We have been in Rwanda for a week and to be honest I was really hoping for a manual labor ministry. There is something about working with your hands and seeing the fruits of your labor at the end of the day. I wanted to be so tired at the end of the day that I sleep well with the sometimes baby roaches crawling on me. However that is not at all what we got this month in a small village outside of Kigali.
This month we are teaching English in the mornings at two different schools, door to door evangelism, and preaching at night. As someone who came to my faith later in life this is so uncomfortable for me. I used to have the perception of Christians being so judgmental. I never want to be someone who feels like I am forcing my faith on anyone. I always want my faith to just be known in how I live and interact with people. I want people to know that I am a Christian by hearing them out, spending time with them and just being a good friend. I once heard in a small group, “Would people know you were a Christian if you didn’t tell them?” That resonated with me so hard. How can I show people I love the Lord by just my actions? Sometimes though, this cannot be the case. The Bible calls us to live well and share the good news.
Manual labor is awesome and I hope we will do more of it on the race. This month though, we are saving souls. I remember a girl once told me, “Getting people what they need on earth is great, but what of their soul?” This month is teaching me to be bold in my faith and speak up, because what of their soul? God created all of us, and like a good father He wants to be in relationship with us. God wants every person on this earth to choose Him back and live with Him in heaven. So what we are doing here in Rwanda is kind of a big deal, and I won’t take it lightly.
My hope and prayer is that we can bring many to come to know the love that Jesus offers. I hope that they know how precious they are to Him. I want them to know that there is nothing they could do to earn anymore or any less of His love. I want them to realize that it’s not about the works that they do, but it’s about the work that He has done for us. I hope that they can see that He pursues back, that He craves us more than we crave Him. I want them to know that yes God provides, performs miracles and promises us eternal life, but those are all just a byproduct of His love for us.
I also need to remind myself of these truths daily.
