It’s amazing what a month of Village life and no internet can do to a person, time passes much slower than usual (that’s not a bad thing!) There is so much to fill you in on! First and foremost, our team SelahVie has been working with International Healing Center Church 3 hours outside the city in a village called “Kizirakome”. Our pastor, a fiery woman named Fatier, has opened up her home and church for us to bless and uplift her congregation.
Each day of the week was a different ministry in the sense of who we were speaking to that particular day. We have had the opportunity of speaking in church on Sunday’s, ministering to the youth, widows, singles, married couples, church leadership and going into the community schools to put on a children’s VBS.
Rwanda has definitely been a month of stretching, literally and metaphorically. I don’t think living in America prepared me for how much people walk in other countries, and my team has had its fair share of blisters. Actually, Katie’s exploded onto the both of us as we were walking just the other day!
A few things God has stretched me in this month is speaking in front of large crowds and listening to what he wants me to speak about. Before I left the States I asked my mom to write a few thing in my journal for me to read while I’m gone. I would love to share a little of what she wrote.
“Little Miss, as you launch onto the Worldrace I remember praying for you when you were a baby and placing you in God’s hands, praying God’s best for you- His will for your life and that He would lead and direct you. In recent years your Dad and I have prayed that God would send labors to reap the harvest of souls and that the Good News of Salvation through Jesus Christ would go out like a fragrant perfume so that MANY would come to know Jesus as their Savior. So…when God called you for this mission I realized that God was using you to answer our prayers and petitions. You will be challenged, but remember Galations 6:9-10, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”
I had the opportunity of preaching on our first Sunday about “Moves of Faith” and being bold in what he is asking of us. Its funny how God wants you to do things outside of your comfort zone, and then speak about it. All of my “Fears” were wrapped up into a bundle and confronted on the first day. As I walked up onto the platform, handed the microphone, not at all ready to speak to a huge congregation, everything washed away. The fear was removed by confidence in what the Lord had spoken to me, faith that he was present and active in the hearts of those listening and filled with joy because I was chosen to be the vessel. Afterwards, my mom’s words rang in my ears about being challenged, we as believers will always be faced with opportunities through difficulty. We WILL struggle, because it’s our earthly nature but God still has a purpose that needs to be accomplished. It’s a choice we need to make as Christ Followers to stand against the flow being bold, mobilize, and allowing him to use us for His glory.
One of my favorite groups to talk to were the Singles and Widows, they are a combined group made up of mostly older ladies who’s husbands have either left them or passed away. Most if not all of them are also the churches intercessors. Their testimonies are filled with pain, struggles, loss and sadness yet they are some of the most joyful God fearing women I have had the pleasure to meet.
We arrived into the main city of Kigali, Rwanda yesterday afternoon to prepare to fly out to Ethiopia on Friday. Our team took the opportunity to visit the Genocide Memorial. Before coming to this country I knew little about what took place 20 short years ago. During this month we were invited to hear about a man’s personal testimony and his experience, as we walked through the memorial it made his story that much more real. The amount of betrayal and killing that took place….it was a hard thing to process. This Country, has a dark shadow in their past but you can see God’s love and hand over this nation.
Onto some funnier stories/ memories of Rwanda…
-As I was saying above about Katie’s blister…depending on the day we walk around 10 miles. She has become my walking partner and had told me the previous morning about a huge blister that had appeared on her foot. I suggested she pop it a cover it with a band aid to get the healing process started, she refused. We were a week into Ministry and walking back home for lunch on a sweltering hot day. About a mile from home, the top of my foot and ankle feel wet and so does one of her feet. We look at each other, then the water bottle swinging from my arm that’s still sealed tight. Katie replies to my inquisitive look with “MY water bottle is in my purse.” Weird but alright, we keep walking, until she says out loud, “Hmm…No it cant be.” And looks down at her foot more closely. The Bertha of a Blister exploded all over! No to big of a deal, because it’s the Worldrace..Right?? Just good old friendly bonding happening somewhere in Rwanda.
-It was Makita’s Birthday on the 25th! Our host, Fatier decided to surprise us all and get a cake made, her son brought it from the main city in his backpack on the bus. We all were a little worried about how it would taste as multiple sources back home told us not to expect what we normally would have. Sike! It turned out to be delicious, and we ate over half of it, with Pop too! Problem was that we have been eating a diet of Rice, beans, matoke and cabbage..safe to say it was a sugar over load and our bodies hated that surprise. You can feel free to guess the events that followed. P.S—we grabbed it out of a trunk 3 days later and swear it was even better.
– Each week we go into town to buy water and other groceries, as we were sitting in the bus depot waiting to head back home….there was a bunch of screaming and yelling. Right as we look, we watch an empty bus roll back into another full bus and smash into it. Turns out the driver did indeed put the parking break ON, it was just a tad faulty.
-We knew that coming to Africa we would likely get a chance to get a tailor to handmade dresses for us. Last night we picked them up, and they are super adorable if I do say so myself! Each dress was different and unique to our personalities. There will be a photo up of us wearing them probably around the time that this blog can be posted.
