Frequently Asked Questions

What or who is Heart of God in Uganda?
Heart of God in Uganda is a branch of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. The mission and goal of Heart of God in Uganda is to provide a means to support and minister to orphans and widows in Uganda, to support evangelistic crusades, and to offer a channel through which donors can provide financial and spiritual support to those that have nothing in a country that remains oppressed.

Where are you located?
Heart of God in Uganda / Heart of God International Ministries is located in Willard, Ohio. While we do not publically publish our physical address due to personal privacy issues, our mail is delivered to P. O. Box 248, Willard, OH 44890. The post office, in turn, has our physical address on record and it is legally linked to our post office box address.

What church or ministry are you affiliated with?
Heart of God in Uganda is an arm of ministry of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc., an independent ministry organized as a non-denominational organization. It is and has always been our intention to build unity within the Body of Christ rather than allow denominational barriers to hinder the work of God through His servants throughout the world. If we affiliated with any particular denomination, individuals with different denominational backgrounds would feel hesitant to participate in our ministry efforts.

Why do you not have a physical mailing address?
While most international ministries have physical offices, Heart of God International has felt it was more important to safeguard the integrity of designated funding. We do this by using our personal home as the ministry’s physical office. By doing this, 100% of every donation that comes in to fund any specific project is designated to that project—we do not take out any money to cover administrative expenses. If we had a physical address outside our home, a percentage of every donation received would be used to cover administrative expenses. We do not publish our physical address on the internet for the obvious sake of privacy. However, we do receive our bank statements and administrative mail at our home address. The post office in Willard, Ohio is aware of where we live as our home is listed as a secondary address on record in the post office.

Why do you not have a traceable phone number?
Once again, we have chosen to hold down administrative expenses by using our personal cell phones for ministry business. In fact, we do not have a land line into our home; we opted to use cell phones so we would be immediately available for ministry purposes wherever we are. Because we use our personal cell phones, the ministry avoids the burden of telephone charges.

Are you incorporated and/or tax exempt?
Yes, in fact we are both. We were incorporated as Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. Our corporate number is 20-8194912. We are a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization. All donations are carefully recorded and receipted. Year-end statements of giving are mailed out each January.

I have attempted to verify your legitimacy but no one seems to know where you are located. How can I be sure you’re legitimate?
We have been doing ministry in the State of Ohio since 2004. Because we moved our home from Grove City, Ohio to Willard, Ohio due to personal family challenges (including the death of a parent and a forced early retirement), we moved the ministry operations to Willard at the beginning of 2008. We will be glad to provide ministry and/or personal references to anyone who needs proof of our legitimacy and ministry integrity.

What makes your ministry different than other orphan support organizations?
This is where we differ from most sponsorship ministries. We are bound by our commitment to God and His Kingdom to make sure that 100% of every donation goes directly to the designated project. We take out no administrative costs for our missions ministries. If you donate $10 for orphans in Uganda, $10 will be sent to them. Heart of God International has a General Fund set up funded by private donors and volunteer staff which covers the costs of doing business (i.e. Western Union fees, PayPal fees, postage, promotional flyers and materials, etc). Our volunteers not only freely offer their time, talents, and giftings, but they also support the ministry from their personal finances so we can insure that 100% of every missions donation goes where it is designated without being reduced to cover administrative expenses. You may be interested to know that organizations such as Compassion International (one of the largest orphan sponsorship programs) passes on a 14.5% administrative expense burden to their donors. When you donate $10 to them to support an orphan, the child you are sponsoring only receives $8.55 toward their support. (This information is made public on their website.) While we understand the cost of doing business overseas, we believe each donor has the right to have their money applied as they deisgnate; the burden of doing business should rest on the shoulders of those who are called to underwrite administrative costs. It lesses the burden on us if you designate a small amount toward administrative expenses when you make a donation. In other words, if you donate $10 to support an orphan, send $11 and designate $1.00 toward administrative expenses. However, if you are unable to add anything extra, please understand that your orphan (or other specific designation) will receive 100% of your donation and the expense of handling your donation will come from another source of funding.

How much of my donation will actually go to the designated recipient?
We have maintained a policy of making sure than 100% of your designated donation will be applied according to your specific instructions. No administrative expenses are deducted from your donation. (See item above for further explanation.)

What kind of experience do you have with international missions?
While we have not yet been to Uganda personally (a trip is being planned for the summer of 2009), the leadership of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. has been working with foreign missions for several years, even before this organization was birthed. We have conducted training seminars for short-term missionaries, written a training manual for use by us that is adaptable to other churches or ministries doing international outreaches, and we’ve organized short-term outreaches and taken teams of people who have never travelled outside the US to experience foreign missions first-hand. Please feel free to contact us for more information on joining a mission team in the future.

Who is Denise Matthews? Who is Jan Ross?
Denise Matthews is the Director of Heart of God in Uganda. Denise has answered the call of God to minister to the orphans and widows of Uganda by working to raise support and funding for the work of God through various indigenous ministries. Denise works closely with Jan Ross, President of Heart of God International Ministries to oversee the operations of the ministry to Uganda. While they live thousands of miles apart, they stay in close communication to insure that efforts to raise support for evangelism and humanitarian efforts are undertaken in such a way that represents the Kingdom of God with utmost integrity and financial accountability.

Is the ministry in Uganda the only outreach of Heart of God International Ministries?
Actually, the work in Uganda is only a small aspect of the overall ministry activity of Heart of God International. You will notice at the bottom of the page there are links to various websites representing ministry work in the US and abroad. To help dispel any confusion, please allow us to summarize the organization and each outreach:

Heart of God International Organization

Heart of God International Ministries, Inc.
Parent organization through which all ministry activity is conducted. www.heartofgodinternational.com

· Foreign Ministries
Segments of ministry operations in foreign countries overseen and administered by parent organization. www.heartofgodmissions.blogspot.com

o Heart of God in India
Operating through indigenous Indian ministers, supporting evangelistic and humanitarian efforts in unreached remote tribal areas under the leadership of a trusted brother in the Lord who has proven spiritual and leadership integrity. Includes support of leper colony, Heart of God School of Ministry in India, monthly support for 30 village pastors, and monthly evangelistic outreaches into remote areas where other evangelists do not go because of dangerous conditions and cultural resistance to Christianity. www.india.heartofgodinternational.com

o Heart of God in Uganda
Operating through indigenous Ugandan Ministries, supporting evangelistic and humanitarian efforts in local villages through outreach to orphans and widows affected by the AIDS/HIV epidemic. www.uganda.heartofgodinternational.com

o Heart of God in Kenya
Operating through indigenous Kenyan ministers, leading evangelistic teams and ministry to remote villages. Operations in Kenya are currently suspended until current problems can be resolved or another trusted ministry partnership can be established. www.kenya.heartofgodinternational.com

· Domestic Ministries
Segments of ministry operations based in the United States overseen and administered by parent organization.

o Soldiers Bible Ministry
Operating as an affiliate of Heart of God International to support US military chaplains and troops deployed overseas along with the allied troops assigned to the bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers Bible Ministry provides chaplains with complete Bibles (OT/NT) as well as Bible Study material to distribute to troops, strengthening their ministries. Also provided are Bibles in the native language of the allied troops. www.soldiersbibleministry.com

§ Tunes for Troops
Another branch of ministry through Soldiers Bible Ministry whereby musical instruments and sound equipment is sent to the FOB’s in Iraq to provide the means for enhanced worship services and recreation for troops during their free time.

o JournEzine
Operating as a monthly online publication, providing writers and aspiring writers the opportunity to be published while communicating the message of faith and hope in Jesus Christ. Monthly news updates from Heart of God International are also published, providing a means of follow-up for donors, sponsors, and friends of the ministry. www.journezine.com

o Women of Passions
Operating originally as an international women’s ministry, Women of Passions is now a new publication just released to the Christian retail market. Book One is a compilation of short stories by 26 individual authors sharing their passion for God, their family, and ministry. The book is on sale through amazon.com and other online booksellers, or it can be ordered directly on the website at www.womenofpassions.net.

o Today’s Devotion
Operating as an extension of Heart of God International Ministries, Jan Ross has been distributing Today’s Devotion for nearly six years via email, a daily devotional meant to challenge and encourage the Body of Christ to live a life of holiness and reverence before God. The devotional is offered free of charge to all subscribers. www.todaysverse.blogspot.com

o Christian Military Wives
Operating as an affiliate of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc., Christian Military Wives is a strong support network of mature Christian women whose husbands are currently deployed or have been deployed overseas. They offer spiritual, emotional, and physical support to all military wives whose lives present unique challenges that only a relationship with the Lord can answer. www.christianmilitarywives.com