Pastor Martin and Tracey Ssempa
Martin and Tracey Ssempa are the pioneers of Makerere Community Church, a faith-based organization specifically working in AIDS prevention with university students. Since 1988, the Ssempa’s have effectively used community drama, school rallies, radio, and television as means of communicating behavioral change to youth in Uganda. They run a youth drop-in center called “The White House" and a weekly campus rally – "PrimeTime@ the Pool" – serving more than 4,000 college students every week.

Both Martin and Tracey got their Master's of Science in Counseling from Philadelphia Biblical University and a bachelor's degree’s from Makerere University and Houghton college respectively. The Ssempa’s have three sons and have written two AIDS related publications "Cross for the Virus" in addition to “Power Change."

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A prayer for our youth: Oh God, awaken the warriors

Oh God, we come in prayer for our sons and daughters that you would protect them from the onslaught of HIV/AIDS. These are the arrows you have given us for battle; these are warriors you have given; these like little Samuel and David are the emerging leaders of this generation.

But our sons and daughters are like Samson ensnared in the clutches of Delilah. Daily she cuts off their hair, the secret of their God-given strength. Daily she bleeds and drains them of energy by her offerings of drugs, pornography, sexual immorality, and deadly cocktails. Oh God, we pray for our warriors that you would awaken them from the clutches of these deadly influences. Oh God, that you would give them new strength to fight your battles. Oh God, that you unleash a global worldwide revival that would cause the deployment into battle of our warriors again.

Give a discerning spirit to our children to enable them to not take Delilah’s offerings as a joke but rather perceive the machinations of the enemy. Grant that they will not reveal or sell out the secret of their strength.

Oh God, we pray that you would give the spirit of Joseph, who bolted away from Potiphar’s wife’s sexual advances, to our youth. Deposit an internal longing for holiness within them. Give understanding of their identity as a chosen people, royal priests, and a holy nation. Would they then find strength to overcome abstinence stigma and hostilities to sexual purity among their peers.

Oh God, we pray that our sons and daughters will do better than us. Though some have been orphaned and have not seen many faithful marriages, we pray they will earnestly desire to have strong marriages of mutual fidelity. Awaken these warriors, and may they run into the Lord’s battles. May they be used to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic and help lead their generation to the purposes of your Kingdom.

Finally Lord, refresh the spirit of those who love and work with your young people. Grant protection from the likes of Jezebel who seek to destroy the prophets of God. Give boldness to teach, rebuke, correct, and instruct in righteousness, so that we will see our sons and daughters walking in the ways of God. To this we pray in and through Jesus our Savior’s name.