by Rachel Courtney
In Spring 2003 God suggested I fulfil a desire I had of travelling to Africa. After much prayer and searching I was accepted by Signpost International to travel on a team to Rwanda that coming July.
Signpost is a small Christian charity based in Dundee. Their mission is basically to 'signpost' people to Jesus and they currently work in Uganda, Rwanda, the Philippines, Russia and Brazil. While Signpost may not be a well-oiled machine like many other well-known Christian charities, they certainly have mastered the personal touch. We were suitably trained and debriefed, our safety was always a priority and the leadership was excellent - God was certainly at the centre.
When I say 'we' I'm referring to the team of 12 I travelled with. Despite the diversity of age, culture and outlook in the group, we worked and played well together and are planning our third reunion this October |
 Rachel in Rwanda |
In telling you about my time there I could share about the children's camps we led, the hospital, orphanage and school visits we made, the time we spent with the streetchildren and the lively songs we sang with the youth choir but if you don't mind, I'd prefer to share what I experienced rather than what I did.
Rwanda is known as 'la terre des milles collines' - the land of a thousand hills - it has a beauty I had never seen before. Red dust, luscious green pastures and banana trees galore!! The people are even more beautiful - energetic, enthusiastic, sincere, simple, welcoming and they have faces that are forever smiling. Their lifestyle is intriguing too, time is not an issue - we westerners arranged a 10am appointment, made it for 9.50 and waited three or four hours for those we were to meet! In Rwanda, people come first. If you bump into someone you know, no matter how well, you stop and chat. Rwandans make time for each other, to love each other. So despite our initial irritation at being held up, the Rwandan smiles and assurances 'It's ok, it's ok, don't worry' broke through and I think we all longed for that time-ignorant love when we returned to the UK.
Rwanda has been in the news a lot recently with the tenth anniversary of the genocide of 1994 being marked. And whilst it would be wrong to let that take away from the optimism and vibrance of all that it is now, it would be equally wrong to ignore it.
Most people now know that almost one million men, women and children were slaughtered in approximately one month in 1994 as a result of rising tensions and government orders to exterminate the Tutsis. However the facts just don't bring it home - most of us cannot even imagine what went on - the atrocities were nationwide but they were also deeply personal - no one escaped unscathed. So let me be frank in sharing one of the less harrowing stories of those we met.
Eric was 7 years old when the President's plane crashed in April 1994 and the fighting began. As chaos broke out and panic rose Eric's family sought refuge. In the madness, Eric was lost. A seven-year old running for his life for many months, alone. At one stage he followed other Tutsis into a church where many believed they would be safe. The Interahamwe Militia were ruthless - they enticed out those they could with offers of freedom and safety before stripping them and murdering them. When others refused and bolted the entrances to the church, they threw hand grenades through the windows and set the church on fire, waiting until all were burned alive. However Eric, in his cunning, hid under other dead bodies to protect himself from the flames. He stayed for several days until the militia had gone and then escaped with a few other children, running anywhere and everywhere for safety. Eventually he settled in the countryside where he stayed safely until the worst was over and for many years after. When Eric was ten years old, he was fetching water as usual some 10km away when he was spotted by his younger brother. As a result of this 'coinicidence', Eric was reunited with what was left of his family. All believe that only God could have planned this.
When we came to know Eric, last August he was 16 - the son of a pastor in a rural village 25km outside the capital Kigali, the leader of a youth group (BB equivalent perhaps) and hoping to become a nurse or doctor if he could raise the money. His desire being to help his people by ministering to those physically and psychologically affected by the atrocities of 1994. And God has since provided the money.
More generally, let me paint a picture of the daily life of a child in Rwanda, as you read, keep in mind your own children or those you know and just try to imagine…
Children don't have time to play in Rwanda. They get up at 5 am to fetch water for the day from a well often 10km away, they have chores to do all day, often given to them by their teenage brothers, sisters and friends who are the head of their household. They tend to the animals, do washing (they generally only have one set of clothes which must be washed and repaired daily), prepare all sort of meals from bananas and mutoke (although most children are blessed to be able to have one meal a day) and generally doing the job of adults. They have no time for education - which exacerbates their poverty as they have no skills with which to obtain a job and earn any money. Even if they do, most houseboys are paid the equivalent of 2pence per month.
Where are their parents you say? There are over 1 million orphans in Rwanda - and this has still to peak. The rate of HIV/AIDS is 45% - women prostitute themselves to earn a pittance and end up with several children to look after, living on the streets, drinking dirty water that the richer population throws out and fishing through rubbish for food and clothes - wild animals in N.I. have more to live on. Of all the children, young people and adults we shared with, half will die within the coming years - suffering tremendously in the process.
I hate to paint such a bleak picture of what is a truly beautiful place, a place that is recovering, a place that is so full of life, but to be honest that is the stark reality for almost everyone there. They struggle to survive and yet they do it with joy, trusting God for His provision. They are an example to us all.
This trip to Rwanda has impacted me more than anything else in my life. God was real there - faith was a matter of life and death - without it you have nothing, literally. And with it, nothing else matters.
I have seen that God blesses obedience. When we seek Him, He lets himself be found by us and He waits with open arms. So to anyone reading this who has felt empathy for Rwanda and its people as a result, I would urge you to hear God. Ask Him what you can do, sitting right there at your computer, at home, in work, wherever you are - He is no slave to time or place, He will tell you.
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Tanzania 2004
Edge Trip to Romania 2004
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Signpost Internation Homepage
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