“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.”
GALATIANS 5:1
OUR STORY
In early 2015, Musambi Moses, Rodney Richardson, and Jennifer Blackmon founded Ddembe Ministries in Jinja, Uganda. The three had come to know one another through years of working together with another children’s home, and when that home was unexpectedly shut down by its organizers, the three founders, along with their families, started Ddembe in order to rescue the children they had grown to love from the dire situations to which they had been abruptly returned. From the beginning, their desire has been to provide them with a safe, loving, and sustainable home environment.
“Ddembe” means “freedom” in the native Luganda language, and it reflects our desire to see tangible love generously given, to see hope restored, and to see those whom we serve know the freedom that is found only in Jesus!
While Ddembe has grown in its ministries and programs, our core desire is to do what we know God has called us to do—love his people.
OUR STATEMENT OF FAITH
We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God and were given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, all Scripture is authoritative, infallible, and inerrant. The Scriptures are fully sufficient and are the supreme authority, in all matters of faith and conduct. (Psalm 19:7; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21; Mark 13:31; John 8:31-32; John 20:31; Acts 20:32)
We believe there is one living and true God who is without division of nature, essence, or being, but who eternally exist in three persons and are equal in every divine perfection. They execute distinct but harmonious offices in the work of creation, providence, and redemption. (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3; Matthew 3:16-17, Matthew 28:19; John 4:24; Romans 1:19-20; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 4:5-6)
We believe in God the Father: an infinite, personal spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, power, and love. We believe that He foreknows infallibly all that shall come to pass, that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (Isaiah 46:9-10; Luke 10:21-22; Matthew 23:9; John 3:16, John 6:27; 1 Timothy 1:1-2, 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 1 Peter 1:3; Revelation 1:6)
We believe in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, who is fully God and fully man, and is the divinely appointed mediator between God and man. Having taken upon Himself human nature, yet without sin, He perfectly fulfilled the law and suffered and died upon the cross for the salvation of sinners. He was buried, rose again the third day, and ascended to His Father at whose right hand He ever lives to make intercession for His people. He will return again visibly and bodily. He is the only Prophet, Priest, and King of the church and Sovereign of the universe.(Isaiah 53:10-12; John 1:1-14; Acts 1:9-11; Romans 3:21-26, Romans 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Galatians 3:13; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 1:1-3, Hebrews 7:25)
We believe that the Holy Spirit is a person who convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration: baptizing all believers into the body of Christ and indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption. The Holy Spirit is an abiding helper, teacher, and guide. (John 14:16-17, John 14:26; John 15:26-27; John 16:8-11; 2 Corinthians 3:6; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14; Romans 8:9; Galatians 5:22-26; Ephesians 5:18)
We believe that man was created in the image and likeness of God, but that through Adam’s sin, the entire human race fell, inherited a sinful nature, and became alienated from God; man is depraved totally and of himself utterly unable to remedy his lost condition. (Genesis 1:26-27; Romans 3:22-23; Romans 5:12; Ephesians 2:1-3)
We believe that salvation is a gift brought to man by the free grace and pleasure of God. Salvation was accomplished through Christ’s substitutionary life and death and His resurrection from the grave, and it is received by repentance of sins and personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. (Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12; Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 1:18-19)
We believe that believers are saved into a life-long process of being made more and more like Christ, which includes a progressive growth in the knowledge and understanding of God, good works, repentance of sins and a putting to death the deeds of the flesh, and a love for God and others. Sanctification is progressive, so no one will ever arrive at perfection before death, but every believer should be growing towards Christlikeness. (Philippians 1:6; Romans 8:1-17; Galatians 5:13-25; Ephesians 3:14-21; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 3:1-17; 2 Peter 1:3-11)
We believe that all the redeemed, once saved, are kept by God’s power and are thus secure in Christ forever. We believe that it is the privilege of believers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation through the testimony of God’s Word, which clearly forbids the use of Christian liberty as an occasion for the flesh. Assurance is based upon the person and work of Christ and upon the evidence of conversion in the life of a believer. (John 6:37-40, 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8; 1 Peter 1:5; Romans 13:13-14; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15)
We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the church which is composed of all His true disciples. Christians are to associate themselves into local bodies for the purpose of worship, work, and fellowship. To each local body, Christ has given the authority for administering order, discipline, and worship. The regular officers of a church are Elders (Pastors) and Deacons. We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local church the primary task of giving the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world. (Matthew 28:18-20; John 10:16; Acts 20:17, 28; Ephesians 1:22, 5:23; 1 Timothy 3:1-13, 5:17-18; Titus 1:5-9; Hebrews 10:25; Matthew 18:15-19)
We believe that a Christian should live for the glory of God and the well-being of his fellow men, that his conduct should be blameless before the world, that he should be a faithful steward of his possessions, and that he should seek to realize for himself and others the full stature of maturity in Christ. (1 Corinthians 10:31; Romans 12:1-3; Hebrews 12:1-2; John 14:15, 23-24; 1 John 2:3-6; 2 Corinthians 9:6-9; 1 Corinthians 4:2; Colossians 1:9-10)
We believe that Jesus Christ committed two ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism is immersion of a believer into water in the name of the triune God. We believe the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ for commemoration of His death. We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Matthew 28:18-20; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the eternal felicity of the righteous, and the endless suffering of the wicked. (Matthew 16:27; Mark 14:62; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; Philippians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 4:15; 2 Timothy 4:1; Titus 2:13; 1 Corinthians 4:5; 1 Corinthians 15:1-53; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; Revelation 20:4-6, 11-15)