Partnering to Serve the Lord in Africa

Imagine living where there are no medical facilities, no schools, no clean water …. but there is a deep hunger for God’s Word. Three thousand people do live in a place like this—it’s called Lyaabana, one of many small islands in northern Lake Victoria.

Just getting safely to one’s destination is a logistical challenge facing those who serve in the isolated islands of Lake Victoria.

Dr. David Ayer, a pediatrician and minister with Global Outreach, started traveling to these remote islands from his base in Jinja, Uganda, to give basic medical care and share the gospel with isolated people. Unfortunately, local canoe-type boats—the only available transportation—were dangerous and unreliable. The ministry needed a better, safer boat.

Dr. Ayer located a boat in Florida but needed someone stateside to evaluate it. He reached out to the Maritime Services branch at JAARS. Bob Haussler and Daryl Beltz agreed to inspect the boat and provide a recommendation. Their conclusion? The boat needed work but the “bones” were good. Dr. Ayer agreed to buy the boat and JAARS agreed to prepare it for service.

The boat INDEED needed work. Daryl Beltz summarized some of the repairs JAARS workers made: “We completely rewired the boat, replaced the gauges, installed new fuel tanks and mounted two new outboards. We knew the doctor needed a reliable boat.”

Now proudly named Islands of Hope, the boat successfully completed trial runs and was shrink-wrapped for the long journey to Africa. After the vessel eventually arrived in Uganda, JAARS worker Glen Adams traveled to Jinja to help launch the boat and complete its first maintenance.

The Islands of Hope boat exemplifies how ministries can partner together to spread God’s Word. Daryl Beltz well summarized the project: “This boat’s potential to touch people’s lives through Dr. Ayer’s ministry gave our team much satisfaction. Hopefully, this will be just the first of our efforts to partner with other ministries for the glory of God.”

 

Partner with us in sharing the life-changing Word of God with seeking hearts in Africa.