April 21st
This morning we got a ride from Taxi Thomas out to a remote village about an hour outside of Kigali to work at Gate of Hope ministries. The ride was absolutely breathtaking... the colors so vibrant... bright blue/turquoise on tin and wooden doors, against the burnt orange bricks, surrounded by shocking shades of green and red from plants and vegetation... brown and creme colors of dirt, mud, cement, etc. all mix together with these brilliant colors to create such vibrant, yet earthy tones... I have never been so captivated by colors in my life. As we pushed through the clay roads, kids yelled, "muzungu!" outside our windows and ran after us as we drove by... [muzungu is a term they use to describe white people].
We finally pulled in next to a small church building on the side of a mountain... the view was incredible. We walked inside where Baraka greeted us. Baraka is an incredible woman. She is a counselor from Rwanda, who, after the genocide, realized how great the need for counselors was, and how few there actually were. So, she began training ordinary Rwandans to become counselors. She trains a group of 20 people every year, and is on her 5th group! Baraka loves her people and her country so much, and works with the women and children all over Rwanda to help them heal from the traumas they have experienced in and after the genocide. Jessie and I were talking with her as we waited for children to show up...
"There are only so many of us, but the need is so great.
As the Bible says, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers
are so few."
Baraka's hope is that Rwanda be an example of peace, reconciliation, and forgiveness to the surrounding countries of Congo, C.A.R., Southern Sudan, and Uganda.
Children slowly began to fill the place as we talked. After the room was filled, we decided to begin. They started by singing (of course). As soon as their voices reached my ears, my heart melted... African singing is now one of my favorite things in the entire world. It is so vibrant, free, bold, simple, and eloquent all at once. After singing and introductions, Bethany began the workshop, talking about how God takes our struggles, heartaches, and pain, and uses it to make us strong and to mold us into who we are supposed to be.
Matthew told the story of the scientist who wanted to create the perfect, most beautiful butterfly in the world. After much toil, the time came for the butterfly to break out of its cocoon... there was some movement, then the butterfly broke one wing out of the cocoon. It was the most beautiful butterfly in the world! Then, the butterfly attempted to get its other wing out of the cocoon. It pushed and pushed, and was struggling very much to get its wing out. After a while, it stopped to rest. Then the butterfly began to try again... after a while, the scientist could not take it anymore, and used a little knife to cut the cocoon open, so the butterfly could break free. It was able to get out easily now. The butterfly stretched out its wings to take flight, but it fell to the ground. It was unable to fly. You see, the struggle the butterfly goes through to get out of its cocoon is what makes the butterfly strong enough to be able to fly. Without the struggle, the blood is not able to get to the wings. In essence, the scientist, in trying to help the butterfly by eliminating its struggle, actually killed it. Matthew went on to explain that how God uses our struggles to make us strong.
This workshop was especially powerful, as this is the period of 100 days of mourning to remember the genocide. Videos are played over and over again throughout the country, in order to remind the people of what has happened in their country. They never want to forget what has happened, because they are so determined to keep it from ever happening again.
After this, we transitioned into a time of drawing. We passed out handkerchiefs and markers and explained that on one handkerchief, they were to draw their fears and nightmares, and on the other, they were to draw their hopes and their dreams. We also drew with them. Afterwards, we went outside to stand around the cross that Jessie and I had made from sticks and banana leaves. Some of the children shared what they had drawn with us. Many of them had lost parents and other relatives in the genocide, and some of them shared their hopes to be leaders of peace and reconciliation in their country:
"I want to be a better man,
a man of God, a role model,
a living testimony, a peace maker,
a world changer."
- Samuel (23 years old)
These kids inspire me so much! After they shared, we gave them an opportunity to lay their handkerchiefs with their fears and nightmares down at the cross, and surrender them to God. They sang an old hymn as we stood in a circle, then I read John 13, the account where Jesus washed the disciples feet. We explained that in the same way that Jesus displayed his love for the disciples, we also wanted to show our love for them in the same way. I washed every one of their feet, including the pastor and Baraka, as I prayed for each one of them. Jessie dried their feet and also prayed for them, and Bethany and Matthew helped pick out shoes for each of them. It was incredible to wash the feet of and pray for each of these precious, incredible people and children. My heart was overwhelmed with emotion as we told them all goodbye and drove away.
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