A couple days ago I crossed the border to a raging waterfall. And so month 6 begins.
Rwanda, you are beautiful.
Everything about you. Your people. Your landscape. Your music. Your curvy roads. Your stillness. Your rain. Your simplicity. Your smile. Your sunshine. Your mountains. Your fields. Your children. Your hope.
Your story of redemption.
Just 18 years ago this country suffered a tragic genocide. It all started when a civil war broke out between two different Rwandan ethnic groups. This event left the country in complete devastation with over two million Rwandan people killed.
I’ll admit, I thought this palce would still be suffering the aftermath of destruction. Little did I know the moment I would step off the bus there would be five Rwandan pastors waiting to greet me and the teams with bright white smiles and open arms. They spoke English to us, carried our bags and expressed heartfelt gratitude for us coming to visit them. They made us feel right at home. They are walking examples of God's heart and the power of restoration that is at work in this country.
I'm in the village of Kabuga for the week visiting Team Kindle. I am excited to hang out with these seven women and participate in their ministry. They live in a home with a genocide survivor and her two daughters. This family is also a walking story of redemption. The teams started ministry today; teaching bible stories, songs and English to little african children. Their contact is Pastor John, last night one of the african women handed him a milk tea and he looked at us and said, “What about for my children?”
In a place where there should be sorrow and death, there is hope and life. Papa is a good Dad. He always brings me back to that. I remember the community at Caminuel Felix, the conflict we learned to face, the freedom from fear, that time I yelled in the fields, the little boy who played with my hair, how we prayed for fire and it got hot, the hill we climbed, the songs of redemption we learned, hiking the Himalayan mountains, meeting the Shepard in the rice fields, talking to Hindu’s about Jesus, praying and people being healed, embracing the baby who was paralyzed and then could walk, hugging children who are desperate to be touched, looking someone in the eyes and telling them they are loved, seeing the sunrise in the Serengeti, jumping off the pier into the Indian ocean, riding on the back of a motorcycle and my hair blowing in the wind, people experiencing the power of family, Romanian, Moldovan, Nepale, Indian and Tanzanian encountering Jesus, villagers accepting Jesus into their hearts, a girl realizing it’s not her fault and Pastor John’s simple words of claiming us as family.
Every hard moment, every sad moment, every long day of travel, every heart break, it's worth it. Thank you Jesus for conintually bringing me to the end of myself. I love that I get to be apart of bringing more of Your Kingdom to the world.
Thank you supporters, friends and family for helping make my dream of traveling with Jesus come true. Your continued love and support has kept me on the field for 6 months! Forever, I am indebted to you. The last deadline is coming up on March 1, 2012, I am still in need of last minute funds. If you would like to help just click the support tab to the left or send me an email.
I love you all!
p.s. the pictures are from my squadmates
Brianna Danese, Rachel Van Timmeren and Kaitlyn Allen.
check out their blogs
briannedanese.theworldrace.org
rachelvantimmeren.theworldrace.org
kaitlynallen.theworldrace
