Isimbi 60:1

Reflecting on Reflections

2011-11-23T20:51:00.002Z

I was sitting in the front seat of a taxi recently (actually I was sharing the front seat with another girl:) and after introducing myself to our driver I mentioned that I thought his country was beautiful. His response was interesting. He said "Yes, but it is not reflective of us." I asked him to explain what he meant and he told me that the government and the state of Sierra Leone as it is right now does not really reflect what the people of Sierra Leone are like. I would have to say I agree with him.

Since then I have been thinking about how we represent ourselves to the world around us. I would hope I represent Jesus Christ well enough for people to know Him through my life. He is the only example I consider worthwhile to follow. I know there are so many times when I let myself obscure my reflection of Him. These are the things I need to work on. The more I see of the world, the more people I meet in it, and the more cultures I encounter, the more I am convinced that all I want and all I want people to see me being like is Jesus.

A few weeks ago I had the joy and privilege of spending a few hours talking with Clementine Tengue. Clementine has been with Mercy Ships in West Africa for about 14 years and currently leads the patient life ministry here. She is the one who counsels all the patients onboard. When someone is terminal Clementine has to tell them, if they are diagnosed with HIV she is the one who tells them, and when they need someone to talk to about surviving the war here she is the one who listens to them. She gets called down to the wards day and night and often over the weekends. Someone who did not have the strength of Christ as an example would quickly run out of energy beneath the weight of all this. Clementine, however, has Christ and that quickly becomes evident when talking with her. She overflows with a calm,peaceful joy. You can clearly see how much she loves the patients. Her example has prompted people to want to follow Christ themselves.

So Clementine is my prayer request that I am sending back to all of you. She has asked me to ask you all to pray for her because she knows that it is prayer that enables her to continue on every day. Pray that Clementine will continue to model Christ to people, that God will continue to direct her words and actions with hurting people, and please pray that she would be given a designated office to counsel patients in. Clementine has demonstrated Christ to me; I pray that I demonstrate Him to you:)

Isimbi Johanna

For Love of a Continent

2011-10-29T18:52:00.007Z

Recently I was returning to the ship after being out in Freetown all day and I was reminded again that love comes from God. I was crammed into the backseat of a poda-poda (public taxi van) shoved into the smelly armpit of the guy next to me and my favorite Sierra Leone hip-hop song was blaring through the poda-poda. I had a pounding headache from walking in the sun all day and not drinking enough water. I also realized that I had no idea where I was going. It was already dark out and I couldn't recognise where we were. The one overwhelming feeling I had in the midst of all this was great happiness.

I love being here in Africa. A love that somehow comes straight from God. I have had just enough glimpses of his great love for this continent that it makes me love it too. He died to redeem this place and these people. Living here on the ship is not like being in Africa. It is a comfortable bubble which is fine for all the crewmembers coming and going; as for me, I would spend all of my time out in the country if I could. Living the way the people here do, eating what they eat, and learning what they know. I love having discussions with the people of Sierra Leone. They have a great freedom of speech and really enjoy debating. It is fascinating for me to see the world through their eyes.

So during the week I work scrubbing away at bloody instruments and studying to become certified as an OR sterilizer. It is good work and I enjoy it. On the weekends I go out into the country. I walk around or ride in poda-podas to the houses of my friends here in Sierra Leone. Usually we share a meal together and I am reminded how much I love being in Africa.

Isimbi Johanna

Tropical Paradise (almost)

2011-10-15T19:25:00.002Z

My plan was to update everyone weekly so sorry for falling behind. Let me backtrack a bit.

This past weekend we had a ship's holiday on Friday so I spent the 3 days beach hopping around Freetown. Picture if you can the most beautiful beach you have ever been to...with warm white sand, clear blue water, big lush palm trees all over, and rolling green hills in the backgrouond. Now take away any people except you and a few fisherman and that is exactly what the beaches here are like. Like I said Sierra Leone is a very beautiful country.

The only drawback, particularly for someone like me who can't swim, are the riptides which can pull you out to sea. The waves could not be more different than the ones I am used to in NH. For one thing they are so warm that it reminded of being in a hot tub; unfortunately they are also so powerful that I don't even attempt to swim. Once I went in only to my waist and I got picked up by a rather small looking wave, swirled around in the water and slammed down onto the sand. New crew members coming to the ship get briefed on what to do if they get caught in a riptide. Sadly a few years ago 2 crewmembers were killed by riptides so it is definitely a safety concern. Hence my no swimming decision. Otherwise though, the beaches are awe-inspiring.

My favorite beach out of 3 I went to was called River Number 2. This beach was incredibly beautiful but it is the history of the place that inspires me. It is a completely community run beach. During the war the village banded together to survive. They buried their valuables in the sand and sent all the women and children out to Banana Island where the rebels could not swim out to them. After making it through the war together they noticed that their beach was a popular spot for foreigners and decided amongst themselves to make some beach chairs and tables and charge a small fee for using them. Next they got a generator. This started what has become an amazing story of what happens when people work together. Due to proceeds from the beach and wisely using them to benefit everyone the people there now have solar panels that provide electricity for the whole village, a well to give everyone access to water, an emergency health fund, a nursery school, a beach guesthouse (where we stayed), and a small craft market. We were blessed to meet the manager of the beach and hear more of the history from him. They even adopted a house of amputees* and integrated them into the community. Truly, it is an uplifting story to me. People can be very evil and destructive I know so it is good to be reminded of what people can also do to bring health and safety.

I will be sure to write sooner next time!

Isimbi Johanna

*There are many people with missing arms or legs in Sierra Leone. It was a common practice of the rebels , among many other senseless horrors, to cut of people's limbs simply because they could.

Africa at 3 am

2011-10-02T15:28:00.002Z

On Friday I took a 9 hour bus ride away from Freetown going towards Kono district to visit the families of a few of the day workers here on the ship. African bus journeys and I are old friends. When the 6 of us got to the bus they had sold our seats, even though we had tickets, however it is Africa so they brought out some blue plastic stools and we spent the 9 hours perched on them in the aisle. Like I said I am used to this. And oddly enough I find it uncomfortable but fun.

Sierra Leone is a very beautiful country; lush and green, with palm trees all over the landscape. We drove past what was formerly a serious rebel checkpoint during the war and straight on to diamond country. Apparently Kono is the place to get diamonds but as I do not like them myself I didn't pursue it. Kono is a town rebuilding itself. Amazingly, bombing, war, and indiscriminate mining have not been able to destroy the peaceful beauty of this place.

We spent Sarurday getting food at the market and then cooking it. A great experience for anyone who has never prepared a meal in Africa before which 2 of our group had not. I specially requested fufu since I can't get it in the states and I miss the food in Africa so much. Fufu, which is also known as ugali in East Africa, is ground up cassava which is made into a paste and then boiled in water until it thickens into something like a dough. It is served with a sauce or soup for flavor and the whole meal should be eaten with your hands. I love cooking outside beneath a tree and then sharing the meal with everyone on one plate. We should eat like this in America. It is good communion.

This morning we had to catch a bus back to Freetown at 4 in the morning. The 3 girls in our group were staying at a little guesthouse so we planned to leave there at 3 to get to the bus early. As fun as sitting on a stool over pothole filled roads is it is best to be avoided if possible. You get airborn enough in the seats as it is. Although I think the roads here are miles better than in Kenya.

We were about to leave the gate of our little compound at 3 to meet one of the guys who was picking us up but he wasn't there yet. As we were walking towards the door to wait for him on the street the security gaurd came running towards us protesting vehemently that we not leave. Being a rather cynical person I assumed he wanted to make sure we had paid our bill and weren't trying to sneak out in the dark. We didn't speak Kono and he didn't speak much English so he went and woke someone else up. Turns out he takes his job seriously and he would not let us walk out there in the dark because he was worried for our safety. We decided to wait inside. The security guard, an older man, kept saying "I yo papa, yo ma pickanins" to explain why he wouldn't let us go out there. He meant that he was our papa and we were like his children.

I love being in Africa. Sure sometimes I have been in threatening situations but for every person who would harm me there are more like the security guard. Africa lifts my spirits when I am sad, grieves me when I am feeling complacent, and alway always fills me with joy. All in all I thank God for my weekend because I got to spend it in Africa.

Isimbi Johanna

P.S. We made it to the bus with plenty of time to get seats and watch Celine Dion music videos for an hour before we left:)

A Day in the Life of an OR Sterilizer

2011-09-23T20:18:00.002Z

Hi people,

I have been too busy to update you all but now I will tell you why.

I work Monday through Friday from 10am until 7pm down on deck 3 of the ship in the OR sterilizing room. I like it a lot actually, plus I have weekends of:)

Here's how it works. When the surgeon is finishing up in any of the ORs, which are down the hall from us, the nurse brings us the trays of equipment that were just used. We take them and clean the blood off to get them ready to go in a special washing machine. Once we have run a full load in there we take them out, dry them off, reassemble each surgical tray by making sure all the needed instruments are there, wrap them in layers of cloth like a present, and put them in the sterilizer. After they come out of there each tray and instrument is now sterile amd ready to be used when needed. It is a very detailed and time consuming process. I like it.

I am very impressed with how well run the Africa Mercy is. Somehow, really by the grace of God, the people here have managed to make a hospital, a bank, a school, a restaurant, a hotel, and a ship all operate smoothly together with people from 33 different nationalities onboard coming and going each week. And all this is done from a different country every year! As you can imagine it is no small task but like I said I am impressed. In the midst of all this the focus is still on God. He is the only one who could pull all that together and turn it into something that glorifies Him.

I have not had much opportunity yet to leave the ship. I walked around town last saturday and on sunday went to a wonderful church called Word of Faith. I love worship in Africa! Tomorrow I am going to a chimpanzee sanctuary which should be interesting. I just want to be outside. The one downside of where I work is that it has no windows and neither does my cabin. I ate my dinner outside on deck 7 tonight and the sun was so bright on the water it hurt to look at it. Still it was beautiful.

I will let you all now how the chimps are:)

Isimbi Johanna

My boy Nqobisitha

2011-09-17T14:53:00.004Z

This afternoon I hung 4 pictures up above my little bed. There were 2 pictures of my siblings and I, which I find very supporting when I am feeling lonely, a picture of Silivia my baby girl in Uganda laughing, which just makes me happy to look at, and a picture Nqobisitha sitting on the ground in Zimbabwe, which is a particularly acute motivator when I am feeling tired. I stood there looking at them afterwards and I realized that he, Nqobisitha, is a big reason a came back here to Africa.

I think about this little boy almost every single day. He is one of 2 people that I cry about the most when I think of them. He would be about 10-years old now and most likely still has no mother. I am not completely sure why but God has laid Nqobi on my heart so intensely that sometimes I feel nearly as if I am grieving over my lost son when I think about him. Right now I can't feed him, or wash him, or make sure he is happy and not hurt so instead I came here to the Africa Mercy where at least in the long run I am helping kids like him.

I don't know if I made much of an impact on Nqobisitha; I spent a few nights feeding him, holding him in my arms while he fell asleep, and whispering prayers in his ear that he would grow up healthy and strong and loving God. He ,however, has certainly made an impact on me. It is this I find that I am thinking the most my first week back here in Africa.

I finally have an opportunity to go off the ship today and see Freetown. I was starting to feel trapped onboard here so I called my parents earlier and told them about it and they said they would be praying for me. An hour later I walked out of my cabin and immediately got an invitation to go to the market:) Thanks parents! It is an encouraging reminder to me of how my heavenly Father cares for me.

Next time I will have to tell you about cleaning surgical instruments all day! Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

Africa Baby

2011-09-11T03:40:00.002Z

I was speaking with an elderly man from Nigeria recently who yelled out "Africa!" as I walked by him. This was because I have talked with him about Africa before. I went over to him and he took my hand and called me an "Africa baby."

I suppose that is as good a description of me as any other. In a funny way I feel almost as if I grew up in Africa. Certainly as a Christian at least. In many ways it feels almost like going home when I return there but in many other ways I am glad it is not. The truth is that when my immune system can no longer fight back and when I am immensely saddened to hold another sick or dying child that I can do so little for I always have the option of America. To step back and take a break from grinding poverty is a luxury that the majority of Africans never know.

I am going back to Africa tomorrow; specifically to Sierra Leone. I miss the wet, earthy smell of Africa that hits you the second you step of the plane, the graceful women walking along the road with tremendous loads on their heads, and the beautiful malnourished children who smile with such joy it makes me think they must have been playing with Jesus Himself.

More than anything else I miss the intensely up close and personal way I encounter my Lord God in Africa. Africa strips away your comfort and complacency and challenges you to make a decision: there is either a loving God of the Bible or there isn't. It makes sense to me to conclude that there is because who else but a God like Him could enable people to live with such beauty surrounded by such suffering. I miss seeing God like that. I have realized that Africa equips me to serve people better in America.

By Monday evening I will have arrived in Freetown, Sierra Leone to begin 3 months working as an OR sterilizer with Mercy Ships. That will be good but mostly I am excited to spend time with God in Africa again:)

Talk to you all from the ship!
Isimbi Johanna

Double Vision

2010-01-01T23:16:00.004Z

Hi all,

I know I know and I'm sorry. I should have posted before now. Just in case any of you don't know I made it home safely and had a great Christmas with my family.

It is very difficult to try to keep you updated once I get home because I find it hard to put into words. I've been trying to for weeks but can't really explain it; the joy and sorrow of coming home. I am so glad to be spending time with my family and in a lot of ways being in the states is comfortable and easy. I can take hot showers with running water, I can eat whenever I want and whatever I want, I can drive myself places, I can set the temperature to what I like, I have a bed to sleep on, and I can entertain myself however I choose.

The problem is that although I can do all this I can't do it blissfully. I have spent enough time in other countries and cultures that I know things now because I've seen them. I know that so many kids not only don't have running water they don't even have clean water and if they do so many don't know that they need to wash every day. I've seen them covered in scabies and open running sores because of that. I've washed them. I know that there are kids who get one meal a day...of tea. I've seen them so malnourished I could count the bones showing through their skin. I've held them. I know there are people who walk for miles and miles in the hopes of getting medical care. I've seen them lined up waiting patiently for their turn. I've walked with them. I know there are people who don't have adequate protection from the elements. I've seen their homes. I've sat shivering with them. I know there are orphans who have no beds or blankets. I've seen the cement floors they share. I've played games with them. I know there are teens who have such limited options they will have sex, get pregnant, contract HIV, join gangs, and get sent to prison because of boredom. I've seen teens who've done this. I've talked with them.

So as I hope you can see it is a difficult blessing; having double vision. I do however know that everything my Lord has shown me He will use. The passion He has placed in me would not be complete if I hadn't seen what I've seen. I look forward to His continued teaching. And now I'll be seeing you guys!

Isimbi Johanna

I'll be hooome for Christmas!

2009-12-12T20:17:00.004Z

Hey people,

This is my last posting from the continent of Africa. I am leaving for the airport very earlier tomorrow morning. Sadly that is the only time I could get a ride I didn't have to pay a lot of money for but my flight doesn't leave Cape Town until after 10 pm so I will be sitting for a long time before I can even check in. I arrive in London on Monday morning and after another long flight I will then be in Boston:)

Amidst prayers for safe travels I would appreciate it if you could mention an early as possible check in and that the time will just fly by (no pun intended). Thank you guys for what a tremendous support you have been in this time of my life. I have definitely been impacted during this school and I am looking forward to getting home and sharing some of that with you. It is a time of very mixed feelings; I want to be with my family for Christmas but I'm sad to leave very good friends. I will be grateful for a chance to rest but I will really miss working with the people here. Anyway, speaking of rest I should go sleep while I still can. I love you all!

Isimbi Johanna

Crossing Oceans

2009-12-06T19:14:00.004Z

Hey guys,

I hope you are all fully enjoying the holidays. Apparently NH is lacking snow at the moment which makes it harder to get into the spirit of things but I'm hopeful that by the time I get home there will at least be a few inches. (1)

I'm sorry that I haven't blogged sooner. I have been strangely moody this past week and don't really know how to explain myself. Not that surprising considering that I am at the end of outreach about to return home. I am so excited to be back for Christmas and see my family but at the same time am reluctant to go. My heart feels fully alive in places like Zimbabwe while I am helping people and I already miss it. I can't really describe the feeling of returning after you have been away for a while in a different culture; you kind of have to experience it yourself and then you get it. For me it feels like I have one foot still in Africa and the other in America and I am just stretched out between them. The good thing when trying to live in two worlds at once is that I get to experience twice as much of God during the stretching time.

Alright, I will give you guys a more complete update later. I was just online waiting to Skype with my family but they apparently forgot about me (2) so the computer I'm borrowing needs to be returned. I have my final exam tomorrow morning if you think to pray for that and then our school is going to have some rest days before our graduation on Wednesday. One week from right now I will be boarding my flight in Cape Town to return home. See you soon! Love you guys and Merry Christmas!

Isimbi Johanna

(1) NH received about 3 or 4 inches of snow the evening after we spoke with Johanna!
(2) We didn't get home from church in time...

Zimbabwe is a life-altering, God glorifying, fantastic country!

2009-11-27T17:25:00.005Z

Hello everyone!

I just got back to South Africa on Thursday after a 26-hour train ride and am just letting you all know that I made it OK. As soon as we arrived back at the base the two other American girls and I went out for a Thanksgiving lunch although mostly we were going for the coffee that we missed so much (if my Grandma and my Dad read this I blame my coffee addiction on your side of the family). This morning I left the base and got on a train again to come to Cape Town and hang out with the girls in my school. Starting this Monday we have some more health teachings to do at a school here in SA for a week. I am praying that God will give me the energy for this last bit of outreach...

Thank you to everyone for my birthday wishes. It was wonderful! To celebrate my 23rd year I got to give massages to about 50 old Zimbabwean women who have been working incredibly hard their whole life and now have back and joint pains. I loved it!

I will be graduating on the 10th and will leave to return to NH on the 13th. See you all later!

Isimbi Johanna

Happy Birthday, Johanna!

2009-11-14T22:34:00.001Z

Since the clock has passed midnight on the African continent we will pause to wish Johanna a wonderful day of reflection and blessing. Johanna was a Sunday child (5:00 AM on the dot!) so even though the date is one day early, we will recall the blessing of her arrival in triumph and accomplishment (her older brother was born via C-section but Johanna was 'all natural' in her arrival!). In the end the doctor essentially missed all but the final details since even then Johanna traveled on a schedule that she and her Creator arranged together.

Her mid-wife (a faithful Catholic) expressed that it was such a spiritually transcendent experience that all she felt the need to do was to go to church on her way home. God was indeed gracious to grant us (and the world) this good gift of life. Happy birthday, dear daughter child!

Last Zimbabwe Update

2009-10-24T11:43:00.004Z

Hi,

I am almost out of internet time but I wanted to let you all know quickly that Nqobi is doing better. He came to stay with us for a few days and it was very good for him. He ate like a king and fell asleep in my arms 3 nights in a row. When his father came to get him and walk him back to the people he stays with he cried. Please keep him and his father in your prayers.

I am just outside Bulawayo for the rest of the weekend and then we are driving to Nkayi where we will do ministry and get some teaching on mother-child health from the hospital there. After 2 weeks we will go and stay in the village to provide some healthcare for them. I am excited for that. You can see the stars with awesome clarity when you are in the bush with no electricity. I will be back in South Africa in a month and then heading home for Christmas. See you then!

Isimbi Johanna

Nqobisitha

2009-10-16T13:20:00.006Z

The first time I saw him he was sitting next to his father under a tree on a hot sunny afternoon. I was tired. I had just walked 2 miles to get back to where we are staying but some things make you forget exhaustion. I had never seen trachoma in person before but Nqobi is already at stage 4 so even with my little training I could recognize it as soon as I knelt down in front of him. Have you ever seen an 8 year old who has given up on life? This kid has. He would barely lift his shoulders to look at me even though I was right in front of him; partly because the light hurts his eyes so much. They were swollen and crusty with discharge. He can barely see at this point because of the gray film over his pupil. Needless to say Nqobi impacted me.

On top of his eyes he is so malnourished that he is the size of his 4 year old cousin. His mother died when he was 2 and although his father loves him he can't take care of him because he has to work. Nqobi stays with some cousins who are struggling to provide for themselves. Over the next few days after I first met him our team visited his home to begin treatment on his eyes. It was a dramatic improvement just by washing them.

On Monday Nqobi is coming to stay at the base we are living at. They have a home for orphans there and they will temporarily take care of him while we continuing treating his eyes. We can clean them up but we can't cure his blindness. We do, however, serve a God who can and therefore we are expecting and asking for a complete recovery. The most important treatment we can give people as a medical team is prayer.

I wanted to share Nqobisitha with you because he is the reason I did this school. I could tell you all about the primary school we do health teachings/health care at or the home visits we make to the community members. I could tell you about how we got permission from the chief of the community to do a community-wide teaching on HIV/AIDS last Saturday. For me, though, it comes down to people like Nqobi. People who need help from someone to show them that life is not hopeless, that there is a God who loves them and created them, and that they do not have to die from something we can prevent.

I have been in Zimbabwe for just a short time but it will certainly affect the rest of my life. In a week I am going from the bush to the bush-bush or in other words we are traveling farther into Zimbabwe to work in a village. Obviously, I will have no internet connection so I will talk to you in December. Thanks for your prayers and support! I love you guys!

Isimbi Johanna

Prayer for Political 'Stability'

2009-10-16T13:19:00.003Z

Continue to pray for the political landscape of the country of Zimbabwe which has had such a convoluted history in recent months, years and decades. The unity government of the past year appears to be dissolving and that could in turn lead to political violence and further turmoil and hardships for the population of the country. See the following Reuters story for further detail.

Experiencing Africa

2009-10-13T16:16:00.004Z

Since Johanna will be mostly 'out of touch' with the global electronic network that we are so used to experiencing here in the developed western world, we have decided to provide occasional excerpted 'readings' from several great resources about Africa until she returns.

To begin I would like to recommend a treasure of a book (unfortunately now out of print) by John Charles Kerr called Hidden Riches Among the Poor: Reflections on the Vibrant Faith of Africa. Mr Kerr has served for a number of years in Kitwe, Zambia (one of the countries next door to Zimbabwe). The following quotation is one of the best written synopsis of the region that I have seen. *

...you notice a kind of softening of attitudes in Africa. For starters, there is an easing up on all rules and regimentation. Pockets of efficiency probably exist on the continent but, on the whole, Africa is under a soft haze sprinkled with laughter and the notion seems foreign. There are no distinct lines of demarcation here, no precision. There is more of a blending, an almost infinite tolerance of the vagaries and digressions of life. Watercolor seems the perfect medium, with sightly blurred edges, wide margins, wide margins. Africa is a very human place.

In Africa there is no "point A to point B" transit. Rather there is something like "point A to point Z," with so many interesting happenings along the way that you may never reach your destination. The process of getting there is just as important as actually arriving.

This was pretty hard on us, the esteemed visitors from the industrialized and well-managed west. Either we change and enjoy the ride or we go away muttering invective. We need to change not just how we make progress but the kind of people we are. Africa is so resistant and tough that it forces a softening on you. Here the idea is not so much to impose the imprint of our know-how and programs upon a setting and 'have an impact." Rather Africa seems to say, "Let me impact you!" Africa forces you to become malleable. It allows you to be acted upon rather than just acting.

This makes Africa a wonderful setting for change. Of course, it does not impose change against one's will. But it offers to those who enter its life something like a liberation. Africa makes you feel like you have cast off a hard shell and entered a new kind of freedom. The margins of life have widened. The hard lines we have imposed upon ourselves gave way a little.

Slowly but surely, one's thinking undergoes the same transformation. It seems to me now that Africa has accomplished in two years, in its soft yielding soil, what several years of Western resolve could not manage: meaningful change. The indirect approach of Africa, which seldom like to address any issue head-on, may have produced what the concentrated approach of the North American mindset was utterly incapable of. it is as though your life has been exposed to the diffused light of dawn rather than the intense glare of the searchlight. Africa, obdurate and resistant -- as thousands of missionaries and visionaries who lie beneath its soil would testify -- Africa, the most unchanging of continents, has a residual power to change us. I think of Africa along the lines of the 'cornerstone' (1 Peter 2:6) of Scripture, which has the power to grind you to pieces if it falls on you and to break you if you fall on it. It seems ironic: the continent which seems to have the least to teach the western mind turns out, for me at least, to be the agent of change. I find Pierre Pradervand's Listening to Africa to be aptly titled. Africa has much to teach us, about achieving consensus, about giving, about patience, about relating to the elderly and vitality under duress -- if we can listen.

Africa can teach us about time... time that is not tied to the pursuit of objects and money; but to an openness and spontaneity -- the time of just being and having relationships, rather than doing or achieving. Above all, it is the time of the present moment, of living in the now, rather than in a constant projection into the future... Africa has a unique and profound sense of kairos (the master moment of golden opportunity). If it is true that the continent needs to master chronos (the tick-tock that keeps us rushing from one appointment to another), without being mastered by it, we need African kairos more.

And Africa does more than teach in a didactic sense. As you enter into its life, she imposes change on you the way strong African fingers break off a piece of cornmeal sahdza and work it into an edible lump, ready to be dipped into hot sauce. In this same sense it functions like the best of teachers. One can only hope that it will retain its cornerstone strength for the good of the human race, right to the end.

* Quoted with the permission of the author...

Lee Beachy

Safe Arrival in Zimbabwe...

2009-10-12T23:20:00.002Z

Johanna called home for a just a couple of minutes in the early morning hours on 10/12/09 to let us know that she had arrived safely, was doing well, and to wish her brother a happy birthday! Thanks for your prayers and support!

The NH Beachys

Images: Joy & Contentment...

2009-09-28T15:29:00.003Z

Zimbabwe!!

2009-09-28T10:08:00.004Z

Hello all,

So this will be my last post before I go to Zimbabwe which means I don't know when you will hear from me again. Hopefully, I can find a computer to use to let everyone know I'm still alive sometime this week.

We are leaving tonight at 7 and will reach Johannesburg around noon tomorrow. We stay there overnight and then continue on to Zim; we should arrive in Bulawayo sometime on Thursday.

Concerning prayer, just keep it coming! The base prayed for our team this morning to send us off and you can never pray too much. Zimbabwe needs prayer for sure but I believe God has great things in store for turning this country back to Him and I am excited to see a glimpse of it in the coming months. We are praying for safe travels of course and then some things to keep in mind are unity amongst our team, wisdom in our words and actions, and most importantly that God would use us to glorify Him in Zimbabwe. We may be going there as a health care team but really God can use us however He wants.

As for me, I am so excited to be going. I love seeing new countries! Time goes by so fast and I want to make the most of the 2 months I have in Zim. Before I know it I'll be going back home for Christmas. I look forward to seeing you all in December and I will write to you from Zimbabwe. Bye!

Isimbi Johanna

I love my life

2009-09-23T17:28:00.003Z

Hi dear people,

I am borrowing my lovely Lissia's computer but she is from France so her keyboard is a little strange for me; if there are any typos it's because of that. The plus side is that I get to listen to fantastic French music as I write this. Someday I will be fluent in French.

Seriously, anyone who thinks that being a Christian means you are always going to lead a boring life full of rules is missing out on so much. I can barely begin to list the amazing things I get to do just because of where following Christ leads me. I'm going to Zimbabwe in 6 days because of Him. I wanted to remind you all of one of the ways that our God blesses us; by giving us adventures. He's so cool!

I and my classmates had a wonderful time in Knysna as I said. We had some interesting days together learning more about our personalities and differences but it was good. We are spending this week cramming in some last lectures before we leave. Our teaching is on the nervous and endocrine systems which I didn't realize I would like so much. They are such delicate and incredibly important systems that are created so beautifully how could you study them and not glorify our Creator God. Really amazing. On Monday we are on our way. We take a bus from here in Worcester to Johannesburg which will be about 16 hours. We'll stay in Joburg overnight and then take a combi to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Please be praying for safe travels and that we can get across the border as soon as possible. The police can take a rather long time checking everyone's bags and then visas take time as well. Still I've driven across borders in Africa before and it is really fun. It's a great way to see the nitty-gritty of a country. I have been learning whatever I can about Zim before we go and God has blessed me with some great opportunities to talk with people about it. I'm so excited to go!

I will talk to you again before we leave. Thanks for your prayer!

Isimbi Johanna

The blessing of getting old

2009-09-18T12:20:00.003Z

Hi all,

Someday I hope that I get to grow old. The past week and half has been a wonderful experience. The home our team has been working at is amazing and the ladies who started it are an inspiration to anyone about how to persevere. We have been doing all sorts of things from working in the kitchen or ironing laundry to assisting with bathing the residents and giving them meals. I am reminded of what a privilege it is to stay alive long enough to grow old. Some of the people we work with have seen a lot here in South Africa over the years. Unfortunately for us, many of the residents only speak Afrikaans or if they do speak English they are not exactly completely in touch with reality but it definitely makes for some interesting conversations.

The time here has gone by so fast and I can't begin to tell you everything that has happened. I don't have long on the internet so I will update you in more detail next week when we return to Worcester for one last week of lectures. The most exciting thing I have to tell you is that two weeks from now I will be in Zimbabwe! I will talk to you later

Isimbi Johanna

Life for Zimbabwe's children...

2009-09-07T14:02:00.005Z

A BBC team has been to Zimbabwe, four months since a power-sharing government took over, to meet the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Harare, Robert Ndlovu. To hear his narration of a 2:30 minute audio slide show and see what life is like for the Zimbabwe's children click here [click 'Show captions' for better viewing].

L. Beachy

Time to go try it out...

2009-09-05T17:13:00.004Z

Hi all,

I wanted to let you guys know that I am leaving tomorrow to go on the first part of my outreach. Our class is going to Knysna, South Africa to work in a long-term care home for elderly and paraplegic people. It is around four hours from Worcester and we will be there until Sept. 21st. When we return we have one last week of classes and then on the 28th we leave for Zimbabwe.

Speaking of Zim, I was very blessed this morning to get to visit with my friend Rob from Zimbabwe. I met Rob about two years ago in Manchester, NH way before I ever had plans to go to Zimbabwe. He has since moved back to Zim and was here in SA visiting friends so we met in Cape Town to catch up. I think it is just so cool how God knows our lives before we live them. I had no idea but He knew that I would be in Zim someday. I really am so excited to see this country; from what I hear God is turning things around from what they were like even just last year.

I will write you as soon as I can and definitely before I go to Zimbabwe:)

Isimbi Johanna

A certified South Africa First-Aider!

2009-08-20T15:07:00.003Z

Hello all of you,

I wanted to give you a bit of an update about what is going on in my life here but please I also love knowing what is happening in your lives so any time you want to write me or leave me notes on Facebook or something please do.

This past week our school was learning First Aid. Really cool subject even though it was mostly review for me. I did an EMT-Basic course two years ago and learned all about keeping people alive. My certification just ran out in May though so this was great timing. It is surprising how much you forget when you aren't using it. I passed my CPR exam this morning so I am now officially a First-Aider in South Africa anyway. I really loved the whole week because our teacher was a great man; very experienced but very humble and he is a fully alive Christian. I've never had medical teaching that goes hand in hand with Biblical truth before and it definitely makes a difference. Every morning our class has either worship or intercession together and our teacher this week joined us for that before teaching.

Next week, we are focusing on outreach into the local community. We are finding out tomorrow morning what exactly we are doing but one thing I know is that this Wednesday afternoon we are presenting a health teaching to a group of kids in a really poor community near us. We decided to teach on personal hygiene and it should be a lot of fun. Also this Friday night there is a youth concert that is being run by a worship leader for the young people of Worcester. I am very excited for this because these youth face so many battles and I mean intense ones. They are living a country with the worst crime rates, high HIV/AIDS infection, and wrong mindsets left from apartheid. If you happen to think about it please pray for this Friday evening (it would be earlier in the day in America). Pray that the youth will have the courage to respond and that they will hear the Truth when they come and recognise it. I plan to attend it mainly to be there and pray for them as it is happening. I am excited to see what God has in store for the young people of South Africa.

Alright, I have a book report due in a week (on a book I haven't read yet:) and a teaching plan due Monday so I am going to work on that. See you later!

Isimbi Johanna

I'm alive!

2009-08-14T08:58:00.002Z

Hi you guys,

Don't worry I haven't perished of a strange tropical disease. I have a lingering cough but other than that I am doing very well. Thank you all so much for your prayers. Here at the base I got prayed for in English, Afrikans, Portuguese, and French so I was pretty well covered. The flu bug thing is going around here and lots of people are getting sick.

I just found out today that I thought I had payed all my school fees but actually I have to pay another 12,000 rand for outreach. Bit of a downer of course but it is actually rather awesome the way God has already begun to provide that for me. I have had people offer to support me earlier this week before I knew that I would be needing this and I found out that I have a 401K check coming from one of my jobs in Montana. I think it is so cool that God knew I was going to be needing to pay this and started to prepare for it before I knew.

Here's how the rest of this school is going. We have 3 more weeks of teaching and then we are going to another part of South Africa where we will be working at a long term care home for paraplegics, quadraplegics, and elderly. Our job will be mainly helping with washing in the mornings and getting them breakfast. We are there until the end of September then we come back here to Worcester for some last minute teaching then off to Zimbabwe. We will be in Zimbabwe from October to December mostly in Komayanga village. After graduation I fly home for Christmas.

I have kind of flopped when it came to fund-raising for this school which I apologize for. Many of you have expressed a desire to support me financially and I am sorry I didn't organize this better for you. I was planning to put off fund-raising until I came back next year when I could do a really good job and send out stuff to make it easier for people. I will still do that but if you are sensing God leading you to not wait until then you can send a check to my home address which I will provide [See blog heading] or give it to my lovely parents if you are in NH. May I just tell you that I already appreciate your prayers because they are the greatest most powerful support you can give me.

Thank you all tremendously! Ndagukunda cyane. I am heading to Cape Town with friends (someone is letting us crash at their house for the weekend) so I will talk to you later.

Isimbi Johanna

Fever, fever, fever

2009-08-11T17:56:00.003Z

Hi all,

So I am just letting you know that I could use some extra prayers for health at the moment. I came down with some sort of flu bug over the weekend that has knocked me flat. I've been coughing my lungs out just about and I keep swinging back and forth with a high fever which is unusual for me. I spent the day in bed on Sunday since my fever was 39.4 C [102.9 F*] and I thought that would be the end of it but the next morning it was back. I took medicine and was doing better most of the day but then the fever was back up over 39 [102.2 F*] by last night. Besides just feeling awful and not being able to hear or smell because I am so stuffed up I am really ready to be done with this fever. People here have been great with praying for me and giving me time to rest but I figured the more prayers the better. Hopefully, I can stay fever free tonight, get some rest, and be fully restored in the morning.

Isimbi Johanna

P.S. It has been funny in class the past two days because we are talking about the eyes, ears, and nose. I felt like a walking demonstration of all the infections you could get.

How far from home am I?

2009-08-09T13:48:00.002Z

Taken in Cape Town, South Africa

NH Friends in Rwanda...

2009-08-09T09:56:00.003Z

Many of Johanna's friends from Manchester Christian Church have begun their own journey of learning and service today [8/9/09] as they head to Rwanda on one of five teams that the church is sending! 36 people in all will focus on a wide range of specific outreach in conjunction with the churches of Rwanda. You can read more (and follow team updates at the following blog called Manchester on the Move).

What will I do?

2009-08-07T19:33:00.004Z

Hello people,

You know how when people learn about the Holocaust they tend to say things like "If I were in Germany at the time I hope I would have done something or said something." They also tend to say things like "I guess I'll never know since it's over and all..." Well, I have decided that I will not wonder that about myself. When I was in Rwanda I would often think about what I would have done if I had been there during the genocide in 1994. I was thinking about that again tonight.

I just watched this movie called Yesterday about a woman from a village in South Africa who has HIV and her husband is dying of AIDS. It's a good movie and I would recommend it but it let something loose in me tonight. After it was done I walked out to the field here and sat down in a far corner.It is dark here right now so I was quite alone. I just started sobbing and crying; something I am not prone to do. I was brokenhearted over this issue of HIV/AIDS. It felt like I was grieving for everyone I know who has it and all those millions of unknowns. Maybe like the tiniest reflection of the way God feels about it. This is what God was showing me. I may not have been in Rwanda during the genocide but I am here in South Africa right now during the deaths of millions due to HIV/AIDS. I have been to multiple countries in Africa by now and met many people infected with HIV. So what will I do about that?

I don't have all the long-term answers to that right now but I guess I just wanted to share with you the things God uses to shape my heart. James 1:27 says "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble..." Please think about this because if you have not been taking care of orphans and widows you should be afraid. Seriously, look it up anywhere in the Bible; God is fiercely protective of them and He really warns about not looking after them. According to this verse in James looking after them doesn't mean sending them some money, or getting together at your church to talk about how you can help the world's poor, or even praying for them. These things are all great but it says GO to them and visit them in their trouble. There are widows and orphans (which the Bible defines as children who are fatherless) on the other side of the world or 5 minutes down the street from you no matter where you live and no matter what your income level you are able to visit them.

Anyway, I am off to Cape Town tomorrow on a class trip so I'll be going now. I love you all but I love God more:)

Isimbi Johanna

Introduction to Primary Health Care

2009-08-02T18:37:00.003Z

Hi everyone,

How are you all? For those of you from MCC who are about to leave for Rwanda I am soooo excited for you and I will be praying that you have a life-changing time there. It is a beautiful country with fantastic people. Imana iguhe umugisha!

So I wanted to explain a little bit more about my school for you. I didn't have a lot of details for you before I left and a lot of you were asking me why I didn't just go to nursing school in the U.S. My school is a second- level school with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) called Introduction to Primary Health Care. As far as medical schools go it is very basic but what makes it unique is the emphasis on health care in developing nations where sometimes you are all people have. There a eight main areas we focus on:

-Food and nutrition
-Water and sanitation
-Disease control
-Mother and child health
-Curative care
-Essential drugs
-Health Education
-Community resources

We have one teacher each week who comes in and focuses on some aspect of those eight issues. Some of the teachers in the school are medical professionals while others are lay health workers with a lot of hands on experience. My school leaders are all from different parts of Africa and they have a great deal of wisdom to impart to us. We have a small class with 3 Americans, 1 Canadian, 1 Nigerian, 1 Ghanaian, 1 from France, and 1 from New Zealand. We have been in classes now for a month and we have two months left before we go to really start learning by experience. In September we are going to a different part of South Africa where we will be assisting in a long-term care home for two weeks. After that we are off to Zimbabwe. We are going to a village in Zimbabwe called Komayanga. We will be working some of the time with a clinic in the area and some of the time we will set up a temporary clinic under a tree somewhere so people can come to us for help.

I am really enjoying this school but it is most definitely challenging as well. Not only is the school itself quite time consuming but the topics are really heavy. This past week we were learning about HIV/AIDS. Let me tell you, learning about it while you are in South Africa is sobering. 26% of the population in SA is HIV positive. Most of southern Africa is over 20% and in some places over 30%. As a health care worker here you face HIV/AIDS as a daily reality. The other thing is just the simple responsibility that comes with this school. I am scared at the mere thought of a desperate mother bringing her severely malnourished child to me and expecting me to save them. But I will most likely face that and more in Zimbabwe.

Obviously I can use prayer for this! We also have no idea what we will have as far as medicine when we get there because the current situation in Zimbabwe does not guarantee much of anything. Fortunately I serve a God who provides. Well, that is a little about my school...Talk to you in a few days. Bye!

Isimbi Johanna

A Thousand Words!

2009-07-29T23:49:00.000Z

Football and Smiles

2009-07-17T15:07:00.003Z

Hi all,

I have some free time at the moment so I thought I would try to give you more of an update. Actually, I should be doing my teaching plan right now but I need a break from working.

South Africa is fascinating but way too cold for me right now. It is winter here and usually around 55 degrees or warmer when the sun is out. I know it's not that cold but I much prefer weather in the 80s or 90s. It is interesting to be in a country that is in the process of having everything, including mindsets, restructured. Apartheid just ended 15 years ago which is really not very long. Although it is no longer legal, the daily reality for people still reflects a strong division of races. South Africa is separated into white, coloured, and black when it comes to people. During apartheid your quality of life was very much determined by your race with the whites having the best and the others getting the leftovers. The coloured are basically people who have a mixture of white and black blood plus some Indian blood. They were treated better than blacks but not as good as whites. From what I have seen there has been a lot of progress but it will be a ways to go before these attitudes are restored back to the truth.

There is something God has shown me about myself in the few weeks I have been here that is really cool. I was thinking that people here on the base were really friendly because they were always smiling. But then a few different people made comments to me about how I was always smiling and one guy told me that my face was full of laughter.To add to it the first teacher we had was a wonderfully smart woman named Minette. She would say these things in class about Africa that resonated with me and apparently every time she did I would smile because she started stopping and saying "there's that smile again." One time she said "Oh Johanna, you have such a beautifully expressive face." Finally one afternoon it hit me and I realized that all those smiling people were smiling back at me because I was smiling. My face was expressing joy. I don't know if I can explain to you all how profound it was for me to realize this. Not all of you have known me very well for the past ten years but I had depression for a while when I was younger and I never smiled. I mean seriously my face had almost no expression for such a long time because I didn't have any joy. So for me to see this difference in myself I am essentially seeing a part of me that God has restored back to what he originally intended me to be. He's the reason I smile so much now and I love that other people can see it.

I could use some prayer for this weekend. I have my first test tomorrow and it might be up to 3 hours long. It's practical and theory. Another thing you might want to pray for is this Sunday. The girls in my school and I have arranged a football (soccer for the Americans) match Sunday afternoon between our school and the girls in the English Language School here on base. It'll be fun but unfortunately for us most of the girls in ELS are from Brazil. So basically we are setting ourselves up for a football match against Brazilians which I think means we are either really courageous or just plain dumb. Hopefully I survive to write to you all again!

Isimbi Johanna

A Quick Update

2009-07-13T15:29:00.004Z

Hi all of you,

Sorry I haven't been writing in a while. I had a bunch of stuff due today so I have been busy. They really waste no time in this school. We have another lecture tonight after supper to fit in everything we need to this week.

I have at least settled in more here so I feel a little more at home although I really wish it wasn't so cold here. We started work duties today, which we have to do on top of all our schoolwork :), and the days are going to go by very quickly now. Last week we were talking a lot about mother/child health and nutrition. Our teacher was great and I am so glad that I came to do this school. I know that God will be teaching me a lot this year. This week we are talking about counseling and how to get people to talk to us. Oh, and I have started going to a nearby gym. Really fun and really hard work since I'm not used to it. I enjoy weight-lifting the most. I go with two of the girls from my school and a guy on staff here at the base who used to work in a gym back in Colorado. Us girls are barely able to move at the moment.

Please pray if you think about it for the three students we are still waiting for. One is a guy from Liberia and then two women from Nigeria. They are all having trouble getting visas but we are really praying that they will make it in time.

OK, I have dinner soon and then lectures so I should go. Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

What Can I Say

2009-07-06T13:55:00.003Z

Hi all,

So I don't really know what to say when a South African doctor tells you that the Christian church has failed when it comes to HIV/AIDS; or when he points out that all the Christian countries in Africa are the ones with the highest infection rates. It prompts some serious thinking.

Our school has started of right away because we have a lot of material to cover in a short amount of time. We had our first lectures on Saturday but were able to have this afternoon off. A lot of our schedule will depend on when the doctors are available to come and talk. We also have a lot of schoolwork to do which I need to be working on right now. More of the students have come although we are still waiting on some. A lot of the people here on base are from Ghana so I have enjoyed the chance to talk about Ghana with them. I might get a chance to relearn some Twi that I forgot. Overall this place is very western compared to the Africa I am used to. While I enjoy the hot showers and the faucet water you can wash your toothbrush in without getting sick I will be glad to be back in more traditional Africa. I am very excited to go Zimbabwe!

I should go do schoolwork so I will talk to you all later!

Isimbi Johanna

Mailing Johanna!

2009-07-04T18:20:00.002Z

For those who wish to send Johanna correspondence please use the address below (extra postage is required). Yes, those notes and cards ARE appreciated!!

Johanna Beachy (IPHC Student)
YWAM Worcester
P.O. Box 926
Worcester 6849
South Africa

.

The First Few Days

2009-07-03T12:06:00.004Z

Ok hello everyone,

Yes so I am here on Worcester alright although I think I will forever dislike the Johannesburg ('Jo-burg') airport. The way it is set up you have to go get your checked bags when you get off your plane and you go to the exit and then check back in again for your connecting flight. I got to the check-in counter finally at almost midnight and they were closing up and told me I couldn't check in until the morning. The guy there was telling me that I would have to stay at a hotel so he showed me where to go because the airport one was full. At first I thought he meant that I would have to find a hotel in Joburg somewhere which is not that safe. But he just pointed to the Intercontinental Hotel that was across the road and told me to go there. So I left the airport in Joburg in the middle of the night and went across the street (don't freak out Mother or Laura obviously I am fine) to the hotel but as I was walking up to it I noticed that it looked really nice which was not good for me. Yeah, they wanted over 3,000 Rand for the night which is over $400. At that point I only needed the room for 4 hours anyway. I just said no thank you and walked back across to the airport. I went back to the check-in counter at sat down on some stairs across from it. I was the only person around other than the cleaning guys. One of them had seen me leaving and he came back over to me and asked if I found what I was looking for and I told him I couldn't afford it. I sat there for a few minutes and then he came back and told me that there was a 24-hour coffee shop downstairs where I could go. He showed me the right lifts to use and what floor to push and as I was getting on he said "Because you looked very nice sitting there you know and the others they would harass you" and then he walked away. I did find the coffee shop which is where the other passengers were waiting. I was just reminded of how much God protects me when I am traveling by sending me people like that young kind cleaning guy to help me. Then when I got to Cape Town the guy who was suppose to come pick me up didn't come; these two other guys came but they were 30 minutes late. I tried to subtly ask them questions before I would go with them and they passed so I went:)

When I got here to Worcester yesterday I was really struggling with being homesick for Rwanda and my family. I haven't spent very much time with my family in the past 2 years and the month I just had with them was not nearly enough. I also really didn't want to leave Rwanda because it feels natural and good when I'm there. I miss my friends in Kigali of course but it is more than that. I don't know if God will use in Rwanda long-term but I am sure that I will continually visit at least.

One of the staff for my school here is a young woman from Ghana and I was talking with her when we found out that she was at the YWAM base in Tema, Ghana at the same time that I visited it with Mercy Ships in 2006. She remembers our team coming. We live in a small world. My room here is very tiny and cold but there is hot running water for showers. So far the other students I know are Bernard from Ghana, Ginny from Texas, and Lissia from France. The last two are my roommates. There are some others coming in the next few days. I saved the best part for last...we are going to Zimbabwe for outreach!!! I have been praying that we would and today Lissia told me she has been praying that as well! Please keep praying that it doesn't fall through because I believe that is where we need to go.

We have registration at 4 so I will talk with you later. Bye!

Isimbi Johanna

Thank God!

2009-07-02T14:07:00.005Z

I am here in Worcester safe and sound finally. After all the traveling I have done in Africa this past time might be the worst of all. I really need to go lie down and sleep because I haven't since yesterday morning so I will tell you about it later. Thank you for all your prayers!!

Isimbi Johanna

On my way to South Africa

2009-07-01T11:33:00.004Z

Hi people,

I am leaving for SA in a couple of hours. I would love to ask for your prayers as I travel to a new country. I have to sit in the Johannesburg airport overnight so I need to stay awake and alert...it is not exactly the safest place. Please pray that all my bags arrive, that I don't get bothered by anyone (though Robert, like a typical big brother, has been giving me advice on where to hit a guy if he attacks me) and that someone is there to pick me up when I arrive in Cape Town. I am very excited to be going to SA but very sad to leave Laura and Rwanda. I will let you know that I have arrived as soon as I am able!

Isimbi Johanna

Lately in Rwanda

2009-06-25T11:21:00.003Z

Hello all you people,

So I have been cramming in lots in my short time here in Rwanda which explains why I haven't written. OK an update...

On Saturday we had a mini reunion with some of the students from my DTS . It was a lot of fun to hang out with them. About five of us met at Jean Paul's new house which was perfect because then we got to meet his new wife. He just got married on June 6th and they are adorable. It really cracks me up at these type of get togethers because people here really like formality. There were a bunch of people we didn't know who would get up and give speeches in Kinyarwanda and then while we were eating one of the guys there whipped out a huge old camera and started taking snapshots of everyone. It was fantastic!

Monday was not as much fun although just as important. Robert took Laura and I to see the memorial in Nyamata. There is a catholic church in Nyamata where a hundreds of people were killed during the genocide and as a memorial to them the government has left the church almost untouched. When you walk inside all you see are piles of ragged clothing laying on all the pews. The bones have been moved to an area behind the church where they are respectfully displayed. There are so many skulls. The ceiling of the church is still riddled with bullet holes and the white cloth draped across the altar table is covered in 15 year old bloodstains. It is disturbing to see. What struck me the most though is that as we walked out of the burial chambers where we had been surrounded by skulls and femur bones, many of them children, there were these three little girls waving at us and laughing from the other side of the fence. You see, the church in Nyamata is smack dab in the middle of all the other buildings. People walk by it every day going about their business. It was just an intense reminder of what you can't always see in Rwanda as an outsider; the people here carry out their lives with constant reminders of what happened right next to them. You just can't go anywhere that something didn't happen there that has bad memories.

Other than that I have been visiting friends and helping Laura with her classes. I will be leaving this time next week to fly to South Africa and start my school. This weekend, however, Laura and I are going to Butare to visit the National Museum and spend some time by the pool. It will be a good break for her. Hopefully this Sunday I will get to visit Selassie's mom which I am looking forward to. Talk to you all later!

Isimbi Johanna

A holy God who answers prayers

2009-06-16T14:09:00.003Z

Muraho!

I am sitting here at Ninzi Hill in Kigali, one of my favorite places to go and hang out with friends, talking with Laura about the challenges of having your first official teaching job be on another continent. I got to visit her classes yesterday and it is clear that God gifted her to teach but all the same God can gift us to do something without making it easy to do.

The two things that I have been learning a lot on the past week would seem to contradict each other when you think about. But then I guess that is part of what makes God awesome; that He can be both. Some of my friends are in a book group together and I am going to join in while I am here. So I decided to read the book they are studying right now. It is called 'The Holiness of God' by R.C. Sproul. I would warn you to read it and be prepared to get scared and uncomfortable. As the book talks about God is absolutely holy; that is to say He is utterly pure and wholly set apart from us. So much so that we can not ever fully know Him or look upon Him as a result of our sin. Any relationship between us and God must be initiated by Him. It just seems incredible to me that He does initiate with us.

Which bring me to my next topic. This holy God who could very understandably choose to have nothing to do with us actually invites us into direct communication with Him and then He even answers us. He has answered my prayers far beyond what I deserve. On Sunday I got to visit with Selassie! He met me after church and we came here to Ninzi and talked for hours. When we left he said he would accompany me back to the base but that he didn't want to go in. Last year when he left the school he was not on the best terms with everyone and he has not been back to the base since that day. Well he came back with me and he stayed all evening to attend Heart of Worship. HOW is a group of young Rwandans who meet every week just to worship God for who He is. They sing mainly music from Hillsong so it is mostly in English. They recently began meeting on base. Selassie had such a wonderful time that he is coming next week and he said he never wanted to miss another one. I am happier than I can say to be able to see God redeeming him in this way. He has seen deep and wide hypocrisy in the church here and it has distorted his view of God so for him to be able to tell me that our God is amazing or to be able to lift his hands in worship is a true renewing of his mind. God is reinforcing in my mind the truth that He can heal all hurt.

Well, I am leaving for the book group soon so I will say bye for now. Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

Muraho!

2009-06-12T12:00:00.004Z

Hi there!

So I am in Rwanda after my two days of traveling. I am so very happy to be back in this wonderful country with the people I love so much.

Unfortunately, I have not been having all that much fun yet as Laura has been quite sick the past few days. I was looking for her at the airport when I arrived but it was just Robert there to pick me up (not that I wasn't very happy to see my Rwandan big brother again). Laura was getting over a case of amoebas when I got here and we thought she was recovering. By Wednesday morning though she had a fever of almost 102 so that day we ended up taking her to King Faisal Hospital here in Kigali and she just got out last night. Thank the Lord she does not have malaria or typhoid; probably just a viral infection. We had to do battle for them to let her out of the hospital last night and we waited for a doctor to release her for hours. They have still not returned her deposit which she is supposed to be refunded on so Robert is going back to fight for her money. He is very protective of her. She is still weak although the fever finally is gone. I am going back to the hospital with Robert today to join forces in making sure they do not try to take advantage of her. So in short it has been an exciting first couple of days!

God has already blessed my time here beyond anything I ever expected. He is so good to me. I have greatly enjoyed seeing and talking with old friends here at the base and today was the best day of all!!! I was walking outside my room when Noah stopped me and said he had a message for me. Noah is one of my former teachers. He said that yesterday in town he saw Selassie and when he told him that I was back in Rwanda Selassie asked Noah to give me his number so that I can get in touch with him. So just a few hours ago I talked to Selassie!!!! For those of you who have never read my blog before Selassie was I student in my school when I first came to Rwanda and we became very close in a short time. God created our personalities to be very similar and we both called each other 'my twin'. Selassie was the one who gave me my Kinyarwanda name, Isimbi. After only a month Selassie had to leave our school. He was dealing with overwhelming burdens at the time; things that I cannot imagine having to experience even one of and yet he was dealing with several. I lost contact with him shortly after he left school and he wouldn't return my or Laura's calls. That was a year and a half ago. I have prayed for him continuously since then. In fact, God taught me a lot about interceding for others through Selassie because I have never in my life experienced such a burden to pray for someone as I do for him. So for him to contact me was the most joyful thing I could have hoped for in Rwanda. He is suppose to come meet me at a church I go to this Sunday and then we will go talk somewhere after! I am hoping and praying that I will get to see him although just talking with him was an answer to prayer that amazed me. Yeah, it has been a good first few days!

I have to go fight with a hospital in a little while so I will talk to you later...

Isimbi Johanna

As I Go

2009-06-08T12:12:00.005Z

Hello all of you,

Well it is somewhat difficult for me to write that in a few hours I am heading down to Boston where I will begin my flights heading to Rwanda and then three weeks later to South Africa. It is difficult because to be utterly honest I don't want to go yet. I know, that sounds odd coming from the girl who loves to travel but I am leaving with intensely mixed emotions this time. As most of you know I have been living in Montana since last summer which means I have only been back with my family for a month. Not very long. In fact I just had to say bye to my brother who is off to the camp he works at and my sister is leaving in an hour for work. I'll miss them so much. I'm also feeling a scary 'I don't want to leave my comfort-zone and head into the unknown again' sensation. Now you know where I'm at. So why go at all?

Because I will not be lukewarm. I will not be a comfortable Christian. I want my faith in Jesus Christ to consistently lead me to do things that are scary. I'm not talking about being stupid in my faith but maybe a little reckless. The times when I take steps to follow God's commands in the Bible that I don't think I can handle; that's when I know that God is all-sufficient. He has never ever failed me. And He is the best cure for a case of nerves that I have ever found. When I focus on who my God is my surroundings and circumstances don't change but they're sure not very intimidating anymore. He kind of dwarfs everything on earth by comparison.

I am spending three weeks in Rwanda and am tremendously excited for that. The purpose of this visit is simply to visit friends. My dear friend and sister Laura Mutesi, who was in the DTS with me in Rwanda last year, has moved back to Kigali to teach English in a school there. I will be staying with her at the same place we lived last year which means I get to see my teachers and some of my classmates again. On July 1 I fly down to South Africa for Youth With A Mission's (YWAM) Introduction to Primary Healthcare school.

I am not entirely sure what to expect from this school but what I do know excites me. I will spend 3 months of classes in Worcester, SA learning the basics of health care in a developing nation. The second half of the school I will go somewhere and work in a healthcare setting. This part could be in SA or it could be another country. I am something of a loner who tends to avoid responsibility so the thought of someone's health depending on me...yeah, I don't naturally want to go there. This is what makes me get over that tendency:

-Approximately 25,000 people die every day of hunger or its related causes. 9 million people per year. Think about that. The leading cause of death in the world is from a lack of food.
-1.2 billion people in the world do not have access to clean water. As a result 5 million people die every year from water-related illnesses and every 15 seconds a child dies from this. I wonder how long it takes you to read this blog?
-In the U.S. and Europe 2 out of every 1,000 children die before they turn 5. In Africa, 165 out of every 1,000 die before they are 5 years old. The highest percentage of these is from birth complications followed by pneumonia and on and on and on...
-Malaria kills between 1.5 million and 2.7 million people per year and one child every 30 seconds.
-There are 33 million people in the world infected with HIV. 70% of them are in Africa. 3 nations in sub-Saharan Africa have an infection rate over 20%. There are 15 million children orphaned by AIDS.

I could go on but I think you get the idea. I know that I can't save every person who makes up these statistics but those numbers drive me crazy. It pushes me past myself and screams at me so loudly that I can't ignore them. I don't even want to imagine how loudly it screams out to God who sees everything. Well, there you go. That is what I am doing and why I am going.

Some of you have expressed a desire to support me financially, which is greatly appreciated, and I will need a bombardment of prayers. You can contact my father ( a.k.a. my banker) if you would like to send funds along. I also am encouraged to hear from any of you while I am away. Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

Return to Africa!

2009-03-29T22:38:00.003Z

Just a quick note to update Johanna's friends that on Thursday she recieved official acceptance to the YWAM school in Worcester, South Africa. The school runs from July to December 2009. Johanna hopes to spend several weeks in Rwanda prior to flying to South Africa.

You may read more about the Introduction to Primary Health Care course at: http://www.ywamworcester.org.za/iphc.htm

Johanna would appreciate your prayers as she concludes her time in Bozeman, Montana, travels to Texas for her brother's college graduation, returns home to New Hampshire for a month and then leaves for Africa.

Let's see if we can persuade her to share her heart and thoughts with us here!

Johanna's Folks

Hello from Montana!

2008-09-18T17:54:00.003Z

Hey there everybody!

So it has been a while since I posted anything and I thought I should give you a little update.

OK well the main thing is that I am living in Montana right now. I moved out here about a month ago and got an apartment with Mindy and Kate who are two of the girls that were in my DTS. I really like MT. It is so different when compared to NH. I am also discovering how stressful living on your own in America can be but it is a good learning experience for me:)

I still keep in touch with a lot of my classmates. I e-mail mostly with the ones from East Africa although Didier and I talk on the phone regularly. A lot of the students are now staff at various YWAM bases. I miss them all so much. It was so great to see Kate and Mindy after a summer apart. I will hopefully be spending a week in Seattle with Laura in October so I am looking forward to that.

I have not heard anything more from Selassie nor has anyone been able to get in touch with him. I will pray for him and think of him for the rest of my life. I trust God with his life whether I ever see him again or not.

As for my future plans...I will stay in MT until about May of next year and then will spend about a month with my family before heading back to Africa. My tentative plans for now are to go back to Rwanda in June for around a month to visit my friends and then head down to South Africa from there. The Primary Healthcare school in Worcester, South Africa starts in July so that timing should work. I am in the process of applying to that school now. Well, those are my next steps for now and then who knows where I'll end up!

I'll try to update once in a while but it's not as fun writing from the US as it was from Africa. I don't have any goat killing or amazing children to tell stories about here:)

Love, Isimbi Johanna

Leaving Rwanda

2008-05-22T13:36:00.002Z

Hey people,

I have a brief chance today to send my last blog post from Rwanda. It
is my last day here. I leave for the airport tomorrow morning. I have
been trying to pack in as many things at once as I can.

I just came to the internet after trying to walk to my friend Didier's
house. I'm afraid I got lost before I could make it. Now it is not
just my poor sense of direction to blame; usually Didier and I walk
there together and it is the back way that has a lot of little twists
and turns that all look alike. Today Didier said he wanted me to try
to find it myself and when I said I might get lost and end up
wandering through the valley he said he hoped I would so that I would
miss my plane and not be able to leave. His plan almost succeeded:)

This week has been very sad with all the good-byes and knowing that I
will be leaving this country for who knows how long. I have also not
been able to get in touch with Selassie which in a way breaks my heart
because I don't think I will likely ever see him again. I told God
that if for whatever reason I did not see Sel again I would still
commit to praying for him the rest of my life and I will stick to
that. Oh dear, I am going to need cheering up when I get to NH.

Well, please pray for safe travels for myself and my bags. I will be
in London for the weekend and then home Monday night. See you all
soon!

Isimbi Johanna

Returning Home

2008-05-21T17:29:00.002Z

Johanna will be leaving Kigali, Rwanda on Friday, May the 23rd and connecting through Nairobi, Kenya enroute to London, England. She will be traveling to London together with her classmate, Laura. They will spend two days in London with Johanna's friend, Mary (from her Mercy Ship's team in 2006).

Then on Monday, May 26, Johanna and Laura will say goodbye and Johanna will fly to Boston arriving early in the evening to the eager hugs of her family.

Please remember Johanna and Laura during these coming days as they travel and as they say farewell to many people who have become dear, precious connections in their lives.

Growth

2008-05-15T09:31:00.002Z

HI peoples!

So I will be back home a week from this Monday. I can't really wrap my
mind around that because it doesn't feel yet like I am actually
leaving and to be blatantly honest I don't really want to. It will be
nice to see you people though...

There has been a recurring theme for me in this school from the very
beginning and it has been stronger the last few days so I thought I
would share it with you. God has been making it clear to me for a
while now that He considers this to be a time for me to grow up. It is
His desire to use this time and experiences to mold me into a woman of
God. I am being challenged to leave behind old patterns of thought and
behavior and mature. Sometimes it is downright hard and I would rather
just not try. The best way I can describe what I am trying to say is
that God is in the process of re-potting me. You know when a plant
grows to the point that it needs to be moved to a bigger pot in order
for it to grow even more. That is me right now. It isn't easy because
God is getting to my roots and digging up things I don't really want
to deal with which I can share more about one-on-one when I get back
if you want.

I've had a tendency for the past few years to just look back at how
far I have come which is considerable and be content with that. God
transformed me from what I used to be like and the danger for me is to
think that He is done now. The truth is that He wants me in a
continual state of transformation. It excites me the more I think
about it. God will never take His hands away from me and say there is
nothing more to be done. He will stay personally involved in my
growth. No matter how wise or godly I may become He can still do more
to make me a woman who reflects Him. So that is what I have been
reflecting on recently.

Anyway, our class has our graduation ceremony this Friday. Everybody
is graduating which makes me very happy. That means that the only one
we lost is Selassie. Speaking of which, I have tried to reach him and
not succeeded yet. I would appreciate continued prayers for him and
for the chance of seeing him before I leave. I only have 8 days left
in Rwanda. I don't want to dwell on that thought. See you soon. Bye
for now!

Isimbi Johanna

Back home in Rwanda

2008-05-09T09:11:00.002Z

Hello peoples!

I am now back in Rwanda! I missed it so much and it is such a relief to be back here. I love this country so much.

The bus ride getting here was a bus ride from...never mind; 26 hours driving over what must be some of the worst roads on East Africa. We also drove right through the Rift Valley which is other-worldly beautiful but also a little scary since that is where most of the violence in Kenya has been concentrated. At one point we drove past a row of burned down buildings where people had been driven from their homes. God is good and He got us back to Kigali safely.

I will right a longer post in the next couple of days to let you know more but for now I am still exhausted:) I am not looking forward to leaving by the way. If it were not for wanting to see all of you again I would never leave Rwanda I think. Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

P.S. Please pray that I will get to see Selassie before I leave. I miss that kid more than I can describe and everything in Rwanda makes me think of him. Strange the people God chooses for us to be connected to.

A Glimpse of African Healthcare

2008-05-04T10:36:00.002Z

[This journal from the BBC's series on a medical clinic in the country next to Liberia, is typical of the challenges that African heathcare workers face...]

Medical staff at a clinic in the coastal slum of Kroo Bay, in Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown, are keeping a diary of their working lives.

Here, Bintu Koroma, who is a midwife at the clinic, talks about traditional beliefs and troubled pregnancies.

A woman arrived on the maternity ward last month, who had been in labour for more than one-and-a-half days without delivering

Her waters had broken from a premature rupture and she had gone to a traditional birth attendant, who had tried to deliver the baby but with no joy.

I examined her, however, there was not much I could do at this stage and I advised her to go to the hospital at once.

It is in our regulations that if a delivery goes on for more than 24 hours we must refer them immediately.

Inside I felt it might already be too late for this baby.

I learned later that in fact she had gone back to the traditional birth attendant because her family did not have the money to take her to the hospital.

The issue here is always money.

She eventually delivered but the baby was stillborn.

When I saw her several days later, her belly was still swollen as if she was still pregnant, I told her she must go to the doctor.

Most people in the slum still prefer to go to a traditional birth attendant as this is what they have done for generations.

They use local medicine and herbs, which are part of people's beliefs.

Herbs are often rubbed over a pregnant woman's belly to protect the baby, not only from medical problems but also from any curses.

When something goes wrong, people blame others for putting a jinx on them - and this was also the case with this woman.

She said that she had a competitor for her husband, who, she believed, had placed a curse on the baby so that it would die.

I told her that this was not the case.

"Your baby died because your waters broke too early and you didn't go to the hospital," I said.

Excuses

We have talked with the traditional birth attendants and asked them to bring their patients to the clinic to carry out the deliveries.

We usually charge 70,000 leones ($24) for a delivery, but in these cases we just want to observe and be able to step in if there is an emergency - we don't charge any money to the birth attendant or the patient.

It's difficult find out how much birth attendants charge, but it's thought to be between 40,000 leones ($14) and 100,000 leones ($34) - a higher fee for a boy than a girl.

Sometimes the attendants do come here with their patients, but most of the time they don't.

When I see them in the street and ask them why they didn't come to the clinic, they tend to invent excuses: "Oh, the woman's family called me, and when I arrived at her house the baby immediately fell into my hands - there was no time."

I think there are two reasons why they avoid the clinic.

Firstly we do not allow them to bring their herbs.

But, more importantly, they fear that by bringing their patients to the clinic, other traditional birth attendants will get to hear about the delivery.

They will then turn up uninvited in the delivery room, impose their help and then expect a share of the money.

Nairobi says hi!

2008-04-22T12:36:00.003Z

Hello people!

I can't write much but I wanted to send a greeting from my one day in Nairobi. I really like this city. I could easily live here although I would miss the beauty of the bush-bush.

I will see you all (from NH) in about a month and I am looking forward to it. I have to go the others are waiting.

Love you all and I'll write more soon!

Isimbi Johanna

Stop the Milking!

2008-04-19T20:37:00.004Z

We tried calling Johanna on Saturday this time (because Sundays are so full and because her two younger siblings are not usually with us when we have to call before 2:00 PM Eastern time). We got through right away but Laura told us (we thought) that Johanna was down looking at the cows and that we should call back in 10 minutes.

We did just that and Johanna answered but it turns out that she had been milking the cow not just looking. I'm sure that her great aunts and uncles on the side of her Amish heritage (not to mention her great-grandmother, Annie) would have identified immediately with her chores!

Since we were calling the day before her sister's 16th birthday, the two of them were able to 'catch up' on news and relish the prospect of less than 40 days until Johanna is back home again -- however briefly that might be.

Johanna said that the location of the YWAM facility was absolutely spectacular. I forgot to ask her if in fact she could see Mt. Kilimanjaro from where she was. It is about 115 miles away just over the Tanzanian border and rises to a height of over 19,000 feet -- so I'm guessing if you have the right vantage and the right weather, it should be possible.

The YWAM property adjoins national park land so the wildlife and scenery is a great treat indeed. The team has been working hard all week doing manual labor on the property (when not milking) but will begin to work at an HIV/AIDS ministry near Nairobi on Tuesday.

The Kenyan Sky!

2008-04-17T16:16:00.003Z

Hello everybody! The team and I arrived safely in Kenya last Saturday after a horrific bus ride. Athi River, Kenya is definitely out in the bush-bush and so gorgeous. I don't know how to explain the sky here. Its not like anything I have ever seen in America. Its kind of like the land is so beautiful that the sky wants to reach down and touch it. So anywhere you stand you can turn in a complete circle and there are huge, white billowing clouds touching the horizon. Imagine what the sunrises are like...:)

So far for ministry we have just been working at the base slashing grass, which is the African version of mowing the lawn. We have also been pulling down dead branches from thorn trees, which is a very perilous job. Next week we will start ministry in a children's home, do a prayer walk in Nairobi (please pray for us, scary place right now), and participate in small groups with HIV/AIDS affected children.

One benefit at the base every day can be a safari because there are giraffes that regularly graze all around, and a national park with lions, cheetahs, zebras, you name it that borders the base. One downfall is the lack of Internet access, which means this has to be short. Bye!

Love you all!
Isimbi Johanna

Safe Arrival in Kenya!

2008-04-12T10:47:00.003Z

Johanna's close friend Laura (pictured) posted this on Saturday morning after their arrival:

"We left Soroti at noon yesterday and traveled through the night to arrive in Nairobi this morning at 5 am. We then took another bus to the bush bush and are at the base. The nearest town is a 30 min walk, and there is no internet there. I am using the internet at the base but it is expensive so I won’t really be able to use it much. I am told that if we go out of the base into the bush to have our morning quiet time, we are likely to be met by giraffe and zebra. It is really beautiful but there is nothing here. I am not sure what our ministries will be yet, we will find out on Monday. ... Please excuse the infrequency of my posts from now until I get back in

Rwanda

…things are a little different now that it is easier for me to see a giraffe than to get to a computer…"

Travel to Kenya

2008-04-11T15:54:00.004Z

I spoke briefly with Johanna the evening before her departure from Uganda. The team will take a bus about noontime to the main terminal (I suspect in Kampala). There they will take an overnight bus traveling to the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, and arrive at about 5:00 AM on the morning of Saturday 4/12. Staff from the Athi River YWAM facility will be coming to Nairobi to pick them up. Thanks for your prayers!!

Children who cheat death

2008-04-09T08:07:00.006Z

Hello people,

I am writing my last note to you all from Uganda. We leave on Friday morning to drive to Athi River, Kenya. I have to tell you about the people I will remember the most from my time here in Soroti.

The YWAM base I stayed at has a ministry for children living with HIV/AIDS like I said. The minstry consists of two houses almost right next to each other. The first house is called Amacet n'ainapakin which means 'shelter of peace' in Ateso, the local dialect. It is a temporary home for young children who would often times die if they were not taken in. Some of them are postive for HIV while others have simpler health problems and some are just taken in as newborns because there mothers died giving birth and they have to be looked after. The goal of this ministry is to get the children healthy enough for them to be able to go back home to their families. This home is where I and some of the others from our team worked to help take care of these kids

Let me start with Esther. She is about a year and a half old although they don't know her exact age because her mother was a mentally unsound woman who lived on the street. When she was taken to the hospital she told everyone that her baby was dead. The policewoman who found Esther gave her her own name since they didn't know what to call her. Nobody knows who Esther's father is and her mother disappeared when she was released from the hospital. Esther's only chance for a home other than Amicet is to be adopted. She is such a joy to be around! She is almost walking know and she talks all the time. Her favorite word is Auntie which she calls everybody nonstop, even guys. Esther loves music and she will sing or dance to herself.

Probably the two sickest kids right now at Amicet are Dennis and David. They are both skin and bones although David at least will eat by himself and Dennis has to have a feeding tube. They are both over two years I think but it is hard to tell. David is wanting to be held all the time and he is a very good cuddler. Dennis, however, I am convinced could make any woman in the world fall in love with him. He has the most enormous brown eyes and you will find yourself just staring at him when all of a sudden this smile will spread across his face and...boom, you are done for. Please pray that both of these little men will be able to gain weight. Dennis also has a urinary tract infection and he has not been responding to any drugs.

I have to tell you about my favorite. The other girls think I am crazy for liking her but Silivia is my girl. We all have the kids that we dream about taking home with us and I would take Silivia home if I could. Silivia is about 16-months but she is close to the size of a 4-month old. She cannot talk, walk, or even sit up by herself until recently. She cries so easily; if the other kids just brush against her foot it startles her and sends her off into one of her screaming fits but they only last for five seconds. Surprisingly, she is not HIV-positive. Actually, the doctors don't know what is wrong with her. Silivia may seem to be rather irritating at first; even I thought so until one day when I was putting her to bed. I discovered that Silivia loves to reach up with her tiny little hand and touch peoples' faces. And if you kiss her hand her entire face is transformed by smiles. When I give her kisses on her cheek she becomes beautiful and she isn't the funny looking kid with a head too big for her body anymore. She also likes to look around the room and if anyone is smiling she immediately joins in. I'm telling you her face radiates joy when she smiles. My dream is to take her to America, find a doctor who knows what is wrong, and help her grow up to be the woman God intended her to be.

The second home is called Amacet n'amun which means 'shelter of hope'. It is a long-term home for kids living with HIV/AIDS. They are older; between the ages of ten and fourteen. It is more like a family than the first home. Our team was blessed to be able to spend most afternoons hanging out with these kids after school. The guys played football with the boys and the girls all played games together. These kids are awesome. They are the image of perseverance and hope in a situation that seems hopeless. They do not have easy lives and most are orphans but they smile and love and laugh. I know that God views these kids as His own priceless jewels on earth. They shine for Him.

I'm sorry for how long this post is and I know that I haven't shared much about myself but I had to tell you about the unforgettable people I met in Uganda. Chances are I will never see them again after I leave and the hard reality is that within a few years many of these children from both homes may be dead. I have nevertheless been blessed beyond description to have been given the chance to see them live. I am amazed that God continues to allow us to see His treasured things particularly when we seem to often mistreat what He so deeply cares about. Yet He stills shares more and more with us. I know it's an understatement but God is really brave to do that. I am so thankful that we have the God that we have.

OK, I will force myself to stop here since my time is running out:) I will see you all in the end of May. Bye! Ndagakunda cyane!

Isimbi Johanna

The month of April

2008-04-03T11:48:00.003Z

Hi people!

I don't have very long but I wanted to at least say hi while I had the chance. I have only two more shifts left at Amicet; the home for the children with AIDS. I will be so sad to leave those kids.When I have more time I will tell you about them in more detail.

Please continue to pray for Rwanda this month. it is a very difficult time for the entire nation and even though we are not in Rwanda right now some of our group is having a hard time already. April 6 marks the day that you could say started the genocide. the entire country is in mourning this month and the government holds two weeks of official remembrance. during those two weeks is when people are allowed to dig up the bones of their families to give them proper burials in the memorial centers. We as a group and Rwanda as a nation really need prayers right now for healing, peace, and wisdom. I will keep you all updated as much as possible.

Bye for now.

Isimbi Johanna

What's in a name?

2008-03-31T15:06:00.007Z

Hello,

I just had a long post I was going to send but the internet cafe was switching from off the generator since the power came back on so I lost it all. I have less time now to say hi to you all but I'll be back on Wednesday I hope. We have just 11 days left in Uganda and then we are on to Kenya for a month. I am definitely excited to see another country.

I was thinking that maybe I should explain my name to you all. If you noticed I have been signing my blog posts as Isimbi Johanna. Obviously you all know that my name is Johanna:) Isimbi is my Kinyarwanda name (pronounced ee-SEE-mbee). It is very special to me because Selassie gave it to me. He said that it was perfect for me and since he rarely reached out to people like that it meant a lot. Simply translated Isimbi means "shining". A more accurate translation is shining like a snow-covered mountain or a pebble in the water. Rwanda has no natural resources like gold or diamonds so when people wanted to describe something that was treasured they used the way the sun glistens on the top of a snowy mountain as an example. But that is not what means the most to me about my name. When Sel gave it to me he said that in Rwanda girls that were named Isimbi were special. They were in his words " quiet, beautiful, and wise". As soon as he had said that he started talking about 1994. He said that during the genocide sometimes the killers would ask people what their names were and when they came to a girl named Isimbi they still killed her anyway. He had this look on his face that I can't describe and he shook his head and said "that was very bad" as if killing them showed how little regard there was for anyone at all. So, anyway that is the story of my name.

I will talk to you all soon! Bye for now!

Isimbi Johanna

The Chicken Picture!

2008-03-25T13:40:00.005Z

Yeah, but Dad still knows where to look for the evidence...

Chickens and attack helicopters!

2008-03-24T08:41:00.003Z

Hi people!

I have to say that I had the most unique and probably most fun Easter sunday that I have ever had yesterday. I woke up early so that I could slaughter chickens! I told some of my African team members back in Rwanda that I wanted to learn how to kill a chicken and they let me kill five of them and then I defeathered them and learned how to cut them up. I won't go in to more details for those of you who are grossed out but any of you that want to know the specifics for killing a chicken just ask me when I get back:) I have pics of it up on facebook for those of you that can access that but I couldn't post them here.

Then I went to church and after it was over the guy who was giving us a ride back to base gave us a tour of his flight academy. We went up into the control tower and since the military also uses that place we got to get a tour of a military attack helicopter. It was really cool. It was loaded with rocket bombs and had a 30-mm gun in front. I am hoping that tomorrow I might get to go back and sit in the planes that the school uses. I also got to learn how to make chipotis that afternoon which is a bread type thing that is absolutely delicious. All in all it was a good day.

Time goes so fast. We have less than three weeks remaining in Uganda and less than two months until we graduate. I will be happy to go home and see people and to be totally honest I am looking forward to a Dunkin' Donuts medium french vanilla coffee almost as much. At the same time though I will be heartbroken to leave. I keep leaving bits of myself all over Africa. I guess every time I do God replaces what I lost with Himself so that I am never depleted or running dry. It's better that way. I'd rather lose myself even though sometimes it hurts if it means that I get to feel more of what God feels. And I will need His strength because coming here is not always easy. I really enjoy it sometimes and I joke about how fun it is to kill chickens but the truth is that in the long run I will only be able to last in Africa if God keeps pouring Himself out into me. I find it amazing that He even does but I am so grateful. The Johanna Beachy that I am on my own cannot deal with little children, even babies, who are slowly dying. They seem just like ordinary kids sometimes until they suddenly throw up or I see a kid that I think is maybe a few months old until I find out that she is over a year old.

I also am incapable of dealing with the amount of inside pain that I have seen people living with. It will sometimes just rise up and smack me in the face when I am not expecting. Someone will be talking and the next thing you know someone else makes a remark about how during the genocide they fell down a hole while running for their life and broke their back and that they had to lay there covered with a bag of beans to try to hide since they couldn't move. It's a whole different world and I don't know how I'm going to go home. Sorry I didn't mean to get all depressing but that is what it is like to live with Rwandese. I would love them so much if only for how much they have survived and God has protected them through. I love this God who keeps people alive when it is humanly impossible to do so. And He is the same God who then sustains me when I am facing the pain that comes as a result of their experiences. How amazing is that! Every time I see how big and powerful He is I am so honored that He cares for every little thing about me.

Yeah, if you want to see some more about the God who cares for you come to Africa, especially Rwanda, and you will be blown away. I think a lot of people in America have this view of God as our Father and best Friend which is totally true but sometimes we can forget about this whole other side of Him. He is the Defender of the weak and oppressed, a Warrior King, and all-powerful in everything He does. I've gotten some awesome glimpses of my Lord in that role here and it gives me goosebumps. Actually, it drives me to my knees. You don't stand in the presence of a King like that. And if you really want to be in awe of Him take a look in the Bible about what he says regarding the widows and orphans. I have learned a lot about His heart towards them in the past few months. He loves them alright but I was amazed and scared to see the way He will act against those who abuse them. He has such a tender spot for orphans and widows that anyone who dares to hurt them or even to just not help them out should be really scared.

OK, I love talking about HIm but I am running out if time now. I will see and talk to you people in June. Bye!

Ndagakunda cyane! Imana ibahe umugisha!

Isimbi Johanna

Happy Easter!

2008-03-22T10:03:00.002Z

Hi everybody,

I have not been able to get to the internet as much but will try to do
better. Ministry here is going well although it is already tiring. I
spent two days the beginning of this week in the hospital. Don't panic
family:) My friend got malaria so I stayed in the clinic to take care
of her. It was a good glimpse for me into the way clinics here work.
They took good care of her but so many other things were frustrating.
I want to work at a clinic like that so that I can see it improve! As
for the other things I've done; probably the most exhausting and also
the most rewarding is Amacet. Amacet is a home for young children
living with HIV/AIDS or babies that need someone to take care of them
for a time. It is grueling work, particularly the 14-hour overnight
shifts, but the kids make it all worth it. This afternoon our team is
going to an Easter celebration where we have been asked to
participate. I'm not much of a singer but at least I'm in a group.

Today makes exactly three weeks left in Soroti and then we will
hopefully go on to Athi River, Kenya for the last month. Your prayers
about that would be appreciated. The other thing to pray for is the
upcoming month of April. It is the hardest month of the year for
Rwandans because it brings so many memories of the genocide and is
often the anniversary of the deaths of their families . I am grateful
actually that we are not in Rwanda next month but it will still be a
difficult time for many of our team members. They are my family now
and the pain they experience is intense enough that I feel it as well.
Oh, to be honest I quite miss Rwanda. I will be back there for two
weeks before I go home at least. Well, I must go...Monday is my day
off next week so I will try to write more then. Bye! See you in June!

Isimbi Johanna

Hello from the other side of the equator!

2008-03-15T07:41:00.003Z

Hi everybody!

I have to be very quick but I wanted to let you know that I arrived safely in Uganda:)

The bus trip was long and very bumpy. We drove across the equator along the way which was cool. I found it even more fascinating to drive across the Nile! On one side was all big modern buildings and the on the other side down by the shore I looked out the window and saw some fishermen in little dugout canoes. That is what I have found Africa in general to be like; a blend of modern up to date technology and old old traditions that have hardly changed in the past few thousand years. Maybe that is part of the appeal.

Oh, I need to go. I will post a more complete update later that includes what it was like working with little children with AIDS. Talk to you soon!

Isimbi Johanna

Arrival in Uganda...

2008-03-14T23:03:00.003Z

Hello to all Johanna's friends:

Her roommate Laura posted an update on her blog to indicate that they have arrived safely in Soroti. The highlights are as follows:

Left Kigali base early on Tuesday morning and were on our way to Uganda by 6 30. We crossed the border in less than 2 hours.
We raced along the highways until we arrived in Kampala in the afternoon. The scenery is very different here, much flatter and drier. We also crossed the equator, which was cool.
We spent the night at a friends house in the city and had a late dinner before all falling asleep while standing up.
The next morning we awoke early again and caught a bus to Soroti. This one was much bigger and full of people. We raced along the bumpy pothole-filled high ways, through flat Ugandan marshlands for most of the day. By the time we reached Soroti, we were all exhausted and our backs were aching from the incredibly bumpy ride.
We found our way to the YWAM base and were greeted by a small staff. The base here is spread out and each ministry has their own compound. Soroti is much more rural than our base in Kigali, and we are in the middle of a big, hot field.
We were shown to our very "cozy" room, where eight of us girls will live. However, you could put me in a box for all I am concerned, because we have running water, our own bathroom, and a shower!!! Oh, and there is a toaster here as well, in the kitchen!
We spent our first night meeting them, looking at the stars, and sweating while being eaten alive by mosquitoes.
We awoke this morning to breakfast and an orientation about the ministries we will be involved in. Mostly we will be working with FACE (facing aids with compassion and education), a primary school, and Amachet, which is a phenomenal ministry for children with AIDS. We will be working night shifts at the center for children and helping ease the pain of some of those who are very progressed in their symptoms. I know it will be very difficult, but this is an incredible ministry to show children love and dignity before they die, and to nurse those who can be saved back to a healthy and somewhat normal life.
Please pray for us as this will certainly be an emotional experience.

Johanna's Dad

Africa's Potential

2008-03-10T15:29:00.002Z

I'm back again! Two days in a row I have been able to post something!

I ran off to the internet quick in between packing and cleaning to get some last minute things in order. I will have to hop on the back of a moto to get back in time for supper.

I have to say that one thing I came to believe in the past year has been confirmed beyond doubt for me in Rwanda. Africa as a continent has the potential to become a great teacher to the rest of the world about the healing power of the Almighty God. I know that at first glance that doesn't seem likely. The few things to be heard in the news are not inspiring or reassuring especially because there is truth in them. Nevertheless, I'm telling you that I believe with absolutely certainty that God has been holding back a powerful weapon to reach the world and it's Africa. There is something stirring on the horizon of this place. I first sensed it in West Africa although I didn't know what it was at the time and I can feel it here as well. It is exciting for me because I have had the belief confirmed by multiple people who sense the same thing. I don't know if it will happen in my lifetime but I would love to see it! When God unleashes Africa, which I think will happen as more people here begin to seek His face, the world will stand in awe at the way God is reflected. It makes me so excited! We serve an amazing God who turns the worst into something wonderful. Remember that the next time you hear another horrible story or statistic about this continent because He can and will use to show His glory to all humanity.

I could talk about this for hours but since I am leaving at five in the morning to drive to Uganda I need to go:) I will arrive sometime Wednesday and I'll talk to you as soon as I can. Bye! Love you all!

Isimbi Johanna

Leaving for Uganda!

2008-03-09T10:15:00.003Z

Hi friends and family!

I have no idea where I will next be writing you from as I am leaving
this Tuesday morning to go to Soroti. It is a long bus ride but the
exciting thing is that we will drive across the Equator and right by
the source of the Nile! We expect to be in Uganda for about a month
and then we will hopefully be heading on to Kenya depending on how the
situation is by then. I am looking forward to seeing another African
country. Mostly I am excited for what I know the Lord can do through
our team. My prayer is that we will put aside who we are in order to
better reflect our Creator.

It looks like I will probably not be going straight to South Africa
after DTS is over. The base has not responded to me yet and I have a
very limited time in which to prepare the details if I were to go. I
am sad to miss the adventure it could have been but I know that I will
have others. So that means I will most likely be coming home in the
end of May. I expect I will be around for at least a couple months
before heading out somewhere. I am also still going to pursue going to
the Primary Healthcare School in South Africa next year. That will
give me time to work before I go. I will be spending time praying
about this next stage in my life as I come home.

First, though, I am looking to be used in ministry in Uganda and
Kenya. There is more than one AIDS ministry that I hope to be able to
work with. I will write to all you dear people as soon as I can!

Isimbi Johanna

P.S. I have not seen or heard from Selassie. Even if I never see him
again I will pray for him the rest of my life. He is my twin brother.

A quick hello

2008-03-04T15:21:00.002Z

I have to be fast today but I wanted to say hello to all of you and I miss you.

I will be leaving a week from today to go to Soroti, Uganda. In fact,
I just came from the Ugandan Embassy here where I was working on
getting my visa. It is exciting to go and sad to leave Rwanda. OK a
short recap of my time here...In the past three months I have:

Eaten cow stomach and intestines
Become an expert at bucket showers
Learned a very little bit of Kinyarwanda, Swahili, and French
Cooked over charcoal
Completely lost the whole idea of personal space
Seen zebras, giraffes, antelopes, warthogs, baboons...
Heard the most horrific testimonies in person
Swam in Lake Kivu

And the list could go on and on but I am out of time! I will try to
write again soon. Miss you all and love you!

Isimbi Johanna

Muraho!

2008-02-24T09:27:00.004Z

So first off -- no I did not get to see the President when he came this past week. We live right by the airport though and we could hear his planes and helicopters arriving while we were sitting in class. And I went to town that day to pick up a package and there were policemen and soldiers all over the place.

Alrighty, about Kenya...What our school is planning to do is go to Soroti, Uganda for the first month of our outreach and then if God is still calling us to Kenya we'll go there for the last month. It's kind of cool actually because our DTS staff heard from God to do that and the base leadership also felt God was telling them to wait and then they found out that God was telling them the same thing. Even right down to going to Uganda first. We will, therefore, be leaving to go to Soroti on March 11th which is coming up so fast. This week will be our last week of classes. Time flies! I don't know what getting to the internet will be like there but I'll keep in touch as much as possible. That's something to keep praying about and as always my dear twin Selassie. I have still not heard from him.

There is actually something else. Something I was hesitant to tell everyone because I am not sure it will happen at all but I think it would be good for you all to know. That way if you happen to think about me during prayers you could mention this little thing. Some of you know that a major reason I did this DTS was to get into YWAM's Primary Healthcare school after graduating. [Note: see previous post from December for more details...] I was looking into possible places to do this school before I left. I really like it a lot. I feel like it was designed perfectly to match what God has put in my heart for developing nations. There were two places I have been considering. One is in Perth, Australia where they have an excellent IPHC school (Introduction to Primary Healthcare). But I really wanted to do this school in Africa somewhere because I knew I would likely get more practical experience. So there is another one in Worcester, South Africa. The problem was that the South Africa school starts every July and that wouldn't give me enough time after DTS ends in May.

Well, I was sitting in a meeting a few weeks ago and all of a sudden I just started thinking about where to go for the school and this thought dropped into my head. A scary thought that I had never even considered before; " Who said you have to go home first?" And I was like, whoa God! No way! But my mind kept considering it anyway. Think Johanna, your DTS ends in May. There is a school that you know you want to do that starts in July. The school is in South Africa. You are already in East Africa. Just go straight down to Worcester from Rwanda! To tell you the truth I made a big commitment while I was sitting there. I told God that if He wanted me to do that school and do it this year then I will. It excites me and scares me. I love adventures but I like to plan them myself so part of me wants to tell God to just wait and let me go home first. I'll go back and see family and friends. I'll make some money since I don't have any for the school yet anyway.

Fortunately, I realize that I don't want to be comfortable with my own decisions like that. What I want more than anything is just to follow Christ. I don't need to take breaks in between or refresh myself for my next trip to Africa because following Him, no matter how radical it looks, is the most restful place I can be. If Jesus is leading me to South Africa that soon then I want to follow. Anyway, dear people, for all I know God just wants me to be ready to obey Him all the time and I won't actually be going yet or maybe I will. Either way is OK with me. There is such freedom in following Christ! When I am focused on Him it doesn't matter if I'm in Africa or America because He is the first thing I see anyway! I sent an e-mail to the South Africa base to find out the details and I'll let you know more as soon as I get them.

Sorry for how long this is but you try to fit the story of your life into a once in a while blog post and keep it short:) I will see you all when I see you! God bless you (or as Selassie would say Jah Bless)!

Isimbi Johanna

A President's Visit

2008-02-21T13:48:00.004Z

President George W. Bush (C) and Rwanda's President Paul Kagame watch dancers perform during an arrival ceremony at Kigali International Airport February 19, 2008. REUTERS/Jason Reed

Those who follow the torrent of media (in whatever form it is rendered or consumed) will be aware that President George Bush has been in Africa this week. In the course of his trip the President will have visited each of the countries where Johanna has spent time in Africa (Liberia, Ghana, and Rwanda). The President and First Lady seem to have a genuine interest in the great needs of Africa (in particular the HIV/AIDS crisis -- see this Time article for more detail) but one is left to wonder how much can really be comprehended on such a quick trip either by the Bushes, by the media, or by those of us watching from a distance.

It is certainly easier to travel around Africa in Air Force One -- but the downside is that it is probably much harder to really see Africa. True, you do get to see the prepared ceremonies, you meet those dignitaries with enough rank to warrant an invitation to the receptions, and you visit places selected by the embassy. But do you see Africa? Almost certainly not.

You still miss the kids who live day-to-day on the streets. You miss the orphanages overflowing with children and joy and African energy. You miss the shoe-string clinics short on help and medicines and funds that nevertheless make a world of difference to the limited extent that they can. And you miss the heros! The heros of Africa are those who have overcome hunger, horror, hopelessness, and hell itself to slowly begin building for tomorrow and for others and for the future that needs to be the Africa of tomorrow.

I'm sorry that the Bushes (and the world) have not yet gotten to see that Africa...

I'm still here everybody!

2008-02-17T14:35:00.002Z

Wow, sorry it has taken me so long to post anything. I have had a few complications with getting to the internet and then with getting on my e-mail at all. I'll try to write a lot to make up for it:)

Ok, there are two big things on my mind right now. Number one is about my DTS' plan about going to Kenya for outreach. This has been planned since before things got to the place they are right now. The Lord spoke very clearly to our staff that He was calling us to go there. After they announced it to us and we began praying about a number of the students also got confirmation about it. I was praying about it one time and I very clearly sensed God take my left hand and write Kenya across my palm. Ever since then I have heard over and over that our class was not to go with a spirit of fear or trembling. We just had a meeting with the base leadership about the issue because they are all seeking God about whether to send us there or not. The situation is not good at the moment. The base where we would be staying,Athi River, is in a relatively secure area and is not a big concern but the main problem is getting there. We cannot afford to fly so we are going by bus. The only two routes to take go through western Kenya where there is no security. Our leadership has given us all until this Friday to pray and hear from God about going.They are doing the same. One thing they are sure about is that we must go in unity; all 14 of the students and the 2 staff members going need to know that God is calling them to go to Kenya this March. Sooo, any and all prayers in this matter would be great!

The other thing is my friend Selassie. I have written about him before although not for some time. Mainly because I have not seen him in a over a month. The many attempts Laura and I have made to meet with him have not worked. The past week for some reason he has been constantly on my mind; perhaps because we are leaving soon and I could potentially never see him again which bothers me. I don't remember how much I shared about how we became friends. At first glance it would seem rather unlikely. Selassie is a hard-core, reggae-loving Rwandese guy who has a problem with authority because of his past. Crazily enough I have never met someone who reminded me so much of myself a few years ago. Our personalities are very similar; especially how we react to things. We called each other impanga wanjye (my twin). God used the surprising similarities to allow Sel to open up to people finally but after he left DTS he has been even more closed off. Last night during class I suddenly felt a strong pressing need to pray for him. It was like it was being drummed into my head...Pray for Selassie. Now. Pray for Selassie. Now. I pulled two friends aside to pray for him after class and found out that Kate had gotten the same strong need to pray for him at the same time. I don't know what is going on, where he is, or if I will see him again but I trust that my God knows it all. This is my prayer for Selassie as well; that he will be able to believe that God loves him intensely and intimately. That He has never ever left him through all the horrific and frustrating times in his life and that through the power of Jesus we are able to see the bad turned to good.

It will be sad for me to leave Rwanda next month even if I do get to go to Kenya. I have discovered something powerful and peaceful while I was here. I am in love with Jesus Christ. I love Him. Despite growing up in a Christian home and having all sorts of head knowledge about Jesus it has taken me years to reach this point. And get this, He let me take as long as I needed! I have not shared much to many people about the years I spent really struggling and it would take too long to go into them now but I'll just say there were times I did not feel God cared about me at all. I didn't think anyone did because all I could see was pain. It is incredible to look back and see how much bigger God is than our feelings. No matter what I felt at that time He was always there with me and always will be.

My time in west Africa changed my perspective of who God is. He took my Christian girl, middle-class American, view of Him and blew it pieces in Liberia. What I knew didn't alter in truth it just widened in scope. I got to see the God of Liberia who is able to redeem. My time in Rwanda has changed my view of Jesus. I will never look at Him the same again. I couldn't possibly not love this God-man who took the sins of the entire genocide onto Himself on the cross. The things that people did to one another here He took responsibility for so that we might have life. I cannot even adequately begin to understand the weight of what He bore. Because of Rwanda I will always remember Jesus.

I really should be going for now. I will try to write again soon. I love you all!

Isimbi Johanna

Final month in Rwanda

2008-02-10T21:19:00.000Z

I [Dad] spoke with Johanna earlier today with a good quality connection. Johanna seemed more energetic and her voice did not seem quite as tired as the previous Sunday. Whwn I mentioned it she laughed and said that maybe it had something to do with the three cups of good Rwandan coffee she had drunk that day! She also said that she had just returned from an evening worship time that she likes to go to on Sunday evenings where they sing a lot of the music from Hillsong (in Australia) in English and that always gets her energy level up too.

Because of the difficulty that she has been having accessing her home e-mail account via the web, we have set up a new Gmail account for her with which she hopes to be able to post a bit more frequently on her blog.

In only a month the class will leave for their time in Kenya. There trip to the Athi River location in Kenya will take a couple of days of travel. The exact nature of what service they will be doing there is something she still does not know in detail.

Meanwhile she and her classmates are experiencing many heavy situations. You may wish to read about an incident that her roommate, Laura, writes about in her blog post and which happened the first of the month (read down about four paragraphs about the young boy of 9 or 10). I asked Johanna about the incident and she said that some of the YWAM personnel thought that they may have seen the boy several days afterwards with one side of his face a mass of bruises but that it was hard to be certain. Johanna often (usually?) participates with Laura in the outreach to the street children and their needs are part of the reason she has returned to Africa.

She was able to meet a family from here in NH who were here last fall speaking in several of the churches. Johanna did not get to meet them at the time (but her mother did) but they have ministry in Kigali. Johanna thought that she might get to spend an evening with them before her class left for Kenya.

Johanna hopes to check out her new e-mail and post some news herself sometime this week -- so stay tuned!

Earthquake(s) in East Africa

2008-02-03T19:28:00.000Z

Those of you aware of Johanna's location in Rwanda will be interested to hear that the Kigali area was not severely affected. Here is the initial BBC news story:

At least 30 people have been killed and more than 300 hurt in a series of quakes in Africa's Great Lakes region.

The two most powerful occurred hours apart in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring Rwanda, with magnitudes of 6.0 and 5.0 respectively.

At least 10 people died as a church collapsed in western Rwanda, while the eastern DR Congo city of Bukavu suffered widespread damage.

Police say the death toll could rise, as there are many people trapped.

We spoke with Johanna on Sunday night and she has asked for prayer for one of her classmates from Rwanda, Jean-Paul, whose sister and cousin were both injured in the earthquake. and are currently in the hospital. Since he had already lost family members in the genocide Johanna said it's now even more heartbreaking to watch this happening. She told us that they have been instructed to go outside the building this evening as they are expecting another after-shock around midnight their time.

Please pray for the staff and students who are still planning to go to Kenya for the outreach phase beginning the first week of March. They will be about 30 miles southeast of Nairobi at another YWAM facility there, although she doesn't know yet what they will be doing. We are aware of the unrest in that area and we are trusting God as Johanna belongs to Him first.

Africa's Agonies

2008-02-01T18:53:00.000Z

Fergal Keane, the BBC's correspondent in Nairobi, Kenya wrote a helpful article on the nature of the tribal violence that has plagued the continent for decades. You may read the article here.

Some of the key points are:

The Western mind has been conditioned to accept a simplistic notion of what "tribal violence"' really means.
Tribal issues are only the symptom.
This is a conflict in which the poor are set at one another's throats.
Those who have nothing are looting those who have a little bit more.
This population has seen successive governments rob billions from the public purse in well-documented scandal.
There are tens of thousands of Aids orphans.
There is no proper water or sanitation or electricity.

Read as well about Ruth Awuma who lives in the vast Kibera slum in Nairobi.

Johanna's team will be going to a location southeast of Nairobi (in the opposite direction from the Rift Valley which has been the center of much of the violence since late December). We will share more details about where they will be staying and the nature of their service as we learn more.

On the Road with Johanna!

2008-01-31T22:26:00.001Z

Today [Thursday 1/31/08 NH time], Joy and I took Johanna with us on our way to see our favorite horses. Well, OK, we called her on my cell phone and turned it on speaker so we both could hear her. At one point the three of us were laughing and it almost felt like she was right there with us! It's really amazing when you think about it. Hearing someone so clearly, talking from across the ocean in another continent!

She is doing very well, pretty tired at the end of the day. On Thursdays they spend time with some street boys. She really loves it - they are LITTLE boys! :-) While we were talking she was in the school dining room and was watching three geckos crawling and chasing each other at the top of the wall. I asked her if she could pick them up and she said she couldn't because they are very fast. !

She asked for prayer as she needs to decide where to do the Introduction to Primary Health Care Course. YWAM offers it in many places and she had been planning on going to the one in Australia but then she found out that it is also offered in South Africa. She would rather stay in Africa, but she also wants the best possible academic training. But first she will need to come home and work and raise money to go again. The Lord is preparing us for the day when our children will leave and won't come back except for quick visits. We are grateful for His grace!

Until then, I'm looking forward to June!
God's blessings to all
Don't forget the orphans and widows who are too many to count...
Gloria Beachy

Praying for Kenya (and Johanna's outreach)

2008-01-28T16:17:00.000Z

Johanna's YWAM class is praying for the doors to open for a time of outreach in the country of Kenya beginning in early March. Needless to say the continuing levels of ethnic violence and unrest following the elections in late December are of a great concern. Please continue to pray for God's grace to be received by the Kenyan people, for protection and a voice for those who will lead the country to a more peaceful future, and for wisdom and guidance for those who are currently working in the country and others (like Johanna's class) who would make a positive difference.

The image above is taken from a Google Earth rendition of eastern Africa. I have added an outline of the area of western Kenya where most of the violence has occurred thus far. As you can see the country of Rwanda is located west of Kenya (across Lake Victoria) and a land journey from Rwanda into Kenya would be difficult without some exposure to these areas of tension.

I am also including this link to a blog site for the workers of an organization called World Concern. They are currently managing a camp for some of the IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons = refugees within a country in the language of international relief agencies) in the town of Narok (which you can see marked on the southern edge of the outlined area). Please continue to remember these and others who would help Kenya to heal!

** Update from Johanna on 1/29/08 **

Hi! So my e-mail won't open at the moment so can you say hi to the family for
me and let them know that I am still alive. I'll try again on the weekend. I am
going to Athi River, Kenya for outreach. Tell the parents to try calling me
sometime Thursday night k?  {sent via FaceBook}

Athi River is located about 20 miles southeast of Nairobi (the capital) - LjB

A Treat by Phone

2008-01-17T16:49:00.000Z

It had been over a week since anyone of us had spoken with Johanna (and even longer since her father had had any quality phone time), so I took a chance to see if I could catch her on a mid-week evening. I was successful in connecting and was able to chat for about 10 minutes before she had to walk down to the dining area for supper. We were able to set up a time for a longer conversation from the Beachy household on Sunday.

Johanna wanted to go over the logistics of purchasing her return ticket. She hopes to travel from Rwanda along with her classmate, Laura, and then stay a couple of days in London (where she hopes to visit with her friend, Mary, from the Mercy Ship's Segue program that she attended in 2006). That will give her a little more 'decompression time' to begin the process of returning to a developed economy -- as well as holding off saying goodbye to each other for as long as possible!

The class is still planning to travel to Kenya for their period of ministry. The leaders of the school felt strongly led even before the class began that Kenya would be the destination for their outreach time. They are still praying for the direction as to the detailed location and logistics. Please join them in remembering the country of Kenya during this difficult time of national turmoil. I have included some links for helpful information to inform your prayers:

Operation World
SIM: Serving in Mission
Christianity Today
Mission Network News
The Christian Post
Newsweek "There Will Be Blood"

Johanna said (since her mother was interested in knowing) that the meals are good and that the mid-day and evening meals especially are plentiful. She is enjoying the food in Rwanda much better than what she occasionally experienced in Ghana in 2006.

Johanna and her classmates continue to participate in outreaches in the area of Kigali (it is not just all class time for them) as well as having assigned job duties as part of the community responsibilities for the YWAM school.

She greatly appreciates your prayers and encouragement!!

Laura: Friend & Classmate / SoZo

2008-01-11T15:54:00.000Z

Those of you who have been following Johanna's experience in Rwanda will also enjoy being able to occasionally visit the blog of her classmate and good friend, Laura Jordan. Laura has been able to post more frequently and extensively and has also been able to upload quite a few photographs of their time in Rwanda (like the one above). You can find Laura's blog site here.

Also, Johanna has been able to participate with a ministry to Rwandan orphans called Sozo which has been started by a couple serving in the YWAM organization. She helped with a Christmas party for the orphans that was quite memorable! You can check out the SoZo website here.

Enjoy!

Back to School

2008-01-04T14:41:00.001Z

Well, I didn't get to go into the DR of the Congo like I was hoping but at least I saw it. I also got to swim in Lake Kivu at Gisenyi which was really fun. Break has been very exciting and also relaxing but to be honest I am looking forward to going back to school on Monday. Mostly just because I miss my classmates so much. All the Rwandese students went to visit family so I look forward to them coming back.

We have two more months of classes and then we go to Kenya for outreach. There are some riots going on there right now because of the elections but it is mainly in Nairobi and we will be in the countryside. I am glad that I get to see another country. I must keep this post short. I had to switch computers twice at the computer cafe this time and the connection is not exactly reliable:) Oh, well. I hope you are all having a fabulous New Year. I pray that you can all see God in your daily life.

Bye! Johanna

Compassion Groove

2008-01-02T17:08:00.000Z

Since Johanna spoke so pointedly about compassion in her first post (see 11/24/07), I thought that it would be a nice start to the year 2008 to reflect on the following poem written by Stefanie Cassetto and presented admirably in a live performance by Randy Vandeventer earlier in 2007 at Johanna's home church.

Compassion Groove

I’m trying to find my compassion groove

What it is that makes me move

That makes my heart go

Thump-thump, thump-thump

That makes my throat choke back that lump

What I’ve come up with so far

Are people and places

On the brink

On the edge

On the mend

On the outside

Wanting in

And my heart goes out

And my groove begins…

My heart goes out to you…

The lonely one

Needing a friend

Maybe heart-broken

Maybe at the end

Of a rope

Clinging to hope

That someone will come close

Someone will see you

Someone will hear you

Someone will want to be near you

You need love

Want love

But it’s hard to reach out

You swallowed the lie that you’re not worth the trouble

I’ll meet you half-way

Not good enough

I’m there on the double

My heart goes out to you

My heart goes out to you…

Africa…crippled by disease

New Orleans…stolen by storm

Iraq…damaged by war

Kabul…ransacked by injustice

New York City…wounded for life

North Korea…kidnapped by lies

What can I do?

My heart beats quick.

Love God. Thump-thump.

Love people. Thump-thump.

My heart goes out to you…

The one whose eyes have seen some hard stuff

Whose shoes I am not brave enough to walk

You’ve traveled dusty miles for water

You’ve cried tears of fear

You’ve seen too much death

What can I do…

Kleenex isn’t enough

To wipe away the past

Those memories that last

What can I say…

To make the pain go away?

God is your refuge

What can I do?

My heart goes out to you

Okay, I’m almost done…but not quite

My heart goes out to you…

the one sitting on your couch…

doing nothing

Feeling nothing

Well, maybe you feel something

When you watch the news

Disgust, rage, the Red Sox blues?

Bitterness, resentment, a little pride?

Sympathy, empathy…

did you feel something break inside?

But what does it take to get you to move

To get your feet to hit the floor

And say I’m not going to take it anymore

I’m not going to take

What I see that’s not right

Injustice

Poverty…push it out of sight

Well, I’m gonna fight

Fight to care for the lonely waitress

Fight for the one who can’t speak my language

Fight to care for the man on the street

Or the one across my office…just a few feet

Fight the urge to stayed glued to my seat

Fight complacency

Fight my ego

Where He goes…we go

Eating with sinners

Loving his enemies

He’s my compassion hero

He blazed the trail that we gotta follow

You know what I mean?

He saw something when he looked at people

Not just their skin…

Their hair…

What got them there…

To that place of

Broken-ness

Hopeless-ness

Selfish-ness

Lonli-ness

Wrestless-ness

He saw those battles we couldn’t win

Not on our own

And up welled compassion again

He saw something when he looked at me

So…I’m waving the white flag

It’s time to give in

Give into compassion

Find my passion

Get my mind connected to my heart

And my heart connected to my feet

So I can make the hard walk across my street

To my neighbor in need

And my hands…

There’s power in my hands that compassion can reek havoc with

When I dare to touch the untouchable

Dare to lend some help

Dare to care

Dare to reach into my wallet

And my words…

Messengers of hope

Like butterflies in the breeze

Have no fear

My God is here

I love you

Peace

I’m not going to fake it anymore

Pretending like I care

Pretending like I don’t

I can’t do it…I won’t

I’m on a mission

Compassion towards all.

The big bucks and the small

Time to feel

Time to move

Time to get on our compassion groove

Love God. Thump-thump.

Love people. Thump-thump.

Giraffes and toothaches

2007-12-27T11:18:00.001Z

Hi Everyone!

Merry Christmas a little late and happy new year!

I am happy to be able to report that finally on my second trip to Africa I have seen a giraffe:) Actually, I saw an entire family of giraffes and hundreds of zebras and baboons, impalas, hippos, warthogs, birds...It was amazing! I went on a visit to Akagera National Park [Wildlife Conservation Society link and see also park website] on Monday. Definitely worth a day spent in the car. God's beauty is so awesome the more I see of it. His mind is really beyond our understanding which nobody would doubt once they have seen a real live zebra. Who comes up with something like that?

Well, I wish I had more happy news to report but things are not all easy. My friend Selassie has been expelled from the school because of a lot of things on his part. I support the leaders decision but it is still hard. At least, it will not be the last we see of him. My friends and I will not let him go just like that because we need to show him that God does not let him go simply because he is no longer in DTS. One good thing in this is that we took Selassie with us to Akagera. He had a really good day. It is rare that he gets to take a break from life and just enjoy himself.

As for me, I find that there are so many things I want to be doing all the time that I am running short on sleep. Yesterday I had the chance to help out at a Christmas party for a group of orphans. These kids have had very hard lives and are still being majorly exploited. The way the government is set up here you can really make money by taking in orphans especially if you use the money on youreslf that was intended to buy them food. It is a messy situation but thanks to an awesome ministry called SoZo stepping in it is beginning to be brought to light and things are changing. Yesterday was fantastic. The kids each received a box of presents and a new outfit. One little girl that I was watching for the day got a baby doll and she could not stop laughing and bouncing it up and down. It is better than sleep.

I would ask you to be praying for my teeth though! I knew before I left that I needed my wisdom teeth out but I, not very wisely, didn't do anything about it. They have been hurting me a bit so I pray that it can wait until I get back.

I wish I had more time to tell you all the things that are going on but my session [at the Internet cafe] is almost up. I will write again when I can.

Bye! Johanna

Nurture and don't Kill

2007-12-21T23:53:00.000Z

The following is a 12/21 editorial in the Children's Times a weekly publication of the New Times of Kigali in response to certain educational materials that do not strongly condem the ideologies that led to genocide in 1994.

It is very disappointing to see future Rwandans being tarnished by the very people who are supposed to be helping them.

These rising cases of genocide ideologies which are continuously taking place in primary and secondary school should be seriously fought against.

Teachers or parents who are spoiling their children with such ideologies should be punished because they are not nurturing.

Since we all know the horror that befell our country in 1994, why then should we try to make history repeat its self by poisoning the minds of our innocent children.

And why can’t we leave the evil deeds of the past remain as history and never to be mentioned again?

Dear teachers, parents and guardians, if you say that you are nurturing children into future leaders, why then do you want to spoil them with ideologies which are of no help?

Let us have a sense of humanity. Why should we continuously reflect on a terrible history and yet we benefit nothing.

You had better empower children with developmental ideas rather than giving them worthless knowledge which will lead them to turmoil.

Rwanda is a developing country; it has come from far and still has a long journey ahead. Help the government to build instead of dismantling what has so far been put in place.

See also: BBC Article

Healing and hurting.

2007-12-19T14:55:00.001Z

Rwanda is nearly beyond words for me. There is more pain here than I ever imagined existed. Sometimes one person's story contains more evil happening to them than I have ever even heard about.

To go along with that I have had my faith brought down to one choice on my part. Do I choose to trust God? I have chosen to trust but it is something I will never understand. I can't not trust this God I see here. His power is beyond my understanding. And the extent of what Jesus took on Himself on the cross has a whole new meaning for me now.

It is not all pain though. There are amazing people here. There are people in my class, people I interact with daily, that have survived hell on earth and they sing praises to God. The depth of their faith is truly awesome.

Still, not everyone is able to heal yet. I would really appreciate prayers for one Rwandese guy in my class. His name is Sellassie. He has become a friend of mine but he is having a very hard time with life in general right now. All I can say is pray hard for him and his remaining family.

Johanna Beachy

The pleasure of a voice!

2007-12-18T16:28:00.000Z

Finally!! We were able to overcome the nuances of the international telco switching system, the limitations of particular calling cards, and the timing and availability of actual phone numbers and speak to Johanna. It was, of course, a wonderful thing to hear her voice after only just over three weeks.

Johanna is pretty tired and does not have much free time in a very full schedule of classes, work duties, and various opportunities for outreach involving her class. She is in a class of about 15 students - of which 6 or 7 are from North America and the majority are from the eastern region of Africa (Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, etc.). In spite of the attractiveness of the facility in which she is staying (see the YWAM Rwanda link to the left) there is no running water. That means that showers are bucket showers but as she noted, "it's not that bad." Her assessment of her time in Kigali so far was that it has been a very good time - it is hard but she is very happy that she is where she is.

The night before we spoke she had been out to attend a concert. I did not catch the name of the artist but the concert was held at the Hotel des Mille Collines (Mille Collines). For those familiar with the film Hotel Rwanda this was the hotel that was the setting for that movie (which can be seen in the special features if you have the DVD version) where a courageous Rwandan national named Paul Rusesabagina sheltered over 1,200 fellow countrymen during the 1994 genocide.

Current plans call for Johanna's class to travel on an extended outreach to the country of Kenya (probably in late March through May) although the exact location of their outreach has not yet been determined.

Johanna has asked for prayer for one of her classmates. S____ is a young man who lost most of his family members during the genocide (I got the impression that he may have witnessed their murders). His mother and sister are still living but he is having a difficult time believing that he can be loved by God or that his own life is valuable. Please join us in praying for him.

Johanna will also try to occasionally post here on the blog site however she indicated that it took almost an hour to get to a reliable Internet café. Although an hour of Internet time was inexpensive (about one USD) the speed of the connection was very slow by American standards and thus even simple things like checking e-mail on line took much longer than expected. As a result we will 'manage' her online e-mail account to keep the number of messages to a minimum since she also communicates through Facebook.

Johanna's Vision...

2007-12-14T16:56:00.000Z

Is to attend the Introduction to Primary Health Care School (IPHC) in 2009. This is a six month training programme (that's the way they spell it in Perth, Australia where the course is held) that will give students a heart for the poor and needy and involve them in the health needs of poor communities.

Did you know that there are 8 essential basic health care needs that you can be trained in and then be effective? These are:

1- Disease control
2- Mother and child health
3- Curative care
4- Essential drugs
5- Food and nutrition
6- Water and sanitation
7- Health education
8- Community resources

Why would someone like to be involved in this?.?

Every day 6000 people between 15 & 24 years of age become infected with the HIV virus. That is 4 people every minute.
In as many as 35 of the poorest countries, 30 to 50% of the population may have no access to health services at all.
Half of all children under 5 years of age in South Asia are malnourished. 60% of women there are underweight.
Malaria affects 300 million people in more than 100 countries each year.
There are still 30 million infants not protected by routine vaccination in developing countries. 11 million children die from preventable causes each year.
Tuberculosis is the main cause of death from a single infectious agent among adults.
Acute respiratory Illness is a leading cause of mortality in young children killing nearly 2 million children under the age of 5 in developing countries each year.

Just think…in less than one year you can get out there,
Into communities,
Educating children
Doing ante natal care
Cleaning wounds
Working with safe water projects
Weighing children
And sharing the gospel with everyone you can?

You will be TRAINED in practical health care which you CAN use in rural or city areas.

{Taken from the website of the Perth, Australia YWAM school.}

Mizero!

2007-12-12T15:03:00.001Z

Mizero. They are beautiful. I got to see them and hear them on Sunday morning. Many of them watched their parents being killed during the genocide - many would have been about 3 and 4 and 5 years old at the time.

And yet there is such grace and tenderness in their faces and in their movements. The woman, Francois, who was with them, took them in and taught them to sing and dance and led them all to Jesus.

They did a couple lively songs where they invited people to dance with them. It was very fun to watch! We were standing and clapping to the beat of the drum and guitar. I looked to my left and there was one Rwandan teen girl with about 6 or 7 little American girls dancing in a circle in the aisle. Precious. Then on stage there were Rwandan teens dancing with older Americans. At one point some young African American men jumped up on stage and danced with the young Rwandan men.

I know the Holy Spirit was in that place and filling us with joy. It seemed the Lord gave me a tiny glimpse of Heaven in that moment, when we, all from different tribes and language and country, will be worshiping our great, loving Creator together forever!

Pray for the 1,200,000 orphans in Rwanda. Pray for the 6,000 more every day all over Africa.

Here's one verse of a new song from Stephen Curtis Chapman called, Yours
"I walked the dirt roads of Uganda
I see the scars that war has left behind
Hope like the sun is fading
And they're waiting for a cure no one can find
And I hear children's voices singing
Of a God who heals and rescues and restores
And I'm reminded that every child in Africa is Yours."

Please watch the new movie, Amazing Grace. The story of William Wilberforce and the abolition of the slave trade in Britain 200 years ago.

"Africa! Your sufferings have been the theme that has engaged and arrested my heart." - William Wilberforce

With an arrested heart,
Gloria Beachy

Traffic Troubles

2007-12-11T20:58:00.000Z

Read David Gusongoirye's account of his 'less than amusing' experiences with Rwandan traffic patrolmen in Kigali's Uncompromising Traffic Cops.

Children of Mizero

2007-12-07T13:39:00.000Z

For residents of NH there is an opportunity this weekend to hear and meet orphaned children from Rwanda at the Mizero tour events listed below. You can learn more about this group here and view images from their December 7, 2007 performance on the photo website of Johanna's father.

Mizero Children of Rwanda
Bringing, Building, Spreading: Hope

The Mizero "Hope" troupe comprises twelve orphans from ages 13-15, who present a captivating program that encompasses all of Rwanda's music and dance traditions. While many have lost family members to the 1994 genocide, these children have experienced Christ's peace and healing, which they elegantly express through their music and dance performance.

They are the future leaders of Rwanda, and it is our hope to help empower them to build a stronger, self-sustaining homeland.

This Mizero or "Hope" tour will bring awareness of the present status of Rwanda, as well as raise financial support to build an arts-centered academy, where they will learn the necessary skills to be the next leaders of the country.

Date: Where:
December 9 Bedford, NH Bedford Community Church

The Need for Clean Water!

2007-12-04T14:32:00.000Z

Right now, more than 1.1 billion people, mostly in developing nations, do not have access to safe, clean drinking water.

Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation causes 80% of all sickness and disease, and kills more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. Many people in the developing world, usually women and children, walk more than three hours every day to fetch water that is likely to make them sick. Those hours are crucial, preventing many from working or attending school. Additionally, collecting water puts them at greater risk of sexual harassment and assault. Children are especially vulnerable to the consequences of unsafe water.

Of the 42,000 deaths that occur every week from unsafe water and a lack of basic sanitation, 90% are children under 5 years old.

One of the many organizations that is helping to address this problem, especially in Africa including Rwanda, is charity which was founded by Scott Harrison (he was in Liberia with Mercy Ships when Johanna arrived). Check out the charity website to learn more about the opportunities to make huge differences in people's lives for relatively little cost. For example a great idea is to donate a $20 bottle of water in someone's honor and thus provide clean drinking water in Africa for one person for 20 years! See the various versions of holiday cards.

Frustrating Phone Calls...

2007-12-02T22:17:00.000Z

Early Sunday morning (US time) we got the information needed to call Johanna directly in the afternoon with an international calling card. As we were leaving church just after noon she called me (Dad) on my cell phone and I let her know we were planning to stop on the way home, buy a card and call her in about an hour. After searching every checkout aisle at Wal-Mart for international calling cards, I realized that the domestic cards would work too (with higher rates -- as in 15 times higher!).

When we got home we immediately went to work making the call only to have the AT&T operator inform us that we 'did not need to dial the zero following the country area code.' We got out the phone book and verified the '250' for Rwanda and then dropped the next zero and were first excited to hear the sound of French network announcements (Rwanda is a former colony of Belgium) and then learned as the announcement switched to English that the number 'could not be placed' as dialed.

We were especially frustrated knowing that Johanna was on the other end (at some number) hoping to receive our call...

World AIDS Day 2007

2007-12-01T14:28:00.000Z

Rwanda, like most of sub-Saharan Africa, has been scourged by the ravages of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In conjunction with the annual AIDS day focus we offer the following information about AIDS in the country of Rwanda:

HIV/AIDS in Rwanda

8,440,820: population of Rwanda (July 2005 est.)

190,000: Estimated number of people living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

3.1%: Estimated percentage of adults (ages 15-49) living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

91,000: Estimated number of women (ages 15-49) living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

27,000: Estimated number of children (ages 0-14) living with HIV/AIDS by the end of 2005

21,000: Estimated number of deaths due to AIDS during 2005

210,000: Estimated number of children who have lost their mother or father or both parents to AIDS and who were alive and under the age of 17 (2005)

Sources

UNAIDS 2006 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic. May 2006.
CIA World Factbook 2005

Amnesty International also has an excellent article addressing the Rwandan AIDS epidemic as it relates to the 1994 genocide (Caution: contents may not be suitable for younger readers).

I Love it here!

2007-11-29T17:51:00.000Z

Hi! I love it here!

Well, I have to go to an it internet cafe every time I want to send anything so it isn't easy. I don't have much free time. I am going to try to get a phone that you can call me on with an international phone card. Hopefully by this weekend.

Say Hi to everybody at church.

Can you pray for one of the guys in my class? He is Rwandan and has a hard story. I can tell he is having a hard time right now. Pray that God breaks his walls as painful as it might be.

Yeah, Rwanda is jaw-dropping gorgeous. You would never put your camera down Daddy in the Land of a Thousand Hills. We get a two week Christmas break so some of us will explore Rwanda. I miss everybody but this time is awesome.

I can't wait to talk to you. Soon! Bye!

Love, Johanna

Still Dealing with Genocide After-effects

2007-11-28T19:37:00.000Z

The BBC Africa section is an excellent resource for those who wish to take Johanna up on her 'challenge' to learn more of Africa. They carried an article this morning about some of the judicial follow-up from the genocide nearly 14 years ago. You can read the article here.

Safe arrival in Rwanda!

2007-11-24T14:14:00.000Z

So I made it just fine even though the flight was long and horrible. I wanted to turn the plane around and go home until...I got to Kigali and I recognized the smell. The smell of Africa! I will love it here, no running water but... oh well! Kigali is beautiful!

Received @ 4:10 PM 11/24/07

The church in Africa

2007-11-24T12:37:00.000Z

As Johanna mentioned in the first post, she read extensively about Africa -- its history, its ethnicities, its politics, prospects for economic development and also about the church in Africa and the role that those of us on the West might play. One of her favorite articles was an interview with Oscar Muriu, the pastor of Nairobi Chapel which appeared in the spring edition of Leadership Journal. You can read this article here.

==> Article at: www.christianitytoday.com/le/2007/002/3.96.html

On leaving for Kigali

2007-11-23T23:07:00.001Z

Thu, 22 Nov 2007

Hi everybody!

So this is the deal my friends and family; in less than 24 hours I am getting on a plane and going to Kigali, Rwanda. I will be there for 6 months attending a Discipleship Training School with Youth With A Mission. This will be fulfilling a deep longing of my heart...

Most of you know that in the beginning of 2006 I spent 6 months in West Africa with Mercy Ships. It was, as expected, a life-changing experience for me. What is more surprising is that the 16 months since I have been back have been equally life-changing. The Lord planted in me at a young age a compassion for the lost and hopeless of the world. My experiences in Liberia and Ghana caused that seed to take root and it has continued to grow since then. You know, I think compassion is often described inaccurately. It is perceived as sort of this nice feeling that makes you do good things and feel sorry for people. In reality, it is more like a tightly coiled spring deep inside that makes it uncomfortable to sit still. It drives you to action when you see injustice or need and makes words tumble out of your mouth when sharing it with others. It is after all a type of passion. At least that's what compassion feels like to me.

I came back last year with this feeling growing inside me and Africa on my mind. Any of you who have spent time overseas and particularly in missions understand that often coming back home is harder than going in the first place. It was hard for me. More so because well over half the people I talked to had no idea about any of the issues facing the countries I spent time in. Many had never even heard of them. But my God is patient and wise. He has used the time back home, back in my old job, back living with my family to accomplish more than I ever would have expected. I decided to ground my feelings in facts. I started researching Africa. Not a small undertaking! I read books, watched movies, kept up with the news, and
probably the most helpful of all I talked with Africans living here in my community. After all this studying I have learned a lot and come to one definite conclusion. Africa is a dying continent and God is absolutely able
to save it.

This brings me to Rwanda. Rwanda began to emerge for me as a picture of Africa's wrongs and possibilities. In 1994, through a culmination of events, Rwanda endured a genocide where over 1,000,000 men, women, and children were slaughtered in a span of about 100 days. That is a killing rate 3 times faster than the Nazis at the peak of the Holocaust. The real numbers will never be known because even today, almost 14 years later, bodies are still being discovered. Rwanda hit the lowest point a country can come to. It was hardly a country anymore. It was a graveyard. I have no clue how God runs this universe. I do, however, utterly trust and know that He in all His power and overwhelming love for us can take our lowest most depraved choices
and the consequences of them and turn them around for great good. Today, Rwanda is one of the safest African countries to visit. It has a steadily improving economy and, in a continent starved of true leadership, a remarkable president and government. Rwanda is making unbelievably huge steps towards forgiveness and reconciliation. They are determined not to be dependent on international aid and churches across the country are training and discipling young people to go out as missionaries to other countries. Naturally, after learning of this place I just had to go and see it!

So I am going; with great anticipation and thanking God for this chance to meet Him up close and personal where He is working. Some of you have asked about ways of supporting me. Well there are 2 ways you can. The first is prayer. I have been shown anew this year the power of prayer over an individual's life. Please pray for safe travels, good health, and strong relationships (actual showers with running water would be really nice too:). The second way is a bit unconventional but very dear to my heart. It would be an enormous support for me and, trust me, a blessing to you if you would learn something more than you know about Africa. If you have never heard of the genocide in Rwanda look it up. If you know the basics then find out the details. Pick a country that interests you for whatever reason and study it. Telling people I had been to Africa revealed very interesting levels of knowledge about what goes on beyond the borders of America. The people who died in the spring of 1994 are so much closer to you than you might think. I was 7 years old at the time and those children would have been my playmates. In large part I am going because of them; my potential friends that I never got the chance to know and whose deaths went unnoticed for so long.

I will be using this e-mail address [below] while I am gone. I would enjoy hearing from you and will send out news as often as I can. Talk to you later!

Love,
Johanna Beachy

jobeedoc@tds.net (or post a comment here!)