1. Making Disciples
Our primary objective is Jesus’ command to “go” and “make disciples.” We believe every follower of Jesus is equipped to grow in His love and lead others to follow Him.
From day one of Jean Ahabwe and John Ssentamu the DOCM founders had in mind the importance of the deeper life experience for every member. Engaging people at every age and stage of life was imperative so that the mission would go forward.
Not much has changed since then. We still embrace the call to reach everyone and bring them into this transforming relationship with Jesus. By encouraging, training, and providing resources and networking for church leaders, teachers, and workers we will see individuals equipped to make disciples for Jesus Christ.
The ministry is as specialized as the people we are wanting to reach. From multicultural groups to seniors in the prime of life, there are specific and God-honoring principles at play. We also desire to minister to children, youth, women, and men sharing the love of Jesus through relationship and care.
- Growing Local Churches
Our ministry blueprint is fully operational in local communities through efforts that include pastoral care, evangelism, discipleship, and church planting, as well as community, global, and multicultural outreach.
You’ve heard it before. But we think it bears repeating: The Church is God’s instrument to reach the lost. That’s why our energies and resources are poured into creating healthy, vibrant, communities of faith in Kamwenge and its neighbourhood. The work of completing the Great Commission is traced to the first gathering of believers and the Call has not changed.
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer…. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:42, 47).
Key Ingredients
Healthy churches: are typically filled with transformed, increasingly mature followers of Christ. This is why assisting believers to go deeper in their faith and equipping them to use their gifts and talents to win others to Him is such a high priority. Following those first models of community, DOCM brothers and sisters are committed to the growth of those in their care and modeling the nature of Jesus Christ both to the fellowship of believers and the community where they gather.
We have found several key ingredients that form an Acts 2 fellowship:
Quality Pastoral Care: DOCM members set the stage. Passionate to win the lost for Christ, they guide and counsel their respective flocks to go deeper in their love for Jesus, while training them to also be faithful stewards of the good news.
Devotion to Disciple making: Strengthening believers—at every age level, and from every walk of life—to know and love Jesus as Savior, Sanctifier, Healer, and Coming King is fundamental to DOCM.
Fervent Evangelism. A mature, transformed disciple is passionate to reach the lost with the good news. DOCM fellowships offer community outreach and door to door missions opportunities. A good litmus test for a healthy Body of believers is when they actively send—and support believers for the mission.
Church Planting. A natural outgrowth of a vibrant fellowship is to birth like-minded fellowships.
Mobilizing the Fellowship. A ministry body that is inspired, equipped, and resourced to reach the nations is vital to completing The Great Commission. This can be accomplished through an annual mission conference training.
Partnering with the Worker. A church/ministry body that is lead by a "vision-caster" facilitates strategic relationships between Kamwenge churches/ministries and other Christian workers overseas.
Mixed with a heavy outpouring of the Holy Sprit, these ingredients make for a winning Kingdom recipe—completion of the Great Commission.
- Planting Churches
In order for God’s Kingdom to multiply, healthy churches/ministries must plant new fellowships, resulting in compounded growth. A multiplying church/ministry also signals that it is comprised of healthy Christ-followers.
You probably know it by now. Completing The Great Commission is the primary objective of DOCM. We believe our best contribution to this achievable goal is to establish partnership with mission-sending churches/ministries, a biblical pattern evident in the life of the Apostle Paul. How do we accomplish this?
A Winning Equation
Our church-planting efforts focus on bringing unreached people to Christ. Building and empowering these new disciples—then releasing them to reach others—results in churches/ministry multiplying. This multiplying effect is critical to fulfilling our Lord's Great Commission.
There are many accounts of God’s plan being accomplished through the planting of churches.
“Church planting is not so much the objective of our work as it is the result of the multiplication of new believers, disciples, and leaders” — Rev. Bill Malick, Director of Church Planting Ministries
- Missions
As believers grow in their faith, some receive a call to full-time local or overseas missions service. Once DOCM confirms that call, the fully funded worker is received in Kamwenge to share the good news with those who haven’t yet heard or have heard little.
The means of our mission.
Intimacy with Jesus and incarnational living is how we help one another grow. This is shown in the lifelong valuing of one another. We thrive when encouraging others toward service in God’s kingdom and understand that living this life requires sacrifice. We trust God for what is humanly impossible and adapt as new doors of opportunity open.
The scope of this ministry reaches around the community, and it's in that context that we declare God’s glory. With a profound understanding of partnering with foreign and homeland churches, we collaborate with others of like heart, and passion to complete Christ’s Great Commission.
Knowing God’s kingdom will prevail, we are sold out in every area of our lives to accomplish his calling. We place the highest value on establishing indigenous churches/ministries that are self-sustaining and self-propagating. We know that Jesus is our model for relating to others and follow his compassionate care in word and deed for those he has placed in our path. As we live out the great commandment we hope to see growth in church plants and seek to train local leaders to take over the ministry.
How is the mission accomplished?
DOCM seeks highly trained men and women involved in establishing creative, evangelistic ministries such as "life issues” discussion groups and marriage enrichment conferences. They hope to engage in building innovative youth centers for after-school activities and study programs. It is basically living the gospel in relationship with others.
Partnership between DOCM and our career missionaries will always be a serious commitment reflected through full commitment and rigorous preparation.
Rigorous preparation. Apart from other volunteers, career missionaries are expected to arrive on the field with solid theological and mission’s training and at least two years of full-time ministry experience. They are also provided with a trainee who helps in the language and are equipped to engage people on a personal level.
- Short-term Missions
Sisters and brothers received through Short-term mission trips give DOCM people an opportunity to discover how God works to enrich the lives of others.
Short-term missions is a win-win for eternity. Participants typically return from the field with a deepened Christian commitment. Meanwhile, their efforts complement DOCM long-term ministries.
Dynamic Impact
Every year, partners and friends of DOCM send people travel to Uganda to participate in a short-term mission experience through cultural immersion. On these trips, they support DOCM long-term missions efforts and impact overseas churches/ministries in dynamic ways!
Are you interested in taking hold of what God has for you? Take the chance and get a taste of what God may be calling you to do by taking a short-term trip to DOCM. For more information contact the volunteer and mission coordinator today!
- Education
Jesus spent much of his time teaching and we take our lead from Him. Through coaching, primary and kindergarten education, leadership training, or theological preparation, people of Kamwenge are taught to live the gospel and equipped to take it to others.
DOCM will have a rich history of offering quality, Christian education in whole of Kamwenge District. From Christian Kindergarten schools to the primary schools we have seen that Christian schools are an effective tool for preparing Christians for church leadership and business administration that spark a passion among emerging leaders to fulfill the Great Commission!
These schools will mainly focus on the children of school going age but from poor families that can hardly afford paying for education and its requirements.
DOCM Schools will also help to…
Fully ground Christian leaders in our heritage, mission, vision, and convictions
Train future leaders in the deeper life and in missions, equipping them to disciple others and lead Great Commission churches/ministries.
- Camping
Several DOCM camp participants are expected to be won to Christ each year. Experiencing God’s creation and Christ’s love also offers unique opportunities to grow in their faith and be equipped for the “rugged life” of full-time service.
Global Outreach
Since our earliest days as a fledgling ministry, several people have made life-changing decisions for Christ through DOCM Camps. Using several approaches including sports camp participants return home with a renewed passion to go deeper in their relationship with Christ and bring hope to a hurting world.
We are praying that with the grace of the Lord, DOCM will be able to put in place camp calendar for each area so that youth and children don’t miss out on the mission to salvation.
- Relief & Community Development
In our broken world offering a helping hand often paves the way for a hurting individual to respond to Jesus’ love. Demonstrating God’s love in practical ways to those suffering from famine, disasters, and crises will always be DOCM’s trademark.
The Good Samaritan is what a good neighbor looks like. His story is also a great snapshot of what relief and community development, is all about. We hoping that wherever need arises DOCM people and partners will always be there to provide needed assistance.
Ministry to the Whole Person
We offer practical assistance to those in crisis, demonstrating the love of Christ to the whole person. A natural outgrowth of this practical ministry is to plant churches.
Opportunities
In addition to helping restore the lives of tens of thousands of men, women, and children devastated by poor infrastructure and lack of schools, health centres in the area, Our ministries today include:
Needy children and elderly programs
Clean-water development
Eradication of illiteracy
Microenterprise handicrafts projects
Medical missions
Mother /child community care
