Sunday - Nyamata

The worship service for Nyamata Lutheran Church this morning was at the Café de Nyamata rather than at the church itself. On the last Sunday of each month, they move into town for the worship service to make it easier for people who live in Nyamata center to join them. This week, it was especially providential that it was going to be in town, because a huge wind storm had torn off the metal sheet roofing on their church, causing substantial damage to the church.

Listening to the children and adult choirs praising God in kinyarwandan is always such a blessing. They sing and dance with their whole heart, and the joy of it all transcends all language barriers. After the worship service was completed, they took time to share with us their gratefulness for the partnership and support they receive from Community of Grace.

Before leaving Nyamata to return to Kigali, we had an opportunity to meet with one of the local government officials, who wanted to tell us about the changes taking place in Nyamata as they prepare for the airport to move from Kigali to Nyamata soon. Much work has been accomplished in anticipation of this, including paving the road and tearing down buildings that no longer meet code. He shared with us some project ideas that the soon-to-be city of Nyamata (as opposed to what is currently a rural village of Nyamata) would like to partner with the Lutheran Church. It sounds like there are big changes in store for this whole community.

The women of Nyamata Lutheran Church were waiting for that meeting to end so they, too, could meet with us. They wanted to tell us what a difference we have made in their lives as we have helped to provide cows, goats and chickens to their families. This renewable gift of food (eggs from the chickens, milk from the cows and goats) has made a significant difference, and they said that this was like the proverb that says “If you give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. If you teach him to fish, he can eat for a lifetime.” We were so blessed by their sincere love and warmth as they thanked us over and over.

Pastor Muzigura also took some time to thank Community of Grace for supporting him as he has studied at Matongo Theological Seminary in Nairobi. He rode on a bus for 2 days to get from Nairobi to Nyamata to be here for our visit because he wanted to take the opportunity to tell us that because of Grace’s gift of education for him, he has grown tremendously as a pastor and as a person. When we first met him, he couldn’t speak a word of English. This morning, he was our interpretor.

We have seen radical changes since our first visit to Nyamata almost four years ago.