By Owen Sweitzer, Bible Runner
Our destination was the Nande sub-tribe that lived on the border between the Congo and Uganda, specifically the Rwenzori mountain range. The Kinandi Bible was commissioned in 1980 and completed in April 2016. To our knowledge, the Uganda Bible Society received its very first shipment in December 2023, with 800 copies purchased by Project Bible Runners. To reach the base of this mountain range, we faced a 12-hour bus ride to the end of the road. From the bus stop, we then took a motorcycle taxi (boda boda) for approximately an hour to reach the mountain’s base, where we would begin our ascent.
Each day, we climbed up and down various sections of the mountain to reach remote churches scattered throughout the range. Our boda boda drivers would drop us off and then return to home base to collect more Bibles, meeting us further up the mountain after each trek. Every night, we camped at a mountain church just to ascend even further to meet the next group of believers at higher altitudes in the morning. As the hikes lengthened, church members would come down to assist us in our climb. Many of these believers, predominantly women, insisted on carrying our bags – some weighing over 50 pounds – filled with Bibles.
The breathtaking views from the mountains were rivaled only by the joy of the people and their eagerness to serve their fellow believers, ensuring that the Word of God reached their villages. By the third day on the mountain, word had spread ahead of us that God’s written Word had arrived in the area.
While camping far up the mountain, we encountered our first opposition. “Nightwalkers” is the term used to describe a group of cannibalistic, Satan-worshipers who roam at night abducting people – often small children – to consume. Accounts from children who manage to escape their abductions confirm that victims were kept alive for three days. Satanic dances were performed each night before their ritualistic killing and consumption.
One night, the Nightwalkers moved around our camp all night, chanting ominously. A young members of our group, sleeping in the church, recalled seeing multiple figures leaning over him as he lay still in bed. As day broke and church members gathered by the call of a drum, whispers of last night’s encounter circulated throughout their village. God had protected us all. No one from our team or the village was taken, and the fear of the encounter was soon overshadowed by the joy of receiving full copies of God’s Word in their mother tongue.
We learned that the spoken word of God had first reached this region through a missionary in 1952, 72 years ago! We witnessed an extraordinary manifestation of the power of the spoken word of God, as this body of believers has continued to embody the two greatest commandments: demonstrating their love of God by loving each other. From that initial preaching of the Gospel, over nine churches and two Christian schools have been established, leading to thousands of believers, extending into four generations. Now, armed with “Swords,” we pray the Gospel will reach throughout the entire mountain range.
Project Bible Runners sole purpose is to reach those tribes and nations that already have Bibles in their languages, but do not have access to them or cannot afford them. This ministry is active in 26 countries and is a 100% volunteer organization. If you would like to help bring God’s Word to believers, please visit www.projectbiblerunners.com or www.facebook.com/projectbiblerunners to find out how you can get involved.
