GULU CITY, UGANDA — At age seven, Ochieng Francis already knows what it is like to fend for himself.

In his quest to survive in his poverty-stricken neighbourhood, he goes around his community in Gulu City, northern Uganda, Africa, looking for scrap wires to sell, not only to buy food for himself but to help out his mother and sister.

But on Sunday, September 3, 2023, when he went out looking for scrap wire, he found something very different — he found Jesus.

On that particular Sunday morning, Ochieng got up to go to the nearby church as he does every now and then, but his mother told him he could not go because his dress clothes were dirty and she didn’t have soap to wash them.

Ochieng decided that he would remedy the situation by going to the nearby field of Kaunda Grounds that ended a five-day conference the day before, in the hope of finding any scrap wire that might have been left behind.

Though he was only seven, he had already worked it out in his head that this would be a good location to find what he was looking for. He would collect the wire and sell to business owners willing to buy in order to get enough money for soap for his mother to wash. Ochieng’s father had died some time ago and it was difficult for his mother, who sometimes worked at a bar, to make ends meet for himself and his sister.

It was, therefore, no coincidence when Ochieng was spotted roaming around the grounds by David Lagen, who happened to be the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Agago County in that region. He himself had gone there to pray and give God thanks for the very successful conference that just ended the evening before. Neither Ochieng nor Lagen knew that this encounter would make a world of difference in the life of the seven-year-old.

Nor was it a surprise when the young child gave his heart to the Lord while still holding the scrap wire he had found in his hand.

It all started after a National Prayer Altar held from August 29 to September 2, 2023, under the umbrella of the Covenant Nation’s Church in Uganda, pastored by Patience Museveni Rwabwogo, daughter of the president of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

The conference was held in the community of Acholiland in Gulu under the theme ‘Light up Acholiland For Jesus 2023’ and the ground dedicated to God as a National Prayer Altar.

The five-day conference was attended by thousands from across the entire nation of Uganda, including leaders of some of the 53 clans that make up the nation. Pastor Patience — known to the country of Uganda as the ‘First Daughter’ — was among a number of leaders who ministered and prayed for not only the region of Acholiland but for the entire nation of Uganda.

After days of prayer, the land was saturated with the presence of the Almighty God, and the land committed back to Him after decades of turmoil and bloodshed. Clan leaders openly repented and asked for the forgiveness of those they and their forefathers had wronged. Confession and repentance ranged from the stealing of land from other tribes, to the kidnapping, rape, and murder of women and children.

One tribe even confessed the guilt of kidnapping babies, placing them in mortars and beating them to death with mortar sticks. On the last day of the conference, President Museveni himself came and prayed for the land and committed it to the Lord.

It was the desire to express gratitude on this very ground where such a magnificent experience occurred that brought Lagen back the morning after to give thanks to God. That was when he met Ochieng. It could be that the little boy too was led to the ground for that particular meeting.

“I saw him and asked what he was doing,” Lagen stated. “He told me he was collecting scrap wires to sell to get money to buy soap to wash his clothes for church and school. He said his mother cannot afford to support him and his sister and his father had died.”

But that day Lagen was not wearing his hat as an honourable Member of Parliament, he was there as a born-again and was moved with the love of Christ for the child. He sparked up a conversation as he tried to get to know the boy.

Ochieng then opened up and told him that he was a P2 student at the Gulu Prison Primary School. (The school was given its name because it was built to serve children of inmates in the Gulu prison; however, it had been extended to serve the wider community). He explained to Lagen that though his mother was a bartender she did not make enough money to take care of them, and as a result, he had to try to help out howsoever he could.

“It is amazing, the young boy was in the ground collecting pieces of wire and he told me he wanted to go sell and buy soap for washing his clothes,” Lagen explained. “He said his clothes were dirty and his mother didn’t have money to buy soap.”

Since it was the ground where God’s presence was so evident — even the day after the powerful life-changing conference, Lagen told the child about the love God and the child accepted Christ as his personal Lord and saviour, there and then. Lagen prayed for the boy — but didn’t leave it there.

“What I did was to share with him the love of Jesus first, then ask him what he wants to become in the future. Straight away he said he wanted to become a soldier. At his age, it was as if he already had a plan. So I pushed him a little and asked what about being a pilot, or a doctor… but he firmly said no, a soldier, mainly because soldiers were able to bring order and keep the community safe,” Lagen recalled. “I asked him about the problems of Acholi and immediately he identified that there was a lot of poverty, that people are suffering,” Lagen said.

A strong believer in James 2:14-17…which talks about faith without works is dead, Lagen gave the boy 20,000ugx with the instruction to purchase a bar of soap, a pair of shoes, and one kilogram of sugar. The child joyfully left the field and went immediately to buy the items. He later returned to meet Lagen once again in the field, this time he returned to show him the items he had bought and to return the change.

Not only did he return to show off his items, but his honesty, telling Lagen that he had spent 5000ugx for the kilo of sugar, 4000ugx for the bar of soap, and 7000ugx for the shoe that he was now proudly wearing. He also gave an account for 2000ugx which he spent on boda boda (a bike taxi) that he took to the town. After giving his account for the money spent, he handed the remaining 2000ugx back to Lagen. This, Lagen said, he gave back to the child for his honesty.

“I will be following up on the boy,” he said.

He explained that whenever he goes to the northern region of the country, which he does on a regular basis when not attending Parliament in Kampala — situated in the central region of Uganda – he will ensure that he visits the child and his mother and help them in whatever way he can. He will also be keeping in touch to ensure the child continues to walk with Christ, despite the hardship he has to live in.

Lagen said in most cases, children in that region who are orphans or in single-mother homes are not educated, as they often have to drop out of school to find a way to survive. He noted that the number of children in such situations were many and they often were the subject of abuse.

Before leaving the ground, Lagen witnessed and prayed with two other young men who also gave their hearts to the Lord. The young men confessed that they were school dropouts because of the poverty that they faced as children growing up.

“Northern Uganda is still facing grave challenges that need help and attention,” Lagen said. “So we have to do whatever we can to not only show them the love of Christ but to ensure that we get involved in any way we can to make their living conditions better. This takes the help of everyone joining together. Northern Uganda, particularly the Acholi subregion, still remains the poorest part of the county, and dropping out of school is a very common factor,” he explained. “Many young children drop out of school because of poverty. Many times they end up on the streets, in conflicts, or in trouble with the law.”