She was known in Kyoya camp as “Number 6”. Family in Jinja called her Sharifa. I knew her as Musa’s new wife. It was the name we had not been told which revealed her true identity.
When we returned to the islands after our Christmas holidays, I was told that Musa’s young wife had a premature baby. Although our relationship with Musa (a muslim leader) has been a bit tense, his wives and children have always welcomed me enthusiastically.
Baby Counsilla was 3 months and not yet 1 kilogram (2.2lbs). She was so tiny that her bony head and unfocused eyes seem disproportionately large. It was obvious she was not nursing very well. In a few days we heard she had malaria. Then she was vomiting. After that came a cough. This tiny baby did not have much chance of survival in a polygamous family on a far-out island.
Meanwhile we were able to build some rapport with Counsilla’s young mother by sending baby formula and meeting some practical needs. Shanna (a 16 yr old gal visiting from Oregon) felt very drawn to the family and began calling the baby, “Miracle”.
It was during a visit to our house that the real miracle began to unfold. Clad in her black muslim veil, “wife number 6” unveiled her identity. “My name is really Lynette (Beautiful One). My family are born-again and I also used to be saved.” Lynette then shared the sad tale of her parent’s death when she was 15, of subsequent abuse and then of her conversion to Islam in order to be given a chance to study. “I miss praise and worship. My young brother had no money for school, but he is a very talented musician and is still serving God.”
A few weeks later, Shanna and I were talking when Lynette came to the door. Within 5 minutes a tremendous rainstorm hit, leaving us completely unable to hear each other for nearly an hour. After drinking tea and smiling at each other hopelessly, I pulled out Max Lucado’s book, “You are Mine”. After reading, Lynette stood at the door as if to leave. Suddenly she turned back inside and whispered softly, “Keeky, I want to talk to you.”
Within moments, the three of us were bowing, praying, crying. The Great Shepherd had sought out and brought back His lamb! After singing a Swahili song, “There Is No God Like You”, Lynette spoke. “My Bible was taken from me, but I love this verse, John 3:16.” After quoting it she began to sing a song she had composed from the verse as a child.
When Shanna visited the next day, Lynette brought out her new Bible. Beaming, she exclaimed, “I found it! I found my favorite chapter, 1 Corinthians 13!” Though her increasing joy was indisguisable, so also was the increasing persecution from the other wives.
I was praying that God would somehow allow Lynette to attend church the next Sunday. Instead she met us as we were leaving and stated, “I am returning to my family in Kenya. Today I am leaving.”
Tuesday evening I answered the phone, “Praise God Keeky! It’s Lynette. I’ve reached home!” She explained how the family was poor and that her brothers had not been able to go to school. “But the good thing is that every one of them has accepted God as their personal Savior….And Keeky,” she concluded with a note of triumph, “My baby is no longer Counsilla. We have named her Hope!”
Since returning to Uganda, we have found the Lord at work in many ways. This last month it seems His attention has been on women. Lynette is not the only muslim woman who has come to us recently to seek medical help for a sick child. We praise God for these openings.
This month we also hosted “Titus 2 Women”. Women’s leaders from about 12 island churches participated eagerly in a seminar designed to equip them to teach younger women. Each day the women brought new testimonies of how the material was changing their understanding of their roles as wives, mothers, and teachers. “This seminar is unique from others we have received. We are learning how to please God in our homes.” One husband (who is a pastor) phoned our boat pilot to thank him for carrying his wife to the meetings which had greatly impacted her life. I was especially thrilled to hear the women learning to love and to memorize the Word of God.
This seminar has been a great beginning for the ministry which Mama O has envisioned. It has been her desire to begin discipling reputable women who would then be able to minister effectively to the women in their villages. Thank you, “Titus 2 Women” leaders for your impact on the islands!
We are thrilled that Ruth Howard and Amanda Taylor have begun a weekly Bible study with the girls at Lingira Living Hope Secondary School. They will be going through Elizabeth George’s book, “A Woman after God’s Own Heart.” After only two weeks, we are already hearing great reports of relationships being built and the girls expressing a serious desire to learn and grow together in the Lord.
Last month we experienced the great joy of graduating both of last year's Discipleship classes. One from our home island of Lingira, which also included every member of the SHIM staff along with several local pastors and church leaders. Then one in eastern Uganda, about which Pastor Samson said, "This is the best class we've ever had!" The 30+ students were so hungry and serious about going deeper with Christ, and they would hardly let Samson leave each night, plying him with questions until sometimes the wee hours of the morning!
Thank you all for your continuous prayers for us.
Love,
Andy, Keeky, baby David, and the whole SHIM staff
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