KADIMA / קדימה
For Lisa and I, after 19 years of living and serving in Israel, a lot of Hebrew and Arabic words and phrases still pop out of our mouths. The word for “forward/onward” in Hebrew is “Kadima;” it’s become a word I use to rally myself to keep pressing on.
The war in the DRC continues and the M23 rebel group is still in control of a good chunk of Eastern DRC, so Lisa and I were not able to return to Minembwe in January. Finding ourselves “stranded” in neighboring Burundi, Lisa and I were invited to work alongside a local Burundian ministry. In turn, this led us to a credible, and in fact an incredible local ministry, Trinity Tabernacle Church (TTC). TTC ministers to prisoners, addicts, single moms, street kids and troubled youth, and they oversee a school for 600 children from grades K-12. The leadership of TTC is made up of a former prisoner of 11 years and a couple of former drug addicts, all of whom are rock solid believers whose motto is “We are broken, healed, and sent.”
KADIMA! - Lisa and I have been able to pitch in to help with TTC’s single mom ministry. Most of these women and their children live in nearby abandoned buildings, and at least a third of them come from the Muslim community. Sadly, many of these women turn to prostitution and begging to survive.
On Saturdays, these moms receive life skills training: spiritual, parenting, health, and finances, and their older kids can attend the Street Kid Program.
TTC asked me to come for a few Saturdays to show and teach from the Jesus Film, so I used the version that tells the story from the point of view of Mary Magdalene.
The women were very impacted by the Jesus Film and many of them surrendered their lives to the LORD, and made their way to TTC’s Sunday services following the Jesus Film showings.
KADIMA!! - Every Saturday, TCC also hosts a program for street kids. All of this is led by a group of young adults who donate their time and energy to sew into the lives of these kids.
The morning begins with a large cup of porridge and bread, then things ramp up with games, singing, and Bible instruction.
After the success of showing the Jesus Film to the women, TCC asked if I would also show the children’s version of the Jesus Film to the kids and that was a big hit as well. As it was with the ladies, many of the children expressed an interest in surrendering their lives to the LORD.
KADIMA!!! - Security in Burundi is tense as well these days with what has now become a civil war in neighboring DRC. There has been much fighting in the DRC along their border with Burundi, so many Congolese are fleeing over into Burundi. We are also working with local Burundians to minister to these refugees, and lo and behold some funds were provided for our team to provide needed items at a refugee intake camp.
The situation is desperate and sadly the team found lots of kids now on their own as they have been separated from their other family members.
KADIMA!!!! – Another positive to being “stuck” in Bujumbura, Burundi, is that Sammy and Joyeuse, the two oldest orphans of the kids in up in Minembwe, are living and going to university only minutes away from where we live. Sammy and Joyeuse are determined to one day return to the DRC and change the spiritual, social, and economic direction of the DRC.
This photo is from the day that Sammy gave the verbal defense of his final project. Sammy passed and will soon graduate with a BA in Business Management. Soon, both Sammy and Joyeuse will begin working on attaining their Master’s degrees here in Bujumbura at International Leadership University. No, Sammy and Joyeuse are not a couple, just brother and sister from the years of living together at the orphan’s home in the DRC.
After much travel within the US this summer, the Moores and the Ostranders plan to return to Burundi (and maybe the DRC for the Moores!) in September.
KADIMA!!!!!
Michael