Day 3

Today we went to visit the jari community - which is a community sponsored by a church in Dumbarton. This involved a long bus ride up a very steep hill. When we got to the jari community we were greeted then we entered a hall for a meeting with the community. This involved singing, praying and preaching. During the meeting several members of the community talked to the group about their experiences of the genocide. They also showed us horriffic scars that they still bore from the genocide. For the whole group this seemed to make the genocide seem like real events... Until now we had read about what happened, but not seen the extent of the effects on each individual.

As part of the service David preached about laying our sorrows and our pain at the cross. We then prayed for the members of the communities that they would be able to do this.

After the meeting we went for a long walk down a hill to visit the homes of members of the community. It was so humbling to see how little they had, yet how thankful they were for it. Whereever we went we were greeted with such love and friendliness. The path back up the hill was long and steep, and when we arrived at the top we were completely exhausted, but we were welcomed by a large group of kids who had gathered there to see us. We spent some time talking with the kids, asking them questions and answering theirs. They loved having their photos taken.

As we were walking around jari, our guide was constantly saying to us "just one more house". We had to stop visiting house because we had run out of time and it had gotten dark, but this made us realise that the genocide didn't just affect a handful, but rather, there is always another house to visit, another story to hear and another person who needs the love of God.

I think the main thing that we saw and learned today was just how much passion these people have for the lord. During the service, when members of the community were getting upset or angry about what was being said, they would calm themselves by praying and singing to God. They found such peace in the lord. In every house we visited we were asked questions about ourselves and we were thanked for being there. We were never asked for donations or money or gifts, but our presence was such a calming influence on the people and such a blessing that they did not need more from us. It also struck us that, the hill that we all struggled to climb up, is a hill that those people have to climb to attend the church services and to attend solace. It was truely a long and difficult climb, but they do it regularly because of their love for the Lord. How amazing!