Made New.

"The faithful love of the Lord never ends!  His mercies never cease.  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning" - Lamentations 3:22-23

There is no such thing as sleeping in here.  Once the sun is up, you are up.  The roosters crow, the cows moo, the children laugh and you arise with all these beautiful things.  These words from Lamentations ring true in my heart with every.single.sunrise.  As I roll out from under my mosquito net and my feet hit the cold cement floor, a surge of energy runs through my body preparing me for the day ahead.  As I open my curtains, I hear every last joint in my body snap, crackle and pop.  I laugh and have to remind myself that I am in fact 22 years old, not 92 years old :)

As the early morning sun fills my modest room, I crack open my journal and my bible.  My prayers seem to pour out of my heart and find their way onto the paper.  I am quick to pray for strength for the day and for an overwhelming dose of humility with every step I take.  I pray for God to use me in the lives of every single person I cross paths with.  I ask for God to guide me through His Word and to fill my cup with His abounding love.  He is quick to answer these prayers :)

Once again, I lace up those Nikes and head out into His Creation... Captivated time and again by the beautiful dirt roads of Rwanda with every step I take.

My mornings are about the only routine thing in my life.  I have absolutely fallen in love with this reality.  I have had people ask, "What does a typical day look like for you?"  I have to smile at this question because each day is a complete mystery.  I make new friends, visit old ones, dance, laugh, paint nails, hug, get dirty, play soccer, laugh at myself, venture into new villages, meander through farmlands, visit schools, visit the hospital, figure out why everything in our house is broken, make runs into town for food and water and so much more.  I would not change anything about this beautiful, confusing, frustrating, comical life that I live.  When you live with your hands and heart wide open to the Lord, He will fill you with His Will and His Purpose with each passing moment.

A Typical Walk Through Rwanda 

This week has filled me with joy, peace and affirmation.  I was able to slowly make my way into the hospital we have here in town.  On Monday, I sat in the maternity ward with families who were eagerly awaiting the news of their newborn family members.  I got to experience the excitement and joy of new life for a solid hour of my morning.  Praise God for new mercies :) The best part - about 2% of the people I was sitting with spoke extremely broken English.  As for everyone else, we communicated through laughter and smiles and high fives... SO SO GREAT.  I wandered around the hospital a bit more and had my eyes opened to the reality of people who are sick and dying.  To go from new life to losing life in a matter of steps can really pierce your heart.  It dawned on me that this is what Christ's followers are called to do.  To look after those who are desperate for healing and love.  I spent time visiting all the different areas and asking the Lord how I can serve there and for Him to open doors for me to do so.  I left with a heavy heart but with hope that I could bring the light of the Lord to that place.  I returned later that week where I met with the Secretary and the Head of Nursing.  They advised me to set up a meeting with the Director of the hospital to get involved.  I am very hopeful for this opportunity!  Please pray that I am able to fully immerse within the hospital community and serve them to the best of my ability.  I shall keep all of you posted :)

Rays of Grace has also been introduced to a local school in our community.  There are roughly 20 children who are total or partial orphans in need of sponsorship.  We are hoping to step up and take this responsibility.  We are undergoing research on the proper way to approach the situation.  These 20 children are not receiving proper nutrition... If they are lucky they can scrounge roughly 1 meal a day.  We want to create a feeding program that factors into the after school and opportunity program that we are creating.  We are hoping to create a small business where we can hire these student's mothers, aunts and grandmothers to make products for Rays of Grace to sell stateside.  Through this process, we will teach them about finances, budgets and loans.  We will teach them how a paycheck goes towards your child's school fees, food for the week and other living costs.  This creates a sense of empowerment where they no longer have to rely on the white person to come in and bring money, but rather to earn their own money and start the process of sustainability.  With school fees being paid, a proper education is received and Rays of Grace is able to start the preparation process for students to attend college in the States.  It's a lot to take in, however; we are receiving affirmation about this vision daily.  Praise Him.  We are asking for donations and monthly supporters so that we have the proper means to begin making an impact.  God has moved mountains with relationship building here.  Our community has truly welcomed us with open arms.  I feel continual affirmation from the Holy Spirit with this place He has planted us in.

  Break Time At School 

Once again, my heart overflows with thankfulness for the huge amount of prayers and love I am receiving thousands of miles away.  I am truly grateful for each and everyone of you.  With your faith in the Lord and expectant prayers, Rays of Grace is able to prosper.  Hooray :)

I love you guys!  Talk to you soon :)

britt :)

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