Uganda (MNN) — Light Academy lives up to its name, shining the light of Christ in a spiritually dark region of Uganda.
The school, a ministry of Set Free Global, is a vital change agent. More about that here.
“There was nothing there 20 years ago, and now it’s one of the most prolific schools in the entire area,” Set Free’s Dean Vander Mey says.
(Photo courtesy of Set Free Global)
Although a school ministry wasn’t in Set Free’s original plans, believers followed the Lord’s leading. “It started with 42 orphans at a spiritual warfare conference,” Vander Mey says.
The local pastor told Vander Mey that orphans couldn’t attend school because they didn’t have the money to purchase necessary materials. However, “They figured out that if they stayed for the conference, they [could] eat porridge because they were starving.”
The work started small, with one teacher and clothing for the orphans.
“[The pastor and I] shook hands, and I said, ‘I’ll pay for the shoes, we’ll get a school teacher for $80 a month, and we’ll start a Christian school. He gave us his church facility six days a week, and the 42 kids came,” Vander Mey says.
“All of a sudden, their bellies were full, they had new shoes, new uniforms, and they were so excited they would run through the streets saying, ‘Jesus loves me.’”
Today, Set Free Global supports 11 Christian primary schools that enroll more than 4,500 vulnerable kids. “Those orphans are the army that’s come out of the ashes,” Vander Mey says.
“In Isaiah, it says, ‘I will give you beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning.’ That’s what we’re watching God do.”
Light Academy is a Christian high school that allows primary school graduates to continue the discipleship process. “They are excelling, and they’re intelligent. They want to be doctors, lawyers, and teachers,” Vander Mey says.
“They are setting a high standard for the rest of the body of Christ.”
Child sponsorship helps dreams come true. Find your place in the story here.
Header and story images courtesy of Set Free Global.
