By Laura Hibma
“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us…” Ephesians 3:20
Despite the weather in Newark and getting separated from the group in Brussels with limited time to change planes, our entire team arrived in Kigali, Rwanda, with all of our luggage around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday evening! Along with the easiest immigration and customs process I have ever experienced, we made our way to the guest house where we would be spending the next 10 days.
Upon arriving at the guest house, a meal was waiting for us. We all had an opportunity to shower and rest and get ready for our first day.
On Thursday morning we began the day with breakfast at 7 a.m. Breakfast was an assortment of fresh fruit, bread, and fried eggs with green onion, which were amazing! There was also peanut butter and oatmeal from home. 🙂
After breakfast, we began the day with team devotions on the outdoor patio. With the noise of children playing in the background, with started with worship. The theme of our time was setting our hearts before the Lord and being moldable to what the Lord would do in us and through us on this trip. We prayed that the Lord would prepare our hearts for the day and week ahead.
About mid-morning, we had the opportunity to visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial. It was suggested to our team that we do this early in our time here to help us understand the people of Rwanda. While going through the Memorial, I was struck by the individual lives that the Genocide affected. There was a section of the Memorial that honored the children that were killed. Photos of these children along with how their lives were lost was depicted on the walls of the Memorial. Seeing the faces and names of those children made everything very real.
After visiting the Memorial, we returned to the guest house for lunch. Sonia, the lady that is charge of our team and volunteers for FVA (Faith Victory Association), joined us for lunch. During our lunch, Sonia shared with us about how the Genocide had affected her and her family. It was an emotional time for her to share with us. Again, the reality of what happened in Rwanda twenty years ago was vivid.
Later that day we visited the FVA site to see where we would be working. We found out that we would be planting grass, helping a family make improvements on their home, and organizing activities and play time for the kids.
It was a full day and many of us feel like we have already been here for a week! I’m excited for what the Lord will do in us and through us in the next ten days!