Frequently Asked Questions

What or who is Heart of God-Uganda?
Heart of God-Uganda is part of the Heart of God International Ministries, Inc network. The mission and goal of Heart of God-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-Uganda is based in Riverside, California. The corporate office of it's parent organization, Heart of God International Ministries, is located in Willard, Ohio. Mail for Heart of God-Uganda is delivered to P. O. Box 4582, Riverside, CA 92514.

What church or ministry are you affiliated with?
Heart of God-Uganda is 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While most international ministries have physical offices, we do not publish our physical address due to the fact that we work out of our home in order to maintain a zero dollar expense budget for employee salary, personnel and other human resources. Furthermore, we take every opportunity afforded us to protect ministry funds from the burden of office expense, rent, and utilities by leveraging virtual home office space in California. Heart of God International has felt it was more important to safeguard the integrity of designated funding. By doing this, 100% of every donation designated to fund any specific project is applied to that project—we do not take out any money to cover administrative expenses. We do not publish our physical address on the internet for the obvious sake of privacy.

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. The Heart of God International Ministries corporate office in Willard, Ohio, can be reached at 419-933-7000; their number is published and visible to the public.

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. We will be glad to provide ministry and/or personal references to anyone who needs proof of our legitimacy and ministry integrity. Our ministry profile can also be verified on GuideStar.

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 sponsorship 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 over 17% of its administrative expense burden to their donors. When you donate $10 to them to support an orphan, the child you are sponsoring only receives $8.30 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 lessens 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 specifically designated donation will be applied 100% as you requested 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 only been to Uganda once, a stable and trustworthy relationship has been built with our overseas constituents. The leadership of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. has been working with foreign missions for several years, even before this organization was birthed. They have conducted training seminars for short-term missionaries, written a training manual that is adaptable to other churches or ministries doing international outreaches, and they’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 Executive Director of Heart of God-Uganda and serves on the Board of Directors for Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. 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 oversees the operations of the ministry to Uganda. Jan Ross and Jeanice McDade are co-founders of Heart of God International Ministries, Inc. They both serve on the Board of Directors along with Denise.

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 Ministries. You will notice at the bottom of the page there are links to various websites representing ministry work in the US and abroad.

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

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

o Heart of God-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 child sponsorship programs for orphaned children, 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.org

o Heart of God-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.org

o Heart of God-Haiti
Operating through indigenous Haitian ministy Helping for Christ, 200 impoverished children are being educated and fed daily, a growing number of adults are in adult learning classes, evangelistic teams are ministering to the outlying regions around Port au Prince, and more. www.haiti.heartofgodinternational.org

o Heart of God-Kenya
Operating through indigenous Kenyan ministers, leading evangelistic teams and ministry to remote villages. We are currently praying for God's leading regarding our ministry in Kenya. Our well in the village of Mayanja is still operating and ministering life to the entire village. www.kenya.heartofgodinternational.org

· 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.org

§ 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 womens 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.hgdevotions.com

o InnerCity Ministry
Operating as an extension of Heart of God International Ministries, Jeanice McDade has been working hard to develop a unique outreach in the major inner cities across the US. Plans are underway to begin training cells to prepare men and women with a shared passion for society's outcasts. As plans solidify, announcements will be made on the main HGIM website. www.heartofgodinternational.org