Over the summer, School of the Word based in King’s Church ran its first summer programme, a three-work course aimed at equipping those who want to deepen their knowledge of God’s word and be personally transformed to do the good works God has planned for their lives.

Twelve students from as far as Burundi, Kenya and Lesotho joined those from Manchester, Preston and York to study God’s word intensively. As King’s Church had the privilege of having these students in our Sunday meetings, Life in the Spirit and at Bible Week, I got talking to a few of them and was amazed at the things God is doing in their home countries.

Honda Nahimana from Restoration of Hope in Burundi told me how God is restoring orphans and street kids in Bujumbura, the capital. Because of the 10-year civil war in Burundi, the nation was left with 22,000 orphans – 3,000 of them in Bujumbura.

12 years ago, God spoke to him about reaching out to these abandoned children. Honda said: “One day, my wife phoned me and said, ‘Three boys are following me, what should I do?’ I said, ‘Invite them to our house’ and that’s how it all started.”

Within two weeks, Honda and Libby had nine children living in their home, making their meals and bringing them to school. “Our heart is to show God to these children,” Honda said. “They live with us and we’ve gotten to know each other.”

Soon their house got smaller, and Hope House was born. A year later, a second Hope House was built housing a total of 31 boys. But Honda’s vision is more than bringing these boys off the streets. It is to disciple them and to restore them to their families. He said: “We were praying and felt God told us to return the children to where they came from. Right now as I am speaking, we are already returning six children and these boys have been rebuilding their families’ homes.”

Sheila White from Living Word Church in York told me about a woman in a wheelchair who got prayed for and began to walk. She was one of three ladies who had come all the way to York from Withernsea after hearing about an outreach event at the University.

Sheila said: “This lady was prayed for her and she literally stood up. She hasn’t been able to walk for years. Her friend who brought her had bleeding in her eyes and since that time her eyes hasn’t bled. She didn’t even realise it until 24 hours later.”

David Lavery, who leads Living Word, now goes across to Withernsea every Friday to meet in the lady’s house. Since then, the ‘church in the home’ has grown to about 10 people.

Sheila said: “We are taking the church to them. These ladies are really hungry for God and are looking for more. It’s quite exciting for us as a church because it’s something out of the ordinary. God’s got some really exciting stuff coming up in York.”

What a privilege to hear these amazing testimonies from the summer school students. Let us be encouraged by the great things God is doing in different parts of the world and to continue praying for our brothers and sisters at home and abroad.

Habakkuk 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Wan Phing Lim

I looked upon Bible Week as part of my journey with God in developing my spiritual growth. It was also a time for me to get to know God and draw closer to Him. I went with a sense of adventure, curiosity and excitement and God did not disappoint.

Bible Week was a wonderful time and gave me the opportunity to engage with the fellowship in a social environment. At once I felt at home as there was a strong sense of unity based on meeting other brothers and sisters in Christ.

I found it encouraging to be amongst my family sharing the word of God. I got to know many that I had never noticed at meetings previously. The sense of unity, sharing and caring attitude was evident throughout the week – tent building, meal times and teabags! I was blessed many times over.

It was an awesome spirit-filled week and I had an enormous sense of joy, gladness and fulfillment. I felt equipped and empowered through the word that was brought during the meetings.

The weather ie. the rain did not extinguish the buzz of excitement and joyful spirit I felt within myself and around the campsite. I merely looked at this as God showering me with his many blessings.

I embraced Now Is The Time 2009 and felt proud to be a part of everything that was happening. I came away feeling uplifted with many memorable ‘kairos’ moments. It was one of life’s great adventures. I would recommend this to anyone considering the next Bible Week.

Shirley Denniser