On my last trip to Rwanda, Josue, one of "the six," (see Sept 29th Blog Post) helped to teach in Rusozi. Deo, also one of "the six," helped to teach in Muhanga. In the final three locations, the remaining four of "the six" assisted in the teaching. All of these locations are in Rwanda and it was great to experience the growth of these six church leaders. But in November, Theophile is planning to take two of "the six" to the Congo and Burundi. This is a significant step forward for Rwanda Challenge.

Aaron will travel with Theophile to Burundi and the southwest part of the Congo. Jean D'Amour will share in the teaching in a northeast section of the Congo. This is a first in what we pray will become the norm for these Rwandan church leaders; multiplying the teaching of Rwanda Challenge.

The plan is to teach sixty church leaders; twenty each in three locations on the November trip. We would love to be able to provide sixty Kinyarwanda Study Bibles for each church leader taught. Theophile says this will be the first time the church leaders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi will be introduced to the KSB. I can't begin to describe the impact this one resource makes for a local church leader and then the local church. It is a great blessing when we teach these church leaders. That blessing is compounded exponentially when we put a KSB in their hands and teach them how to use it.

Each Bible cost $20. If you desire to bless these church leaders, you can send a contribution to:

Cornerstone Church of Christ
1186 Fairview Rd N.
Chatham, VA 24531

Write in the memo line: KSB

Friday we completed our sixth and final study for this trip with a group of twenty church leaders from Ruhengeri. Jean D'Amour, one of "the six," and Emmanuel were the hosts. I did not realize until Friday afternoon how significant this is for them to be able to invite church leaders from other denominations to this teaching.

Jean D'Amour shared in the teaching responsibility with Theophile and me. On Thursday he taught on community; the biblical vision of the family of God. I was amazed. He took the concepts he had learned from Rwanda Challenge and attached them to culturally relevant illustrations. As Theophile quietly interpreted for me what Jean D'Amour was teaching, my heart was rejoicing. He pressed hard the concept that in Jesus we are brothers and sisters in the same family; we have the same Father regardless of our race, tribe, economic situation, status, or class in life. As he put flesh on these concepts and I sensed how the teaching was being received, it was obvious; Jean D'Amour has the gift of teaching. All he needs is a deeper understanding of God's truth. I was reminded of the words of Gerard, one of the EACL group; "I can teach if I know the information." Jean D'Amour can teach!

I also met a new friend, Fabrice, in Ruhengeri. He is a big man! I thought he ought to play in the NBA or the NFL, but he doesn't even play sports. However, he is a strong church leader in Rwanda and Theophile's cousin; his mother is the sister of Theophile's father which in Rwandan culture makes them brothers. Fabrice and Theophile have had more formal Bible training than the vast majority of Rwandan church leaders. Most have none. During our two days, Fabrice learned some concepts in a deeper way and was able to reinforce with the other church leaders the concepts being taught by Rwanda Challenge. The other leaders in the Ruhengeri area seemed to respect him. It was a joy to have him join us for the teaching.

One of the surprises of this trip is to experience Innocent's desire to know God's Word. Innocent is our driver on this trip. When he has work, he probably makes about $50 a week. He has fourteen children and five grandchildren. In our travels he has discovered the Kinyarwanda Study Bible and can't seem to put it down. Every day I find him in the car studying another book of the Bible; Isaiah, Jeremiah, Kings, Revelation, 1 Corinthians. I don't know how he chooses what he will study next. I just know he studies for hours every day. I keep warning him that he is going to know more about the Bible than his preacher. It is obvious to me that many Rwandans want to know the Bible, but they have never had the opportunity.

It is a blessing to be used by God to build up His Church in Rwanda,
Frank

We are now just slightly north of the city of Ruhengeri preparing for our last group of church leaders. This is in the North Province of Rwanda and it is cooler here; a blanket feels good at night. Jean D’Amour, one of “the six,” will assist Theophile and me in teaching. It has been very satisfying to experience the growth in many of these church leaders over the last three years. It is a great reward to have them participate in the teaching of other church leaders.

It is also satisfying to experience God’s creation everywhere we go in Rwanda, “The Land of a Thousand Hills.” This morning while I enjoy Rwandan coffee, bread with Rwandan honey, and fresh pineapple, there are mountain views on three sides, with a sky of white clouds.

God’s gifts are new every morning!

Feeling blessed to serve an amazing God,
Frank

One Week and One More Group

Church leaders begin their last day with chai and bread.

Today we complete our time with twenty-one church leaders in Gisenyi. These leaders represent some of the larger protestant churches in Gisenyi from various denominations. Aaron, one of “the six” (see Sept 29th Blog Post) has assisted in the teaching. We will complete our time together by viewing The Passion of the Christ.

Tomorrow we travel to Ruhengeri where Jean D’Amour, one of “the six” will share in teaching about twenty church leaders from this city. From there we return to Kigali, wrap-up this trip, before I board my plane to return home on Tuesday.

I will share more about “the six” and the “Equip a Church Leader” group later, but God has blessed these church leaders as they become more competent in teaching God’s Word.

Frank

Villagers are erecting a canopy beside the church building. "Maybe they are having a market today."
Lake Kivu and the Congo are in the background.

We finished the training in Cyangugu on Friday. A group of church leaders from the Congo had traveled by boat to participate. Several leaders could not remain until Saturday, so we concluded the day by showing The Passion of the Christ inside the packed church building. 

Saturday we slept in until 7 a.m. At some point in the day we will show the movie again for the village and then leave early Sunday morning to travel from the southwest to the northwest. "There should be plenty of time today to catch up on some details, take some pictures, post a blog, and do some preparation for November." But about 8 a.m., while I was enjoying Rwandan coffee, bread and honey, I was informed the plan had changed. "They decided to have the worship service today and they want you to preach." So now I have about one hour to shower, dress, and think about a message.

Early worshippers began to gather about 9 a.m. followed shortly by singing... There were three choirs; one from the host church, a second from a neighboring church, and a third came by boat that morning from the Congo. Each choir each sang and danced, several times, until it was after twelve o'clock. Theophile thought we should make it brief (for Rwanda), so I preached about thirty minutes. Then the choirs sang and danced some more. The heavy rains came shortly after 3 p.m. and everyone finally dispersed.

This was not the day I was expecting, but God blessed.
Frank

(Internet connection here is weak, but I will do the best can.)

On Wednesday we traveled from Muhanga to Cyangugu (southwest Rwanda) to teach a new group of church leaders. This trip takes you through the largest forest in Rwanda, Nyungwe National Park. Many monkeys live in this forest.   Thursday and Friday we will teach church leaders. Saturday we will show the Passion of the Christ for this village.

These pictures are from Papa for Ellie, Eva, Delia, Carter, and Dylan.

I miss you,
Papa

Today is the halfway point for this trip and we have finished the third of six locations. And yes, by this time I am always missing my family. It is interesting to experience before the end of my trip the desire to go home; then when I am home for a while there is the desire to be back in Rwanda teaching church leaders. I suppose the rhythm is about right. 

However, it is always exciting in each location to teach, to share the gift of the Kinyarwanda Study Bible provided by many partners, and to experience church leaders understanding God's truth in a deeper way. With most church leaders there is a shallow picture of what God wants for His Church. Worship is limited to singing and dancing; for some soft slow songs is worship and loud fast songs is praise. Being the family of God is eating food together. For some evangelism is a choir from one local church going to another local church. These pictures become transformed into helping my neighbor who has no house is also worship; sharing life in Jesus with a brother/sister in Christ from a different tribe is also community; helping those in the village who are very poor is also evangelism.

Seeing God's leaders in Rwanda with a clearer vision of God's picture for His Church is always a blessing.

Excited to be here/missing my family,
Frank

In missions we must move beyond giving people fish.

Rwanda Challenge began an experiment on Monday with twenty-three church leaders known as the "Equip a Church Leader" group (http://www.rwandachallenge.com/equip-a-church-leader.html). While we teach church leaders in various locations in Rwanda, we have been teaching the EACL group for one week on every trip since June 2011 (seven weeks). Their competence and growth has been very encouraging. I experience good church leaders who desire to teach and preach the truth.

The Experiment
Since June 2011 we have been providing a Kinyarwanda translation of the Africa Bible Commentary; written by seventy African scholars, but available in only three languages. Each trip we get permission to translate the section we will be studying on that trip.

Last September the Kinyarwanda Study Bible became available in Rwanda. The week after they became available I was in Kigali and purchased one hundred to be provided for church leaders we would be teaching. Each time we meet with the EACL group we have been teaching them how to use these two resources.

In January and June I taught and provided lessons on Genesis 1-11. These chapters are foundational for Genesis, the Bible, and a biblical worldview. So, each week the EACL group has been showing growth in their ability to use the resources Rwanda Challenge has provided. "Are they ready to create their own resources and can we finish Genesis in one week?" In five days they would be creating four lessons: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.

Twenty-three church leaders were divided into four groups and on Tuesday morning each group presented their lesson on "The Life of Abraham." Each group did a good job, but I was reminded of freshmen in Bible College completing some of their first assignments. With some critique and clarification, they divided into their groups to begin "The Life of Isaac." On Wednesday morning they shared their lessons. There was significant improvement. Each group showed great progress in providing New Testament links from Romans, Galatians, Hebrews, etc.

Friday morning each group presented their final lesson; "The Life of Joseph." For many Rwandan church leaders, the life of Joseph is their favorite Bible story. Their presentations were great! They were confident in their presentations and discerning in the content they included. Theophile commented this morning on how valuable the week has been for these church leaders, how they have grown and appreciated the week. And by lunch time on Friday, Genesis was complete.

Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. 
Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. 
Equip a man to start a fishing business and feed a whole community.

Excited about fishing,
Frank

"Equip a Church Leader" group celebrates their completion of "A Study in Genesis"

I am stilled amazed at how these Rwandan church leaders (and others) long to know the Bible. They have Bibles, and they know some facts about the Bible. But they are like the Ethiopian eunuch who replied to Philip in Acts 8, "How can I understand it unless someone explains it to me." 

This week we were able to give twenty-three church leaders the completed translation of the commentary on Genesis from the Africa Bible Commentary. So, my new driver, Innocent discovered what the church leaders were reading. Then every time he had a free moment, I would find him reading the ABC on Genesis.

Many Rwandans are hungry to know God's Word, but they have lacked the opportunity for someone to explain it to them.

    103 How sweet your words taste to me; 
      they are sweeter than honey. 
    104 Your commandments give me understanding; 
      no wonder I hate every false way of life. 
    105 Your word is a lamp to guide my feet 
      and a light for my path. 
                                        Psalm 119   New Living Translation


Oh, that God would renew our hunger in the US for the the words that are sweeter than honey; and I love honey.


Frank

Twenty-three Rwandan church leaders gathered in Kigali on September 30th to study for five days the lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. This is the "Equip a Church Leader Group" (http://www.rwandachallenge.com/equip-a-church-leader.html). 

Rwanda Challenge, through the generosity of many partners, has been able to provide these church leaders with the Kinyarwanda Study Bible (filled with the resources found in the NIV Study Bible translated into Kinyarwanda). Also, they now have the translation of the commentary on Genesis from the Africa Bible Commentary. Because we have been teaching these church leaders how to use these two resources, we believe they are ready to take the next step in their growth. On Monday and the beginning of this morning, using these resources, these leaders divided into four groups and prepared lessons on the life of Abraham. So, later this morning a representative from each group shared the lesson their group had prepared. They were great! What excited me the most was their ability to connect New Testament passages to the Old Testament story (Romans 4, Galatians 3, Hebrews 11, etc.). Two years ago I did not experience this ability among them.

Each one of us can continue to grow; to be taught more. But these leaders need to be able to study on their own and teach with confidence. They now have some of the needed resources to do that. These leaders are demonstrating their growing ability to study their Bible and the related resources and then create good lessons without me. Yes, there is much more that I can teach them, but I am extremely excited by what I experienced this morning. These leaders are competent; they have only lacked the opportunities and resources to study God's Word beyond a surface level.

I am praising God for the growth I experienced this morning.

Frank