Training for cross-cultural missions overseas
7 April 2019
Chris and Ros Howles are on staff at the Uganda Martyr’s Seminary, Namugongo. They talk about how training at Oak Hill prepared them for life and ministry overseas.
Twenty years ago, Oak Hill already had an established reputation for preparing people for ministry in the British Isles, but since the start of the 21st century, the College has been gaining a new reputation in the world of global mission.
More than 40 Old Oaks have gone out ‘into all the world’, serving across five continents in a whole variety of situations. Early reports are that Oak Hill graduates are being very well received and are highly valued for their Bible knowledge and handling, cross-cultural skills and endurance in the face of challenges.
They might be really awful at sports and have rotten senses of humour, but at least they seem to know their Bibles and love the people of the world enough to live among them and serve them faithfully.
Chris and Ros Howles are one such couple and were among the first cohorts of mission students to come through Oak Hill, under Ray Porter. They went on from London to live and work in Kampala, Uganda, where they are on staff at the Uganda Martyr’s Seminary, Namugongo, ministering the gospel alongside Uganda colleagues and among students from several East African countries.
In the video above, Chris and Ros tell a little of their story, talk about the cultural differences they encounter on a daily basis, speak about the joys and challenges that are their meat and drink, discuss family life overseas and reflect back on the ways that their training at Oak Hill prepared them for life and ministry overseas.
