Are Hard Times Really That Bad?

Hello friends and family! This trip has been a joy to be apart of! As you may know I was privledged with the oppurtunity to be part of the trip last year and even though we are doing many things which are similar to last year this trip has been very different to me in many ways. Last year it seemed as if wheneverI had the oppurtunity to share the gospel people were so open to it and most times they would come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. This year's trip however has had its challenging moments. God has shown me as much as last year but in a different way. The first couple days of evangelism were tough. We mostly ran into 7th day adventists and catholics during those first days. We experienced many evangelism trips which turned into debates. Last year it seemed as if someone would come to Christ every day when my group would go out, but this year it was very discouraging the first couple of days because no one came to Christ. I know that only God can change people's lives but it still was a little discouraging. The rewards from these first days seemed minimal. However, God had a different plan, he used these first few days to give me a different kind of reward, one which was not easily seen on the surface. These rewards overflowed like the rivers of the Nile. I have learned a key part of ministry that will be easily applied when I return to Alabama. The lesson is of perseverance. I have learned to keep sharing the gospel because that is what we are called to do and to rejoice with others when they are the ones chosen by God to bring others to Himself. Those few days reminded me of ministry in America, ministry which is hard and filled with debates and tiring conversations. After the first couple of days God used me to bring a woman to Christ and she had a huge smile on her face, which she tried to cover with the Bible that we gave her. This one conversion gave me hope and showed me how God can use us long as we continue to be faithful to Him. Today also had its ups and downs. Especially in one time of the day when we went door to door after lunch. We were in the town of Mabaale and Alex had done a spectatcular job presenting the gospel at the last house and it was my turn to present to the next place. We arrived at a shop and there were about seven guys which grew into about twenty. I gave a presentation of the gospel and asked if anyone would want to trust in Jesus as their personal savior and nobody desired too, instead they gave a few responses why they did not and had a few questions which started to lead into a game where the guys we were talking to (high school students) were trying to stump us with questions about the Bible. At the end I gave a testimony of my life which I was sure would help relate and show them they needed a saviour now at their young age, but still no one desired. This was kind of a discouragement because I had really put my heart all into it.

Later that evening we had a crusade. At this crusade I was going to sit down with some of the team but I passed some guys who looked as if they would want to talk. This is a common occurance because most Ugandans love to talk with Americans, but I usually walk on past and go to my team because I am tired and just dont want to exert the energy. This time though I decided to talk to these three young men and over time the group turned into fifteen guys. My dad and I told them the gospel and six guys kneeled down and prayed to receive Jesus as their personal saviour. I learned that even though you may be tired or discouraged that God uses those who put themselves in situatuions to be used by Him.
Spencer Owen