For the next 3 weeks my Squad will be in Kigali,
Rwanda. I’m not sure what ministry or
housing looks like at this point, but we’ll find out soon enough. We leave early on Sunday morning, traveling
by bus to the border and then getting on another bus (buses are not allowed to
cross the border) to head to the capital city.
I’m excited about this next month and this new country. I will admit that I’m a little bummed about
being in a city for the third month in a row, but I’m sure God’s plans are
better than mine. The temperature looks
to be significantly cooler than Tanzania so we’re definitely all excited about
THAT! It has been quite a sweaty month
for us.
If you don’t know anything about Rwanda, I encourage you to
read a brief history of it and even watch the movie Hotel Rwanda to get a better understanding of this country and her
people.
Here are some facts about Rwanda according to the CIA
Website:
»
In 1994 in a state orchestrated genocide,
Rwandans killed up to one million of their own citizens, including ¾ of the
Tutsi population.
»
It is the most densely populate country in
Africa with 11,370,425 citizens (July 2011 est.)
»
Religions include: Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%,
Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001)
»
Languages
Include: Kinyarwanda (official, universal Bantu vernacular), French (official),
English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili, used in commercial centers)
»
Ethnic
Groups: Hutu (Bantu) 84%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 15%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%
»
HIV/AIDS — adult prevalence rate: 2.9% (2009
est.) country comparison to the world: 25
»
About
90% of the population is engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture and some
mineral and agro-processing
»
Tourism
is now Rwanda’s primary foreign exchange earner.
»
Government Type: republic; presidential, multiparty system
I hope this gives you a little information to get started
with as you head into Rwanda with me!
Please pray with me as my squad goes into this African country that is
still in the process of recovering from a devastating genocide that happened only
18 years ago. May the Lord use us to
bring hope and love to the Rwandans and also change us in the process. To Him
be the glory!
“Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.”
Romans 12:21 (NLT)
