Before moving to Uganda, I had never heard of Steps to Freedom in Christ by Dr. Neil Anderson. And I had never walked through the steps myself to be set free of past hurts, sin, and bondage that I never really realized I still carried. It wasn’t until we moved to Uganda, and I wrestled with my identity, I let insecurities overcome my thoughts, and I started to see the negative impact I was having on my family, friends, and my own spiritual walk. When I started with the first women in discipleship group, I wanted to join and not lead. I was very happy to sit back and watch, letting another very capable missionary lead. But because of different circumstances, and honestly God pushing me, I began leading the group with a Ugandan co-leader. It was hard. It was frustrating. It was ugly. It was GOOD! It was amazing to watch how God transformed these ladies’ lives, and mine as well. It was encouraging to be in His Word, sharing with others who are very different from me but who were also having similar struggles with living out their faith. God was present.

As part of the Discipleship Journey, my co-leader and I meet with one woman at a time to go through Steps of Freedom. It’s an intense time of sharing, confessing, prayer, and proclaiming God’s Truth. It’s powerful and we have seen God overcome so much in each of the women’s lives time and time again. It’s not an easy day together, but it is so beautiful to see the freedom each woman receives. I also walked through the steps myself before I led the ladies through the process (“you cannot lead where you do not go”), and it was amazing to see how God revealed things in my life that needed to be dealt with. It is also amazing to see how the Holy Spirit continues to work in my life to change me.

During Steps to Freedom, we deal with past sexual sin, abortion, rape, incest, and so much more that I never imagined I would talk about freely with people. We talk about those who we need to forgive and what that means. It has been challenging to both myself and the women to realize that forgiveness is not easy, and it is an ongoing need throughout our journey to spiritual maturity. We also deal with an aspect of culture and life here that I know is in America, but not to the same extent. We deal with witchcraft, casting off curses, ancestral worship and sacrifices, demons, and so much more. It has challenged and strengthened my faith. It has reminded me of the power and importance of prayer. And it has shown the truth of Matthew 12:43-45 that if we don’t fill our heart and soul with the Holy Spirit, more evil will come to fill us.

I have too many stories to share, and out of respect for the women who shared them, I will not go into any specifics, but my eyes have been open to a spiritual battle that has always been around us – I was just ignoring it and pretending it didn’t affect me. Ephesians 6:12 is so true: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

As my co-leader and I continue to walk through Steps to Freedom with the women in this new discipleship group, please pray with us and for us. Please pray for God’s freedom to release these women from the chains of bondage in their lives. Please pray that God continues to move in mighty ways here in Uganda. And if you want to know more about Steps to Freedom in Christ or want to walk through it yourself, please visit this website for more details: https://www.ficm.org/steps-to-freedom-in-christ/.