May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.PSALM 90:17
Praise God! After years of planning, preparing, and patience, the Lord has given our school accreditation from the National Council of Higher Education here in Uganda! We are no longer Terebinth School of Discipleship, but are now officially known as Terebinth Bible College, the first and only accredited Evangelical Bible college in Northern Uganda. We strongly believe that it is God’s Word and His Spirit that truly equip His people to work in His service, not a piece of paper. However, we also know several benefits that come with this license. Firstly, seeking to meet higher standards is improving the quality of our product. Also, because of their love of formality, Ugandans will now have more respect for the education and discipleship they receive from us. Lastly, with accredited papers, the student’s churches will be safe from the likely coming of laws which threaten to shut down “unqualified” religious institutions.
As we mentioned in the last update, shortly after the graduation in April, our Academic Registrar, James Olonyo, was in an accident and severely broke his back. God protected him and brought surgeons who could repair much of the damage, and he is now, slowly but surely, on the path to recovery. Due to his level of involvement in the running of the school, his injuries have pushed the starting date for our next class from July back to September. While disappointing, this late start gives our team more time to develop courses. The matter of curriculum stands as a challenge for us, since our previous materials do not fit the required format, and since NCHE does not allow outside curriculum to be used in the school. Each school must develop its own original materials. That has kept Matt and the rest of the team very busy. Please pray for them to overflow with the same kind of vision and strength they had for developing the previous materials.
Terebinth Bible College will differ from Terebinth School of Discipleship in various ways. Firstly, we will be offering a Certificate in Christian Ministry (a 60-credit hour course), a Diploma in Biblical Studies (a 90-credit hour course), as well as a Higher Education Access Program to prepare students for college entry if they do not have the qualifications (think GED prep course). Time spent on campus will now be in larger chunks of time. Instead of 1 week every single month. Diploma students will study for five weeks consecutively, three times a year, over a two-year period. Certificate students will study for four weeks consecutively, three times a year, over a two-year period. Likewise, HEAP students will study for 4 weeks in a row, 3 times over the course of 1 year, for their prep course. Each student will also have homework between each of these modules. TBC also has caps of 20, 30, and 10 students for the Diploma, Certificate, and HEAP programs, respectively. Besides those, we will be offering classes that were not taught to past students, such as computer use, essay writing, and other various academic subjects. If this brings concern over those who are not educated and will not be able to enter the school, our heart is still with them, and we are working on how to offer classes in their local tongue, something we have not offered in the past. Pray for this aspect as well, since it would require more time and money.
Bible trainings in Uganda are now becoming plentiful, and many people are proclaiming the Word; however, it is still rare to find teachers or leaders who have read through scripture, understand context, and can explain a verse accurately to another person. While our school’s name and our standing with the Ugandan government have changed, our goal remains the same as before: to equip church leaders both spiritually and physically to do God’s work.
In Christ,
Matt & Noelle & Family
P.S. Thank you for your prayers for our friend Vivian. Unfortunately, we lost her early on May 30th. Please pray for her family as they mourn the loss of a daughter, sister, mother, and grandmother.
