This month SOS wants to highlight two ministries that shine the brightest within our neighboring communities and within our district. These ministries are our SOS Medical Center and our Joni and Friends ministry.
In the African context, actions speak louder than words, and practical help is more valuable than theoretical help. Our medical center and JAF ministry is practical in every way. And the stories below bring out the dynamic and amazing physical and spiritual impact these ministries are making in the lives of people. You will want to watch the Heart Made Whole video. It is well worth your time. I would also draw your attention to the article The Christian Perspective of Humanitarian Aid. I hope this month’s newsletter will stir your hearts and motivate you to love your neighbor in your own community.
I must also draw attention to the fact that our SOS Medical Center is significantly under-funded, so if you wanted to directly love the hurting on the other side of the world, your help would be greatly appreciated. Click here to donate.
A HEART MADE WHOLE
When Namutebi was just 6 years old, doctors found a hole in her heart. Despite her critical need for heart surgery, Namutebi and her family could not afford the massive bill the local hospital estimated.
SOS MEDICAL CENTER UPDATE
By Dr. Paul Sewagudde
Every day, more than 120 patients walk through the doors of SOS Medical Center seeking relief from illness, answers to troubling symptoms, and compassionate care. The clinic has become a vital lifeline for individuals and families from the surrounding communities and beyond.
Our patients include vulnerable children, elderly men and women, and adults living with chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes. Others arrive with serious acute illnesses, including malaria and other potentially life-threatening diseases. For many, without medical insurance or anyone to support them, access to affordable, quality healthcare would otherwise be out of reach.
What makes SOS Medical Center unique is that our mission extends beyond physical healing. Before medical consultations begin, patients are allowed to hear the Gospel of Christ. Throughout their care, they encounter healthcare workers who strive to demonstrate Christ-like compassion, kindness, and dignity in every interaction. The clinic serves not only as a place of treatment but also as a place where people are touched by the love of God.
Our 17 dedicated staff view their professions as a calling and a ministry. They are committed to providing thorough medical assessments and treatment, and committed to growing in their own relationship with Jesus Christ. Through their service, they seek to be both excellent healthcare professionals and faithful witnesses of the Gospel.
The impact of this ministry continues to grow. Over 1500 people each month receive affordable, comprehensive healthcare, while many hear the Gospel for the first time. The clinic has become a trusted gateway into the community, opening doors for evangelism, discipleship, and practical Christian service to tens of thousands.
We thank God for His faithfulness and for the generous support of partners and donors who make this work possible. As patient numbers continue to rise, so do the opportunities to share Christ’s love through healing ministry. We invite you to continue praying for SOS Medical Center and to consider supporting this vital work so that more lives may experience both physical healing and the eternal hope that is found only in Christ.
JONI & FRIENDS
By Jonathan Madrama
SOS’s Joni and Friends disability ministry continues to be a beacon of God’s love to over 800 persons with disabilities living in and around Kubamitwe. The gospel is preached both in word and deed to those who are often sidelined by society. Not only are people with disabilities (PWD) exposed to the Bible, but they are also loved in tangible and transformational ways.
We are seeing significant transformational and radical impact in our local disability ministry. We are witnessing people, who would never be able to afford treatment, receive faithful and ongoing therapy. Children with cerebral palsy, who were formerly unable to sit or walk, are taking their first steps independently. Disabled patients who were neglected and living in shack-like homes are receiving well-built houses. The ministry is also supporting the impoverished people with disability within our community by providing training in various job skills and offering small vocational grants, helping them be empowered to make a living.
One recent testimony provides a glimpse into what God is doing within the lives of people within our community. Milly, a 47-year-old mother, who had been exasperated by traditional healers (bone setters), after a fatal accident, said “I thought I would never walk again, but now I stand on my feet with hope. God has truly been faithful.”
As we expand our efforts to love our neighbouring communities, we are excited to report on our partnership with an SOS church plant in Karuma, where we will be doing Wheels for the World outreach. This outreach will provide wheelchairs, walkers, and canes to over 200 individuals in surrounding communities in a very neglected and impoverished community in mid-August. This outreach is a follow up to a 40 church leaders ‘Beyond Suffering’ training that took place at the end of May. These pastors learned about the church’s role in loving and discipling persons with disabilities. In an area formerly traumatised by rebel leaders like Joseph Kony, the church has become a significant epicenter of compassion and love for the survivors.
Yet, further, we are internationally in preliminary discussions with South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo on how we can extend disability services to these war-torn countries.
SOS’s Joni and Friend Ministry locally, nationally, and internationally is vibrantly putting God’s love on display, effectively relieving the hopeless from suffering, and ongoingly proclaiming the gospel to lives that are ready and eager to hear the truth.
CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU
By Anthony and Mary Basaba
SOS Ministries has many heroes of the faith. Anthony and Mary Basaba are one such hero. With deep love and affection we want to celebrate them for their 10 years of faithful ministry serving this community (plus Anthony’s additional 9 years as a single man). These two are a dynamic duo.
From the early days of Anthony taking a survey of each villager in their home, to handling many middle of the night medical emergencies, Anthony and Mary have served this community tirelessly and selflessly. They have provided leadership over our Community Outreach Department, Security Department, and now over Joni and Friends. They have had their hands in anything and everything. Their patience with people and hearts of compassion have radically shaped the DNA of our ministry at large.
It is not uncommon for Anthony to look like Moses, with a line of people wanting him to solve their problems. And unlike anyone I know, he patiently and lovingly cares for each one. He is like a magnet; everyone from everywhere is drawn to his tall, loving, and gentle presence. Mary is the quiet machine behind Anthony. Her competent and skillful service-oriented character makes everything happen in her home, in her ministry, and in any place she puts her hard working hands.
We love this family, and this community is forever indebted to them for their 10 remarkable years of service. Thank you and congratulations, Basabas!
If you would like to email them to express appreciation, please email them at: mary@sosministries.com or basaba@sosministries.com
THE CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE OF HUMANITARIAN AID
By Shannon Hurley
Why is it that I so often feel sheepish about expressing our ministry's humanitarian needs? Why do awkward feelings accompany requests for helping the needy within my community?
I believe it is because “humanitarian aid” has received a bad rap or an unbiblical perspective. Properly and needfully, Bible-believing, Christ-proclaiming churches emphasize the importance of eternal objectives. They rightfully warn their church people to care more about the spiritual than the physical.
But unfortunately, I believe this has led many to see humanitarian aid in a bad light. They deem it as unimportant or even as unbiblical. But after having lived in Uganda for almost 20 years and having read my Bible more closely, I realize that caring for the physically hurting and destitute is essential, right, and should describe the lifestyle of all Christians.
The Bible actually is critical of those who just see their brother in need and simply say, “'Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,' without giving the things needed for the body" (James 2:16). The act of neglecting the physical needs of your brethren is expressed as not loving God (Matthew 25:45). The Bible actually calls caring for the needs of others as part of "pure and undefiled religion" (James 1:27).
Without question, God's mission is to build His Church and so humanitarian aid should have that as its greatest aim. And without question, the poor will always be with us (Matthew 26:11), but we should never forget that humanitarian aid is love. It is Christian. It is an essential expression of the Christian witness. And it is an important part of the ministry of SOS. And it has proved to be an overwhelming, credible validation to SOS's Christian witness. They know that we are Christians because of our love.
Thank you for making this possible, and let us all not get weary of doing good (Gal 6:9), but let us continue to let our light shine before others so that they may see our actions and glorify our Father in Heaven (Matt 5:16).
PRAYER REQUESTS
- Pray for the SOS Medical Center staff and Joni and Friends staff to not lose heart in doing good, but to steadfastly keep loving our community with the compassion and care of Jesus Christ.
- Pray that Dr. Paul will have God’s wisdom in evaluating patients and leading a team of medical professionals.
- Pray that God will continue to assist our staff to grow in their own relationships with the Lord.
- Pray that every patient who comes through our doors would encounter the love of Christ Jesus and that God’s Spirit would lead them to be drawn to engage the body of Christ.
- Pray for the protection of our Joni and Friends ministry as they travel all over the country caring for those suffering from disabilities.
- Praise God for the gift of the Basaba family and their 10 remarkable years of service to this community.
For the King and His Kingdom,
Shannon Hurley
Founder and CEO, SOS Ministries
