Back By Popular Demand
Ok, so I noticed that the comments left on my blog asked for a Wednesday evening service update. Sorry for not getting this done earlier. I've had a busy day. I taught until 3:30 (I had PE with the kids today) and then at 4:30 I had practice with the worship team for a wedding on Saturday. Yes, I am going to sing at a Ugandan wedding ,and it's no April Fools Joke either. Not a solo, thankfully. So on Wednesday we had a guest preacher give us a sermon. He's a Calvary Chapel pastor from California. It was about what James has to say about the tongue. It was a really convicting sermon. Our tongues can get us in a tonne of trouble. He spoke about how hard training horses is, especially getting the bit and bridle on the horse. But once the bridle is on, the horse can be controlled. If a person, by the grace of God, can bridle his tongue he can tame his whole body. Even though the message was short, it was convicting. I'll leave you with the closing song we sang.

And when I think, That God His Son not sparing
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in.
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin.

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart.
Then I shall bow in humble adoration,
And there proclaim, "My God how great Thou Art!"

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God to Thee
How great Thou art! How great Thou Art!
Then Sings my soul, My Saviour God to Thee,
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!

Hello and good sunday to all of you. This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. Today Pastor Brian preached from 2 Timothy 2:14-26. The theme was "Being a good servant in the kingdom." First of all, we need to stop listening to words of no profit and start rightly dividing the Word of Truth. We need to know the reason for the hope that is within us, because we need to be ready for people to ask why we believe in Christ. Secondly, we need to purge ourselves from all uncleaness and iniquity so that we become vessels used for honour and not for dishonour. Believers are vessels in God's kingdom and by His grace, our lives can be used by Him for the good of others. We need to flee youthful lusts. Instead, we need to persue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Thirdly, in order to be a good servant, we need to have an attitude of gentleness and humility. People will not listen to someone who is arguementative. We can't be an effective witness if we come with an "holier than thou" attidude. We need to witness to people while at their level. It was a really good sermon, and convicting too.

This afternoon the the church had its monthly "mega mix." A bunch of local Christian musicians are invited to perform a song or two. It's quite loud, let me assure you. One group called P. Love (which stands for perfect love) did an arrangement with "Jesus Love Me This I Know." It was really touching. I had to look after the sound system while the regular sound guy was gone, so that was pretty fun. I got to flip switches and turn people's mics up and down and stuff. Well, I hope you all have a really good day. I missing all of you, and can't wait to see you again.

To Sleep or Not to Sleep, That is the Question
I hate not being able to sleep. Here it is, 12:30, and I'm still wide awake. I mean, maybe two cups of coffee at 8 wasn't the smartest idea in the world, but it was flavoured coffee (vanilla-macadamian nut). What was I supposed to do? Anyways, I guess a little update is in order. I have been neglecting updating here because I was kind of stuck in a rut for a while. I mean, there's only so many times I can write that school is fine and the kids are getting along great and school is terrific. Well, Benjamin is finished school. Keeping him busy is a bit of a chore. Flash cards for math are great, and some phonics worksheets that Klazina had left over help out. It's a good thing he enjoys reading, because mostly that's what he does. He's just finished grade 1 and is reading books like "The Boxcar Children" already. Jonathan is almost finished with school also. He has a lot of math left so every other day is spent on just math. The rest of the time he is learning about space and stars. It's pretty exciting actually. When the power is off (like almost every day) you can see so many stars, it's unbelievable. The other day I got to see the Southern Cross for the first time. It's the equivilant to the North Star except on the other side of the world. Sarah Anne is still plugging along with her work. She has the most but it seems that she'll be totally finished at the end of April or early May.

Since I finish teaching at about 12:30 these days, my afternoons are free. I'm starting a tutoring/proofreading program at the Bible College run by the church here. Most of the students are ESL (English as a Second Language) so many need help with their writing. I'm excited about this new task. I start tomorrow actually. Also, I'm helping sort the Bible College library. It's small but they want to sort it nicely. Anyways, that's what is happening in my life these days. Now if I can only get some sleep...

Hello one and all. Thanks for popping on by. Today church was great...again. The sermon today was from 2 Timothy 2: 1-13. Pastor Brian spoke about How to Endure Hardship. Verses 1 and 2 speak about how it is only by God's grace that we can endure. He gives us the grace to be saved and the grace to uphold us during life and the grace to help in trials. We can come boldly to the throne of grace to get grace to help in time of trials.

The second part of the text speaks about looking towards the prize at the end of this life. The first example Paul uses is a soldier who puts away earthly cares and pleasures in order to fight good and be praised by his superior officer. The second example is the athlete who trains hard and plays by the rules in order to win the game. The third example is a farmer who endures plowing and sowing and waiting and harversting so that he can enjoy his crop. We should focus on our reward, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.

The third part of the text tells us to remember Jesus Christ. He endured much for us and also resurrected. That is our hope. He will give us the strength to go on and endure to the end. He is faithful.
For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him.
If we endure, We shall also reign with Him.
If we deny Him, He also will deny us.
If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

I really needed to hear this sermon today. God is so faithful even through the trials and hardships. If we rely on Him He will bring us through to the end. Even if the trials are from our own stupidity, He is faithful. Praise God.

Cats and Their Uselessness
Ok, for all you cat lovers out there I apologize in advance for the negativity of this post to said beast. Really, I have nothing against the ones that stay out of the way and eat a stray mouse or two. I have something against the ones that get in the way. So you might be wondering by now what exactly I have against the feline species. Well, I would like to show you the cat from the compound here. She is friends with both dogs and the chicken. She has food given to her upstairs as well as the odd mouse she comes across. Nice kitty, right? Wrong. Said cat delights to get under my skin. Like the times she sat next to me on the couch and tried to keep me company. I don't need a cat to keep me company. However, tonight was the worst. This cat decided to come downstairs and sit in my kitchen. I was cooking macaroni (my own version, which is probably closer to hamburger helper than anything else). So I made my dish and took a plateful and ate. I was coming back to the kitchen and saw the cat EATING MY FOOD RIGHT OUT OF THE PAN!!!! Well I shouted at it and then chased it outside. The poor Kelly's upstairs probably thought I was being robbed or something. Well I guess in a way that's true. So the cat is not my friend. Maybe someday a cat will become my friend, but not today and not this cat.

Assurance
The title for today's sermon was "Assurance" with the text being 2 Timothy 1. Verses 3-7 talk about assurance when we experience fear. Verse 7 sums up this part of the chapter. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and love and of a sound mind."

The second part of the chapter speaks about where assurance comes from, which is faith. If we want to have assurance of our salvation we must give our lives 100% to Christ. We must surrender all to Him. Our salvation comes from Him and He holds us in His hands. Nobody can snatch us from His hands. Paul writes "I know Him who I have believed in and persuaded that He is able to keep that which I've commityed to Him in that Day. It's not in any works that we do that gives us assurance. It's all in Christ. Pastor Brian told a story about how assurance can affect our lives. There was a man who was visiting Alaska (which he pointed out is North of Canada, and anyone could ask Mike because Mike is Canadian). He came to a river which had completely frozen over. Carefully he stepped onto the ice and then began to crawl along on all fours, making sure to distribute his weight properly. After about 20 minutes, when he was only a few meters out on the ice, he heard the sound of an engine. Along came a 4x4 and drove passed him, over the ice, and onto the other side of the river. The man immediately jumped up and began to walk briskly to the other side. He now was assured that his weight would not break the ice. When we place all our trust and hope on Christ (and not on ourselves or our works) then we can begin to truelly live a Christian life.

The third part of the chapter (verse 13 to the end) talks about assurance when others are falling away from the faith. Paul had many people turn from him because he was a prisoner for Christ. But he encouraged Timothy to press on, because if the world hated Christ and killed Him, it will not treat His followers much better.

Well I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.

To God Be The Glory

Here is one of the songs we're singing in church tomorrow. It's a great encouragement.

To God be the glory,
great things he hath done!
So loved he the world
that he gave us his Son,
who yielded his life
an atonement for sin,
and opened the lifegate
that all may go in.

Chorus
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father thru Jesus the Son,
and give him the glory, great things he hath done!

O perfect redemption,
the purchase of blood,
to every believer
the promise of God;
the vilest offender
who truly believes,
that moment from Jesus
a pardon receives.

Great things he hath taught us,
great things he hath done,
and great our rejoicing
thru Jesus the Son;
but purer, and higher,
and greater will be
our wonder, our transport,
when Jesus we see.

Happy Thursday

Greetings and Salutations. Hi from sunny Kampala. Actually, it's the rainy season again. That means that once or twice a day we get a thunderstorm. Last night we had a bad one. I was at the church attending the midweek service. Everything was going great...until the pastor wanted to start preaching. That's when the storm hit. I have never seen such an amount of water streaming down from the sky before. It was actually coming in the closed window. Ok, that isn't so hard to imagine. Any framer out there could tell you that the builders failed the tar paper test. The windows obviously were not sealed correctly. The power went off and everything. Well, Pastor Brian wasn't going to let a little thing like lack of power stop him from preaching about David and Bathsheba. I mean, the power is off half the time anyways, so he's had lots of practice talking with a raised voice. It was a great sermon too. Anyways, to make a long story short, we didn't get power until about 3 in the morning. I know, cause I woke up from a light suddenly blinding me while I was trying to sleep. The hallway light came on. It's hard to remember to turn off all the light when the power has been off for about 30 hours. Well, have yourselves a great day.
God Bless.

P.S. I just was looking at cbc.ca for the news and read a story that a church here in Kampala collapsed in last night's rainstorm. If you would like to read it yourself, here's the address: http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/03/09/20060309-churchcollapse.html

Youth Group

Hello and a very good Tuesday to you. Seeing as today is power on day, I can update my blog. So Friday night I was invited to help supervise at a youth group. The teens who attended were from the international schools here. I have to admit, I had quite forgotten what a bunch of teenagers sound like when together. I guess one word that comes to mind is LOUD, but that doesn't really do it justice. We had a topic/Bible Study to start. The teens broke up into three groups (13-15 boys, 13-15 girls, and everyone else). I got to go with the 13-15 year old boys. Man, those guys were hard to keep on topic, which, by the way, was worry based on Matthew 6. Arguments erupted over who was better, Arsenal or Chelsea (English Soccer League) and who's hairdo was wacky or nice. The Bible Study was the quite part. Next came the games. I forgot how serious games are to teenagers, especially when it's girls vs boys. Everyone had to make 2 paper airplanes and then the girls lined up on one side of the room and the boys on the other. We threw airplanes back a forth and when the whistle sounded, the team with the least amount of airplanes won. Well, you would think that it was the 2000 US election in Florida all over again, with all the recounts demanded and accusations of cheating. In the end, the boys won once and the girls won once. I was also initiated into the group. I was led to a table with 3 bananas on it. Three of us were blind-folded and told that we were to race and see who could find the banana and eat it. Well, they un-blind-folded the other two but kept mine on. When they told me this and I didn't react they were quite disappointed. I would have gladly obliged to feigned indignation if they had told me what was to happen beforehand. Their loss I guess. Have yourselves a wonderful day, and never forget what a room-full of teenagers sound like just in case you find yourself in such a room one day.

He Reigns

Praise God and a good Sunday to you. Today is going very well here in Kampala. I got to wake up nice and early and go to church. I love going to church. Today's sermon was on 1 Timothy 6:17-21. Pastor Brian talked about what we should do if we are blessed with money. First of all, we are not to become high minded if we are richer than someone else (and he pointed out that everyone has more money than someone else). We are to not trust in uncertain riches but to put our trust in God alone, He is the living God who gives all things to us. If we are rich, God wants us to give. We don't give because we have to but because we love God and want to give to Him. God doesn't need our money. He owns all the cattle on a thousand hills. Also, we are to be cheerful in our giving and willing. Giving gets our focus off of materialism and onto the work of GOd. That is when we can be truelly blessed.

I want to share a song with all you about the unity of the world-wide church. I was listening to it on the way to church today and it really made me appreciate how the church is united under one God and Savior.

He Reigns - Newsboys
It’s the song of the redeemed
Rising from the African plain
It’s the song of the forgiven
Drowning out the Amazon rain
The song of Asian believers
Filled with God’s holy fire
It’s every tribe, every tongue, every nation
A love song born of a grateful choir

It’s all God’s children singing
Glory, glory, hallelujah
He reigns, He reigns
It’s all God’s children singing
Glory, glory, hallelujah
He reigns, He reigns

Let it rise about the four winds
Caught up in the heavenly sound
Let praises echo from the towers of cathedrals
To the faithful gathered underground
Of all the songs sung from the dawn of creation
Some were meant to persist
Of all the bells rung from a thousand steeples
None rings truer than this

And all the powers of darkness
Tremble at what they’ve just heard
‘Cause all the powers of darkness
Can’t drown out a single word

When all God’s children sing out
Glory, glory, hallelujah
He reigns, He reigns
All God’s people singing
Glory, glory, hallelujah
He reigns, He reigns

Welcome to the update website of Mike Neels and his Ugandan experience. The more I have to update this blog, the harder it gets. I guess that I've settled into my routine here and things are not really new any more. Which is actually pretty cool when I start thinking about it. It means that God is really helping me to fit in here. Or maybe it just means that I'm used to sticking out like a sore thumb. Either way, I'm having a great time here getting to know the kids and what makes them tick, participating at church and getting some good friends, as well as getting climatized to the weather here. Although the last part isn't as hard as it seems. I'm having a great time and really thank all of you for your support in prayer, finacially, and sending me emails about what is going on back home. God bless.