Favor of God

Staff

Aciro Susan

Ministry: Women’s Prison Ministry; Cook; Housekeeper

In Africa, a village is comprised of an extended family and a group of villages, all nestled near one another, all further extensions of that same family. In the evening, as family members return from cultivating the fields, they gather under the wang-oo (open, thatched-roof cooking/ gathering place) to greet one another, laugh and share stories of the day, as the smoke from the cook fire rises lazily through the gathering dusk. Susan has never known such a peaceful and traditional life.

Born in 1982, Susan was 14 years old when she and her 16-year-old brother were abducted by the LRA and forced to become child soldiers. Her elder brother, age 30, was killed during that attack. During their training in the LRA, Susan and her brother were beaten and brainwashed by their captors in order to ensure that they would kill on command. Anyone who resisted the LRA in any way was shot on the spot or beaten to death. Child soldiers were sometimes required to raid their own homes and kill their own family members.

The rebels often accused Susan of being born-again, but even though she had been miraculously healed through the prayers of a Christian when she was 12, she denied their accusations because no one had ever told her how to be born-again. Nonetheless she knew enough to cry out to God to let her survive and be returned to her family. Susan knows what it means to run through battlefields calling “Jesus, Jesus” while the bullets were flying all around her. She believes that she would not be alive today were it not for God’s care and protection over her.

About a year after being abducted, Susan and her brother were in a battle in Sudan that lasted about 6 hours before the LRA started to withdraw. Her brother was shot and wounded and Susan delayed her withdrawal in order to assist him. He died quickly and Susan, together with about 15 others, was captured by the SPLA (Sudanese army). The Sudanese army delivered the captives to the Ugandan government and they were taken to the World Vision Children of War Rehabilitation Centre in Gulu, where they lived for three months. There, Susan received counseling and more importantly, gave her life to Christ and was fed with the Word of God. Susan often felt suicidal during her ordeal with the LRA, and even during her rehabilitation; but she has found forgiveness through the love of God so that she now celebrates the life she has been given.

When asked for a summary statement of what God has done for her, Susan praised Him for how He has brought her through so many difficult circumstances alive. She also rejoices that, even with no formal education and living in an area of high unemployment, she has work. God has answered her heart’s cry with a job that enables her to reach out into the community and tell others about the wonders of His love and forgiveness. And for herself? Susan is praying for a home of her own.

Adong Jennifer

Position: House of Hope’s Assistant Children’s Workers’ Supervisor.

My father died when I was young and I felt very bitter about not having a dad; even to the point of thinking about hanging myself! My step-father did not provide for me as he did for his own children. For example, he refused to pay any of my school expenses and this intensified my feelings. But in 1997 I began learning about eternal life and why Christ died for me, and I gave my life to Christ. I also forgave my step-father and God even healed me of a cough that had attacked me periodically. I love to sing and began praising my Savior through song!

I thank God so much for rescuing me from certain death at the hands of the rebels. One day the rebels abducted several of us. As they were debating with each other about whether to kill us quickly or to torture us by cutting off our body parts, the government soldiers began to attack them and we were rescued. My family has suffered much because of this war, though. Two of my brothers have been killed and my younger sister was shot. But I have survived under God’s wings of protection.

By God’s grace, I found the means to finish the general course of study in secondary school. I wanted to become a teacher so I applied to university. However, my grade twelve exam results did not meet the university’s requirement and I found myself praying for a job. My friend, Grace, asked me to help with the cooking for a pastor’s retreat that was being held at Favor of God Ministries. I agreed and it was that very day that the director, Carole Vezey, took an interest in me. After we had talked for quite awhile, Carole told me that Favor of God was planning to start an orphanage and she wondered if I would be interested in working with the children. I was more than delighted to say yes, for God had answered my prayer!

Akello Grace

Position: House Helper (“Mama”) - House of Hope

When I was a child, my father abandoned our family in order to marry another woman. He refused to help my mother in any way with the care of his children. Therefore I would have nothing to do with him. When I was older, I put my trust in Jesus as my Savior when He healed me of chronic malaria. I heard the Gospel, gave my life to Christ and believed He would heal me. He did! When I gave my life to Jesus and received His forgiveness for all of my sins, I was able to forgive my father.

Over the years that this war with the LRA has raged, God has protected us many times. On several occasions when the rebels entered our village, they never came to our house. My nephew was abducted by the rebels, but by God’s grace, he was released after spending a year in the bush. My extended family has survived abductions and attempted murder because we put our trust in God.

It is really by God’s favor that I came to join Favor of God Ministries. I had been selling things in the market but did not have enough capital to continue. I prayed and asked God to help me. Not long after that I received news that Favor of God needed house helpers at their orphans’ home. After applying for a position, I was invited to come for an interview. But on the day of the interview I lost the directions to their office! Again I prayed and, by God’s grace, I met Hope Onen, one of the founders of Favor of God Ministries. She took me to the office where I was interviewed and I was later recruited into the ministry.

Aloyojok Jackline

Position: House Helper ("Mama") - House of Hope

Because of the witchcraft my family practiced while I was growing up, we have suffered much violence and trauma. There were several attempts on my father’s life but he survived them all. During one of them, my sister and I were shot. My sister died but I regained consciousness on the very day of her funeral. Even though we moved to a different place, the attacks continued. However, when we put our trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, He delivered us completely. For me, that was in 1990.

Of course the pain of the war has affected my family, as well as all the inhabitants of northern Uganda. But I have continuously seen God’s protection over my life. One day the rebels came to our home but only took my father’s radio. They didn’t touch me. On another occasion, they abducted my brother. I was on my way to spend the night at his place when it happened. I saw the rebels and hid myself. They never saw me and I survived.

I was taking a tailoring course when I received the news that Favor of God Ministries was seeking children’s workers for House of Hope. I came, did the interview and I was hired to work at the children’s home.

Apiyo Jane

Position: Mission House Assistant
I gave my life to Christ when my alcoholic husband suggested that we go to church! Needless to say, I couldn’t believe he suggested that because our life was one of fights and quarrels. But I went with him and we both got born-again! Even before I got saved the LORD protected me and my family. In fact, throughout the war, God’s hand never ceased to protect me. Once, in 1991, the people of our village fled for safety because we heard that the rebels were coming. My family scattered into the bush but one of the rebels saw my father and me hiding out. When he pursued us we managed to hide again. By God’s grace the rebel didn’t even notice us even when we could see him clearly…only 30 centimeters away! He left the area without finding us or any of our family. The LORD even managed to protect us when my twins were born. They cried so much that even our friends didn’t dare to hide from the rebels near us. But apparently the rebels never heard them crying. I thank God for His protection.

Not long ago I asked the LORD for a job and believed that He would provide one for me. I was invited to interview at Favor of God and was hired! I thank God so much that, even when my husband cannot find work, the salary I receive meets our needs.

Auma Irene

Position: House Helper (“Mama”) - House of Hope
I was born in 1975 in Gulu, the third-born of nine children. My mother was a Christian but my father was not. My father abandoned our family when I was 7 years old and we saw very little of him after that. My mother worked very hard as she struggled to raise us and meet all the expenses of school, food, clothing and other things. She died when the five youngest children were still too young to care for themselves and the oldest was already married and out of the home. This made it very hard for the second-born and for me, but we managed to get all the kids raised.

Heartaches continued when my elder brother was abducted by the LRA, leaving me to act as the only “parent” in the home. Then my elder sister died following an operation related to childbirth. She left two children, including her newborn infant. The care of these additional children fell to me as well. It was so very difficult that I thought of committing suicide. Then one Sunday in 1991 I went to church where the preacher was talking about the second coming of Jesus. He quoted from Isaiah 24:1-6 and those verses went straight into my heart. I gave my life to Jesus and He immediately began changing my life.

The first change I noticed was that the several illnesses I had developed were healed. High blood pressure, stomach ulcers and back pain were gone. The LORD healed them! Later, when my younger sister died leaving two more children in my care, I found that faith was growing in my heart. I began praying that the LORD would give me a job or capital to start a small shop or business in order to have income to care for these orphans. One day I saw a man named Pastor Denis Ochana and the Holy Spirit assured me that I could confide in this man and he would pray for me. He did pray for my situation and talked with the director of Favor of God Ministries about the possibility of employment for me. There were no jobs for which I was qualified at that time, but I just continued to trust that God would provide for me and the children in my care.

Three months later Pastor Denis came looking for me, saying that Favor of God was looking for women to staff their orphans’ home – House of Hope – and asked if I would be interested in applying for a position. I did apply and after the interview process, I was invited to join the staff. I thank God that He has answered my prayer!

Ebil Godfrey

Position: Ministry Assistant
When I was in secondary school, we frequently received word that the rebels were coming to attack our school. The north had experienced several schools being attacked and the students being murdered or abducted. The most notable of these incidents was Aboke Girl’s School. Our school’s authorities didn’t want the same things to happen to us, so we would spend the nights in hideouts in the bush and come back to the school during the days. It was a very difficult time and we suffered from various diseases, especially malaria.

In September, 1999 I had gone to visit my sister in Tororo town and was invited to attend a youth overnight. It was on the glorious night of 11 September that I surrendered my life to Jesus. I just couldn’t help myself.

A few years later I met Carole Vezey and she encouraged me to undertake Bible college study at Sagala School in Entebbe, where she taught. She shared the vision of the work in the north with me and, when I finished my studies I joined the staff at Favor of God Ministries.

My vision is to see the people of northern Uganda spiritually restored and to see the next generation of Acholi children brought up in a strong faith and love for Jesus Christ.

Ejoku Charles

Position: Ministry Assistant
I was raised in a large family but I never knew my father. He abandoned our family when I was very young, leaving my mom and 7 children. Although the LRA rebel group was not a threat in eastern Uganda, where I am from, raiders from the Karamajong tribe were! When I was 9, Karamajong warriors came to our village from northeastern Uganda and raided our home. We fled to the bush and slept there that night because Karamajong warriors will kill you if they find you. When we returned to our home the next morning we found that the warriors had taken all our possessions, including our livestock. After repeated raids, my mother moved us to Tororo town for safety.

My mother was born-again but I did not give my life to Christ until I was 14 years old, during a conference presented by Scripture Union. After that I learned more about the LORD and began serving Him in my church and community. When Carole Vezey, one of the founders of Favor of God Ministries, came to Tororo she stayed in the guest house where I was working. She was astounded that I, a male, was doing a job that is traditionally reserved for females. We talked at length about Jesus and my dreams for the future. She began sponsoring me with my secondary “A level” school expenses and, when I finished, she invited me to work with Favor of God Ministries. I prayed about it and God confirmed that this was His will for me.

I am now beginning university studies which will prepare me to coordinate projects in the community. Every Saturday I conduct a Bible study for teens and would eventually like to minister to children and youth in a shepherding/pastoral role. I have a prophetic calling on my life as well that I’m asking the LORD to develop and use for His glory.

Hope Onen

Position: Supervisor - House of Hope Children’s Home
I grew up in a polygamous family with my mother being one of six other wives. When I gave my life to Christ in 1992 my father cut off all support for me and he refused to pay for my school expenses. Without skills or specialized education, I took jobs as a housemaid and a hospital cleaner. I quit both these jobs because of sexual harassment. Out of desperation I went to live in the IDP camp where my family was then living. Later I was able to complete a program in early childhood education.

It was not easy to survive during this time of civil war. In 1995 the rebels attacked our camp, burning huts and attempting to abduct us. We fled and they followed us to a Catholic mission where we had taken refuge. One of the nuns faced the rebels and successfully pleaded for our lives. However, I lost all my documents and other valuables in the destruction of our hut.

I met my husband, Martin, when he was lecturing at a university in Kampala. We had attended the same church in Gulu several years before. For ten years he had prayed for a wife that would complement his ministry-calling…a ministry partner. As we came to know one another we realized that I was destined to be that woman. We were married in 2002.

Carole Vezey came into our lives through Segala Bible School in Entebbe, where Martin and Carole taught. There was instant spiritual bonding between us and we began to pray together for the Acholi people and the situation in the north. At one of these prayer sessions, we began to share our separate visions. Carole had a vision to see prayer established. Martin’s vision was to train Christian leaders and mine was one I’d had for 12 years: to care for and train up children for the Kingdom of God. As we continued to pray, we realized that the LORD was blending those visions into one vision which He would accomplish in the north. In 2005 we returned to our homeland and founded Favor of God Ministries in Gulu.

Lamunu Harriet

Position: Accounts Assistant
I thank God for His mercy and grace upon my life. I was born in Kitgum District of northern Uganda, the first-born of four children: two girls and two boys. Our family moved south to Kampala in 1989, when I was about 6 years old. When I was 12 years old I heard the Gospel and gave my life to Jesus. I was the first of my family to become born-again, so I prayed for my parents fervently and told them about Jesus whenever the opportunity arose. They were born-again about a year after I was.

In the midst of the ups and downs of life, the LORD has been so faithful to me in my Christian walk. From the moment He gave me new life in Christ, He filled me with overwhelming joy in my spirit and gave me the ministry of praise. It is my greatest joy to praise and worship my wonderful LORD! So this year, when the funding failed for my accounting course at Makerere University in Kampala, I was able to praise Him because I knew that He would work it all out in His good time.

I came to know about Favor of God Ministries through a friend in Kampala, who is one of the board members of the ministry. He introduced me to the director, Carole, who interviewed me and offered me a position in the accounting department. I’ve been in Gulu with Favor of God for a little more than six months.

I love the Scripture found in Jeremiah 29:11 – “’For I know the thoughts I have toward you’, says the LORD. ‘Thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’” As I have followed Jesus He has spoken these words to me several times. And He has shown Himself faithful in bringing them to pass in my life. The latest example of His faithfulness is that I am now making arrangements to transfer from the university in Kampala to Gulu University in order to resume my accounting studies. He gives us hope and, in His time, takes us into His future when we love and obey Him.

Latim Fred

Ministry: Transportation
I was born here in Gulu District, second-born of six children. My family was religious but not born-again. The war really affected our family greatly. Our home-place is 4 ½ kilometres from Gulu town and the LRA rebels came through our property many times. Twice, in 1996 and again in 1999, they burned our house, fields, animals… everything! I was in secondary school during these difficult times and, even though I was a very good student taking the advanced program, I was forced to drop out of school to assist my family. By God’s grace I was spared from being abducted and my family was spared from being killed. My young friends and I slept in the bush and moved from place to place in order to avoid being captured. On one occasion we heard that the rebels were coming and we began running, narrowly escaping capture. When we returned to our village we found many of our relatives and friends murdered and beaten.

During this time (1998) I was plagued by a demon of fear. I found myself overwhelmed by fear and anxiety and I had some unexplained sicknesses. I asked my friend if he could help me and he referred me to some Christians who told me about Jesus. I put my trust in Him, gave my life to Him and was born-again. I was also immediately delivered from the demon of fear. The very next day my wife was born-again during a crusade in our city. God is so good!

In 2002 I began attending Glad Tidings Bible College in Kampala where I received my Diploma in Theology. I now pastor Four-Square Gospel Church here in Gulu. My wife and I have four children and we have dedicated them all to the LORD.

Psalm 37:4 reads: “Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart.” My life has not been easy but, when I got saved I placed my trust firmly in the LORD and He has proven Himself true to His Word. He has provided everything I’ve needed. As the song says, ‘He has made a way when there seemed to be no way’. For my part, I am always delighting myself in Him and He is imparting His grace upon my life. The longing of my heart… the vision and passion of my life is for the Body of Christ in Gulu to be united and to bring transformational revival to northern Uganda. I believe He has put this desire in my heart and I believe that He will accomplish it.

Onen Martin

Ministry: Principal, New Life Bible College
Martin is a member of the Acholi tribe, having been born in a village about 30 minutes drive from Gulu. His father, a government worker, had four wives and about 30 children. Martin’s mother was the second wife and he is the first-born among seven.

“My mom was my hero. She taught me so much about life.” His mom was the “anchor” of his life. Therefore, when Martin, (who was 18 and at boarding school at the time), was told of his mom’s unexpected death he was devastated. He entered a period of deep depression that lasted four years. During that time he couldn’t sleep and developed ulcers. One night, desperate and feeling like he had no hope, he cried out to the LORD: “God, help me or I will end this miserable life!” The next night Martin had a dream.

In his dream, Martin was in a very dark place. Suddenly he saw a light and heard a Voice calling his name three times. Then the Voice said, “You are blind but I am going to open your eyes.” When he awoke from this dream Martin felt full of peace and joy. That night, after watching the Jesus Film at his church, Martin asked Jesus to be LORD of his life and he received forgiveness for his sins and healing for his soul. He also received instant healing for the depression and stomach ulcers that had plagued him for so long. Martin told Jesus that he would never serve anybody or anything but Him and he immediately began to tell his school-mates about the LORD.

Over the years God has been faithful to open Martin’s spiritual eyes to the LORD’s sovereignty and will and, as Martin has faithfully followed his LORD, He has provided all Martin needed to continue fulfilling his calling. Martin’s father wanted him to study law or education at university but God had other plans. Although Martin knew that the LORD had called him to train Christian leaders, out of fear of his father he agreed to his wishes. While on the way to fetch his university admission papers, Martin heard an audible voice saying, “For how long, Martin? How long will you disobey Me?” Martin turned his bicycle around and told his father that he was going to go to Bible School. And for seven years of study, God provided for Martin without the help of his father.

After graduate school Martin began teaching in a Bible School in southern Uganda, where he met Carole Vezey. There was an immediate spiritual bonding between Martin, his new wife, Hope, and Carole. They began praying together for the Acholi people and the situation in the north. In 2005, having no idea what it would look like or how the LORD would work it out, Martin, Hope, their 2-year-old son and Carole headed north to war-ravaged Gulu, with a vision of raising up Kingdom leaders among the Acholi people who would bring the Kingdom of God to northern Uganda and the world.

God says in His Word: “The eyes of the LORD move to and fro, throughout the earth, looking for people whose hearts are fully His; so that He may show Himself powerful on their behalf.” (2 Chronicles 16:9) Martin Onen’s life is living proof of the truth of this Word. From the beginning of his walk with Jesus, the LORD has shown Himself powerful. Most recently, He has grown Favor of God Ministries from a prayer gathering in a living room in Kampala to a group of ministries that are having a tremendous impact for the Kingdom in northern Uganda.

When asked for a final word for the readers of this testimony, this humble man of God quietly said, “I have surrendered my life and my family to serve the LORD and to see a new breed of African leaders raised and equipped for God’s Kingdom. Please pray for us.” You can count on it, dear brother.

Joyce Ocan

Ministry: Intercessor; Mission House Supervisor
One doesn’t usually think of a small, quiet lady as a warrior. But that’s just what Ocan Joyce is: a spiritual warrior who regularly fights battles in the heavenlies for us and for the issues of northern Uganda. And she doesn’t quit until she senses in her spirit that the battle is won and God’s purposes have been birthed on earth.

Being raised in a traditional African home, Joyce heard about Jesus when Scriptures were read in her school. She loved hearing the Word of God and soaked it up into her inmost being. When she was 17 years old Joyce prayed to receive Jesus as her Savior and was born-again. She immediately began adding to the Scripture she had already heard by reading the Word of God regularly and enthusiastically. She filled her mind and heart with the Word of God.

From the very beginning of her life in Christ, God has spoken to Joyce by means of visions and dreams. In one vision, she saw herself walking through a field of thick, rich sugar cane. She then saw a lamb and very much wanted to touch it. Then she heard a voice behind her saying, “You are a soldier of God. Come and drink from the Water of Life.” She immediately turned toward the voice and saw a fountain of water bubbling up from the ground. As she approached the fountain, a hand with a silver cup full of water appeared. The cup was put to her lips and she drank deeply. Joyce was immediately filled with a deep peace and she knew she had been changed. She was, indeed, a warrior of the LORD!

Because of the war, Joyce and her family moved to Gulu and she became involved with Pastor Justine Laker’s ministry: Northern Uganda Prayer Centre. Through this ministry, Joyce and others were involved in the spiritual warfare that has brought the LRA to its knees and started the peace movement that is moving forward in northern Uganda. It was also through these prayer activities that Joyce came to be known by Favor of God’s leaders. When a position became available for which she was qualified, the leadership team recruited her.

Joyce works hard as she keeps the Mission House and its staff organized and moving forward. But her passion…her heart…is to see the Kingdom of God established in her homeland of Uganda and she will intercede with all that is within her until she sees with the eyes of flesh what she sees with the eyes of her spirit.

Ocen Benson .W

Ministry: Trauma Counseling Coordinator
I come from a very traditional Ugandan family, so I didn’t hear about God’s love and grace until I was in secondary school. As I grew up our lives were disrupted and traumatized by the civil war that was raging here in the north. Every family in Acholiland has been affected by this war in one way or another and our family was no exception. Throughout the pain and uncertainty of my young years, God protected me and enabled me to live and see the next day…even though I did not yet know His name. For this I praise Him! Then, when I was in secondary school a youth pastor told me about God’s great love and grace and on August 28, 1999 I gave my life to Jesus and was born-again. When I got to university I had the opportunity to travel all over Uganda, preaching and proclaiming the Good News about Christ.

In late 2005 the director of Favor of God Ministries, Carole Vezey, was speaking with my pastor, telling him about how the ministry was going and its needs. She asked my pastor if he knew of a young man who loved the LORD and could be trusted to carry part of the vision of FOGM. My pastor directed her to me and, after interviewing I was invited to join the staff.

As trauma counselors, my team and I seek to bring emotional and spiritual help and healing to those who need it. Our goal is to help people face and deal with traumatic and stressful life events and receive the forgiveness and wholeness that only Jesus Christ can give. I recommend this program to anyone affected by trauma because I have personally seen so many lives transformed through it. As for me, I forget about myself and my problems when I’m helping the people in the camps. It makes me appreciate my own life and seek ways to help others.

Ocen Denis .P.

Ministry: Portable Bible School Instructor
Denis was born and raised in Gulu until his father died and his mother remarried and moved to southern Uganda when he was a young teen-ager. Because of conflicts with their mother’s new husband, Denis and his brothers stayed in Gulu…essentially on their own. The next several years included many emotionally difficult moves between his step-father’s home in Entebbe and Gulu. At the age of 19 Denis developed a painful, swollen leg for which doctors could not find a cause. His mother brought him medicine from a traditional healer (witch doctor) in an attempt for a cure but to no avail. During the year that this condition lasted, Denis heard that Jesus could save and heal him. He went to a friend’s church and was prayed for. During that prayer Denis prayed, “God, if you are really there please heal my leg”. God healed his leg and Denis put his faith in Jesus as Saviour and LORD.

As Denis came to know God better and better, Jesus began speaking to him- “I love you and I will use you to bring healing and freedom to others, as you preach the Gospel.” Denis states that he then knew that he was no longer a person without a dad because God was his Dad.

Denis served the church and his community in southern Uganda in many capacities. Then the LORD began to speak to him about returning to his home in the north. This was during the war with the rebel group, the LRA, and life in Acholi-land was very dangerous. Denis wondered how he would survive but he knew His God is faithful and would accomplish His purposes in him and through him. Denis says, “Isaiah 45:5-6 confirmed to me that the LORD will guide me in everything I do.” In 2003, with the war still raging, Denis returned to Gulu.

True to His Word, the LORD has sustained Denis and his family in many and miraculous ways since returning to the north. And shortly after their return, the LORD gave Denis and his wife, Lucy, a wonderful gift: their daughter, Vivian, now nearly three years old.

While Denis has ‘worn many hats’ since coming to Favor of God in late 2005, he now is serving with the portable Bible schools; going out to the camps to equip believers to know their God and do great exploits for Him. And Denis is teaching the truth of the Scriptures with examples from his life experience. His latest exploit started when the LORD completely healed and delivered a notorious madman here in Gulu through Denis’ prayers. Four people gave their lives to the LORD as a result of that healing….then 10 more. Denis began discipling these new believers and in a short time Christians who had wandered from the LORD began to attend his classes and rededicate their lives to God. More healings resulted in more salvations and disciples and, finally, a church was born…with Denis as part-time pastor/teacher.

Denis wants to touch the heart of the Great Commission by making disciples of all nations. There are tears in his eyes as this lovely, humble man says, “Through His grace, God is fulfilling His word to me and enabling me to fulfil the vision and calling He has placed on my life.”

Ojera Geoffrey

Ministry: Prayer Coordinator
The civil war in Uganda has been going on for 21 years and has affected all of us in many ways. I was a young man when it began and I had spent my youth in discos and on the street, satisfying my fleshly desires and getting drunk.

But even when I did not know His name, God protected me. One day the LRA rebels abducted me and several other people. That night, when the rebels were in a deep sleep, we untied each others’ ropes and escaped. For three years we survived in hideouts in the bush. Sometimes we were up in the trees that the rebels were passing under as they looked for people to abduct or murder. Later some of my friends joined the army, thinking that in so doing they could end the feelings of humiliation they had suffered. However, they were killed in battle.

One day, when I was in Opit camp, I went to a church and heard about the love and grace of God for the first time. God convicted me about the futility of the life I was living and told me I could have a different life if I would repent and follow Jesus. I did repent and gave my life to Jesus and He began changing me. As I came to know my LORD better and better, he gave me a heart for the ministry of prayer. He taught me to pray and I found that it was only when I was before His throne of grace, pleading for the issues that he had put on my heart, that I was truly fulfilled. After some time, I heard about Favor of God Ministries from a friend, who brought me to the mission house. The director, Carole Vezey, and I spent some time talking about prayer and I began coming to the daily morning devotions with the staff. Later on I was asked to join the prayer department and I am now prayer coordinator.

Ojera Patrick

Ministry: Children
In 1999, at the age of fifteen, I was abducted by the LRA rebels. Through the use of beatings, torture and desensitization I was turned into a child soldier. The LRA commanders demand instant, un-questioning obedience and allegiance. We were trained to kill on command and I knew from what I’d seen done to other children and young people who did not comply with their demands, I would have to become what they wanted…or die.

The LRA commanders very carefully brainwashed new recruits by continually reminding us of what we had done. They told us that they would kill us if we tried to escape. And on the small chance that we succeed in escaping, our families would not take such horrible people back. They also assured us that, if we surrendered to the government, the soldiers would execute us for our crimes. They made us believe that there was no way out. As time went on, I earned the trust of the LRA commanders and was allowed to move about unsupervised. After some years I began to hear that the government of Uganda was offering amnesty to child soldiers who would come out of the LRA and go into rehabilitation. As I thought about this, I decided that anything was better than the life I was in. In 2003 I simply walked away from the LRA and surrendered.

I was taken to the World Vision Children of War Rehabilitation Center in Gulu, where I was given emotional counseling and medical treatment. It was at this center that I was told about the love and forgiveness that I could experience through faith in Christ, and I gave my life to Jesus. After leaving the rehabilitation center, I joined a church and started serving there. I love children so I worked with kids both at church and in the community, teaching them about Jesus. Martin Onen, one of the founders of Favor of God Ministries, got to know me even before FOGM was established. He introduced me to another of the founders, Carole Vezey, and she was very kind to me and treated me as if I were her son. When the ministry was officially established, I was the first children’s worker. I love working with the kids at House of Hope and in the community, but my favorite ministry is the children’s choir that I started. allowed to move about unsupervised. After some years I began to hear that the government of Uganda was offering amnesty to child soldiers who would come out of the LRA and go into rehabilitation. As I thought about this, I decided that anything was better than the life I was in. In 2003 I simply walked away from the LRA and surrendered.

I was taken to the World Vision Children of War Rehabilitation Center in Gulu, where I was given emotional counseling and medical treatment. It was at this center that I was told about the love and forgiveness that I could experience through faith in Christ, and I gave my life to Jesus. After leaving the rehabilitation center, I joined a church and started serving there. I love children so I worked with kids both at church and in the community, teaching them about Jesus. Martin Onen, one of the founders of Favor of God Ministries, got to know me even before FOGM was established. He introduced me to another of the founders, Carole Vezey, and she was very kind to me and treated me as if I were her son. When the ministry was officially established, I was the first children’s worker. I love working with the kids at House of Hope and in the community, but my favorite ministry is the children’s choir that I started.
allowed to move about unsupervised. After some years I began to hear that the government of Uganda was offering amnesty to child soldiers who would come out of the LRA and go into rehabilitation. As I thought about this, I decided that anything was better than the life I was in. In 2003 I simply walked away from the LRA and surrendered.

Okema James

Ministry: Maintenance Supervisor
My life was transformed in 1965 when Rev. Canon Ojara preached in the Bible class I attended. The Holy Spirit convicted me of my sin and gave me the desire to repent. When the preacher gave the alter call I was the only one who stepped forward, knowing the new course I wanted to take. I was quite young when I came to the LORD. Trials and temptations have come my way since I had become an orphan even before I had surrendered my life to Jesus. At 17, I started taking care of 32 children. The war in this region stabbed me in the back but I thank God that I still stand to praise Him! I was abducted 3 times by the rebels. But the same hands that abducted me were the hands that set me free! The last time I was set free, on my way home I entered an ambush laid by the government soldiers. I found myself just preaching and declaring to them that no bullet would harm me since I was returning home in peace and they stopped advancing on me. The testimony is endless if I were to narrate God’s goodness to me!

I got to know about Favor of God ministries when I began studying at New Life Bible College. Later, I was approached by the Principal (Martin Onen) and asked if I could help with driving and using the gifts that God has given me to serve in the ministry, and that is what I have done.

My vision is to reach people with the gospel of Jesus Christ through my work at Favor of God Ministries.

Olum Ceasar .O.

Ministry: House of Hope Security
Born in Gulu to a Sudanese father and a Ugandan mother, Cesar was raised in a religious home but did not believe in Jesus as his Savior until later in life. As a young man he was a friend to Bishop Okello Tom, praying with him and doing acts of charity, but he still had not put his trust in Jesus. Some years later, he was in a road traffic accident where the commercial mini-van in which he was riding rolled several times, killing six people. As the van rolled over and over, Cesar prayed to God as he lost consciousness. Suddenly he found himself in a round room filled with people, being led by a young boy. A man dressed in white said to the boy, “Why have you brought him here? He must go back.” And then he regained consciousness, still in the wrecked vehicle.

The civil war in Uganda has affected Cesar and his extended family greatly. He has lost two brothers and two sisters, a cousin, a nephew and three half-siblings during rebel raids. Some years ago he sent his daughters to Kampala for safety.

Cesar’s ministry to House of Hope is much more than his main responsibility of night watchman. He can often be found puttering around the grounds on his own time, raking or digging a garden or doing some other task that will serve to improve the lives of the children.

Cesar is married to Esther and they have seven children.

Onencan Francisco

Position: Administrator
I was raised in a polygamous home where my mother was not the principle wife. When I was a teenager my father died leaving me with no protector. When his most powerful widow decided that she didn’t like me because I was getting better grades in school than her son, she forced me to leave the home and live on the streets. It was a miserable existence, constantly looking for food and a place to sleep that was safe. I have been shot at on several occasions and one time robbers beat me and held a gun to my head. As they pulled the trigger I shouted, “Jesus!” and the gun did not fire. That’s when I knew that I must trust Jesus as my own Savior and give Him my life.

There is no free schooling in Uganda at any level so, in order to continue going to school after I had been expelled from my home, I had to work. Thus I worked at any odd jobs I could find in order to have the money needed to continue my education. Whenever the rebels came to our school with the intention of abducting some new “recruits”, my friends and I would climb up into the ceiling and hide. Some of my friends who were abducted and forced to become rebel soldiers came to try to talk me into joining the rebellion. But they came in vain because I was committed to living for Christ and had seen His mighty hand of protection over me.

The Scripture reads: “For with God nothing shall be impossible!” (Luke 1:37) When I feel like the world is collapsing all around me, I put my faith in the LORD and His Word. I pray to Him fervently and He always opens a door to bring my deliverance.

After finishing university, I prayed and fasted for regular employment so that I could care for the children of my late brother. And the LORD brought two opportunities my way! One position was with World Vision and one with Favor of God Ministries. After much prayer, I chose Favor of God because I believed that working here would better enable me to fulfill the vision God has put in my heart: to preach and teach the Word of God and to work with children, helping to raise up a generation that fears the LORD.

Oroma Florence

Ministry: Mission House Helper

Because my mother could not afford to care for me after my father died, I was raised as an orphan by other family members. Later I married and gave birth to five children. After 17 years of marriage, my husband rejected me and married another woman, so my brothers came and took me back to our home village. Some people tried to convince me to try to interfere with my husband and his new wife, but I refused.

My son, Komagum, was born with a severe birth defect. He never matured…he remained like a small infant. At the age of three years he could not sit or stand by himself and he had to be assisted with all his bodily functions. I took him to a traditional healer, but the witchdoctor’s medicine did not help him. I got to the point where I could not cope with the demands of his care and there are no options here in Uganda. I was at my wits end. Then a lady shared the Gospel with me and I decided to believe in Jesus and surrender my life to Him. I returned all the things the witchdoctor had given me, declaring that I was now a follower of Jesus Christ. Then I prayed intensely for my son for a period of five months. And God healed my boy!

The war has affected me as well. One day when I had quarreled with my husband, he took me deep in the bush and left me, where I was prey to the rebels. I trusted in God and the rebels didn’t abduct or kill me. Then there was the scary day when the rebels wrecked havoc in the whole village…but they didn’t touch my house! The next morning, I found they had left some soap and sugar at my doorway. Oh thank God!!

Initially, I worked with another ministry here in Gulu but there was a lot of confusion at that ministry which upset me a lot. I asked God if He would allow me to serve with a ministry that is peaceful. I thanked God that He answered my prayers when I was invited to work at Favor of God Ministries.

Oyite David .R.

Ministry: Technical Supervision, Children, Graphics Design

So many people in northern Uganda have exciting testimonies of being saved by the LORD from the evils of the war or the dissipation of sin. My testimony is less dramatic but equally valid. I was well brought up in a Christian home and confessed Christ as my Savior and LORD in 2003. My family, through their testimony and example, brought me to the LORD. Since that time He has been revealing more and more of Himself to me…His character…His heart…His Kingdom and will. And as I have humbled myself and followed Him, He has been molding me into the man I am destined to be. I thank God for His mercies toward me. They are fresh and new every morning. Great is His faithfulness!

God has been so gracious to me and to my family in keeping us safe throughout this war. I thank Him for His arms of protection around us all. As the war has been raging all around us, none of my family has been abducted nor harmed. I, and my friends, did face some persecution in my secondary school for preaching the Gospel to our fellow students and many of us were expelled. But this only served to make me stronger in my faith and commitment to the LORD. I have experienced His protection, provision and guidance just as He promised in one of my favorite passages of Scripture: Psalm 23.

I got to know Favor of God Ministries when it was only God’s vision in the hearts of Martin and Hope Onen and Carole Vezey. When they first began establishing the ministry in Gulu I was a student at the university. They requested that I come to give a helping hand on the computers and electronics. I did so, on a part-time basis at first. After graduation I joined the ministry full-time.

Madrama Peter

Position: Field Office Coordinator
Peter was raised in a “religious” family but was not born-again until he was an adult. During his teen-age years he sought the intervention of a witch doctor on two occasions. After secondary school he entered the Ugandan Police Academy and heard a clear presentation of the Gospel, through his trainer. However he did not accept the LORD as his personal Savior until 1991 when a fellow-officer directed him to Matthew 11:28: “Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and I will give you rest.” Peter knew he was laboring under a load of sin and that he had been unable to find rest for his soul in any other way. It was then that he repented and asked Jesus to come into his life and he was born again.

Peter continued to grow spiritually and in 1992 he began serving the LORD full-time with his church: Miracle Centre in Kampala. In 1998 he joined Campus Crusade for Christ Uganda, and a few years after that the LORD moved him to Africa Resource Ministries. It was through A.R.M. that he met Carole Vezey, the director of Favor of God Ministries, in 2005. Peter knew immediately upon meeting Carole that they would someday serve the LORD together. In August 2006, that happened when Peter joined the staff of Favor of God.

Peter says his life is all about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and he most enjoys developing and equipping leaders for the work of ministry. In his present position he oversees all off-campus activities, such as portable Bible schools, trauma counseling, prayer events, evangelism and crusades. He would like to see FOGM sponsor more crusade events in the future. 2 Timothy 2:2 sums up the passion of Peter’s life:

“And the things you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Peter is married to Matilda and they have three boys: John, age 16; Jonathan, age 7; and Joram, age 4. Peter commutes over 200 miles every week-end to be at home with his family.

Pimer Amos

Position: Portable Bible School Field Coordinator

I was born in northwestern Uganda, in Nebbi District, and was the third-born of nine children. Our family was religious but not born-again. When I was 23 years old I had a series of three dreams, on three consecutive nights. Each of these dreams was about Jesus. In the final dream, I was told to preach to a group of people who were dead. Even though I did not know any thing about Christ or the Bible, when I opened my mouth to preach, the following words came out: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) And all the people came alive! The next morning I went to church and surrendered my life to the LORD.

I went to Bible schools in both Kampala and Entebbe and received a diploma in Christian Ministry. After graduation I began teaching at the Bible school and taking the curriculum out to rural places (portable Bible schools). I got to know Carole Vezey and Martin Onen, founders of Favor of God Ministries, when we were teaching at Africa Resource Ministries in Kampala. Later, when they moved to Gulu and started this ministry, Carole contacted me and asked me to pray about joining the staff as a Bible teacher. I did pray about it and the LORD confirmed this calling. Being from a northern district of Uganda, I felt like I would be “coming home” if I went to Gulu and that I would be teaching “my people”. I joined the ministry in May 2006.

Personally, the LORD has blessed me in giving me a wonderful wife and four lovely daughters. The name “Pimer” means blessing of God and our family has been one of His greatest blessings. Therefore, we have all taken the name Pimer: My wife, Pimer Alice and our daughters, Pimer Gladys, age 16; Pimer Esther, age 8; Pimer Deborah, age 5 and Pimer Monica, age 1. My wife is a true woman of excellence and is very supportive of my ministry. I pray that all my daughters will also be women of excellence and come into their destinies in Christ.

As for the vision God has given me, immediately after accepting Christ, the LORD gave me the heart of a pastor and the desire to equip men and women to shepherd His sheep. Through His Word in Mark 3:14, John 4:35, 36, Habakkuk 2:2 and 2 Timothy 2:2, the LORD has given me the vision to equip, disciple and train Ugandan pastors and see them planted in churches in the north. The name of this vision is: “Vision for Rural Pastors” and by His grace, strength and wisdom I will see this vision become a reality.