Aeri’s weekend report

Monday, July 19, 2010

Dear Community,

This past Saturday, I was invited to speak at a worship conference organized by a worship training ministry called, Streams of Worship Ministry Africa (SOWMA) which was founded by my former RTC music student and friend Bosco Andama. Bosco was only a teenager when I first met him in 1997, in high school and working for the RTC missionaries. When I next came to Uganda in 2001, he was enrolled as a music student at RTC, proving to be one of my most musically gifted students. Since graduation, he has steadily grown in his reputation as an extraordinarily gifted music teacher and worship team trainer all over Kampala, and Kenya where he was a missionary for 2 years. He currently works at his church in Kampala, and teaches at RTC, as well as heading up SOWAM, in working with area church leaders to train their worship teams.

The day began with the gathering of the worship team that was to be the leaders of all of the worship sessions that were to intersperse the 2 main teaching sessions. I was asked to speak on ‘the role of music in worship’, addressing the common phenomena in many African worshippers to mistake music as worship itself, and on the other side of the spectrum, the tendency to make worship into religious entertainment, 2 situations that may not be so uncommon in the US as well.

Along with me, the other speaker for the day was Emmanuel Candia (pronounced ‘Chandia), a wheel chair- bound (from childhood polio) lawyer, a long-time friend of Bosco, a self-taught Bible scholar with an impressive working knowledge of Biblical Greek, a passionate worship leader, a faithful man of God, and apparently a powerful speaker. He spoke on the topic of ‘bearing fruit’ as worshippers, as he reflected on the text of John 15 (“I am the vine, you are the branches….). I left RTC at 7am, and did not return until 11pm, thoroughly exhausted, but full of gratitude.

The lady kneeling in the front is May, Bosco’s wife, currently remaining with 2 weeks until her due date, to deliver a baby girl, to be named “Gracious”, who will be their third child. Imagine leading worship when you are 9 months pregnant! The rest of the worship team members come from various area churches and Bosco’s current and former students. Tomorrow evening, I plan to visit Bosco’s home in the suburbs of Kampala, where he lives with his family of 4, his in-laws, and 3 of his music students that he is currently housing (and discipling, from what I can gather).

 

RTC music students are pressing on in their third week of intensive classes with me, already having to face exams next week. Pictured on the right are my second year students flashing a rare smile in my music theory class. I say ‘rare’ because most of the time they are frowning in concentration, or is it consternation?!? Modeste, the one whose foot is now completely healed is the skinny young man in the second row with a white shirt and grey checkers. I hope to teach you a song he composed when I get back.

The upcoming weekend looks as though it will be very full. Silver will likely travel from Kumi to see me, I will visit Veronica and Solomon, Anne Nyarangi’s younger siblings, I hope to make an appointment to interview Sylvia Achana, the lady who heads up UNEB (Ugandan National Education Board) to interview (it’s a homework assignment from Jenny, your fearless Sunday school teacher!) , and go shopping for all the requested items from friends in the US.

Then the following weekend, I’ll be heading back home. I look forward to seeing all of you soon.

Aeri