Our Gisenyi Family

In order to have an opportunity for concentrated culture and language-learning, as well as relationship-building, Brad and I are going to try to stay in the homes of some pastors in different regions of the country for about 2-3 weeks each. Our first experience was for two weeks in October in the town of Gisenyi, in the Northwest corner of Rwanda on Lake Kivu and bordering Goma, Congo.

Relationships
When we arrived at Pastor Augustine Habimana’s home in Gisenyi we were warmly welcomed by him, his wife, Mama Erise, his nine-year old daughter, Erise, his four-old son, Sam, and his five-month old baby boy, Shamu. Also staying at the house at the time were his mother, nephew, and two girls that they have living with them right now. As the two weeks progressed, we felt like we had a home and a family with our new friends. We had many, many conversations together about things both light-hearted and serious. We played with the children, watched television (mostly soccer) together, visited churches, talked with visitors who came to the house, and visited families in the neighborhood. One time we walked to a church member’s house, then joined him on a visit to his neighbors to talk to them about Christ. It was interesting to be observing and praying for people during these visitations and exciting that the Friends church people are reaching out to their neighbors.

Learning
One of the most difficult things I did each day was to gather up my courage to “put myself out there” into some situation where I could learn something new. However, I had some very fun and fulfilling times learning/observing how to make some kinds of foods, how to wash clothes, how to go and buy things at the market, how to use a charcoal iron, etc. I would often write down words that came up in conversations and, later, Brad helped me remember them by asking me questions in Kinyarwanda. One day, Brad and I walked to the market to buy some fruit that Mama Erise asked us to get. She told us the expected prices and the quantities of what to buy, but I knew it was up to me to do the talking. I practiced ahead of time, and was nervous, but I did it! The ladies selling the food were kind, and didn’t try to make us pay an exorbitant amount, and for that I praise God!

Fun times
Sometimes Brad and I walked around town, one Saturday morning we had a great time kicking the soccer ball around with Sam and Erise, and every day we got to enjoy playing with little Shamu. He loved to smile and laugh! The first morning we were there, Mama Erise told her son that he needed to teach me Kinyarwanda, so he got out his book about constellations (in English) and I actually did learn a couple words. One morning, Pastor Habimana guided us on a thirty minute drive to the hot springs - a nondescript little place on the edge of the lake that had hot water bubbling up out of the earth. I had never seen anything like it before, so it was pretty fascinating. Also, one day we told our family that we wanted to cook something for them. So, we went through the sreps of buying the food, washing, cutting, peeling, and cooking (the whole process took about five hours). Everyone liked it and Mama Erise asked us to teach it to her a few nights later! This family cooks over charcoal and has places for three pots to be going at once. So, it was a new experience for us, but fun!

There were times I felt tired, confused, and even a little sick. But, there were also so many times I felt at home, excited to be learning, and loving our new family. God helped me so much to have courage, to give me rest when I needed it, and to just see the beautiful things He was doing around me.

Teaching during our time in Gisenyi

During our times with Pastor Augustin and his family I (Brad) was asked to teach/preach 3 different times. Two times were during the time slot for the “short sermon” (A 15 – 20 minute sermon toward the beginning of the worship service which is later followed by the 30 – 45 minute sermon.) I brought several sermons that I already had prepared in Kinyarwanda thinking that the Lord would point out one of the messages already prepared but as I prayed and tried to prepare for each one, I sensed that the Lord desired me to share on different topics for each of the groups and none of them were the messages that I brought with me! In my life before living in Rwanda, this would have been no problem for me because I am used to preparing different messages and am used to the Lord leading me in English, even as I am speaking to a group. But since we live in Rwanda and minister in the language of Kinyarwanda and the Lord usually speaks to me in English, it usually takes me a really long time to prepare something to teach here!

But the Lord helped me to enter into the next phase of my ability to teach here in Rwanda. As I prayed and sought to hear what the Lord would have me share, I sensed Him give me different topics to share upon and so I wrote out each message and then translated them into Kinyarwanda. And then I preached them! This is the first time that I have ever prepared a message by myself without at least some editing by a Rwandan. After each message I asked the Pastor and his wife for feedback on what I said and if it was understandable and each time they said that it was very understandable. When I asked to know what mistakes I made, they told me that I was making a mistake tonally. The way I was saying “He came” (as in Jesus came to save us) meant that He came earlier today rather than in the distant past. The difference between the two is in the pitch of the voice as you say the two words. This is still something that I really have to work on…as you can tell this is a very foreign part of the language to an English speaker. But at the same time it feels like a great victory in the language to be able to write, translate, and preach in Kinyarwanda and to have the mistakes be tonal and not major grammatical mistakes! Please praise God with us at His continued faithfulness to us here in Rwanda and with me in learning Kinyarwanda and being able to minister to Rwandans in their heart language!