A Thousand Stormy Hills

We’ve been in Kigali, Rwanda since February 5th. The 28-hour bus ride from Nairobi was such a blast, if you can believe it. We had great conversations, slept soundly, and played beautiful worship music as Uganda passed by overnight. Rwanda is hilly, green, and completely beautiful. It’s so nice to be in the city. And from the past week or so, here’s what I have to tell you:

This morning in Kigali, Rwanda, the ladies of Team Undignified woke up to a beautiful surprise.

Andrew Bennett, one of our squad leaders, is staying with us at Pastor Robert’s house this month, preaching at the church with us and praying for the people in the community. We’ve loved having him around; it’s a fun twist to our all-girls team!

 

It was more than we could have expected though, when we woke up to this:

 

Valentine’s Day has never been a big deal to me. Even as a single lady with my share of married or engaged friends, it’s never bothered me to not have “someone” on a holiday for cheesy romance.

Andrew’s surprise reminded me of other Valentine’s Days when I’ve felt completely loved by the amazing men in my life.

 

Like last year, when I came home in the afternoon to find a Cold Stone gift card and a package of Mike & Ikes on my doorstep from Patrick.

 

Or my sophomore year of college, when the big group of us all living in the dorms had gotten together for our normal Wednesday prayer night. The guys left for a minute, then came back in the room with flowers, Hershey bars, and a hilariously sweet letter for each one of the girls. 

 

Or my freshman year of college when my Dad mailed me a 3-foot tower of Oreo cookies.

 

The biggest thing I have learned in the past 5 months on the World Race is pretty simple:

 

the Love of God is so ridiculously extravagant, so beautiful, so far beyond any inkling of understanding.

 

And that is what defines me. That Love suffered, and defeated death for ME! And it’s so big, that it will take all of life and eternity for me to see and understand. 

 

So to my brothers:

 

Jeffrey Lynch, Kyle Dolan, Eric Schroeder, Curtis Calvert, Andrew Barnes, Bill Gepford, Kyle Gach, Scott Smerchek, the men of Q Squad, my Nathan-in-law, and especially my real brother Patrick:

thank you. You’ve been a part of showing me what the Love of God is like. I’m really grateful for you.

 

Sad History

For the second time on the World Race, we’re in a country that has been scarred by genocide. Pastor Robert decided today would be a good time to visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial. Happy Valentine’s Day?

I could spend a few paragraphs describing what happened and why in 1993. No, I haven’t seen “Hotel Rwanda”, so everything I know about that point in history is from today. From this city. And no matter what I read or watch, there is no way to understand or explain devastation on that level. I don’t have words for how that place made me feel. i do want to show you this picture:

What you see here is one of the dozen mass graves at the memorial site, and in the background through the trees… Kigali. It’s a beautiful city. It’s clean and busy, lively and colorful. Despite being torn apart by death only 18 years ago, this place is thriving. When storms move in over the surrounding hills, it is such an overwhelming beauty. Nothing can hide that now.

-Katie