“Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O Lord. They rejoice in your name all day long.” Psalm 89:15-16.
The people of Akot are praising God for the changes in their community. The women weep as they talk about having schools that all of the children can attend, even the orphans. They are very grateful to have Bible classes for women, and hear that God cares for women. “Our mothers never knew anything like this before”, expressed one member of “Women of Hope” Bible class.
A Farm
LWCT’s two main goals are to make disciples, and transform Akot into a self sustaining community. However, there is no industry to stimulate economical growth, and there is always a food shortage. Growing enough food to feed the community, and having excess to sell in the market would help achieve our goal of self reliance. The executive chief blessed Akot Christian Ministries with an 11 acre piece of land to be used for a farm. Our dream is to raise enough money to put in a mechanized well, irrigation system, and fence. This would allow us to plant a fruit orchard, introduce new crops, and start a fish farm. Join us in prayer for these plans.
A Vehicle
It is hard to believe that we have managed for years with no means of transportation. Our sister organization, Akot Medical Mission has generously helped us with many needs for years. We are grateful to them, and to the donors who provided the funds for the new Land Cruiser. I hope you can see the big smiles on the faces of Isaac Bol, our assistant director and Samuel Maker, our driver. No more trying to carry hundreds of pounds of food for school children, women’s groups, pastor’s groups, and men’s discipleship groups from the capital city to Akot in a matatu (small African bus). You can imagine how much food it takes to feed 800 children everyday!
School Books
We started our first school in 2007 with one teacher and 20 children. We have grown to 800 children in two schools. We don’t turn any child away for lack of school fees ($8 per year to help with the cost of a uniform). We allow them to give food if they have no money. Orphans are not charged. Our schools are private Christian schools, and have not been eligible for books from the government. Our teachers have been improvising in every way possible for the past 6 years. It was better than Christmas, the day they opened up 1500 book.