Miraculous

Before I begin tonight…I have to tell you how magnificent our God is… Over the past 6 years of coming and bringing teams to Africa, I feel I have witnessed His divine miracles over and over again. Today has been no exception…

This morning (Saturday), we had big plans to see all we could see of Rwanda. It was our final day together here in Musanze, after a full week of working closely with the widows. We left our house at 7:00 AM, full of excitement for what the day would bring. We took Linda and Cynthia back to the waterfall to see this magnificent creation – and this time… climbed down to the base of the falls where we stood in the mist and marveled at God’s splendor.

Our plan was to return to Musanze by noon, eat lunch, and go on to Gisenyi which is at the border of The Congo with a stop to purchase some additional sheep. In Gisenyi, we would visit the Agahozo-Shalom Village. This is a school that has been set up for genocide orphans by a foundation Linda is connected to in New York City.

Our plans stayed on track until we were finally on our way to Gisenyi. We had purchased the sheep and were about 10 miles down the road when a young man ran out in front of our van.

What happened next is so hard to explain. Mambo, our driver, swerved and tried to stop. The boy, hit the front bumper, bounced into the windshield twice, smashing it, and then the van RAN OVER HIM. There was instant panic and chaos. There is no such thing as calling 911. All the rules about not moving someone who is injured is non-existent. I was sure he was dead. Several arms picked him up, and placed his limp body in our van and we headed back to the Ruhengeri Hospital. As we sped down the road, we broke out in prayer, praying constantly, calling some of our powerful prayer partners in the US to get the word out that this young man (and Mambo) was in serious need of prayer.

Cynthia, inspired by Don Piper’s story, began to pray for no internal injuries. Sean prayed for God to heal him completely, knowing that faith in our father is what God wants us to believe. He prayed that this boy would be able to walk away, healed. I prayed that he knew Christ and that he could live so that he could be a living testimony to a miracle of God. We also prayed for our friend Mambo who was devastated but handling he emergency so well.

As we drove, I could see that this young man’s body was lifeless. His eyes rolled to the back of his head. We cried to God, asking for his divine intervention. We pulled up to the hospital and Thomas and Mambo carried the young man inside. Silently, we stayed in the van as to not cause additional chaos at the hospital. It was important that the focus be on helping him (and not the white people he arrived with). After about 30 minutes, the police arrived. Mambo had to drive them back to the spot where the accident had taken place. We didn’t fully understand that Mambo would go to prison for 6 months if the young man died – regardless of fault or no fault. It’s just the way it is. Thomas came and told us that they were taking the boy to x-ray and that we should wait at the house.

We left and continued our prayer and calling on more to pray. Text messages started arriving from Thomas in the next hour. The boy was talking. He was drinking juice. The next message came in... he had a broken collarbone. There were no other serious injuries!

Maybe it’s hard to visualize what we witnessed this afternoon. We believe it was nothing short of answered prayers. You don’t just get hit by a car, slam into a windshield twice and get run over and end up with only a broken collarbone. The thought crossed my mind several times that he might die on the way to the hospital. I was afraid there was a chance of a serious concussion. There was clearly divine intervention.

When Thomas and Mambo arrived to the house, the announcement was that there were no internal injuries and that he had only a broken collarbone…and that the boy was on his way home. He was reported to be in good spirits, joking and talking with Thomas and Mambo. We were able to talk to him by phone about an hour later. He said he remembers seeing sean pray for him... I don't understand how - but he knew. The boy wants to come see us tomorrow.

Although we don’t know for sure if we will see this young man again, we are grateful for what we witnessed here today. Mambo is staying with us in the house tonight and he seems at peace. We are all so grateful.

There is so much to say and so much to catch you up on from this week with the widows and all that was accomplished at the bakery. That will be another blog at another time. This is what God called us to share tonight.

Tomorrow morning, Pastor Bwende will be baptizing Sean in the river! All the widows and TVM Rwanda staff will be there in celebration! We are grateful for your continued prayers for us and for our ministry here in Rwanda.

Many abundant blessings,
Diana

Blessings Looming!

We have had some tremendously full days at the bakery this week…a place that not only makes bread but that has kind of been turned into a learning center for beautiful yarn! I cannot wait to share all the beautiful colors and all that our girls are learning – they have far surpassed the umuzungus in their knowledge!

We are testing some local medicinal plants for color as those are usually the ones that produce good dyes…we hope to get some reds from sorghum stocks and a pale green from a local (unidentified) plant that is used for treating stomachaches. Thus far we have an orangey-red from madder root, a deep eggplant from logwood and a beautiful variety of gold from eucalyptus…or as we like to say….ewe-caylptus! The ladies bring a new plants or flowers with them to work everyday. They are so excited about their new knowledge!

Linda learned how to make a natural black dye when she was in India last month. So interesting! The dye bath is made from mixing a really raw form of sugar (before it is molasses) with gram flour. Then, she placed rusted metal in with this mixture. After 10 days of stirring periodically the mixture becomes a base for a natural black dye….our minds are on overload!

Additionally, Linda brought a beautiful loom donated to us by New Voyager Trading and she has been working diligently with the widows to teach them how to thread the loom in preparation for weaving! Oh, the things they will know! Everiste, our shepherd is taking very detailed notes and will continue to be our wool expert. He, along with our ladies are so thrilled for this new skill! Adera stated today that sitting in front of the loom was an honor. Wow.

Cynthia is purchasing 3 more sheep for TVM this weekend! With these three and two more lambs on the way, we will be up to 17 in our flock! Additionally, the Department Animal Husbandry for Rwanda is continuing to donate wool. It is wonderful what is happening here!

I want to share with you the story of Saveline, one of our widows. Savilene is 49 years old and is wearing her first pair of shoes- ever. Saviline’s story is remarkable. When I met her almost 2 years ago she could not speak – from depression and trauma.

Saviline was thought to be dead several years ago and her body was placed in a coffin…for two days. As they were nailing the coffin shut, preparing for burial on the second day, someone heard her sneeze. Her hands have never been the same. They are partially paralyzed. Remarkably, Savilene has now developed her own style of spinning. She uses the drop-spindle but twists it with one hand and holds the fiber with the other...not at all typical of spinning with a drop-spindle. Her yarn is a beautiful testament to how God continues to use her life. . These days, Saviline is a song leader. She often initiates the songs the widows sing and is always one of the first to start dancing. Tomorrow, she will help us with final preparation for threading the loom. She is truly a God-transformed woman.

Please pray for continued blessings of transformation for us all as we close out our final days in Rwanda. Please also pray for safety for Cynthia and Sean who will be blessed with going on a Gorilla Trek tomorrow.

In His service,
Diana

Spinning Happiness!

Another amazing day… I know I keep saying that but the days just ARE amazing! We started out dropping by Ines University where Thomas teaches part time. We met Dr. Fabien who is the Vice-Rector who is in charge of academic affairs and Professor Nkubito, an instructor of botany, who will be helping us locate specific plants in the morning. We went to our property where we collected leaves and all types of plant and flower specimens to test for dyeing. Linda brought an entire case study of dye plants that grow in Rwanda! I cannot explain what an absolute blessing she is for our wool project!

Once we arrived at the bakery, Linda started working very closely with the widows and helped them prepare a eucalyptus dye bath. She taught them how to make 2-ply yarn and they were ecstatic! When Thomas asked Velonica what she thought about the process, the translation was “excellent”!

Cynthia has been our note keeper. She has been instructed to just follow Linda around and take notes… and believe me… there are many notes to take! I don’t think I have ever seen a laptop follow someone around so much! There is so much to learn!

A very good friend of Linda’s sent 10 beautiful new spinning spindles made from different types of wood from all over the USA. They are lovely. Linda read them a sweet note in French and then had the ladies close their eyes and choose a spindle for themselves. They have been working so hard with their original spindles that were really just for the learning process. Today as they started using their new spindles we told them they were now professionals and they were so happy. The new spindles make their work so much easier and more beautiful than ever. In fact, they didn’t want to stop spinning to prepare the rest of the yarn! They wanted to do nothing but spin the wool!

Tomorrow we will dye the first batch of skeins with the eucalyptus dye and will test some reds! We are all leaning a lot from Linda and are so grateful for her knowledge of the process! It is evident that God is opening up some wonderful opportunities for all of us

Blessings!
Diana

Hellos and Goodbyes

One of the most difficult things about coming to Rwanda is….well… leaving Rwanda for many of us. It is especially difficult when you feel like you are leaving - knowing that this work is so critical in the lives of so many people. It isn’t just the widows themselves but their children, and the families of our entire staff. Personally, when I think about it, I have to sometimes stop and rethink. This is not my project or the project of TVM. It is God’s project. The important thing is that His will is being done here and lives have been transformed.

Linda and Cynthia arrived at about 2:00 AM on Saturday. We all got some needed rest and made our second trip Amani Ya Ju (widows sewing co-op) where we were having some things made for The Vineyard Marketplace and our online store. They do some amazing work and it is so wonderful to know that we are helping their organization as well as ours when we purchase from them. It helps keep food on their tables and sends their many children to school. TVM is Amani Rwanda’s largest customer! What a blessing that is to us!

Earlier in the week, Molly and Ollie said their goodbyes to the widows and Saturday evening they left Kigali, headed for Austin via Brussels and Newark. I spoke to Molly a few hours ago and they had made it through customs. They should arrive into Austin and 106-degree heat in few hours…ouch! It is about 60 degrees here this morning…ahh to be in Africa in July!

After an English church service in Kigali, we headed up to Sisters of Mother Theresa Orphanage that is located behind Saint Famille Church (from the movie Sometimes in April). Linda arrived with a giant suitcase of beautiful baby clothes that had been donated by many people at her home in Brooklyn, NY. They were so grateful. This orphanage is one of the only orphanages approved in Rwanda for international adoptions. On average, there are approximately 100 children (mostly babies) hoping to be adopted. There are 12 sisters that work there. What we found so sad is that nobody is allowed to hold the babies… there just isn’t enough people to comfort them after they get used to being cuddled. Very,very sad.

After a quick lunch, we headed to the public bus station for our return to Ruhengeri. We had so much luggage, so again, we left in shifts. The girls and I went in the first round with pots, looms, spindles and all kinds of things in our laps. Sean and Thomas were on the bus that left 30 minutes later with the rest of the luggage. The girl’s bus stopped a few times and we ended up arriving into Musanze within about 10 minutes of each other. Mambo met us there and took us to our house where the second team was greeted by all 10 of our ladies and some of their children. The ladies were wearing their finest – orange Bake the Cycle shirts and beautiful African fabrics wrapped into skirts. They welcomed the new girls as well as Sean and I with praises to God in song and dance…no wonder it is so hard to leave them!

It is now about 7:30 AM and we will be leaving the house shortly for a full day of work. First, we are off to the land to gather flowers, eucalyptus leaves and other items that Linda will need as she begins and in-depth training with the widows on dyeing yarn. Please keep all of us in our prayers as we learn and support Linda!

Thank you so much for your continued prayers!

Blessings,
Diana

Wild Animal Attack at the Bakery!

Disclaimer: Please watch this video at your own risk. True Vineyard Ministries cannot be held responsible for any adverse reactions. Children under 18 years of age should watch only under the supervision of an adult.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFCNsmlNoGQ

Praises in Rwanda

It has been a wonderful week dancing, laughing and praising God with the widows and staff at the bakery. Baby Fabrice, Katherine’s son has finally started to warm up to us and was drumming away on a jerrycan with Sean this afternoon, as we sang songs all together in Kinyrwanda. We have wonderful footage, which we can not wait to share with you, of all of us enjoying each other’s company, and communicating through other avenues besides talking. So please stay tuned, because you do not want to miss seeing these videos!!!

On Monday baby Diana, Odetta’s daughter was running a fever and had a rash on her legs. Odetta left to take her to the hospital, to find out that she has malaria. Praise God, she was back at the bakery on Tuesday, without a fever and medicine for malaria. Please be in prayer for continued healing and comfort. A special thanks to all of you who have supported True Vineyard Ministries, as it has allowed us to buy many things; such has health insurance for all the ladies and their families.

On Tuesday, we put together a montage of the video we have been filming, to show at the bakery. For all of the ladies, a chance to watch a video of themselves is a once in a lifetime experience. It was so fun for the team to sit back and watch their reactions; it was a priceless moment for us, to see their excitement and joy. And yes, we even have that moment recorded!!!

Today, Wednesday, was a little sad as Ollie and Molly had to say their goodbyes to the ladies and staff at the bakery. We celebrated the time we had together by dancing, singing and praising God. Molly and Ollie are ready to get back home and be a voice for Rwanda and to tell all, of the work God is doing, transforming the lives of these ten women and their families.

Tomorrow we leave to go back to Kigali, please be in prayer for us as we travel back down the mountain.

Blessings,
Molly

Weekend Adventures!

Saturday marked our first week’s journey! What a blessed, challenging, and full week we had! On Saturday we had the opportunity to RELAX and do a little sight-seeing, Rwanda-style. Diana took the team via an unpaved, untouristy, windy, hilly, and very bumpy road to visit an incredible waterfall which started off as a small unassuming stream that suddenly had a 100+ foot drop down a rocky cliff side. On our way back, we were traveling along a beautiful hillside that followed Lake Burera which is filled with islands of lush banana trees. There were giant wooden canoes at the base of the lake so we stopped by to see if the operators would be willing to give us a ride. After some negotiation and a little money, they allowed us to pile into the canoe for a memorable ride! Following the trip, Diana convinced them to sell her 5 of the handcrafted oars to take home. We are still wondering how they are going to use the canoes now, with more than half of their oars gone...

Sunday, we had an incredible opportunity to go to CHURCH – and we mean CHURCH – all three hours of it. This church is truly amazing and you can tell the Holy Spirit is in that place. About 100 people packed into this small church made of mud-brick walls, tin roof, and lava-rock/dirt floor. They started off with dancing and singing, and we joined in the festivities. I had some little kids try to mimic every dance move I made, and we all praised God together. Pastor Bwendi, a large Rwandan man who likes to joke that he is the cousin of the gorilla, invited us to come sing a few songs. Luckily, we came prepared with a guitar. But after hearing so many amazing African praise songs, we had a tough act to follow. We managed to get through it, but we were relieved to allow the church choir back in the spotlight. Let me tell you, this church knows how to praise God!

At the end of the church service, we were offered a VERY generous gift... a live chicken! They wanted to give us this chicken and we did NOT know what to do with it, so Diana smoothly found a way to give it away by auctioning it off in the church service and offering to match whatever money was offered. Thomas, our local Rwandan TVM staff member ended up buying the chicken which we then matched the money for, so we still technically had the chicken. There happened to be a 90-year old man in the church today and so we gave the chicken to him to the applause of the church congregation. And a miraculous way God works in “connecting the dots” is the wife of this man (who just may have been half of his age) has Lymphedema and the next mission team coming to Rwanda (in September) will be a medical mission team focusing on treating people with Lymphedema. We were able to tell her about this and God-willing, we will be able to help her in the near future.

Following the church service, we grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading down the bumpiest road we probably have ever been on. What was only 25 kilometers away took us approximately 2 hours. But we were determined. We were out to investigate into this “fuel” we had learned about called Bio Gas which is basically converting manure and urine into usable, burnable fuel similar to propane. We learned of a doctor from America who was running his household entirely off this bio gas so we contacted him and then had the chance to learn of the full process. It was very fascinating and definitely something we will be continually exploring in the future.

We had a great weekend! This upcoming week we will be focusing our efforts on getting widows prepared for dyeing their yarn. Please keep us in your prayers!

Blessings,
Sean