Malaria, Car Washes, and Government Leaders in Nigeria

We’re now in Nigeria, and we have been so incredibly blessed! The flight with Lufthansa was amazing, good food, plane half full we got our own rows, and it was a day flight, so it was uneventful. We landed in the capital and were greeted by our contacts who took us strait to the base in Jos 3 hours away.

Our accommodations and the YWAM base were not exactly the Marriot with 6 of us in a room and the 2 guys pretty much in a closet, but other than that this place is so amazing. The people are so warm and welcoming, God has definitely gifted this culture with the gift of hospitality. Also, the vision the base leader has for this place is incredible. They have purchased 15 hectares of land in order to build a YWAM University of the Nations that will be used to train up Christians, and the local church in making an impact on Northern Nigeria and beyond. So far they have a primary school built and running, a chicken house, and one housing building for DTS students. The rest of the base is running out of an old abandoned government building and that is where we were staying.

The weather has been really nice as well with highs in the 80s and it is just dry and cool at night. This place is also beautiful with rock formations everywhere in this state called the plateau state. As always the sunsets here in Nigeria haven't let me down for seeing Africa's amazing skies.

The ministry we have been doing is working in the primary school, giving messages and doing skits in churches, having bible studies with some guys that work at a car wash, meeting with the paramount chief of the area telling him about what we are doing, and also doing some practical work on base like planting cactus around trees so they are not eaten by goats. As for myself, the DTS school leader has asked me to also be a part in training his staff. I got the opportunity to talk to them about the responsibility God has called them to in raising up the students entrusted to their care.

The team is doing awesome too. We have this thing in our outreach training manual for staff talking about the developmental stages of group dynamics the first stage is about seeing if you belong to the group, the second stage is called the storming stage where power struggles happen, then the third and fourth stages are the norming and performing stages. I really believe we are coming out of the storming stage now and God is really working through each of us to touch the lives of people here. It's amazing to watch.

As for myself, I am doing pretty well, however if you asked me last Thursday I would have given you a different answer. Thursday morning, at about 1am, I woke up and found my body shaking and in a lot of pain, in addition to having diarrhea. I thought that I could go back to sleep and hopefully feel better in the morning. Unfortunately by 7am when the team was waking up I was so weak because I hadn’t slept the whole night and my body was still shaking. They took me to the hospital and after vomiting during the check-in process they decided to admit me to the hospital. I was not even able to keep a sip of water in my stomach without vomiting. L So they hooked me up to an IV. They took a blood test and a stool sample (diarrhea still) and found out I had gotten food poisoning AND malaria. I was miserable. They treated me right away and the malaria treatment made me feel horrible, but by the end of 3 days in the hospital, the IV was out, I was eating meals, and taking the medicine orally. I joined back up with the team and have been taking it easy since. Others on the team seem to one by one be taking turns with some kind of stomach bug, so please pray for our team that our health will be restored quickly.

Just yesterday we moved to a new location in the city in order to work with an organization called Urban Frontiers Mission (UFM). The ministry is directed to prostitutes, alcoholics, drug addicts, runaways, the homeless, HIV/AIDS victims, orphans and vulnerable children, juvenile delinquents, teenage mothers, convicts, ex-convicts, the mentally ill, and others who desperately need the gospel to transform their broken lives. Their mission is to show Christ’s compassion to the harassed and helpless in the urban world through evangelism, meeting physical need, discipleship, and rehabilitation in order that they may experience freedom and maturity in Christ, becoming productive members of society. We will be visiting the brothels of Jos tomorrow to meet with prostitutes to hear their story and minister to their needs. We are very excited to get working with them.

That's about all for now. I hope you are all well. Let me know if I can pray for you. Talk to you soon!

Love,
Janet

Love Conquers All!

This is the last update from Northern Ireland. We leave for Nigeria tomorrow morning and arrive there on Sunday night. Our time here in Belfast has been absolutely amazing. We've been able to see God working in so many different ways and had the opportunity to work with Him in various ways in the community.

Beautiful Northern Ireland Coast

Ministry this week consisted of helping out at preschools/toddler groups, having an after school club, working in the cafe, spending time with the elderly at a daycare center, and going out to spend time with teens out on the street. Everyone had the choice to pick which ministries they wanted to be a part of either in the morning or at night, and every afternoon this week and the previous we came together and either did prep for the after school club or put on the after school club. The week was filled with amazing highlights for all of us.

Irene showing off her waitressing skills at the cafe

Cafe Menu

When the week began and we had the first day of the kids club, we were kind of like deer caught in headlights. We had no idea of the discipline problems that we were going to face. At different points in the beginning of the week we had carried one boy out of the church for getting violent with the other children and the next day that same boy (13 yrs old) was climbing on the roof and trying to steal the ladder he got up on. It was crazy! We quickly realized that many of these kids come from extremely rough families and do not get very much attention at all. Our team, however, did amazing! They were so flexible and loved on the kids no matter what. As each day progressed, the kids were able to trust us more and were absolutely responding to and obeying what we would ask them to do. It really was an act of God to get the kids to sit still for more than a minute, but it all turned out so great. About halfway through the week a couple of the children asked us what it meant to be a Christian, so we explained the gospel to them and what it entails. We asked them if it was something they were interested in, they said yes, and we prayed with them to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. God's grace was truly upon us and love really did conquer all the struggles we had.

Snack Time

Learning the theme song

As for the team, I am continually amazed at what God is doing in and through them. Jordan is gifted in connecting with teens, and he is beginning to get a heart for possibly coming back here to work with them some more. Elijah and Irene are our team peace makers by making sure relationships are going well within the team and are always willing to go to others to see how they are doing and bring understanding between all of us. SaeWon is totally blossoming into the woman God has destined her to be and is becoming more secure in her identity in Christ. Lila is our inquisitive team member who is always asking great questions so we can accomplish our tasks in the most efficient and effective ways. Michelle totally stepped up this week in being head over the after school club, learning to delegate, and beginning to get over homesickness. Everyone's attitude has amazed me in their willingness to serve and prefer one another. It really has been a blessing to have each one on the team.

SaeWon, David(6), Elijah, Jordan, Irene, Lila, Michelle

As for myself, I am doing pretty well. I sometimes find myself a little lonely as the only leader of the team. I struggle at times because I don't really have another leader to verbal process with, but God has been meeting me where I am at and totally providing opportunities to talk with the local contact, or the team leaders of the Cameroon team about any challenges I might have. Our team as a whole, but I especially, have been really busy and have been getting more tired as the week progressed. I look forward to getting to Nigeria and recuperating at least the first week we are there as we get acquainted with the area. The after school club took a lot out of each of us, not only because of all the kids, but also because it takes place about 2 miles from where we are staying and we had to walk to and from the church everyday. But really overall, I am truly blessed and thankful for all that God is doing in and through all of us.

That's about all for now. Be praying for our safe travels and that all of our luggage will get to where it needs to be on time. Pray also for the team's health and that God would continue to transform us and give us greater revelations of who He is. Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support. I really can't put into words how grateful I am for each and every one of you. God bless you so much!

Love,
Janet

All is Well in Northern Ireland

It's been about two weeks since leaving the USA and it is about time to write an update. Everything is going great and quite a bit has happened since the last email, so I'll start from there.

We flew out of Kona on a Friday afternoon, expecting to catch a flight from Los Angeles to Washington, Dulles, an hour after arriving in LA. When we landed we immediately checked the boards to find that our flight to Washington had been cancelled. As you can imagine, we were quite tired of all of the delays we had already experienced, but it turned out to be an amazing blessing. After standing in line for two hours waiting to talk to a United Airlines representative, we found out we had a flight out the next morning at 9am. They put us up in the Ramada hotel, gave each of us $35 in meal vouchers, and also each a $100 travel voucher for a future flight. It was so awesome! We were originally going to land in London on Saturday night, but this flight only delayed us a night and we landed in London Sunday morning. We had a good rest in LA before flying out and the only red-eye flight we ended up taking was the one from Washington to London. We were so blessed!

After arriving to London, we took the Underground and a train to the base in Harpenden. Here we had our last week of lecture. You could basically say the topic of our last week was Reconciliation. We had three separate speakers, one from an organization called the International Justice Mission, one working in the city of Luten bringing reconciliation among the great diversity of people living there, and on Friday the national director of the UK spoke to us about reconciliation and the need to understand the history of an area and conflict before charging in and doing our own thing. It was a powerful week of lectures and we also had enough time to begin getting over jet lag and serve the base by helping with the grounds and painting windows.

Big Ben, Parliament & "The Eye"

Big Ben

Wesminster Abbey

Last Saturday we left London to fly up to Belfast Ireland. What an amazingly beautiful place! On Monday we received a tour of the area that we are in and a history lesson of the conflict and social problems affecting this place. We are staying in an area right on the peace line between the protestants and catholics. It is so interesting to see each side of the wall (they literally have a 30 ft wall separating the two sides), and begin to understand the conflict that is happening here and the similar problems that each side of the conflict has within itself with paramilitary organizations terrorizing their own people on each side. We have been going on prayer walks around the city and becoming more familiar with the area. On Thursday we worked at a cafe connected to a church that provides a place for people in the community (especially the older generation) to come and get some great food and good company. We had a blast as a team.

Belfast Murals

As for the team, they are outstanding! We had some conflict already, and I love it because the junk is coming out and people are growing. God is so at work in our team it is amazing and He continues to provide for all of our needs and is blessing us like crazy.

In being here in Northern Ireland God has been speaking to me so much about reconciliation and how we are called to be a people reconciled to God and to others. How Jesus gave his all, while we were still alienated and hostile towards Him, so that we could be rejoined in a relationship with Him. Studying this has brought me huge revelation about humility as a leader and also great awe and praise for the God who loves us so much. He has been showing me how Jesus paid the price for all of my sins and also all of the sins of both peoples involved in this conflict here in Northern Ireland and that Jesus is the one who levels the playing field between all of us because He was perfect and paid the price for all. All we can do now is come to Him for healing, there is no reason to hold grudges, or to respond in violence, the punishment has already been taken and violence only brings more pain and anger in this place.

I sit here now, it is around 9pm and I can hear fireworks going off in the streets and glass bottles being thrown in the street as people turn to alcohol to wash away their sorrows. It breaks my heart that tomorrow morning their pain will still be there and that the trouble they caused the night before may have caused others more pain. Jesus truly is the only one who can take that pain away and I thank God He has taken all of our sins and nailed them to a cross so that we can be forgiven.

That is about it for now. Next week we work in the cafe on Tuesday, will be doing service projects around the community, doing prayer walks, and putting on programs for youth groups. We're excited for what's ahead for all of us. Please be praying for good health and safety as most of us on the team are recovering from or right in the middle of a cold.

Thanks for all of your prayers and taking the time to check up on how things are going. God bless you so much. I am so grateful for you!

Love,
Janet

10 Days and Counting...

Wow, I can't believe it has been over a month since my last post. We are so busy, I never knew life could go by so quickly. It has been absolutely amazing though. Each week we have had speakers come and share with us their stories and what God has laid on their hearts as a topic for each week. We have heard teachings on the Father heart of God, the Kingdom of God, Reconciliation, Hearing God's voice, Identity in Christ, and most recently I had the opportunity to teach on Destiny.

Much of my time outside of class has been working on preparations for our time in Ireland and Nigeria. I never knew it would be so complicated to get visas especially when we have minors going with us. It has been quite the task. We were able to send everything to the Nigerian Embassy last Thursday though, so we are just praying now that our passports with approved visas in them will get back here before we have to leave on September 19th.

In the last month there has been so much growth among the students it is incredible. God is absolutely faithful in each of their lives as students receive revelation after revelation of who God is and how God sees them. There aren't even words to describe being able to see God work in people's lives in such a way. I love it!

Some adventures as a school that we have had the opportunity to go on were camping on the north side of the island, and hiking; and also going to Haupuna beach together for a day. They were so much fun. When we were camping we got little to no sleep because it was pouring rain all night long and the wind was blowing so hard our the tent's poles we were in snapped, but the next day everyone was in good spirits and glad to have spent time with one another. Also during the camping trip we were able to stop by Makapala where I had my DTS. I gave the students a little tour of our isolated little YWAM base. It was great to see the place and to also see Kia (the really old dog that was there during our DTS).

Trying to decide who is going to pee on Makaela's
foot to make the sea urchin spikes stop hurting
(Haupuna Beach)

Hiking after the night of camping with no sleep.

Kia is still alive!

As I mentioned earlier, I was given the opportunity to speak Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (3 hours each day), to teach on Destiny and the plan that God has for each of our lives. It was so cool to see students begin to realize that the dreams, experiences, personality, identity, gifts, and network God has given each one, are intentional in guiding and directing them in the plan He has them. I had never taught so much or so long before, it was really draining, but I loved it and God totally used it to speak into student's lives.

Also, on August 27th I celebrated my 24th birthday. It was an incredibly busy Monday in that we had our normal schedule in addition to a night class at night. I was able to get out of a staff meeting early and go get some sushi for dinner with some friends which was really awesome. Later that night the students lured me outside and surprised me by all of them singing happy birthday. It was really neat.

Well that is a brief description of the last 5 weeks. Feel free to email me if you would like more details. If you could be praying for a couple of things I would be truly grateful.

-Pray for finances to come in both for students and the staff to go on outreach.
-Pray for our passport/visas to arrive back here on time.
-Pray for us as we are preparing to leave in less than a week and a half.
-Pray for continued revelation and understanding of who God is, who we are, and that we would really learn how it applies to our lives.

10 days till we fly out...

Thanks,
God Bless,
Janet

I love my life!

It has been a few weeks since I posted my last blog and basically it is because I have been crazy busy or incredibly exhausted. We just completed week 3 of DTS and it has been incredible. We have 22 students, 11 females and 11 males, and God has been doing some pretty amazing things in and through each and every one of us.

Our first week we focused on Worldview and studied pre-modern, modern, and post-modern thinking and how it has effected many of the minds in the world today. In our second week our speaker, Mark Anderson, challenged us to take hold of our new identity in Christ and rely on the Holy Spirit's filling to help us live from the inside out instead of being affected on the outside and letting that determine who we are on the inside. In our third week our speaker Philip Powell, YWAM's representative in the United Nations and director of the International Center for Justice and Reconciliation, challenged us to really seek to understand what Justice really is in the context of the Bible and what God says about it. All three weeks so far have really challenged all of us to go deeper in our relationship with God and let Him speak to us about how He really sees us.












Catherine Christina Michelle

Did I mention that I'm crazy busy and exhausted at the end of every day. Well it's true, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Being here is so incredible because what I am doing here is exactly what I am created to do. My favorite times of the week are my one-on-ones with three of the students, Christina, Catherine, and Michelle. During these times I get to listen and ask questions about what God is doing in these three girls lives. It is so incredible how God has gifted me and works through me to help these women discover how much God loves them and has an incredible plan for their lives. I am so honored to have been entrusted with the students in our school and daily I am finding myself coming to God asking Him for more wisdom, love, and patience. He is the only reason why I am able to do what I am doing. I love it!!! I have never been so exhausted and yet filled with so much life than before this time.

My Weekly Schedule

Some big news that I'm sure many of you would like to hear is my outreach location. After much prayer individually and as staff we will be sending out 3 teams from our school. At the end of week 11 we will fly to Harpenton, England to finish our last week of lecture. After that two teams will head up to Belfast, Ireland to work with a reconciliation ministry between Protestants and Catholics. The other team will head strait to Bosnia. After about a month, the Bosnia team will go to Ireland and the other two teams will split and go to Nigeria and Cameroon. The team I will be leading is going to Ireland and Nigeria! We will have 4 female students, 2 male students, and a 6 year old boy who is the son of one of the women. The eight of us are very excited for what's ahead and we are just beginning to meet as team and prepare for outreach, only 9 weeks away!

Belfast, Ireland

Nigeria

As a side note, two friends of mine, Sharissa and Carolyn, came to Hawaii for vacation and visited me here. On the weekend we were able to go to the other side of the island and see many of the beautiful views and waterfalls that cover the north east side of the island. We also made it over to the volcano and visited many of the sites there. We had a great time and it was such a blessing to spend time with them here.

Volcano!Sea Turtle!Adventures Around the Island

That about sums up the last few weeks. If you could be praying for a couple things I would be so greatful. First, please pray for our students as they are growing and challenged in many ways while they are here. Pray that they would receive the peace and joy of the Lord even in their times of struggle and that God would speak to them right where they are at. Many have come here with a lot of wounds from their past and God is bringing healing and reconciliation into their lives. Second, please pray for my outreach team. As I am the only staff leader leading our team I am really seeking God as to how to unify our team and raise all of us up as leaders in our gifts and strengths that God has given each one. Lastly, pray for continued revelation and understanding for all of us in our identity in Christ.

Thank you all so much for all of your support. I love you and am so thankful for you and all of your prayers. God bless!

Love,
Janet

Training, Training, Training

Well, these last four weeks has been all about training. The first was Uniquip which I told about in the last post. The second and third week consisted of the staff internship training that was for all new DTS staff. We learned a TON of valuable stuff including spiritual disciplines, time management skills, having the fear of the Lord in realizing the great responsibility we will have discipling students, and so much more.

Activities included a 5 hour speaking fast, creating a collage of what the Lord is calling us to commit to, and a couple of trips to the beach to promote bonding. :)

It was an amazing time and God really met me right where I was at and began providing new friendships which has been so awesome.

This last week has been a corporate training week for all schools that will be beginning this quarter, such as English as a Second Language School, DTS, and Introduction to Biblical Counseling School. It was so awesome to get connected to people from other departments on campus. Some valuable knowledge that I have taken away from this week is YWAM's Core Values, having discussions about why we do what we do, why we have the guildelines that we have, how to handle difficult situations with students, and really the value in listening to understand where people from all walks of life, including culture and upbringing, are coming from. It really has been a valuable time of training.

A side note that was really a blessing during this time is my friends Candace and Tim Marinello were here in Kona on their honeymoon and gave me a call to see if I'd like to hang out. We were able to go to church together on Sunday, check out the lava on the Hilo side of the island, and they were able to join me on a Thursday for our campus' Thursday Night Meeting. It was so much fun and I am so excited for them and their new life together.

Now we are in the last 2 weeks before students arrive. Things are going to start getting really busy these next weeks, but I am so excited! For my school I am officially in charge of intercession times, and I will unofficially be helping out with graphics design stuff, and readily available to help anyone who needs it.

If you could be praying for our students that would be amazing! The last two weeks before coming can be quite stressful and they will also be scrambling to get their finances taken care of as well. Pray for God's protection on them and their families these two weeks and also that God would supernaturally provide the finances they need to get here.

Thanks you guys for taking the time to read this, I am truly greatful for you and appreciate all of your prayers and support.

Love,
Janet

Settling In...

Aloha everyone! Here is my first blog from Hawaii. This week has been one of adjustment, reunions, and insight. When I arrived here last Sunday I quickly discovered that where I was going to stay was off campus about three quarters of a mile away from campus. However, because I arrived on Sunday, and because Monday was Memorial Day, I was not going to be able to get a key until Tuesday. All was well though because a friend of mine said I could stay on her couch on-campus until I could go to the housing office to see if I could get a room on-campus anyways. Well, as the week went on, it wasn't until Friday that I was able to get my room key and get a ride for my two 60lb bags to my room off-campus. Let me just say that it was so wonderful to wake up on Saturday morning in my new bed knowing that I was all unpacked and settled in. Definitely a relief.

Hale Ola is where I live

This week the new staff were invited to attend a seminar called UNIQuip. It consisted of corporate gatherings of worship, prayer, and listening to God in the mornings; and then the rest of the day there were a number of modules that we could choose from in order to become further trained in specific areas of our choosing to help with our ministries. I chose the "Discipling the Sexually Broken" module. The purpose of this module was to train people to become the bridge between secrecy and shame to coming into the body of Christ. I learned that sexuality is the divinely inspired longing to connect with others. I also quickly realized that to some degree or another we are all sexually broken, but having a relationship with Jesus can heal our hearts and bring us to more wholeness. Some great quotes I have in my notes include, "Our past does not predicate our future;" and "Lack of intimacy with God causes us to look to be satisfied by people." It was an amazing time of growth and learning for all of us in the class.

I'm officially staff!

As for adjusting to the YWAM lifestyle, I think I'm getting back into it. It amazes me how quickly we can forget things. When I went to the first morning of UNIQuip I was overwhelmed by the spiritual atmosphere. Back home, it's just not like here. So, it has taken some getting used to. I've been struggling with pressing into my relationship with God. I sometimes wish it would just come so naturally, but recently it has been something I have to be really intentional about and choose into. When I have, God has really spoken and it is amazing; He is so amazing, and He loves us so much. It still is a struggle though, so if you could pray for me in that area, that would be awesome.

Reunions!

That about sums it up. Reunions with some friends from my DTS have been great and I'm really excited for the staff internship to start on Monday. Please pray that God would use this training to speak to us about our future as staff and ignite a passion for the ministry He is calling us to. God Bless you all!

Love,
Janet

Rwanda 2007 Trip

So for all of you that weren't able to attend the open house I had to tell about my trip to Rwanda, this post is for you. As you scroll down you will find the stories and pictures that tell of my adventures in Rwanda. I hope you enjoy.

Team Reports

December 22^nd, 2006

Well, our team has finally arrived in Rwanda! After 3 days of traveling, we are all a bit jet-lagged, but doing well and excited to be here. It's not easy to get everyone to an Internet cafe all at once, so we thought we would send out the first e-mail ourselves to let you know that we have all arrived safely. If you don't hear from us for a few days, don't worry - it may take a few days before any of us are able to make it out to an Internet cafe again. If you know someone in your family who would like to receive this e-mail, please forward it to them since we are only sending it to close family members.

We have just purchased a team cell phone that you may call on Christmas day (or in case of any emergency) if you would like to wish your loved ones a Merry Christmas! Keep in mind that we are 10 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time, and 7 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time. Here it is: If you are calling from North America dial 011-250-08-519-477. If you don't get through the first time, keep trying!

-Team Rwanda

January 3^rd, 2007

We're all loving being here in Rwanda. Just as we're sure all of you are, we're starting to get used to cold bucket showers, toilets that don't flush, food that tastes similar almost every meal (yet is well-cooked and hasn't made any of us sick), very crowded public transportation, and people staring at all of us 'westerners' as we walk down the street. A word we have all learned by now is 'muzungu,' which means, "white person," as we hear it yelled out at all of us so often. It is much cooler here and a lot more expensive than we expected. Yet, the people are wonderful! Language is a barrier, but it doesn't stop people from saying hello and stopping to shake our hands warmly. Kids will often come up and give us a big hug or hold our hands and walk with us for a while, even if they have never met us before. Most of us have willingly given a piece of our hearts away to various children we have met – especially Clemence, who has been staying here at the YWAM base with her father this past week.

Some highlights for these past couple weeks include being invited to a Rwandese engagement party. The first half of the team coming to Rwanda met a girl named Claire at the airport in Kenya, and she invited us to her house on the 24^th for her party. We didn't expect such an extravagant ceremony! Here in Rwanda, the wedding ceremony is in three parts over a few years and the engagement is the first part. Kylee got to be in the "wedding party" as Claire's "sister," and looked beautiful in the traditional clothing and jewelry. We saw amazing dancing and singing, ate a fantastic meal, and even saw two cows being given from the groom's side as a present for gaining a daughter in their family.

Four of us were able to visit a small orphanage early in the morning of the 25^th and we passed out gifts and played there for several hours, which was such a wonderful way to spend Christmas morning. All of our team went to a bigger orphanage of mostly older kids the next day, bringing gifts and spending some time taking pictures and being shown around the property. On New Year's Eve, most of us went to an American house (through a friend of Brandi's) and spent the last hours of 2006 eating American-style food, fellowshipping with many long-term missionaries in Rwanda, worshipping the Lord and praying for each other.

We have started getting involved with the YWAM AIDS ministry called APRECOM. We've been joining them as they have led support groups and made house visits so far. We will start doing hospital visits this week as well. Janet and Joanna have had an opportunity to preach a short message during the support group times, and we have all heard heart-wrenching testimonies from brave people with HIV who attend the meetings. At one group, we even had our taxi driver join the meeting and he asked for prayer for some really personal requests, while the taxi attendant with him accepted the Lord at the end of the meeting! Our entire taxi (large van) sang praise songs all the way back to the base. Another neat testimony comes from Amanda and Kelly, as they went to a hospital with some guys from the base on their day off, and led eight people to the Lord in the AIDS ward!! God is so faithful!

Apart from APRECOM, we feel God leading many of us to pray into ministering at prisons, working with street kids, widows and orphans, and getting involved with medical clinics and village ministries.

The Lord has been so faithful to us already and we are excited to move ahead with wherever God leads us. Please pray for good health on our team as many are struggling with bad colds and can't work in the AIDS ministries until they are no longer contagious. Brandi specifically has been bedridden for the entire week and we long to see her join us and be in great health again.

-Team Rwanda

January 8^th, 2007

This past week we got really involved in many different ministries. We continued with the YWAM AIDS ministry, APRECOM, visiting people’s homes, attending and preaching at support groups and praying with AIDS patients at a local hospital. Before visiting the hospital, we went on a prayer walk and noticed crowds gathering around us. Janet started preaching on the street and the rest of us prayed around the people. About 60 people gathered around to hear the ‘muzungu’ talk, and this was the first time for most of us to be part street preaching and evangelism. One young man was mocking us and asked for prayer as a joke. We laid hands on him and prayed for God to show Himself to this man. No prayers were translated, but when he stood up, his attitude had changed. He talked to our translator and in front of everyone accepted the Lord as his personal savior.

We heard many testimonies during the week – especially from women with HIV. A few of us had the privilege to visit an old compound with free government housing, which supports many families. Recently, the government chose to do new things with the land. So they will be evicting them all at anytime this month. We visited three homes; two were widows supporting six children each, the other was married but very poor with the same number of children. None of these families had any plans after eviction – no homes to go to, no money, no jobs… basically all 19 of these people, along with the many families we didn’t meet, will either be overcrowded into homes of relatives (hopefully) or be forced onto the streets. It is terribly sad. We prayed and encouraged them and will continue to do this.

Homes, school fees, jobs to support their families, and healings are common prayer requests from most of the people we have ministered to with HIV. We are starting to hear more testimonies from the genocide, as well – terrible to read about, but even harder to hear it out of the mouths of survivors. But God is faithful and has good plans for the Rwandese people. We all believe that their tears of pain will be turned into garlands of praise! Our faith for provision and healings has been awakened and most of us are praying for God’s grace and mercy to spill over abundantly in their lives!

This week, many have been part of various ministries. Some have been meeting specific people and following up with them from prayer walks in our community. Janet has been teaching the material on “Destiny” for the past few weeks to a couple American girls here on the base, and Brandi has been helping since recovering from the sicknesses she had been experiencing. Kelly and Amanda preached in a support group, Dan preached in the Assemblies of God church this past Sunday, and Rosanne preached in a women’s ministry of the same church a few days later. Our team had two opportunities to perform the AIDS drama we learned in Makapala and both times were a great success! Dan had a chance to teach and answer questions on HIV/AIDS, which was so needed. (We hope we have more chances to teach what we’ve learned to more groups before we go!)

Yesterday, we were invited to a special ‘Giving Day’ and we joined two long-term missionaries that help run a ministry called Global Family Rescue (GFR), and their staff by handing out 18 cows, many goats, pigs, mattresses, mosquito nets and even five houses (all donated as gifts from American families who support them). They are some of the poorest of the poor in Rwanda and it was such a privilege to be a little part in seeing their joy and giving many a means of supporting their families. The day was very tiring, but it was so fulfilling to see this end of what support from others across the world actually does locally. We will spend a night with these families in their homes next week, and help build one of the houses that was donated. Our team has really grown in unity and health! Thanks for your prayers.

-Team Rwanda

January 15^th, 2007

Life in Rwanda continues…along with it, frustration: a lot of waiting, joy, tears, hearing God’s voice, growing in unity, being so hot that we badly burn one day, to being wet, cold and muddy from a sudden downpour of rain the next day. Unfortunately, we had a lice outbreak for the past 2 weeks (Brandi and Tina last week, and Joanna, Cynthia and Brandi (again) this week). We think they might have caught it from riding motos. Erin was our honorary ‘lice victim’ because she was sick and stayed behind from ministry with us, helping us boil our clothes and pick lice out of our hair. Fortunately, it seems the lice have died - may we never see any more remnants of it on our heads again!

In terms of ministry, we continued to join the APRECOM ministry doing home visits and support groups. This week, Kylee and Tara were our guest preachers and they both gave anointed messages! During one of the home visits, our group met a lady named Jaqueline. She was 48 (but looked much older) and has lived with AIDS for 25 years! She lost two children and her husband died in the genocide, so she currently raises 2 teenage daughters alone. She is almost blind, has a tumor in the back of her throat, has a serious foot injury, has no job and is very poor. Yet this woman started testifying how faithful God has been in her life. She started to sing out her praises to the God while we were there and we just started weeping. The presence of God was so strong in this woman’s life and you could feel it in her little, humble home. She challenged us to realize that Jesus is enough… we can look at all her problems and feel overwhelmed with need and our inadequacy to meet any of her needs… hopeless comes to mind… yet, this woman experienced and understood God’s faithfulness and really taught us that He is enough! As a woman with HIV testified in one of the support groups this week, HIV is not the problem… having no hope is the problem.

Other ministry news… A few of us revisited the Mother Theresa orphanage and feel that we would like to do this regularly until we leave Rwanda. Erin got peed on twice that day - once playing with some children near the YWAM base and another holding little babies at the orphanage. Once a month, YWAM invites the community to the base to enjoy a time of worship and fellowship. Dais helped lead worship during that time and our team had a chance to perform the drama ‘Thief’. The music wasn’t working properly so it made performing difficult - yet God still worked through it and it seemed like many were touched. Joanna had an opportunity to visit a group of widows with a different YWAM ministry and she saw God working in huge ways in their lives. One woman was saved last Tuesday and that night had a dream that Jesus healed her and her children of HIV! Another asked for prayer last week for a house as she was being evicted from hers, and God surprised her with a house the next day, which greatly encouraged her and those who prayed with her. Amanda and Kelly have been ministering to a young boy named Eric. They met him on the street and they shared a little of their faith to him. He knew God but couldn’t go to church because he had no shoes, so they felt God prompting them to buy him a pair. They also took him to the base so he could have a shower, and they gave him some new clothes and something to eat. His mom died of AIDS and his father died after the genocide. He lives on the street and Amanda and Kelly are trying to get him into school and involved in a street kids ministry that YWAM hosts. He comes to the base often to visit and they took him to church on Sunday. Both ask for your prayers – he is deeply on their hearts and they feel like moms to him, yet are not sure what they can do now.

Yesterday we joined the missionaries we know with Global Family Rescue and helped dig a foundation for a house that was paid for from an American sponsor. We hiked up the side of a mountain, picked up shovels and hoes and dug up dirt for about an hour and a half. The Rwandese were staring at us and laughing as they looked at the muzungus work, and even though we were not as efficient as they were, we know they were encouraged and that they appreciated our efforts. Unfortunately it started pouring rain, so we were all slipping and sliding down the mountain back to the van. Dirty... cold... wet... hungry… but all of us want to go back and continue with the house when we can.

-Team Rwanda

January 22^nd, 2007

This week was a week of harvest. The Lord put many in our path that wanted to receive the Gospel. Kylee and Tara continued meeting with a man named Happy that they met on the road a few weeks ago who was interested in knowing more about heaven. Last Friday, after calling him up, they sat and spoke to him and eventually led him to the Lord. Others of us have started attending a widow ministry with YWAM Rwanda. On Friday, Joanna gave her testimony and Dan shared the Gospel message. Sixty-three widows and one street boy received Jesus as their personal Savior. The leader of this ministry, a 25-year-old Rwandese girl who is filled with wisdom and compassion from God, cried because she knew the women and they had never been willing to accept Christ before. Some of us also went to a hospital on Saturday to feed the sick and pray for them. Dan and Dais led about 14 people to Christ, the majority from Dan preaching on the street corner, and the rest from their hospital beds.

For the APRECOM ministry, our preachers this week were Janet and Tina. Both of these girls gave heartfelt and challenging messages during the support groups. Rosanna also preached at the Assemblies of God church nearby on Monday to a group of prostitutes and widows. Our team will be leading a three-day seminar and preaching about their destinies and identities in God on Sunday next week to this same group of women. A few of us spent over an hour talking with some Muslims we met during a prayer walk earlier this week. Erin, Jack and Dais have a heart for them and will continue to meet with them. Dais had the opportunity to lead a group of long-term missionaries, as well as many from our team, into an intimate time of worship last Saturday night for a few hours. (We just heard that he also got accepted into the School of Worship in Kona! Congrats, Dais!)

On Tuesday, we held a medical clinic and continued to lay the foundation of the house we’ve been building with Global Family Rescue up in a village. Around 50 people were examined and given free medicine (everyone had a terrible case of worms, on top of other sicknesses), and five people received the Lord that afternoon, as well. There is definitely a party in going on in heaven!

With three weeks left, we are getting busier and busier…yet more focused on God than ever. We went to the Genocide Memorial as a team last Thursday and spent a powerful time of prayer over Rwanda that evening. From the surface, it appears that unity between the tribes is going well. However, from personal stories we continue to hear, and even the relationship struggles with the Christians we know on base, there is still a lot of tribal tension. The Memorial is definitely incomplete. There is no mention of reconciliation. One is simply left with a terrible view of the horrors that one tribe inflicted on the other. Brandi noticed a statement they made of themselves: “Rwanda was dead.” Spiritually, most in this country are dead as emotional wounds fester and have not been healed. The Lord gave us amazing promises through Ezekiel 37. We prophesied life into these dead, dry bones through the Spirit and claimed the promise that these two tribes would be one. We’re praying for beauty from the ashes, and believe we will see it during our time here.

We have a few prayer requests as well this week. Rosanna’s dad is very frail and sick and we are praying that he will gain strength and be protected, at least until the time that she can go home to see him again. Amanda and Kelly both ask that you would continue to pray for a home for Eric, the street boy that they have been looking after over the past few weeks.

-Team Rwanda

January 31^st, 2007

The countdown is upon us. Two weeks from today we head on a plane back to Hawaii. There are mixed feelings... excitement to go back, coupled with feelings of sadness to leave the wonderful people we've been connected to.

Ministry has been getting busier and more focused. Dan and Rosanne have led a few more medical clinics this week – again set up so they can see patients medically, give out free medicines whenever possible and have ‘counselors’ who share the gospel and pray with everyone who sees the doctors. The first clinic was at a local doctor’s office that we rented for the day and we saw easily around 100 people from the community – sadly still leaving a big crowd behind us as we left. We led over 30 people individually to Christ, so although it was exhausting work, the harvest was again plentiful. The second clinic was in a nearby village, where most of the team helped build a seedbed with GFR. We got to cut logs with machetes, dig holes with our hands for posts and carry down ‘seemly’ light tree trunks to use as the posts for the seedbed. Our doctors treated many patients while all this was going on and the ‘counselors’ led six people to Christ.

Our preachers for the APRECOM support groups this week were Dais and Cynthia. At the widow ministry our team had the joy to give out 5 lb bags of rice to 220 people and also dance the ‘Redeemer’ song for them. Rosanne shared her testimony and Brandi preached and inspiring sermon from Ezekiel 37 – even demonstrating reconciliation between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes with large sticks she taped together. The response was amazing as all the women responded with a desire to move forward as God’s army! Dan had the opportunity to preach on forgiveness at a church this past Sunday. The team shared the ‘Redeemer’ dance and the ‘Thief’ drama and Joanna also shared her testimony during the service.

A small group from our team followed up with the Muslims they met last week – and this time they were requested to come to the Mosque and share with the Muslim leaders and officials about why they were here in Rwanda and what they wanted. Erin and Kylee boldly shared the full Gospel message and everyone listened without interrupting (something that hadn’t happened in previous visits). Seeds were planted and we are praying that God will use His Word to grow in them and to see Him for themselves.

Our team also had an opportunity to share with a group of international students about relationships. These teens were ages 14 to 17 from an English speaking Christian school. Erin, Kelly and Rosanne shared testimonies about various stages of relationships they are in or have been in to encourage these young people to make wise decisions about dating, sex and marriage. Our team also gave an AIDS awareness message by using the AIDS drama and Janet spoke about it. Jack was able to answer some questions that the boys had at the end – basically sharing that they need to pray and ask God about dating and who to date! J

We’ve started a team day where we cancel all scheduled ministry on Thursdays and meet in the morning for ‘God guidance’. God led us to downtown Kigali last Thursday through various words and pictures our team received from Him, and led us to pray in front of the TV station. A reporter watched us pray and took interest in us. He was going to take his TV crew to join us with the widow ministry last week, but he had a change of plans. We remember a word of the Lord we received from God in Makapala that we would be in the media while in Rwanda… so who knows what He still has planned for us in these last few weeks. J

This morning we were able to visit ‘Cards for Africa’ and tour around a place of employment for 30 orphans, with 20 more in a training program. Chris Page heads this missionary-based business as a YWAMer who began it with Gabriel. Perhaps you remember Gabriel’s testimony of how Cards for Africa won second prize from a Newsweek contest while we were together in Kona. Chris shared how this ministry business began, what they are doing now and where God is continuing to lead them in the future. We were all extremely impressed and inspired from his sharing and the variety and quality of cards his orphan employees produce. Most of us bought something, so ask us and we’ll gladly show you what we acquired and point you in the direction of getting any for yourselves or for fundraisers when we see you in Kona.

-Team Rwanda

Stories, Pictures, and Ministry

The Story of Erik:
- Account retold by Amanda Morgan

So this is how it goes.... There was one afternoon where Kelly and myself were sitting at the gas station in Remera, when I saw a young boy who looked about 10 years old. He had on over sized clothes full of dirt and holes and no shoes. There are many street kids who roam the streets; they are all left parentless due to the genocide or AIDS. From the second that I saw him I knew something was different about him, my heart was beating so fast and I knew it was something that the Lord was trying to tell me.

Kelly and I ushered him over to us, and he was very shy- He spoke broken English and we learned that his name was Erik and he was 12 years old. He continued to tell us that he had no Mother because she had passed away a couple of years ago due to AIDS. My heart began to break for this little boy-I felt as if I had nothing to offer him, but I was so wrong. As he ate the cookies we gave him, I started asking him if Erik knew who Jesus was, he said he did, but he couldn't go to church because he had no shoes. From that moment I knew God wanted me to bless him. We bought him some shoes and socks and took him back to our base and gave him a hot shower and food. The Lord kept giving me a heart for this boy; I was starting to feel like his mother. And later on Erik actually began calling me his Mother as I would clean him and his dirty clothes every time he came to the base! I couldn't think about anything else but Erik- I'd pray for him all day long, just hoping that he was okay and that God would protect him and keep him safe.

We were able to get to know him more and more each and every time he came to visit. We learned more about his past and He told us that his Dad has passed away during the genocide when he was a baby, so his Mom re-married a man who treated Erik very badly and beat him often. When Erik was a little older his Mom passed away from AIDS and left him to live with his abusive stepfather. Afraid and hopeless Erik left his home to live on the streets of Kigali. Erik had been living by himself and the other street kids for close to 4 years. Every night Erik would search for a place to sleep on the street, usually sneaking onto someone's doorstep. Often Erik would get his shoes and money stolen from him. There was a time that he got beat up by the other street kids because they knew that Kelly and myself were helping him.

I knew that I had to do something more than just bring Erik to the base and feed him and give him clothes and toys. I knew God wanted so much more for him than that. So I started to seek God, and ask Him what He wanted to do. I was really tested throughout the whole outreach when it came to Erik. I was trying to get Erik a place to live with a Mother who would take care of him and treat him as her son and not just a house slave as many people do with street kids.

As I looked for someone to help me do this-I was shut down in every way. I couldn't do it by myself because-one, I couldn't speak the language and two, I didn't know the area very well and if I did, who would I talk with?

So, I just kept praying that God would reveal to me what I was to do. I fought with God on this. I pretty much told him I was going to stand and fight for Erik because he belonged to his Creator not the enemy. I told God I wasn't going to leave Rwanda until I knew Erik was in a safe place.

Behind the scene I was freaking out for Erik and fighting with God all the time, but on the outside I just showed Erik love, the love that he hadn't felt in years. We took him out to dinner, to soccer games, and to parties that we had on the base.

It was amazing being able to see the change in Erik, in his eyes. Everything about him was slowly starting to change. Erik had begun to become very close with me and also with a student at the YWAM base; Selassie.

I didn't know at the time, but Selassie would be my answer to prayer. Selassie finally told me that his Mother had been looking for a son to adopt! I was amazed; I was overwhelmed with emotion and happiness for Erik. From that moment on I knew that everything was in God's hands and that He would take care of Erik. He would place Erik in a good home with a Mother who would love him as her own and also a brother and a sister!

Selassie took Kelly and I to his home to meet his Mother. Selassie called her, 'His Queen.' She truly was, Selassie's Mother was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen and a very strong Christian. She hadn't even met Erik yet but she already loved him and was willing to help him and be there for Erik.

God totally worked everything out and it was totally in His timing, which I learned is always the best timing! We took Erik to his new home and he met his new Mom. A couple of days later we went to visit the family and Erik was doing amazing- Selassie's Mom began to tell us how he was acting as if he was the king of the house. He was already going to school and learning better English! Praise God. He is so amazing and totally provided for Erik. We were really able to witness God's love for his children. He had a plan for Erik and part of that plan was played out though us!

GFR:

Global Family Rescue is a non-profit relief organization that provides Rwandan families with relief and support in the aftermath of years of genocide that killed over 1 million innocent people. There are certain families that are involved in this program that are being supported by families in the United States. These Western families help their family in Rwanda with housing, food, school fees and other basic needs.

Our team was able to work on giving days- where the families from the west had sent in extra money for houses, cows, goats, pigs, mosquito nets, and beds. We also worked with GFR to build a house for a family and build a seedbed for a community. We were able to hold medical clinics because our team was blessed with two doctors that brought A LOT of medicine! In the medical clinics, one by one the people saw the doctors and received the medicine needed and then right after were sent to the rest of our team for counseling and prayer. We were able to pray with every single person and many came to Christ! GFR was amazing to us, and we were able to bless them in return. We made some awesome relationships with the people involved in the organization, and many of them want us to come back!

THE WIDOWS:
Every week a group of over 400 widows would meet together to hear the word of God. We would preach to them and we also handed out lbs of rice and Keyarwanda Bibles. These woman were amazing, many of them loosing their husbands due to the Genocide or AIDS.

These women LOVE to hug and we hugged each other for probably 45 minutes because there were so many of them! These broken women were slowly becoming whole through hearing the word and fellowship with one another. There was a time that Brandi preached about reconciliation and reuniting the two tribes: Hutus and Tutsis. It was amazing, God was totally moving within these women, and they were hungry for more. Each time we went to the visit the widows hundreds of them came to the Lord. Simply amazing!

WE WENT TO A TRADITIONAL ENGAGEMENT CEREMONY:

While our team was in Kenya for a layover we met a woman named Claire. She was so nice and she invited us to her engagement ceremony! We were really shocked because we had just met this woman, and never in a million years would anyone do that here in the States. It just really showed how awesome the Rwandese people are. One of our team members, Kylie, was actually asked to be in the ceremony. We were treated like royalty when we were there. We even ate before the family! It was insane. But God was totally blessing us and we had the best time ever!

ORPHANAGES:

We were able to visit a bunch of different orphanages that were pretty close to our base. The first week that we arrived in Rwanda was the week of Christmas and we really felt that the Lord was telling us to bless one of the orphanages, but we didn't know which one. He lead us to one that was so perfect- it was really close to the base in Samaduha and had about 12 children which was amazing. We made the kids bags filled with toys and brought it to them on Christmas morning; they were so happy. It was so awesome getting to visit them all the time and just play with them.

Going to the orphanages was one of the favorite things our whole team loved doing. There was also a Mother Theresa Orphanage in town. Where our team would go and just help out the women that worked there by changing, playing, and feeding the babies.

I Was Arrested in Rwanda

Its true, I was. Well, actually, I was detained, but close enough. Here’s the story:

Every Thursday was our free day from scheduled ministry to seek the Lord and ask Him what we should do that day. It was our last Thursday before having to leave. That morning we had intercession and most of us felt that God was leading us into Remera. We always passed through Remera and went to the Internet Cafe there. People knew us there but we never really ministered in Remera. So, we traveled the bumpy road of Samaduha into Remera- when we arrived our whole team kind of split up and just talked with different people and began preaching and ministering to people. That morning as we were praying we felt God tell us that He would provide translators for us and we should not worry about making arrangements. Dais and I were together and there was about 40 people standing all around us just because we were white and talking to people. A young adult named Owen began talking to us and we asked him if he could translate for us. He began to translate for us and I began to tell the crowd what the bracelets we were wearing meant. We were able to share the gospel using this simple tool and explain that God loves Rwanda so much that He sent us there from across the world to tell them that He loves them and has not forgotten them.

As we finished sharing the gospel and began asking people if they needed prayer, I looked behind me and saw a police truck with about 4 men with AK-47s in the back and two of our teammates being pushed into the back seat. They came to Dais and I and told us to get into the back of the truck. As we began driving away, the police continued to collect the rest of our team and told them to get in the back of the truck. I called out to Owen who was translating for us to pray for us.

The police officers took us to the station and we had to sit there for a while until they came and asked us questions about why were there and what we were doing. They told us that if we were going to have a program that we needed to notify the police beforehand. After all of that, they took us back to the gas station that we were at and asked us to return home for the day. We were able to meet back with some of the people we were talking to and lead them to the Lord before taking a taxi back to the base. It was so awesome!

The most intense thing that day was not getting taken away by police but it was actually intercession that morning. God had told us that we were going to have distractions and that our faces would be turned away from the real reason we were there. That's what happened! But, it still didn't stop us!
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Well that's all the adventures and ministries I have for you today. There are many more that you will just have to hear when we get together for coffee or something. I hope you were blessed in hearing about what God did through us in Rwanda. Thanks for taking the time to read!