Memories From 2024

Junior's Wedding Reception 

 

Junior (the former grounds manager of Kingdom View) has the first Wedding reception at Kingdom View, Mukono, Uganda.

 

                       

The Life Application Bible Fund is funding Bibles for many leaders wanting to go deeper in Bible Study. 

 

  

Brian, Elsa, Nanella and Ezy, our Ugandan friends who live in Illinois visited us for Thanksgiving. Freedom In Christ encouragement continues.

 

 

Twenty Years Ago Christmas

 

 

Dear Friends,

Twenty years ago this Christmas we left Dallas for Uganda. And now, while Jesus’ birth on earth is the supreme focus of Christmas, we as missionaries also relate to another key character in the story – John.  Later known as John the Baptist, the name John in Hebrew means, “God is gracious.”

How gracious God has been to us in allowing us to serve through the past 22 years in Guatemala, Uganda, Kenya and the U.S. We are blessed to share in God’s calling upon John “to give to his people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins” (Luke 1:77) and “to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.” (Luke 1:79)

We love the story of John leaping in his mother Elizabeth’s womb when Mary, pregnant with Jesus, entered her house. It is that excitement of the savior that spurs commitment. And it is submission and humility to the risen Jesus that produces results. Mark’s life verse comes from John’s words when he first actually saw Jesus, “He must increase; I must decrease.” (John 3:30)

John’s miraculous birth also is a lesson in faith and an example that God’s ways are not our ways. 

The priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were childless and well advanced in years. An angel appeared and told him Elizabeth would bear a son to be called John, a forerunner of Jesus.  Zacharias questioned the prophecy and was struck dumb. Only after the child was born and Zacharias wrote on a tablet that his name is John as decreed by the angel did he regain his voice.

It is a reminder that “without faith it is impossible to please God.”  (Hebrews 11:6) Whether it be community transformation in a Guatemalan town, personal transformation through discipleship, clinics, discovering God given skills, scholarships, mercy homes in Uganda or micro finance in Kenya … we have found in ministry nothing of worth happens without faith and prayer which guides our steps.

Some specific things we are involved in since our return to the US in 2022 are:

•         Margaret works with 2-3 people a week both in the US and Uganda helping them understand their God given and career skills. 

•         Our involvement with Freedom in Christ Ministries as encouragers provides us with ministry opportunities to take individual men or women through a 4-6 hour freedom appointment. These take place in our home and the organization refers people to us. 

•         Margaret has stepped in to assist Uganda Partners while the communications director is on a three month sabbatical. She is responsible for weekly editing 2-3 stories of Uganda Christian University journalism interns for the Uganda Partners blog. Margaret loves opportunities to work with university students.

•         Mark leads two different discipleship small groups.

•         We host monthly in our home First Friday Fellowship, a time of food, fellowship, encouragement in freedom and identity in Christ, and prayer for about 30 people.

•         Ongoing mentoring through WhatsApp of Ugandans, including marital counseling.

•         A ministry providing Bibles to Ugandan students and leaders.

 

Thank you. We appreciate you standing with us and supporting the Rock Outreach. It's making a difference in the lives of people both here and in Uganda one person at a time.

With grateful hearts, 

Mark and Margaret 

 

"Transforming and Encouraging the World One Person At A Time"

There’s a lot of hope even though we are living in a world where things seem to be upside down and crazy. You are making a difference in the lives of people here as well as in Uganda as you support us through The Rock.

The Rock continues the Life Application Bible fund for new believers in Uganda and we are finding their distribution helpful in the US as well. The Freedom in Christ materials also are shared as part of our discipleship ministry. God is expanding our mission field using our gifts of hospitality and discipleship. We are blessed to be part of First Baptist Dallas with a mission of “transforming our world with God’s Word…one life at a time.”

The emphasis of being in relationships with people one on one as we teach and disciple through the Bible is rich. Whether they're here in the US with Freedom in Christ discussions individually, on Zoom, or on WhatsApp in Uganda, God is expanding our relationships. When you think about it, the way lives are transformed, it's one person at a time. We find that God is putting new people in our path to minister to each week. Whether it's a young woman in her 20s here who needs a job; two Uganda engineering students studying in Turkey, trying to figure out their God-given skills; or an older person who is going through trials and wants freedom from the past. Mark gets referred by Freedom in Christ Ministries on a regular basis as an encourager to pray and study Biblical ways with others to be spiritually free.

Since January it has been a delight to share the Freedom in Christ message hosting dinners in our home with up to 32 people on the first Friday of every month. Zoom calls are going on weekly for both of us. Some are with Ugandans and some with the Freedom in Christ team. 

First Friday Fellowship in May with a pinata for Cinco de Mayo was a blast. Each month we have an ethnic meal depending on the theme. Our message of encouragement is always related to our Identity in Christ and who God says we are...we are secure, accepted and significant.

In April, we launched a newly formed group of Ugandans we mentored who are now studying, living and working in North America. We meet monthly by Zoom to share, encourage, and pray for each other. Our discussions are a blessing to all of us. Being able to share with fellow Ugandans their experiences in living in a new land along with bouncing ideas off us has been informative. Spiritually we are able to encourage them to stand on The Rock of Jesus as they encounter an anti-Christian culture.

Uganda Christian University has an exchange program with Aksaray University in Turkey. Rodney is a civil engineering student in his final year. Recently he contacted Margaret for career guidance. Through WhatsApp she has been able to help him learn his God-given skills, create a professional resume, and improve his LinkedIn account.

After we finished he asked if I would help Faith another engineering student in Turkey as well. The main reason students don't get 

jobs is because people don't know they are available and competent. Helping them present themselves with quantiative skills in their resume and discussing the importance of being grateful to those who have been part of your life is important. Her appproach is part of the discipleship process we use to help each person realize they are unique and significant.

Margaret continues to work with Uganda Christian University Honours students and alumni on a weekly basis. We discuss their careers, relationships, graduate school applications, God’s will for their lives and temptations they are facing. Recently she was asked to volunteer as part of the team that produces the campus newspaper and stories for Uganda Partners (the US based 501c3 supporting the university special projects) while an editor is on a three-month sabbatical. 

We are praying regarding ministry donations, which are down 42.7 percent year to date from 2023. If you are led to stand in the gap with us we would really appreciate it.

We couldn't do what we do without your prayers and support.

With Grateful Hearts,

Mark and Margaret

"A Time And Season For Everything"

With Texas flowers blooming ahead of time in March this year, we are reflecting about God’s blessing of ushering in a refreshing new season of ministry for The Rock.

Solomon writes “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens.” (Eccl 3:3.)  

In Verse 22 he adds, “So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?”

We have enjoyed widening the reach of the ministry’s discipleship and teaching in Dallas and the surrounding area while also maintaining and expanding relationships in Uganda through Zoom and WhatsApp.

Our prayers continue to be answered as we ask the Lord to bring people to whom He wants us to minister.  

Mark currently facilitates a 10-week Freedom In Christ course on Zoom to encourage believers and their families. Each month we host our multi-generational Sunday school class First Friday Fellowship at our home. We encourage with "identity in Christ scripture verses", have some great food, and pray. In addition Mark has been an "encourager" leading elders, a pastor and others through the "Steps to Freedom in Christ."

This is a biblical approach to affirming spiritual truth over deception and overcoming unforgiveness, lack of submission, pride, behavioral bondage and generational strongholds. Each week he facilitates a small men's group Bible study.

****************************************************************************

Ugandan students continue to refer friends and family each week to Margaret to help them understand their practical God-given skills and how to incorporate them into their career strategies.

Couples we have mentored in the past have requested discussions about practical issues related to marriage.  Several couples have reached out for advice about attending school while being married in foreign countries. God is providing opportunities to disciple in practical ways, weaving Biblical solutions into our discussions.

The Life Application Bibles provided by The Rock  through generous donors have been a huge blessing to new believers at Uganda Christian University as the chaplaincy does evangelistic outreaches.

The stories are so encouraging and the people continue to multiply.  Thank you for supporting the ministry so we can continue being spiritual and emotional resources for people needing someone to listen and share about our identity in Christ. The one on one discipleship ranges from students needing help with resumes, women finding themselves pregnant and choosing life, couples wanting information about how to navigate financial challenges in marriage to adapting to life outside their home country. And in the US,  elders and pastors wanting to start community freedom ministries to lay firm identity foundations in their churches.

Be encouraged because you are making a difference in the lives of many people in the US and abroad. We are grateful to be serving one person at a time.

Excited and joyful about what God is doing,

 

Mark and Margaret  

"A Gift Of Faith Is Confidence"

Merry Christmas!

As we celebrate God’s greatest gift to us in His Son Jesus, we also should appreciate the accompanying gift of faith. 

Without it, Christmas is relegated to Santa Claus, commercialism and time off with family. And we are left without faith's beautiful accompaniment – hope.

Our ultimate hope is eternal life in heaven, achieved by faith in Jesus and the atoning blood He shed for our sins.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Eph 2:8)

By faith we also have hope for our remaining time on earth.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Heb 11:1

Through faith we have confidence in God’s character and love as revealed in His Word to see us through the uncertainties of life.

This faith in God’s providence and care has brought us through many challenges and changes in our ministry. As stated in Romans 8:28, He has always used our circumstances for our good and His glory.

Here’s wishing your Christmas is filled with joy and God’s perspective.

With love and appreciation as we stand with you focusing on our faith and hope for the future, 

 

Mark and Margaret 

A Recap of 2023

 

2023 has been a year of expanding one on one discipleship for Margaret and Mark. Margaret is assigned two students from Uganda Christian University Honors College each term to mentor remotely, in addition each week more students are referred to her for resume writing as they continue to gain confidence in their God-given skills. Sponsors of university students are requesting assistance in navigating their sponsored child’s future which has been a new thing. Mark continues discipling one on one, doing Freedom in Christ Zoom calls. He is a resource for facilitating studies in the US and UG using several books embracing our identity in Christ.