. You will read testimonies of what the Lord has done in the lives of people like you.

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Editor’s

You Have the Victory! Breaking News:

One of the reasons why the message of Jesus Christ is known as a gospel – good news –is because it is a message of victory. It speaks of Jesus’ victory over Satan and his works: sin, fear, oppression, terror, death, sickness, poverty and much more.

If you have been delivered by the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ, you will know that there is nothing like experiencing freedom from the weight and burden of the works of darkness. Deliverance and freedom from the works of the devil injects into our lives a new and unending state of relief, rest and peace. In case you are new to spiritual truth, any thing that steals, kills and destroys is of the devil. “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10, KJV)

Take addiction for example. A person who has been set free by the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ from any addiction – fear, debt, smoking, alcohol, drugs, gluttony or pornog raphy – will doubtlessly assure you that there is nothing like being free from the constant pressure and mental harassment of having to satisfy the craving of the flesh for such habits or substances.

There are many places in the Bible where the gospel of Jesus Christ is linked to our deliv erance and freedom from Satan and his works. One of them is 1 John 3:8: “…The reason the Son of God was made manifest (visible) was to undo (destroy, loosen, and dissolve) the works the devil [has done]” (AMPC). Elsewhere the Bible says this about God’s calling on the apostle Paul: “…I have appeared to you for this purpose… To open their eyes that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.” (Acts 26:18, AMPC)

God sees us as His children walking in the victory that Jesus registered over the devil and his works. He sees us delivered and living free from the control and harassment of the devil and his powers of darkness. Whenever I think about this truth, my zeal to reach and equip saints and sinners alike with the gospel of Christ Jesus gets fired up afresh.

From time to time, I dream about the saints and sinners using their faith in the Word to break loose from Satan and his works. I see them soaring high in the liberty and freedom that the spirit and truth of God bring. I invite you to join your faith with mine for that dream

Mission Week

Join us for our mission week as we reach out in our communities to share the love of Christ both in word and deed. In our respective areas of influence and communities, we shall reach out to the sick, the lost, the hungry, the naked, and those in prison. As it is our divine mandate to show and share the love of Christ with those around us.

Testimonies

July 2022, Entebbe, Wakiso| Lydia was to go for training in Kenya towards the end of June 2022. However, She did not have anyone to leave her baby with. The training had been planned in 2021. Lydia asked her mother for assistance who in turn responded that she take the baby to her home in the village in Rukungiri district. This option did not seem to sit well with Lydia. She thought of opting out of the training but all the traveling itinerary had been paid for and cancelling would mean a loss to the company. The Lord told her not to stop any plans. She trusted God and obeyed. She went ahead and continued with her plans for the training. About four days to the date she was set to travel, Lydia’s mother came to their home to offer a hand with the baby, forsaking her duties in the village. Lydia was able to go for the training with a rested mind. Though the training was tough, Lydia kept her confession: “I serve a God of excellence who cannot let me down at the last moment.” Despite the challenges that surfaced, Lydia and her group mates emerged as the best group with the most excellent work. “Glory to God for He alone did this!” Lydia exclaims.

July 2022, Makindye Sabagabbo, Wakiso| Moses testifies of the Lord’s goodness for enabling his cousin to deliver after having three miscarriages all happening on the third month of pregnancy. He testifies and says that when she conceived for the fourth time, she still experienced the same symptoms in the third month. When Moses learned of this, he was stirred in his spirit and quickly drove to meet her at her home in Entebbe. He found her so discouraged, weeping and already making a scene. The neighbors murmured saying “maybe she did something wrong”. He ignored the mummers and told her that it was her time to give birth. He stood with her in prayer believing that God would come through for her. She did not lose the baby but carried it to full term. She gave birth to a bouncing baby boy on the 18th of July. Praise be to the God of miracles.

July 2022, Kawempe, Kampala| Peter testifies of the Lord's goodness in his life and that of his family. The enemy was defeated when he tried to bring affliction on Peter’s lastborn son. He was admitted to an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for three weeks. Despite the condition, Peter continuously proclaimed the Word of the Lord over his son's life. Peter shared what he was going through with the pastors and a few church members who stood in fervent prayer with him. Peter prayed to the Lord and declared healing over his son and commanded everything that needed to be transformed in his life to be transformed: his blood purified and strength to serve the Lord like never before. In the second week in ICU, the condition got worse but Peter remained strong in the Lord. He commanded the angels of the Lord to arrest the negative condition and declared that all things were going to turn out for good. God raised doctors, counselors, and other medical staff who took keen interest in the situation and offered quality service. On 2nd July, a much-needed machine was acquired by the hospital and a near-full blood transfusion was done successfully. His son’s condition started to normalize. He was then put under management of oxygen and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide levels were above normal but God gave a solution to one of the doctors to fix the condition. The carbon dioxide levels dropped to normal within 48 hours and Peter’s son started breathing normally. Three days later, he was released from machine support and the weaning ensued. Peter gives all the Glory back to God for the mercies and grace bestowed on his son’s life. His son is now at home and is doing well. God, through divine arrangement, provided help to clear the accrued medical bill of Ushs148 million (USD$41,100) to zero without Peter paying a coin. Glory to God!

WHAT FAMILY MEANS TO ME

I understand the true family of God from the way I relate with my daughters and my sib lings. If my daughter Kayla has done something wrong to her younger sister, Karen, Karen has to bring the issue to us, her parents. She is not allowed to take revenge against her sister because it is not in her place to do so. On the other hand, with my siblings, each one of us has our weaknesses but we have never stopped loving each other. Even when we dis agree on certain things, we still remain siblings. You cannot say to them, “you are no longer my sibling”, or let them walk away from your life because of a misunderstanding. You love them as you have been charged by your parents to do so.

Matthew 7:11 says, If ye then being evil know how to give gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father in heaven give good things to them that ask him? We belong to the family of God who is our Father and has everything we could ever need. God loves it when we ask Him for everything that we want including the change we would like to see in others. He does not want us to hurt each other. He loves it when we are patient and kind, when we reach out and are forgiving, when we love one another unconditionally because we have the blood of Jesus that unites us and is more powerful than any other blood.

Dinah Musoke (Young Adult)

Billy Graham

The family comprises of father, mother, and children. It was planned by God to be the smallest individual indivisible unit of society. The father is ordained by God to be the head of the family (Genesis 3:16). The relationship flow from husband to wife is love, and that from wife to husband is submission and respect. Children are instructed to obey and honor their parents, and parents to provide and bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

In the Old Testament, the family was seen as the unit through which blessings would flow from within to others. God promised Abraham that through him all families of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3). Conversely, curses would also flow through families for those who hated and despised God’s ways (Deuteronomy 5:9). The family was so import ant in conveying God’s will to mankind.

Jesus grew up in a family of four brothers and at least two sisters (Matthew 13:55-56). His brother James was later to lead the early church. Jesus introduced and expanded the con cept of God being our father. This can only be understood in the concept of a family. The New Testament expands on the family. It goes beyond a family knit together by blood bonds to a new spiritual family in both heaven and earth (Ephesians 3:15). We all have one father and we call ourselves brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus (Mark 3:35). Our spiritual heritage exceeds our natural one.

If God is our father and we are brothers and sisters, the local assembly or church where we meet and fellowship is often referred to as our church family. It's where we are fed and nur tured (Ephesians 5:25-29). It is where we are molded to perfection. It is the greatest experi ence of our life here on earth. Practical love and true experience of Jesus through the brethren.

Service.

Hope Health Camp: 1st October 2022

Gear up for our first ever community health camp that will be held on our church ground on Seguku Hill along Entebbe Road. The Hope Health camp is led by the Women of Faith from ALFC in partnership with SAS clinic. Everyone – near and far – is welcome to participate.

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Youth Fellowship

Maximize your time as a youth and unveil your potential in the presence of the Lord. Engage in the upliftingpraise, hype dance session, worship, sharing of the word and other fun activities. You’re welcome to join the ALFC Youth for our monthly fellowship.

Date: 15h June 2022 Time: 10:00am- 1:00pm Venue: Abundant Life Faith Centre

Prayer Alter

There is power in prayer! The Bible says that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much (James 5:16). As a ministry, we believe in prayer and we are ever available to stand with you in that regard. Reach out to us today via email: prayer@abundantlifefaithcentre.org with your prayer request and we shall pray with you and watch God move mightily in your affairs.

Join us for Service