A busy day and what a day it was!!!! Off once again to Gilgal Church for a day of meetings and today I decided to sit on the left side of the bus on the way there (big mistake). It was then I remembered how most of the houses were hanging onto the hillside by their finger nails. The driver only needed to sneeze and we were going to join the houses. A safe arrival then into our first round of meetings. Greetings exchanged (which involved praise, dancing and prayers) then we split into 2 groups. Michael, Brian, John and Rachel worked with the Church team who offer practical help and advice (entrepreneurial skills) to Church and community and Karen, Reuben and Graham working with the Widows Group which is called "Dorcas". After our meetings it was off into the field.....John Armstrong doing an amazing impression of "Bear Grylls" heading off up the hillside to visit folks in the community. John was doing so well until he tripped walking into the Church and went on his mouth and nose. (So uncool but no harm done) Karen's team, after hearing some horrendous stories from the "Widows Support Group” headed off to visit some widows in their homes to see how they were dealing with life after the genocide of 22 years ago. After lunch we headed across the valley to visit a project Gilgal Church is involved in with people who are living with HIV. Some BIG questions were asked there and it's fair to say we came away humbled by the visit. On leaving we were presented with a gift of 30 eggs from the chickens they were given to help them become self sustainable. We’re definitely not going to get those home in one piece so Eric, Gilgal’s church administrator says he will boil them for us to eat for our lunch tomorrow. This trip has given us many questions for which we are actively seeking answers and many questions which we don't know the answers to. We have prayed that God would challenge us as individuals and as a team during this visit and that is just what "He" has done. As I often say, "Why do I continue to be surprised when God answers our prayers?" Tomorrow will bring another busy day and Michael will be busiest of all as he trains TearFund staff in "camera skills" and all that stuff. We covet the prayers of our church family and friends and look forward to reporting back to you on our return. Every blessing, Graham
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This morning was an experience we'll not forget. A 3 hour church service went in a blink. We were warmly welcomed by the whole congregation with singing and dancing and prayers which involved a whole lot of "whoopin' and a hollerin'. Reuben, Rachel, Michael and Brian worked with the Sunday School while John, Karen and myself held the fort in the service. Peninah preached, boy can she preach, on 1Cor 12. ( different parts of the body and all that stuff (very appropriate for the relationship we're embarking on). Towards the end a new born baby boy was presented to the church and the parents asked for prayers of thanksgiving for the safe arrival of the child. John, Karen and myself were invited as elders to lay hands on the child and pray. An indication of the trust now growing in this relationship. At the end of the service Sunday school hadn't finished so Dr Bunini told the congregation they were going to teach us to dance until the kids arrived. 3 Presbyterian Elders dancing......mmmmmm! Lunch was had in the manse followed by a chance to relax in the afternoon. Tomorrow comes early and we've a busy week ahead of us. Coveting the prayers of BPC. With much love and blessings, Graham Simpson (dancing "ex elder") Part 1 Arrival
Although we’ve been here for less than 72 hours already it is hard to know where to begin. Maybe it is best to start by saying thank you for your prayers for our journey and first couple of days here, and thank you to God for his faithfulness and goodness to us. Our journey was relatively smooth though a delay in Addis Ababa meant that we didn’t make it to the Solace Guest House until well after 3am. After being in transit for nearly 24 hours it was good to finally arrive to a warm welcome at the airport and look forward to the possibility of rest. On Friday morning we met our driver for the week - Vérité, who normally works for Scripture Union in Rwanda. His skill in navigating a small bus across unfinished roads is a marvel in itself and he is quickly becoming a good friend. Our first stop was to the Tearfund Rwanda office where we spent time talking with Emmanuel and Peninah about our programme for the week, and also enjoyed some very welcome coffee. It is clear that a lot of work has gone into the preparation for our visit to ensure that there are good outcomes for both Bloomfield and Gilgal. Already we could see John’s brain starting to tick over at the mention of irrigation problems and water issues. After lunch with Tearfund staff we made our visit to the Genocide Memorial site. It is difficult to put into words the range of emotions that overwhelm during, and after, this visit. An introductory video features people who tell their own stories of the genocide - like the stories of the teacher, the daughter, the parent. Although it is hard to understand all that they have gone through we can relate as we try as best we can to put ourselves and our families in their shoes. Walking through the exhibition unveils an atrocity that is beyond our comprehension and we wonder how this was tragedy was ever allowed to happen. And yet as we look around at a city that seems more at peace with itself, hear the songs of children going to school in the morning, and as we have met with the people of Gilgal church and its surrounding community we have both seen and heard stories of healing. Part 2 Saturday Today [Saturday] we had another early start. One of the government initiatives after the genocide was the introduction of a ‘community morning’. Everyone must stay within their local community and do some work which might involve clearing away litter, making an improvement to a building or in our case making preparations for a gully which the community hope will divert some of the rainwater that flows down from Kigali Mountain during the rainy season. Who would have thought that Rachel and Karen would be wielding an Azada (a sturdy tool for general digging, cultivating, trenching, ridging and ground clearance etc. A bit of extra weight on the blade makes this a good choice for extra hard ground - according to the internet!) with the locals very willing to show us how it was done… but mostly just showing us up! Reuben, John, Brian and Graham also put their collective noses to the grindstone and by the end of our hour we had cleared land, transported cement without the use of a wheelbarrow and moved stones of varying shapes and sizes which would line the walls of the gully. Michael gallantly took photographs of all our activities - proof that we actually did it! John and Brian are already thinking about how the rainwater can be harvested so that it can be used by the local community, rather than simply washing away. The rest of the day was slightly more sedate - well for the most part anyway. We received a very warm welcome from Rev Dr Bunini and the people of Gilgal Evangelical Church. And we have learnt that there are no awkward silences in Rwanda - if there’s even a hint of one someone will break into song and the dancing begins. We had a good session with the church leaders and some of the young people sharing about both our churches and already we can see ways in which we can learn from each other. Reuben and Rachel have identified some training needs with the young leaders, while the rest of us shared about ministries in Bloomfield and our structures. Following our ‘training’ Dr Bunini told us that he felt our partnership was from God. As we debrief this evening and pray for our participation in church tomorrow (did we mention it’s a 3 hour service?) we are conscious that God has prepared a way for us and is equipping us for our tasks this week. Karen Jardine |