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During the month of May, the students were in the midst of the second quarter of the school year. Their studies are going well. Their evangelistic efforts have born much fruit.

The preacher for the congregation of “The Brethren” that was converted has been busy. He had visited and converted five other congregations of that denomination by the time we cane to Uganda. While we were there we were able, with his help, to place a sixth congregation of that group in contact with a local Gospel preacher, and they are eagerly learning what the Bible has to say.

Two of our students were dismissed while we were there. This leaves us with nine students who are nearly half way through their second year. These students are all doing very well in their studies, and are showing a great attitude. The farm is doing very well. They have begun growing vanilla at the school, which will take a couple years to mature.

In mid July Leah will be leaving for Jamaica along with part of that mission team. She will be flying out of San Antonio, so we will be in that area for a day or two.

At the end of August we are planning to attend PTP to be able to share the work and take advantage of the opportunity to grow spiritually.

We are making plans to travel to Tanzania in September to work with the school and farm there at Talawanda and also Chamala.

It is time for me to start scheduling visits to you, my supporters, and to make new contacts to raise the last of our support. If you have a date in mind that you would like me to come, or if you would like me to come just to preach or fill in, please let me know.

I spent the last two weeks of May in Uganda with brother Gregg Knight. While we were there Gregg spent some time working on the school farm and teaching the students a few things. I taught a course on therapeutics, using Foy Forehand’s Common Sense Rules of Bible Study, and How To Study The Bible by Kevin Rhodes. Overall the students did very well. They all passed the course, and were happy to receive some new books. I left a couple of extra copies there to be added to the school library as well.

While we were there we spent some time following up on evangelistic contacts that were made on our last trip. I was able to spend some time studying the principles of Biblical authority with Matthew, the young man that had been working with our rabbits. We also reached out to the denominational church in the mountains that had invited us to come and preach to them, but were unable to schedule a time to do so this trip. Hopefully that can happen next time.

We visited several area congregations and spent time encouraging the brethren in their work. At the village of Kyabkikuha we met the preacher for the Full Gospel church, and spent some time studying with him. We were able to leave him with some hard questions to consider and study, and encouraged him to continue learning from Enos, the local preacher for the church of Christ.

While we were there, a behavior issue came up with a couple of students. They were dismissed from the school, and provided with funds to return home. Both brothers have since been restored to faithful service to Christ, and are working with their home congregation. This leaves us with nine students at Rwenzori.

There is often a great deal of confusion about the relationship between faith and works. Some people contend that a person must perform enough good works to outweigh the evil that they have done. Others, in reaction to this, will contend that no works at all are necessary for salvation, but all that is required to to believe in Jesus.

What does the Bible say? What does Jesus say? In John 6, Jesus is asked a great question,” What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” (v. 28). Rather than trying to explain why works weren’t required, there was a desire to do the works that would please God. Shouldn’t this be our attitude today?
The answer that Jesus gives is quite telling. “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (v. 29). To say that faith and works are different things directly contradicts Jesus’ words here. Faith is a work, and it is the work that we must do to please God.

Naturally, if we truly believe in Jesus, and believe what He has spoken, then we will obey His commands. If we don’t obey, then either we don’t truly believe, or we simply don’t care. Faith is where our obedience must begin.

After Jesus fed the multitude He went with His disciples to the other side of the Sea of Galilee during the night. The following day the crowds returned to the place where He had been, and upon discovering that He was gone, many of them climbed into boats and followed Him to the other side.

Many folks today would argue that seeking Jesus for any reason is something to be encouraged. Yet, when these people sought Jesus, His first words to them were words of rebuke.

“Jesus answered them and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled’” (John 6:26).

How ironic to be in the very presence of the Eternal Word and only see a free lunch. Yet, many today come to Christ looking for prosperity or blessings in this life.

While the Christian life is certainly a blessed life, it is not without difficulties. If we come to Christ thinking only of this world, we will miss out on far greater eternal blessings.

What motivates you to seek Jesus? Are you looking for the eternal bread?

My trip to Uganda was moved up to May due to Airline pricing. So, that affected my roast schedule slightly. Thank you for your patience in that regard.

I was privileged to stay in the home of Enosi, a preacher in the village of Kyabikuha, and an instructor at the Rwenzori School of Preaching. I purchased 200 lbs. of coffee from him there, and am very pleased with the freshness and quality.

Much good is being done by the church in the Rwenzori mountains, and members of the community are taking notice and asking to learn more about the Bible.

For all the details of our trip, check out the latest posts at MannaFarm.org I would also love to come and share an update with your local congregation in person. Please call to reserve a date.

When my oldest son was just over a year old, Rodney Adkins released a song entitled “Watching You.” The little boy in the song says to his father, “I’ve been watching you, dad, ain’t that cool? I’m your buckaroo, I wanna be like you… Yeah, we’re just alike, hey, ain’t we dad? I wanna do everything you do So I’ve been watching you.” That was a stark reminder of my responsibilities as a father.

In John 5:19 we see Jesus looking to His Father, and our Father similarly. He only does what the Father does, and He does everything the Father does. This is the essence of godliness.

As followers of Christ, we must also be Godly. If we are going to be able to do what the Father does, that means that we must pay close attention to what He has shown is in Scripture. Only by knowing Him can we be just like Him.

Jesus was pleasing to the Father in every way, and try as they might the Jews could find no wrong in Him because He was following the Father. We are called to do the same, to be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:15). That seems like a lot, but we can do it one step at a time just by watching.

The opening verses of John 6 provide an account of Jesus feeding 5,000 with two fish and five loaves. Jesus prepares to work this miracle by asking one of his disciples, “Where shall we buy bread…?” (v. 5).
Philip’s response is rather reasonable. He points out that buying a catered meal for 5,000 people at a moment’s notice is going to be VERY expensive! However, John tells us that Jesus asked this question to test Philip (v. 6).

Of course, Jesus didn’t need to worry about that budget. He is the one who created everything, and the master of the universe! He was drawing Philip’s attention to that fact.

Once Jesus had Philip’s attention, He proceeded to miraculously provide food for each and every person who was there. He didn’t give them just a little bit. He gave them an all-you-can-eat buffet (v. 11)! The food that was left over from the feast far exceeded the amount that they had at the beginning.
Like Philip, we can be in the presence of the Master, yet loose sight of His greatness. He knows our needs, and He knows what is best. He also knows what He can and will do for us. Our part is to follow His instructions and simply trust His power.

Throughout history, many religious teachers have appeared claiming to carry a message from God or a god. The reliability of their source and of their record has usually been difficult to verify at best. They emerge from a secret meeting with an angel in a cave or in the forest with no witnesses, and declare that they have new truth to reveal.

Jesus was different. He was able to demonstrate that He was indeed a prophet of God, and to do so He had the testimony of several reliable witnesses.

John the Immerser had shown himself to be a prophet of God, and he directly preached that Jesus is the Christ (John 1:36, 5:33-35).

The work that Jesus was doing publicly, both in His preaching and teaching, and also in His miracles provided ample proof that His claims were true (John 5:36-39).

The Scriptures of the Old Testament all point to Christ in prophecy. The prophecies are numbered in the hundreds, and He fulfills each and every one. (John 5:39ff).

We each have a duty to examine the evidence and then draw the conclusions that the evidence demands and act accordingly.

Some time after healing the lame man at the pool of Bethesda Jesus seeks him out again. Our Lord’s words to him are few, but quite pointed. (John 5:14) First, Jesus reminds the man of the great blessing he has just received: he has been made whole! He wasn’t just better, he was complete and completely well.

This is the type of healing that Jesus offers to us as sinners. When we come to Him obediently “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). He doesn’t just make us a little better, He removes ALL of our guilt and makes us spiritually whole.

Jesus’ next words to the lame man are words of warning. “Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” Maybe his original infirmity was a consequence of sin, but regardless, something far worse than being lame is being lost.

When we come to Jesus for spiritual healing, we must also resolve to live a life of holiness. If, after being forgiven, we turn right back to the darkness of sin, we are turning away from the only one that can help. These words bear with them a charge of personal responsibility. Jesus has done His part to save us. Now we must to ours.