My heart was instantly touched...

After suffering from a fever 2 nights ago and sleeping all day yesterday, God answered prayer and I woke up feeling much, much better...Praise God! We had a big day planned to head to Kibumba, which is a town about 30 km. north of Goma. Meanwhile, I have been told Goma only has about 50 miles of paved roads and is one of the 2 largest countries in Africa. Needless to say, the drive was long, bumpy, exciting and interesting. Again, Praising God for feeling much better because I am not sure how the trip would have gone if the circumstances would have been different.

After heading toward the “active” volcano, which sits just north of Goma, I was a little concerned. Isn’t it active?! Then, we started to head around the right side of it... Yes, I know it is active on the opposite side, but if we are now traveling around it we are eventually going to hit the side that is active, right?! Obviously, no worries because no one else seemed to mind! I felt like a “new be”...definitely not from here and have much to learn. No need to be afraid of an active volcano, it is only active on the other side... :)

Arriving in Kibumba, we were greeted by about 15 pastors who ALARM has helped re-acclimate to life outside IDP Camps. We walked into the most quaint and humble church I have seen. My heart was instantly touched and I stood in awe. At the other side, one of the walls had collapsed 2 days prior to our visit by an earthquake. It had fallen while people were inside, yet no one was injured. While we were there, we dispersed clothes to each of the pastors (one coat, two shirts and one pair of slacks each) and they were thrilled. After sharing a soda, I had the opportunity to pray for them before leaving. What an honor! As we drove away I was humbled by the distance some of these men had walked to come for the visit. They were there waiting for us and it probably took their entire day. What I saw in these individuals was a kind of patience, commitment, honor and integrity that is not easy to come by, but much to be admired.

Driving back to the town of Kibumba we passed a truck that was carrying potatoes. As we passed my mouth dropped open as I asked Jaspard, who was driving, to stop and back up. Everyone else in the car was wondering what in the world I was doing. As we reversed, I was pointing at the driver of the truck and told everyone else in the car that he was wearing my hometown NFL jersey...YES, in a very rural off the beaten path road was a truck driver wearing a Carolina Panther’s Jersey! A special little gift from home...

“I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.

With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity.”

~ Proverbs 8:17-18