The African Leadership Exchange

The last few weeks we have been busy preparing for and participating in the African Leadership Exchange (ALE).  This is a CBM initiative which is bringing together four key leaders from each of our East African partners—ACC&S (Kenya), AEBR (Rwanda), CBCA (DRCongo) and FEBAC (South Sudan).  Each time they gather, it is a time of learning and growing as they share with each other and interact with facilitators.  While the first two modules took place in Kenya, the third module was hosted here in Rwanda from Oct 21-26 in Kibuye, on the eastern shore of Lake Kivu.

Since it was held in Rwanda, most of the logistics for the conference were organized by Laura Lee.  Darrell’s participation was to be one of the ALE facilitators.  We are grateful that the week went very well and feel honoured to have been invited to be a part of such an amazing group of people.

To help share a little bit of what the experience was like, Aaron Kenny (our African Team Leader together with is wife, Erica) has posted a five minute video update about ALE, which includes an interview with Darrell.  You can watch it at the following link:  https://vimeo.com/298145740 .

Please pray for these leaders who are each serving God faithfully in very challenging circumstances.

Regional Celebrations

August into November every year is the season of Regional Services in the 13 regions of our Rwandan Baptist partner, the AEBR.  Each region hosts a celebration where people representing all the churches in the region gather together for a large worship event.  We want to give you a glimpse of the one we attended on Sunday, August 19^th in the region of Nyagahinika (Nyah-gah-hee-nee-kah).  (This region has so many churches that they actually had a separate service the day before with the first half of their churches.)

By 9:00 am, about 1500 people had gathered for this outside service.  Some people had walked 6+ hours to get there!  A joyful spirit was in the air as, for the next two hours, choirs from the various churches sang the songs they had rehearsed in preparation for this event.  By the time the service was completed (many hours later), 16 different choirs had participated, some more than once!

At 11:00 (two hours after the service began), it was time to welcome and introduce everyone.  This was not a quick task.  It lasted 50 minutes!  Who was introduced?  People who came from the various sub-regions, AEBR’s new Legal Representative Rev. Emmanuel, the local pastors, visiting regional pastors, CBM representatives (that’s us!), local government officials, AEBR school heads, representatives from other denominations, etc.  The attendance of each one was genuinely appreciated.

 

Showing appreciation to the local pastors and their wives

By 11:50, we had begun the “service proper” which included a sermon by Rev. Emmanuel, offering, more choir numbers, speeches by various people, a couple of solos, the annual report from the Regional Pastor Pangaras, as well as a word of challenge from AEBR’s Legal Representative.

 

Rev. Emmanuel, AEBR's Legal Representative

There were a couple of features of the service which were distinctly Rwandan (or at least not Canadian).  At one point a couple of women went out with water to sprinkle all over the central area to keep the dust down.  (Mid-August is the tail end of the long dry season.)  And at several times in the service, a drumming group participated in the service, playing traditional Rwandan drums.  Everyone loved them!

 

Sprinkling water to keep down the dust

Toward the end of the service, there was the big announcement of which church had been the top contributor to the special regional offering.  There was great celebration as the winning church was announced and took possession of the AEBR flag to fly proudly until next year’s regional service.

At 2:55, six hours after it began, the closing prayer was said and the service finished.  But the festivities continued as we moved into the church for a meal together.  It was a fitting conclusion to a day of celebrating what God has been doing in their churches over the past year.

Feeling the Distance

What is it like to live over 10,500 km away from your children, your parents, your “home” (or at least what is considered home when back in Canada)?  To be honest, most days it just feels normal.  We have been living this reality for quite a while.  It was actually sixteen years ago during CBM’s May board meetings in 2002 that we were officially appointed by CBM.  A few months later, we were off to Indonesia, where we lived almost 15,000 km away, literally on the other side of the world!  So it is a fairly normal part of life as we know it to live so far away from Atlantic Canada.  One great thing is that today’s ever-evolving technology makes the world feel a lot smaller than it used to, even compared to our first few years in Indonesia.

But there are times when we feel the distance more acutely, when the kilometres take on a more negative character.  This usually happens during times of celebration or struggle for those from whom we are separated.  Suddenly the ocean seems a lot wider in those moments.

Lately, we have been feeling the distance more.  A couple of weeks ago, our son, Caleb, finished his first year at Crandall University.  We are so pleased that his first year living back in Canada and away from us ended up being such a good experience.  But suddenly we found ourselves wishing we could be closer to help him pack up his dorm room, land a job and find a place to live for the summer.  Thankfully other family members and friends were able to step in to “fill the gap.”  And we could see God at work in bringing everything together.

 

Caleb's dorm room all cleaned out

What Bronwyn's graduation looked like in Kigali

Last weekend was also a feeling the distance time for us.  On Saturday, May 5, our daughter, Bronwyn, graduated from Crandall University with a Bachelor of Arts in English.  We are so proud of her and what she has accomplished!  However, we were simply not able to travel back to Moncton to celebrate this achievement with her.  The good news, though, is that the university live streamed the ceremony, so we were able to watch it from here in Kigali!  Sometimes technology leaves us amazed.  Of course, when the power went out 90 minutes beforehand it was rather stressful.  What a relief it was when it came back on with 25 minutes to spare!  Naturally, before and after the ceremony, quite a bit of time was spent on WhatsApp, trying as best we could to “experience” all the events of that special occasion.  

Bronwyn & Caleb at graduation

Bronwyn with her Bustin grandparents

The following day, Sunday, May 6, was another time of celebration.  My (Darrell’s) mother had her 80^th birthday (plus it was my parent’s 57^th anniversary).  It would have been so nice to be with them for this important milestone.  Then, on Monday, May 7, Caleb had surgery to have his lower wisdom teeth removed.  We are glad that everything went smoothly, but once again longed to be nearer in order to support him.

Caleb in recovery mode

Now, to be clear, all this is not presented as a complaint.  We are glad to be in Rwanda, serving alongside of our brothers and sisters here.  It is truly a blessing.  And, as said above, most days feel normal.  The reason for sharing these thoughts is because we are often asked about our experience in living internationally.  And, the truth is, there are occasional days when we feel the distance.  We are keenly aware of the many ways that God continues to bless our lives—and that is probably the key to facing those times when we have those long-distance feelings.  To have a close, loving relationship with our children, our parents and the rest of our families, to know that they, along with other good friends, often support us by stepping “into the gap” that is created by us being overseas, and to have the ability to communicate regularly due to today’s technology are all reasons to celebrate and be thankful.  They make the world seem not quite so big and the separation not quite so wide.

Opening a Whole New World

There is something that you are doing right now, which you are likely not even thinking about.  In fact, you do it so easily, it probably simply feels natural, normal.  It may very well be that you don’t know anyone (apart from small children) who can’t do this activity.  The action that I’m talking about is reading.  It is a skill which we learn while we are still young and it stays with us for our entire lives.  But can you imagine how your world would change if you could not read?

In Rwanda, the government is firmly committed to providing the best education it can to its people, both boys and girls.  However, that wasn’t always the case.  In earlier days, education wasn’t always available.  Nor was it always valued.  As a result, today in Rwanda there are still many adults—mostly women—who are illiterate (approximately 29%).  But the negative impact of illiteracy on their lives goes far beyond the inability to read.  It causes you to struggle greatly with a low self-image.  You may be very clever and wise, but when most of the people around you, maybe including your children, have this skill but you don’t, it can create feelings of being unintelligent, isolated or inadequate.  Others can view you the same way.  Statistics show that domestic violence is higher against the women who find themselves in this situation.  In business, it is easy to be cheated by others since not only can you not read but you also don’t really understand numbers.  Much of life is shaped and shaded by this single issue.

That was the case with Theophile who lives in the little village of Kabatwa in NW Rwanda.  When he was growing up, his family had many cows.  He was the only boy in his family so his father wouldn’t allow him to go to school.  He had to stay home to watch the herd.  And when he tried to go to church, his father would beat him, because it meant he wasn’t tending the cows.

During the genocide in 1994, his father was killed, but thankfully his mother survived.  She gave him permission to start to attend church.  This was a good thing, but it also led to feelings of great shame when he realized that he couldn’t read like most people there.  As time went by, he and his wife Phoibe, who was also unable to read, became increasingly active at church.  However, when the pastor began asking him to become a leader in the church and serve as a deacon, he refused.  The main reason was his illiteracy.  It made him feel so ashamed and he was convinced that he could never fulfill the expectations of being a deacon.

In 2014, the Baptist church in Kabatwa began a Literacy ministry.  This was through the Literacy Project which is sponsored each year by CBM.  Theophile and his wife quickly signed up to join the class.  And now they can both read!  Through this very practical church ministry, a whole new world has opened up for them.  Today Theophile joyfully serves his church as a deacon.  And he was also asked to be the Head of the Literacy Association for their congregation.

Theophile reading the Bible
with Laetitia, the Literacy
Project Manager
(photo by R. Vanderveen)

Theophile and his wife Phoibe

This association now functions independently, being no longer funded through the Literacy Project.  The members work together to save money which can be used to help themselves or others in the church or community.  They grow potatoes and raise bees for honey which are sold in local markets.  The literacy teacher, Samuel, who received training through the project, continues to have a passion to teach others how to read.

 

The Literacy Association in the Kabatwa Baptist Church

Today Rwanda seeks to make schooling (grades 1-12) available to all children, which means that there are schools accessible throughout the country for any child who wants to go.  However, there is still the requirement that school fees must be paid for things like tuition, uniform, and lunches.  As a result, the poorest children are still at risk of missing school if the fees cannot be paid.  Because of the significant negative impact of illiteracy, CBM partners with the Rwandan Baptists (AEBR) in the Women’s Literacy Project.  

Literacy classes in lots of different settings

Literacy teachers are the key to success

Additionally, there are also several other projects which include school fees as part of their focus:  Guardians of Hope (for HIV/AIDS affected families); Orphans & Vulnerable Children; Pastors’ Children Scholarship Project.  And through these efforts it is so exciting to see a whole new world opening up for women, men and children!

Christmas Rwanda-Style

What was your Christmas Day like?  Did it go as it usually does?  We thought we’d share with you what our Christmas Day was like here in Rwanda, since it would be quite different from what we would have experienced if we’d been in Canada.

Andre & his wife Therese

Since this was our first Christmas as “empty nesters”, it was also our first Christmas that did not begin with stockings.  So that was different.  But in Rwanda, stockings and gift-giving are not part of the tradition.  The focus of Christmas, instead, is going to church.  This year we were invited to join our colleague Andre Sibomana at his church for the Christmas Day service.  

 It was a wonderful service which was rich and varied – and rather long (for Canadians)!  It began at 9:00 with lively worship, celebrating the birth of our Saviour.  This included lots of dancing, “Hallelujah...Amens” and hands lifted in praise.

The children were then given an opportunity to participate in a re-enactment of the nativity story followed by a song.

But the children weren’t the only ones to sing.  There were also several songs done by a couple of different choirs.  

This Christmas morning was extra special for one young woman who was baptized.  However, unlike Canada where everyone would remain in their seats for the baptism, all the congregation gathered around the baptismal tank to watch and celebrate.  

At about 11:00 I (Darrell) got up to preach.  With Andre helping with the translating, it lasted one hour.  But the service was still not over.  

Following the sermon, there was a time of dedication for all the deacons and deaconesses that help to lead the church.  

Then there was special recognition given to some church members for outstanding service and ministry over the past year.  For example, there was one woman who took in a baby that had been abandoned in the street.  

After some final singing and announcements, the service came to an end at 1:30.  But no one was planning on leaving just yet.  After a quick reset of the church, everyone sat down to a Christmas meal all together.  In an unusual approach, the meal had been prepared by four men from the church – and it was well done!  We enjoyed rice, roasted potatoes, peas & carrots, a little bit of beef, and some ugali (a soft, sticky bread-like food made from cassava which is common in Rwanda).  

Once some closing speeches and pictures were done, we arrived home at 3:15, happy but rather tired out.  Of course, by that time, the time difference between us and Bronwyn & Caleb in New Brunswick was more than used up.  That meant we could Skype (text and video) with them as we proceeded to open our gifts at a leisurely pace, listen to music, enjoy some treats, and relax.  Thankfully we were also able to connect with other family members throughout the rest of the day.  Knowing that so much of Christmas Day would be spent at church, we waited a couple of days before we had a delicious traditional Christmas dinner with Ken & Wendy Derksen.  

So, like every Christmas we’ve experienced overseas, in 2017 we tried to enjoy a Christmas that blended together some wonderful elements of both our Canadian and our host cultures.