I was hungry...

Last Sunday, one of our pastors shared a different version of Matthew 25: 34-45. And I wanted to share it with ya'll. I have to admit, all of these statements hit me pretty hard, as I can say that I've acted like all of these before. It's a good reminder of what's to come in verse 40. Someday the King will reply to us..."Truly, I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." We are serving the King! Let us not grow weary!

Peace! :)


I was hungry and you formed a humanities club to discuss my hunger.
-Thank You.

I was imprisoned and you crept off quietly to your chapel to pray for
my release.
-Nice.

I was naked and in your mind you debated the morality of my appearance.
-What good did that do?

I was sick and you knelt and thanked God for your health.
-But I needed you.

I was homeless and you preached to me of the shelter of the love of God.
-I wish you'd taken me home.

I was lonely and you left me alone to pray for me.
-Why didn't you stay?

You seem so holy, so close to God; but I'm still very hungry, lonely,
cold, and still in pain.
- Does it matter?

Author Unknown

Happy Birthday Gabe!

Gabriel Mugisha was rescued one year ago, and lovingly fostered by our pastor and his family of six. Their adopted daughter, Ruth, is above, cradling baby Gabe. Gabriel was a premature baby, weighing only 1.3 kilos when he was born on March 11 last year. His biological mother abandoned him at the Rwamagana hospital the day after he was born. He came to our pastor's house, and immediately began gaining strength. They named him Gabriel Mugisha, which translates to Messenger of God. Gabriel has indeed been a messenger of God for all of us during his short life. His story and strong spirit captures everyone who meets him.

In August, doctors found a cyst on his brain. In November the cyst grew rapidly, and he began having seizures multiple times a day. Surgery has never been an option. The Jenkins consulted many well-trained physicians in Rwanda and Kenya and the U.S., and began Gabe on medicine, and the seizures have decreased, but not totally disappeared. God's glory has shone brightly in this child's life. He has brought together a church, a commuity, and so many others who pray for him and praise Him for his life.

This weekend, as we all come together to celebrate his first birthday, and praise God for seeing Him through this year....we welcome a new family, his forever family to Kigali! Gabriel is being adopted, and his family from Texas arrived this weekend! The judges have ruled in their favor, as no biological members of his family can be located or traced, and all the paperwork is being processed now. We pray that it is a smooth process, that all the red tape is dealt with properly, and that the transition process is an easy one for the Jenkins and precious Gabe.

It's a happy day here!

Gabriel Mugisha is spoken for!

Book Review: Reluctant Pilgrim

"As soon as I met her, I could tell she was one of those people who see the world as though through a kaleidoscope: everything has the potential for beauty and light if seen through the right angle, and the broken pieces reflect the richest colors."

I love this quote, from Enuma Okoro's book, Reluctant Pilgrim. It reminds me of how we are all broken creatures, in need of grace, and I am better than no one. Here, there, or anywhere. But yet, God takes our brokeness, owns it, makes it His own, and transforms it into something beautiful....if we will allow Him.

I love seeing His light and beauty in people, even when they don't recognize it themselves. Not yet, anyway. And when they finally do....it seems that the light in them shines brighter than all the rest; all the rest who maybe have lived less peculiar lives, less riskier, less raw. Those have been my observations, anyway.

He can do so much with the broken shards! He can make a masterpiece of them!

Enuma's book is a great reminder of that, as she relates her spiritual journey in this book. She's a Duke Divinity graduate who lives in Durham. I totally recommend this book, especially to ladies! She is so honest about her life in and outside of the community of church, and her desperateness for an authentic faith is refreshing. (and funny too!)

Here's a few more quotes from this book!

"I'm figuring out that experiencing God's love and presence isn't just about my being obedient and performing well for God. It's simply about God's love. It's not about tests and being strong enough and doing whatever it takes to not be rejected by God. It's about love."

"Grace is not about being perfect or pushing others to be perfect. It's more about patience, acceptance, and a willingness to see individuals for who they are in Christ, and as they stand alone, with all their disheveled parts messing up the pretty picture. It's so much less about "what's in it for me" and so much more about the transformation that happens in us and between us that helps us spill our lives, somewhat clumsily, outside the boundaries we've comfortably drawn around ourselves."

Enjoy this book ladies!

Little readers

My students have been sharing their love of reading with my friend, John Bosco's preschoolers, and our "adopted" classroom at Groupe Scolaire local Rwandan school. I have tremendous little readers, with servant hearts, and we all have been blessed by our visits to our outreach schools, and listening to these precious children read, some of them for the first time! Their joy is contagious! Let Him receive the glory!

" To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark. "

- Victor Hugo

a season for wandering...

A blessing for this season of Lent...

To receive this blessing,

all you have to do

is let your heart break.

Let it crack open.

Let it fall apart

so that you can see its secret chambers,

the hidden spaces

where you have hesitated to go.

Your entire life is here, inscribed whole upon your heart's walls:

every path taken or left behind,

every face you turned toward or turned away,

every word spoken in love or in rage,

every line of your life you would prefer to leave in shadow,

every story that shimmers with treasures known

and those you have yet to find.

It could take you days to wander these rooms.

Forty, at least.

And so let this be a season for wandering

for trusting the breaking

for tracing the tear that will return you

to the One who waits

who watches

who works within the rending

to make your heart whole.

---Jan Richardson

Not all those who wander are lost. ~J.R.R. Tolkien

Spoken For

This is Gloria Mugisha, and I promise you this picture doesn't even begin to do justice as to how beautiful this newborn baby girl is. Gloria is PERFECT. She is peaceful. Her wide eyes are so beautiful and shine bright. I know everyone thinks that all newborn babies are perfect and beautiful and precious. But I promise you, Gloria really is perfect! :)

And the Lord has already ordained all of her days, before one of them even came to be. I know He has a special plan for this child of His. He has already rescued her and given her life, and I know His blessings will be on her! When she was just four days old (a few weeks ago), the guards in my neighborhood found this baby lying naked in the field beside our church and school. The dogs had surrounded her and I think they helped save her life by barking and alerting the soldiers who patrol our streets at night. They found her and took her to Margeurite's house, our Umudugudu (chief).

Now Gloria is being lovingly fostered by one of our pastors, Brett and Keli Shreck, and their family. The Shrecks have two older girls, and two younger boys that they adopted a few years ago from the Home of Hope orphanage in town. They gave her the name Gloria Mugisha, which translates to blessings in kinyarwanda. They hope that God's glory will be seen through this precious baby. We praise God that all of her tests came back negative and she is the healthiest baby and growing fatter every day! From the first few days that she was rescued until now, you can already tell a great difference in her disposition and personality. She is calm and peaceful now, as Keli swaddles her. Her eyes have calmed down and I know she knows she is loved. You can see it in her eyes now.

Our church has begun a ministry called Spoken For, where they help facilitate fostering and adoptions of orphans and vulnerable children in Kigali. Currently, our church members are fostering 3 babies that need homes. Gabriel, is with the Jenkins family, and has not been as lucky as sweet Gloria. Gabriel has endured many brain seizures and has a cyst on this brain. He's very small, and has been to many hospitals in the region already. The Jenkins already have 5 other children, two that they adopted from Uganda. Please pray for Gabriel's health, and that we can find a forever-family for him!

It's estimated that that there are 15% child-headed households in Rwanda, and 4,000 orphans. Rwanda has begun a new program of attempting to de-institutionalize all the children in their orphanages, and arrange families and homes for them to belong too. And our church wants to be apart of this, not just as individual families, but as a church BODY. The body of Christ, stepping in to protect and grow and love these sweet children.

Adoption is written all over the New Testament. We are adopted into His Sonship, we are set free from slavery and fear, and the Holy Spirit leads us into freedom. We are spoken for. Adopted into His eternal hosuehold forever! Our church is striving to extend this grace and love to these vulnerable children by praying for then, fostering them, and helping to facilitate longterm forever-families for these children. We've already established a great partnership with Home of Hope orphanage, and our church has helped facilitate many adoptions here and abroad. It's always so humbling and amazing to be there when a young one meets their forever-family for the first time. Theres laughter, tears, singing, and God's presence is all over the place!

Please join us in praying for Baby Gloria, and Gabriel, who has many special needs. Pray for their foster families, and that forever-families will soon be found to adopt these two beautiful babies. Join us in praying for their biological parents too, and for the ministry of Spoken For to continue being the hands and feet of Jesus in our city on a hill.

Love

Today we celebrate love. All kinds of love! I used to think Valentine's Day was too cheesy, because I thought you should celebrate the people you love EVERY day, not just once a year. But now, I enjoy this celebration of love. It's a wonderful day (and reminder) to lavish love on those you love, and accept it too! And for me, it's a reminder of the greatest love story of all...The Cross...and a day to spend with my First Love and the One who claims my heart! I found this Valentine's Day, that I was led to a different Scripture, than the usual 1 Corinthians love verses. I began reading in Luke 15, the story of the Prodigal Son.

"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate."

compassion. kisses. worthiness. feasts. celebrations. alive! I was reminded by this story, of the unrelenting, overwhelming love our Father gives us. All the time. He loves us! And it's a perfect and real love, with kisses and hugs and cleebrations! :) unconditional. I know it's hard to believe sometimes..when sin creeps in and we think we need to be good enough to deserve His love. Thank God His love is based on Him, not on us! And it's perfect and true!

Today, my Father lavished His love on me in many ways...from emails from old, old friends. :) And smiles from beautiful children. and prayers with a grieving family. And the hope of a new adoption! and the most amazing African sunset! My class and I were also privileged to visit my friend, John Bosco's school in the village today, and have praise and worship with them! So fun to see love in action and alive!  My kids were alive with love! Singing praise songs in three languages, and teaching and writing, Jesus Loves You in the different voices. Imana Ira gukunda! :) Yesu anapenda! Beautiful!

Whether or not you think you deserve it today or not...He is waiting for you to come home! And waiting to give you a giant hug and kiss! Forgiveness is love in action. He has forgiven us, so that we may also forgive others. One of my favorite quotes from Henri Nouwen...

“Forgiveness is the name of love practiced among people who love poorly. The hard truth is that all people love poorly. We need to forgive and be forgiven every day, every hour increasinly. That is the great work of love among the fellowship of the weak that is the human family.” 

Abba Father...

Your love is Deep, Your love is high
Your love is long, your love is wide.

Your love is deeper than my view of grace
Higher than this wordly place
Longer than this road i travel
Wider than the gap you've filled.

Who shall separate Us? Who shall separate us from your love?
Nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus.
Nothing can separate us from your love.