Day One

'Africa.' Just saying the word forces you to exhale in wonder. Rwanda's capital city, Kigali, welcomes us with a hope and promise born of suffering. Kigali's green hills and clean streets are the backdrop for her people, residents who surround you with genial smiles that have replaced the strife that nearly destroyed this African pearl. Perhaps one of the reasons that Rwandans are so optimistic these days is because of Pastor Rick Warren. We met Warren on the plane from Brussels to Kigali, and he describes to us his comprehensive 'P.E.A.C.E. Plan,' which has targeted Kigali and 11 other cities for transformation through empowering the church as a catalyst for change. Warren and others are here to meet with Rwanda's President Paul Kagame, a visionary leader who has vowed to make Rwanda the World's first 'Purpose Driven Country.' Warren (insiders say he may be Kagame's best friend) is seen as something of a hero here, and he greets locals at our hotel by name, embracing each one and asking about their lives.

Day 1 features a number of meetings, and begins with breakfast  at 7, and then a worship service at Restoration Church, first in French, then in Kinyarwanda, the local language (we are able to learn the phrase, 'Wera, wera Adonai' or Holy, holy is the Lord). The pastor blesses us with a teaching (we are grateful for the English translation by a young girl who might be all of 16) on obedience that focuses on Philippians 2. Other highlights include meeting graduates and current students of our Business Development Center (BDC) where professor John Mulford and his team are training the next generation of Rwanda's business leaders in principles of entrepreneurship. We hear inspiring stories of success, like a young woman who began with $8 and used it to sew one purse that she sold for $15. Today--after the training she received at the BDC, she employs five women and produces 150 handbags per month!

After our visit with these precious ones (we are stunned that some 50 attend the event, though few have cars, and travel miles just to share their stories) we are off for a local meal at Dona and Betty's home. Dona works at the BDC, and is a strong Christian and a local businessman. On the way to his home, he drives us through Kigali's well-maintained and manicured streets. Every turn features a lovely view of the valleys and hills that surround this city of about one million residents. While there is poverty, there is construction everywhere, and many lovely estates overlook the verdant landscape. People huddle near a bus station, and 'mototaxis' hawk customers. 'There you see the Parliament building,' he comments, 'They have left the holes from the mortars as a reminder to them. We must never allow hatred to touch our land again.' The scars from the genocide are found everywhere; Betty shares how she was the only one in her family to survive the brutal genocide. My mother and my four sisters - all gone.  I was angry with God. I just did not understand.' We share a remarkable meal that features skewers of fish, rice, tuna salad, and a very familiar dish to a Cuban: fried bananas. After dinner we join in prayer to ask God's blessing on our families, the work of the BDC, on Rwanda. There are signs of God's blessing everywhere. He brings beauty through ashes.