“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

Joshua 1:8

With this update I wanted to tell you about the crucial and unique part of our ministry that we call “Study Week”.

The Terebinth School of Discipleship (soon to be Terebinth Bible College) teaches pastors and church leaders through the entirety of Scripture. Every month our students gather from all over the Northern region of Uganda at our facilities for one week of classes. They come in on a Sunday night after they have taught their congregations that morning, they study through one or more books of the Bible (depending on the length of the book), then return home after their exams on Saturday. After three years each student will have read through 2-3 times, attended lectures on, and tested out of every passage of God’s Word! In all of this they learn how to interpret Scripture with Scripture, with an emphasis on the fact that all of it highlights the Gospel of man being reconciled to God through the life, death, resurrection, ascension and soon return of Jesus Christ. On top of that they are all equipped on different topics, including weddings/marriage, running funerals, shepherding, preaching, evangelism etc. We currently have two classes, both nine months into their journey.

As you can imagine this is a huge task that requires a team of dedicated people. We have 6 Discipleship Group Leaders who oversee the student’s discipleship directly, 3 pastors with other work in the organization who come in to lecture a little bit each teaching week and 3 missionaries (including me, Matt).

Every month these leaders gather all day for an entire week to prepare before teaching. We call this time “Study Week” and it has been the core of our school. From 9am to 5pm we sit together pouring over God’s Word, bouncing ideas back and forth, reading commentaries, planning lessons, and enjoying mutual edification. We read, we talk, we pray, we laugh and we are blessed. The Study Week is at the heart of our work because it keeps God’s opinions and directives above our own.

Praise God with us that:

• Our family has been strong and healthy.
• He is moving in our midst, edifying His flock.

Please join us in prayer that:

• God’s name will be glorified in everyone’s sight through the healing/equipping of His saints for the overseeing of His flock.
• For our students as they are currently making their way through the historical books of the Old Testament.
• God would make His shepherds strong and courageous to stand on truth.

Please be advised that our sending organization, Saving Grace World Mission, will soon be switching to a new online-giving platform in this New Year, which will affect ALL recurring donations. We will keep you updated throughout the transition.

In Christ,

Matt & Noelle Harris & Family