We Will Not Be Afraid!!

I have never seen so many locks and keys in one house. Every single door, every cupboard has its own lock and key! There is a lock on the front door, a lock on the door from the kitchen to the outside, a lock on the door between the kitchen and dining room, a lock on the door between the dining room and the bedrooms….a lock on each bedroom door…and a lock on every cupboard in each bedroom! These are not just simple locks, they are all dead bolt locks…and

we use them! Amidst all the locks, we have a day and night guard to monitor who can come into our compound. To keep intruders from coming into our compound, there is a layer of barbwire to complete the top of our stone compound fence. No matter where one goes, military and police are everywhere! It is easy to become paranoid or afraid in Burundi and from talking to other expats in Bujumbura, the government wants people to live in fear. Thankfully we have promises from God to know that He is always watching out for us and taking care of us! We have felt God’s army protecting us every step of the way. Thank you to those who uplift our family in prayer! Please continue to pray for us.

Life in Gitega is vastly different than Canada…and most notably with driving. Last night we attempted to find a church that we were invited to for a special gathering but in the end, were unable to locate it so returned home. We got two different sets of directions from 2 different people, and then a third person sent us to the wrong church. You see, there are no driving rules here, no street names, no signs…..I was told, “In the beginning, there were very few cars so everyone drove with courtesy. Now there are more cars but there has been no infrastructure laid for the increase of cars.” In a way, it is a bit of a challenge to find a specific place but in other ways, one knows they cannot do much wrong with driving!! Gitega is significantly smaller than the capital Bujumbura, thankfully….it may take us awhile to be able to tackle driving in Buja.

Savana at church

We went to a local restaurant today….if it was located in Canada it would have been shut down for multiple infractions!! First of all, the slab of meat is hanging right at the door, as you enter it. No refrigeration or preservation…I guess cooking the meat kills all the bugs J Hand washing is pretty limited; the person handling the meat is also at the door greeting people. We were able to sit on a bench inside the small building that had parts of the wall and floor crumbling away. A small wooden table sat in front of us with a makeshift table cloth. Local vendors and beggars would come in to sell something or ask for money. I think we may have been the first Muzungu (white skin) to have eaten at this restaurant. The food was good, the kids love brochette (meat on a stick) and fries! At this local restaurant, approx. 6 good pieces of meat and a plate of fries cost us 1500 Burundian Francs and a pop cost 600 BF….translated into Canadian dollars, the meat and fries cost us $1 and the pop was $0.40!! Savana has fallen in love with Fanta Citron (a lemon pop) and she would love to bring it back to Canada.

Micah and Joshua

We have decided to take Joshua out of school for this term. We are looking for a girl who speaks French that can help look after him while Darla and Charles are at GIA. Please keep this in your prayers. Elijah seems to be much better settled in the kindergarten class verses grade 1 class. He does not complain of aches and pains going to school now and when he returns home, he is asking to do his homework! Micah seems to be a bit more settled with having Elijah with him as well. Savana is thriving at school and has done an amazing job at catching up with her classmates. On Tuesday and Thursday when she has to return to class from 3-5pm, she is going back an hour early to play with the kids.

Elijah with a student at GIA

Micah playing with students at GIA

Parent day at GIA was a very good experience. It was good to meet some of the parents and get to know some of the kids whose parents were not able to make it. One young man, David, was unable to see his father as the father had to be sent to Kenya for a stomach surgery that was not available in Burundi.  The cost of the ordeal seemed to weigh heavily on this young student. It was helpful for both Charles and Darla to find out which kids are excelling and which kids cause a bit of trouble. We need to know kids in both areas to know how to support them better. Many kids make up illnesses during school days to get a trip to the local hospital just to get out of the compound! Darla will also be preparing a first aid education day for the houseparents and staff so they can have an understanding of basic first aid.

      

Our first “love in action” day was a great success and plans are in the works to do this on either a monthly or biweekly basis. Charles has also started a leader- mentorship group. There are 24 students in the group who are learning about leadership and mentoring. Once this program is done, these students ideally will be able to inturn mentor other students. Please pray for these students as they learn to be godly leaders!

Thank you for the continued support for our mission. God is doing some great things in the lives of the students, and this is just the beginning!

If you would like to donate to our mission, you can donate through the Youth for Christ Edmonton website or Bridges of Hope website earmarked "burundi mission".

http://www.yfced.com/index.php/donate/how-to-donate
http://www.thebridgesofhope.com/index.php?p=Donate