Days 4-6

Day Four Saturday, July 25, 2009

Happy Birthday to our son, Matt!

Last night we had the most glorious and welcome rain. The sound of the rain hitting the metal roofs sounded like a North Carolina storm, but it was short lived. In the morning there was little evidence of the rain as the parched earth drank up the precious moisture.
After breakfast and devotions, Marilee, Susan and I went for a quick “walk about” looking to discover anything of interest, which of course we did. Stretched across the road was a jagged looking line that appeared to be alive. As we got closer we saw the reason. The jagged line was actually a procession of ants about 1-2” wide walking in an orderly fashion across the road. It was incredible!
Following that foray we ate lunch and took off to Gitarama to meet and visit with Bishop Kalimba. The headquarters for the Shyogwe diocese is in Gitarama and Bishop Kalimba is the head. It was an exciting time for us as we listened to Bp. Kolimba share with us the vision he has for the diocese. It was based on four pillars: evangelism, fighting poverty, ownership of the church, and unity/reconciliation.
Bp Kalimba then showed us the conference center that is currently under construction and when completed, will provide housing for 50 people. The plan also includes building a kitchen adjacent to the conference center to provide the food for the conference attendees. The buildings are impressive but the view overlooking the mountains is spectacular.
Our next stop was to visit the Shyogwe Church which was built on the top of Zion Mountain. When we arrived at the church we realized that a wedding was underway, and it looked like we would not be allowed to see the inside of the church. However, Marilee really wanted to see the church so we “crashed” the wedding. Really! Reverend Gasana led us inside where we thought we would go to the back of the church in an inconspicuous way. But to our surprise we were invited to sit in the front of the church. Not in the front row but the FRONT of the church. We were introduced and Patrick said a prayer for the couple. It ended up with the bride and groom taking a picture with the “Magnificent Seven” (thank you Johnnie for the moniker). What a glorious celebration!
Now as we headed back to our van we noticed Susan jogging to catch up with group. Apparently there was another van that looked exactly like our van. Susan had mistakenly thought that it was our van and actually got in waiting for the rest of us. When she realized none of our group was joining her and that she was in the bride and bridegroom’s getaway van, she high-tailed back to ours. We were happy Susan decided to ride home with us rather than with the bride and groom.
Reflecting back on this day and the previous ones, I am most touched by the love and friendliness of the Rwandan people. Everyone greets you by shaking your hand or gently hugging you and always with a smile. In all my travels, I have never experience such consistent outpouring of love. Rwanda is a blessed land where the spirit of God is working to change the lives of the people.

Thank you for all of your prayers,
Corey

Day 5 July 26, 2009

Since our arrival, our gracious Rwandan hosts have been excitedly anticipating the Lord’s Day celebration at our sister parish in Gikomero. However, no amount of explanation could have prepared us for the wonderful time of worship we experienced today. We entered the parish church while the congregation was already singing a lively worship song. All eyes were upon the “Muzungus” as we entered the church and sat at the front with the priests. After introductions, the worship service began with songs lead by the children’s choir followed several other choirs from outlying chapels. During each song, the entire congregation moved in time (and in joy) with the music.
Patrick was the main preacher of the morning service. He spoke on the passage that has become the theme of our trip – Philippians 2:1-14. His message was translated into Kinyarwanda by Rev. Gasana. Both men love the word of God and have a similar joyful exuberance when speaking. At the end of the message, dozens of congregants stood in response to a call to recommitment of their lives to Jesus.
During the prayers, Susan was asked to stand in front of the church and to pray for the ongoing projects of the Gikomero parish. She prayed for the new school, the planned health center, and the Mother’s Union that serves the church and community.
The team was asked to sing in front of the congregation. Marilee led us in our theme song, “Yesu Ashimwe”, and we were joined in the second verse by the congregation. They seem to enjoy any of our attempts to speak their language. We also sang “Holy is the Lord” with Joey leading on guitar.
They held a time of healing prayer, asking parishioners to come forward who were suffering from any illness. Over one-fourth of those present came forward to receive prayers for healing. Rev. Gasana asked Andy to pray for the people as the entire team surrounded those seeking prayer. We look forward to hearing accounts of how God heals the people of Gikomero.
One of the highlights of the day was the time of personal testimony. Lindsay, Marilee, and Joey each shared the ways in which God had changed their lives. The congregation clearly resonated with the heartfelt stories of personal brokenness and reconciliation. I am not sure how any of the speakers made it through their talks without tears, but I know that many lives were changed today by hearing these stories.
Our official parish-to-parish partnership was sealed by a beautiful Rwandan song. Pastor Martin left the altar and began to dance. He was quickly followed by Joey and Patrick. Before long, the entire congregation was singing and dancing in the aisles and at the front of the church. It was a joyous time of celebration that none of us will ever forget.
At the end of the service, Patrick and Martin exchanged gifts in celebration of our parish partnership. Patrick gave our guests a book of pictures demonstrating our church and its ministries. We received a beautiful wooden plaque with clasped hands over the map of Rwanda. We look forward to seeing it mounted in the front of our church.
Another highlight of the day was to see the joy on the faces of the children as Pastor Martin handed out soccer and basketballs contributed by our church members. The center of Gikomero includes a concrete sports court, complete with backboards but no basketball rims. In spite of this, the children found creative solutions (points were scored with any ball hitting the backboard), and the basketballs were quickly put to good use. The children are loved and honored in Rwanda, and the parents enjoyed seeing the children playing soccer and basketball with their new gifts.
Our day ended with a long walk around the village of Shyogwe where we are staying. We are touched by the friendliness of the Rwandan people who always greet us with “Muraho” or “Amakuru”. As the sun sets, we hope that the stars will be out tonight. The bright Rwandan night skies remind us that, despite our abundant electricity and daily conveniences, there are many things we lack by living in America.
-Andy


Day 6 July 27, 2009
The news from Rwanda is encouraging and blessed. Today we were able to see God’s hand at work through the Holy Spirit in so many ways. Rev. Gasana accompanied us to the Canon Trapnell Bible and Development School just across the road from our guesthouse. Rev. Gasana introduced us to 17 of the 20 students in the school. This is the second class to graduate from the school. Upon graduation, these young people are sent back to their parishes to be lay leaders, evangelists, and group leaders. Two or 3 of the graduates could be selected to be ordained as pastors.
The students welcomed us with a song that they had written based on the 23rd Psalm. Marilee asked for the music as it was so joyful. Joey video recorded it so hopefully many of you can see their joy and love displayed so completely.
We have been trying to learn the language better so we try to use the appropriate words when possible. However, we aren’t as fluent as we hoped to be. I’ve said thank you when I meant to say hello, Marilee says good morning when she meant to say thank you, and Patrick (along with all of us) mixes up pronunciations. We all get a good laugh and the Rwandans laugh right along with us, but they sure appreciate our efforts.
We left for Mutara right after the Bible School presentation and found ourselves climbing higher in the mountains. God blessed us with the most beautiful views on both sides of the road. Every piece of land is being used for cultivation and houses are built on any ground level enough to hand grade and build on. We saw people repairing the mountain road with hand tools—picks and shovels. What a sight!
Rev. Alexi Kavaemena greeted us on the road and took us up a narrow dirt path to the excavation site where the Mutara Parish Church will be located. God is in this place. The site is at the top of this peak and the valleys on 3 sides with vivid colors and majestic mountains in the background. We were awestruck at the view. The congregation, men, women, and children were working to clear the site and dig the foundations with joy and fellowship on their faces and in their actions. The Holy Spirit was plainly visible in the overwhelming feelings of grace and love that we experienced there. After introductions, Marilee asked their choir director if they could sing for us. This young woman jumped up, handed her baby to an older woman, and gave a pitch to the choir as they fell in line and broke into spontaneous beautiful music as if it had all been planned.
Mutara is known as the poorest district in all of Shyogwe, so we were overwhelmed to be treated to corn muffins and homegrown honey that was lavishly shared. Please pray for Pacifique, the lay leader’s year old son, who has malaria. We all sensed God’s presence in the day as earlier in the morning after breakfast, Patrick had asked Rev. Gasana if they had honey in Rwanda, and lo and behold, we ate our fill of the wondrous golden syrup! God is good!
We finished our long day with a short service under a tent at a 4-month old mission plant just near the guesthouse. As we drove up, we were greeted at the van with singing and dancing or little children. Patrick shared some scripture, Marilee and Joey shared their testimonies, and 3 choirs shared their music. What joy!

Our day and our trip has been filled with joy and the love of Jesus expressed in the life of our Rwandan family.
Lindsay Roux