Our trip is complete and we are
back.... Make sure you watch the
video
overview of our wonderful and blessed rip.
Click on the photo thumbnails
below to view a larger image.
Monday, 25 May 2009
We arrived shortly
after 3am in Rome, Italy. After a
1.5 hour refueling stop we are on our way
Washington DC.
We are back in the USA !!!
Our plane arrived on time in Washington DC just
before 8am. Unfortunately we have a 4.5
hour wait for the last flight back to Tampa.
We should be in Tampa by 2.30pm this afternoon.
We arrived back in Tampa ... All thanks to
God ...
Back in Tampa
Sunday, 24 May 2009
Today is the last
day of a blessed and memorable Mission Trip to Rwanda.... In
the morning we attended the local church.
Most of us
are already packed for our loooong trip back
home. After church we visited the CUP
building site, and had our last debriefing
meeting there with Philbert and staff.
It
was a very sad goodbye. We departed from the airport just
after 2pm and took our first flight to Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia at 4.15pm. In Addis Ababa we had
a 2.5 hour lay over before our next flight to
Rome, Italy which departed at 10.15pm.
Church Service on
Sunday
The CUP Building
View from the CUP
Center
Visiting the CUP
Building site
Creative Welding
Saturday, 23 May 2009
We packed and travelled back from Nyamata to Kigali.
During the afternoon, Liberata and Kazu took the team shopping
for souvenirs and gifts from Rwanda. The highly
rated Rwandan coffee was high on the list.
Some of the
team attended a commemoration this evening while
the others packed and prepared for the trip back
home. We intend to attend a local
church tomorrow morning, before heading for the
airport. Our flight for Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia leaves at 4.15pm.
Shopping in Kigali
A last look at Kigali
Securing the luggage
Kazu taking care of
luggage
Good Bye ...
Friday, 22 May 2009
All the Forgiveness
/ Unforgiveness requests that the people wrote
on pieces of paper yesterday after the teaching
on Forgiveness, were burned until there were
just ashes left. It was very powerful and very
emotional. Both victims and perpetrators
stood in a circle, holding hands and embracing
one another watching as their unforgiveness
burned to nothing.
Participants give testimonies
- extremely moving and emotional. We watched as
perpetrators clothed victims and
forgiveness came into action.
Today is the last
day of a very successful and blessed Healing
Conference. We will be heading back to
Kigali tomorrow morning.
The morning started
with some of the
Conference participants giving testimonies.
We heard testimonies from genocide survivors as well
as from perpetrators. Pastor Sharon gave a
teaching on forgiveness, following by Lizelle's
testimony. Small groups and healing prayer
closed out the morning session.
In the
afternoon, Pastor Sharon taught again on "Moving
from Good Friday to Resurrection Sunday",
following by John's moving testimony.
Later the
afternoon Paul and MaryAnn completed the 3rd and
last session on Peace Making. Late
afternoon everybody gathered and the T-shirts
were given to the participants.
All wearing T Shirts
Gerry & Debra -
African style
Judith learning
English
Lizelle gives
testimony
Leaonadis gives
testimony
Worship dance from
Paul
Ian getting dancing
instructions
Preparing the
conference hall
T Shirts
Conference Sound
booth
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
Pastor Sharon gave
the morning teaching despite of being sick and
dehydrated. After that small groups followed.
In the afternoon Gerry gave a teaching on
"Living beyond Trauma" and lead a powerful
large group prayer during which many people gave
up ungodly guilt and regrets.
Paul and
MaryAnn continued with the second teaching on
Peace Making.
Gerry teaching in
afternoon
Healing prayer for
addiction
A sick Pastor Sharon
teaching
Small group prayer
Dennis
(translator) and Sharon
Tuesday, 19 May 2009
We started with worship
followed by a sermon from Pastor Agustine about Mark 2
- 'Pick up your mat and walk' ... after this,
almost EVERYBODY went forward for healing. Pastor Sharon and team was praying and laying
hands on the people for physical healing.
Gerry started the
morning teaching on 'Identity in Christ'.
After Gerry's teaching, Ian gave a short, but
very powerful testimony. Everyone was touched
and many people started crying. This was
followed by Small Groups. God continues to
work in the small groups in various and diverse
ways.
Overall, the response is positive
and people are participative and are sharing on
deep levels. Individual cases of trauma
are starting to surface ... we expect more in
the coming days.
Paul and MaryAnn did the
first Peace Making teaching in the afternoon.
The had a very good response and it is clear
that their teaching is much needed. They
faced some hard questions !
Debra
did the afternoon teaching and incorporated the
teaching with a powerful testimony ... "Telling
your story through Christ". Afterwards, Pastor
Sharon lead the group in a large-group healing
prayer. Many people came forward and received
healing !
God is working fast and in many
ways. Many people have already been healed since
Monday. We hope for even more healings in the
next few days ...
Gerry teaching in
morning
Debra teaching in
afternoon
Paul teaching in
afternoon
MaryAnn and Paul with
rope
Tap for drinking and
bathing
Monday, 18 May 2009
We arrived Sunday eve
in Nyamata and people started registering for
the Conference. We have about 90 people
attending (about 100 including team).
The
morning was used for worship, a very strong
sermon delivered by Father Fidel, introductions
and then the official opening of the conference.
After lunch, as people gathered in the
conference hall, spontaneous dance and worship
broke out and EVERBODY was dancing and singing!
Debby Tripp did the first teaching on "The
Amazing Healing Love of Jesus Christ". Her
testimony touched many people ... even her
translator was in tears and and could not speak
for a few moments. After her teaching, the
people were divided into small groups. Most of
us were amazed at how open the first small
groups went ... some groups went straight into
healing prayer ! Some groups struggled,
but it is all in God's hands and timing.
Pastor Sharon fell sick
towards the course of the afternoon ... we are
not sure if it is the food or maybe a demonic
attack. Please pray for the recovery of her
health and energy. Apart from that, we are all
grateful for a productive first day of the
conference.
Conference
Accommodations
Denis (translator)
and Fr Fidel
Worship dancing
Pastor Sharon and
Agnes
Debby teaching in
morning
Sunday, 17 May 2009
Father Philbert,
Pastor Sharon and Lizelle visited a 25 year old
female victim of the genocide -Claire. They
also visited Claire's little girl (Lowrence) at a boarding
school to look at the possibilities of
sponsoring
the 5 year old girl and maybe bringing mother
and daughter together again.
Due to heavy
rains, Father Philbert could not pick us up for
church - so we had
church in the house in Kigali. We even had
communion ! In the afternoon
we travelled to Nyamata to get ready for the
conference, which starts on Monday!
Rwanda / Tanzania
Border
Rwanda / Tanzania
Border
Women selling bananas
Handyman fixing the
showers
MaryAnne drying
Paul's socks
Saturday, 16 May 2009
We worked on
conference preparations, teaching materials and did lots of laundry.
Gerry and Debra did find time for crossword
puzzles in the evening driving back in the
minivan ... with a flash light ! See photo below.
Puzzles - Debra &
Gerry
Liberata, Philbert's
cousin
Liberata's kids
Look there ...
Liberata, Sharon and
Alison
Friday, 15 May 2009
In the morning we
worked on conference preparation. In the
afternoon we watched a youth girls soccer game.
They played barefoot, even
the goalie! Because of the rains, the
field was more of a mud pool than a soccer
field, but they still played ! After that we got to see the
future REACH soccer field and got to minister at
a local youth gathering in Kirehe.
At this youth gathering Pastor Sharon gave a
short sermon ... as usual she was only told
about this sermon 2 minutes before she had to
give it ! She did a great job ! Ian shared
a short version of his testimony, followed by Paul giving a
father's blessing. John also gave an encouraging witness/speech and
got the crowd going, like only he can. Lizelle
presented the soccer balls. Throughout the night we listened to a local
choir and had the privilege of seeing the
traditional dancers.
John getting medical attention
John encourages the youth
Female Dancers
Male Dancers
Salvation soccer
balls presented
Thursday, 14 May 2009
In the morning we
drove to the Rwanda / Tanzania border where we
saw beautiful
waterfalls. Tanzania Customs allowed us onto
Tanzanian soil without any passport checking /
stamping, as long as we remained on the bridge.
Thank you all for your prayers. You are so
faithful and we can see the fruit of them
already. Today Pastor Sharon was privileged to
preach at a church in Kirehe, a town close to
the Tanzania border. At this gathering were
about 270 people consisting of widows, choirs,
released prisoners and pastors. The worship was
African-style, which started off with two choirs
leading the worship but then evolved into all
the people singing and praising at the top of
their voices completely muting any instruments …
so spirit-filled that dancing broke out –
everybody in the room was singing, moving,
clapping and praising God whether you spoke
Kinyarwanda or not !
Pastor Sharon
preached on the crippled woman, Luke 13:10 and
together with an anointed, spirit-filled
translator, people received the healing and
reconciling Word of God that proclaims them
loosed as they come to Jesus. The fruit was
seen as they got up to witness. One widow
witnessed how her husband and children had been
killed and the man who did that was in the room
that very moment. She told us how she had forgiven him and
now they were able to talk with one another. And
then she brought him up to the front of the room with her. He testified
about the transformation that God has done in
him. This also happened with another woman as
well. She witnessed the trauma she went through and
the men who had been involved in killing her
family came up and testified. Fr. Philbert said
that this was an unusual happening and we were
privileged and humbled to see God working like
this. How important the work of healing and
reconciliation is! And how important your
prayers are for covering this work God has given
us to do.
Tomorrow we go to see the
youth, the soccer teams, dancers, and choirs.
They will minster to us and then we will minster
to them. More of our team members will be
sharing what God puts on their hearts. It will
be another glorious day in Rwanda!
What a blessed day in
the Lord as we went on safari today. When I see
God’s creatures and his beautiful creation; it
is hard to reflect what happened in this land
not so long ago. A memorial is even here at the
national park; as a reminder that death was
everywhere, no place was safe. It is a testament
that we are new each day. For each of us the
park was quite remarkable and gives hopes to us
all. After seeing a remembrance of so much
death, a great day of hope bathed in God’s
beauty gives great encouragement. Today is also
Gerry's birthday. Scott did call in the
early hours of his morning. What a
celebration for Gerry’s birthday !!!
At Lake Ihema
Bath time at the lake
Debby and Alice on
safari
Impalas
Baboon
Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Today we visited
the
Kigali Genocide Memorial.
The memorial lays out the history of the Rwanda
Genocide, as well as all the world's previous
genocides. We also had a meeting with the
REACH board to discuss the upcoming Healing
Conference as well as plans for the next week.
Mass graves under
slabs
Kigali Memorial
Graves at Kigali
Memorial
Grave at Kigali
Memorial
Eternal Flame
Monday, 11 May 2009
Today we visited
the
Murambi Genocide Memorial
to view and witness what occurred there in 1994.
It was an very emotional experience to us all.
Below are the individual comments from the team
members.
…to see such a tragedy to
humanity, to know that God can heal the broken
heart and fully restore that which we destroy. ~
Ian
For me, Murambi is
nothing that one can prepare themselves for as
it is so beyond our imagination or experience.
What struck me the most is the stark contrast of
the death-filled rooms and the open expanse of
the mountains, green with life, echoing the
voices of young children playing in the
distance. In the small purple flowers on the
mountainside, there is much hope. ~
Gerry
I now know Jesus in HIS
suffering. Jesus cried with me (OK for me to
cry) as I toured the genocide memorial at
Murambi. A place that was meant to give life and
learning (school never opened), was now a place
of death surrounded by hills full of beauty. The
depravity of man, the depravity of man kept
going through my mind. Then I prayed…LORD,
cleanse it with your rain. I heard, “I DID!!” I
didn’t like what I heard. My heart cried, “Then
WHY?” Jesus replied, “ Free will.” LORD, what do
you want me to do with what I’ve seen here
today? “ Remember ME.” re-member- me….putting
back together the body of Christ. ~
Debra Reed
The most horrifying
moment at Murambi was entering several rooms
where remains of bodies (preserved with lye
perhaps?) lay on tables for viewing. Terrible
wounds (cut off feet and limbs) were everywhere.
The brutal violence took my breath away. It left
me in a kind of stupor. How abandoned the people
must have felt… ~ Debbie Tripp
Mass graves under
slabs
Murambi Memorial
Skeleton Rooms
Inside skeleton rooms
On the road
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Maraho from Rwanda
Today we attended the Anglican Cathedral in
Kigali. It was so wonderful to worship together
and the presence of the Lord was so strong! We
were invited forward and I brought them
greetings from all of you. During the afternoon
we visited the CUP building project, which
should be completed towards the end on June.
Tonight Fr Philbert had a dinner for us at his
home and invited REACH board members,
Parliamentary leaders, pastors and other leaders
in the area. Such a great fellowship!
Tomorrow we travel to
Murambi Genocide Memorial
to view and witness what occurred there in 1994.
There we will reflect and share as we work
through our feelings and the deeper repentance
it will bring us to together. Thank you for your
prayers. Everyone here is so blessed to know how
many are praying for them and us all. We will
continue to give you updates as we have access
to internet. Thank you all for helping us get
here and we are believing God for miracles of
healing and reconciliation.
Visiting the CUP
center
Building an 'African'
Tripod
Pastor Sharon & Fr
Philbert
REACH Board
Mud Bath
Saturday, 9 May 2009
We arrived in Rome,
Italy around 1.15am. After a short refuel
we are on our way for a 6 hr flight to Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia. We are running a little bit
behind schedule and hope that the delay does not
cause us to miss our flight from Addis Ababa to
Kigali, Rwanda later this morning. With
the next update we should be Rwanda ....
We have arrived in Kigali, Rwanda.
Everybody is tired after the long trip, but all
is well. We are staying in a very
comfortable guesthouse. Below you can see
a view from our porch. We should have our
communications (cell phone and email) sorted out
within the next day or two. Once that is
done, we will be able to send out more detailed
updates.
View from the porch
Beautiful Alphonsine
Father Philbert and
his Group
Story time ...
Friday, 8 May 2009
We arrived at the
Tampa International Airport at around 3 am.
Our flight to Washington DC is departs at 5.40
am. John and Ian drove us here in 2 hired minivans.
We needed plenty of team to haul all the
luggage.
We arrived early in Washington
DC and departed an hour late at 10 am for the 9 hr flight to
Rome, Italy. From there it is another 6 hr
flight to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is
going to be a long day ...
Checking for last
messages
Check In
John already
impatient
The luggage
Lizelle taking photos
Thursday, 7 May 2009
The trip started
with a get together at John's house at 11 pm.
Ian ensured that the weight of each suitcase was
within limits. Some weight distribution needed
to be done. John made sure that
Debra's 3 lbs M&M bag was going in his luggage.
The team also took some time to pose for the
'official' team photo. We are ready to go ...
Sharon and Debra
resting
Scott going through
his options
Learning to pose
Having some fun
The men providing
some ears
Mission to Rwanda
Summary
With great excitement we are looking forward to a healing
and peace-building mission trip to Rwanda from May 8 – 24,
2009. We will be ministering with the people of Rwanda who
were badly traumatized during the genocide of 1994. During
this tragic event, 1.2 million people were killed in a
100-day period in a devastating tribal conflict that turned
friends against friends and family members against family
members. While there has been much healing in the last 15
years, there is still much pain, much grief, and the
continued need
for reconciliation.
The Church of the Holy Spirit's Amazing Love
Healing Ministry is sending a team of teachers
and prayer facilitators to conduct a 5-day Healing and
Reconciliation Conference with widows, genocide
survivors, and released prisoners. Also participating in
the conference will be ministry leaders, pastors, and
government officials. Much healing prayer ministry will
happen with the men and women who remember all too well
the violence and killing during the genocide. We will be
meeting and praying with the leaders and staff of the
REACH Organization in Rwanda during the first week of
our mission trip so that we will all be prepared as a
total team for the teaching and praying needs of the
conference.
We need your prayers as we allow God to knit
our own hearts to those of the Rwandan people. Pray for
relationship with them and for safety in our travels.
You may have a look at our planned
schedule here.
Church of the Holy Spirit - A Christian Healing Community in Action.
