Anniversary Celebration This Sunday

One of my favorite words is "Remember." It seems we humans have a habit of poor memories. We typically have selective memories that we use to permit ourselves to fall into the same old familiar patterns. The discipline of authentic remembrance breaks those patterns. It teaches us to remember all that the Lord has done in our lives – both struggles and victories. By clearly remembering we are more aware of God's grace and care. The discipline of remembrance leads us to the discipline of celebration.

We invite you to remember and celebrate with us. It has been nearly a year since CCR began on March Fourth 2007. On that day 332 of us gathered to listen to Honorable Minister of Local Government, Protais Musoni. We saw the signing of CCR's Contract with Rwanda, and the journey began.

We are now busy making preparations for One Year Anniversary on Sunday, 2 March 2008. It promises to be an exciting day of remembering what God has done this first year of our church life. Our Main Speaker will be Dr. Zac Nsenga, the Secretary General in the Ministry of Defense. We'll share a light meal. We'll be entertained by the Imena Dance Troupe. It is our hope this event will be a way to gather, remember, and celebrate.

I hope to see you this coming Sunday, 2 March at 10:00 am as the Celebration Begins.

Imana ikurinde,

Dave

Collect Your Invitation

It has been nearly a year since CCR began. We are busy making preparations for One Year Anniversary on Sunday, 2 March 2008. It promises to be an exciting day of remembering what God has done this first year of our church life. Our Main Speaker will be Dr. Zac Nsenga, the Secretary General in the Ministry of Defense. We'll share a light meal. We'll be entertained by the Imena Dance Troupe. It is our hope this event will be a way to gather, remember, and celebrate.

This coming Sunday, 24 February we will have 1,000 invitations letters printed and available. We hope you will be with us to take some that you can share with family, colleagues, neighbors, and friends.

Our sermon this week will raise the question, "Are we scattered or sent?" Life is full of transitions. Some times they leave us feeling torn and weary. However, God uses these transitions to place us in places where He can most use us. Though we may feel scattered, we are really sent. It is my hope that if you come exploring you will find CCR to be a place of to gather, discover, and then be sent.

I hope you will be with us this week to collect your invitation to share with others.

Imana ikurinde,

Dave

P.S. If you are unable to collect your invitation by hand this Sunday, please e-mail me and I will send you an electronic copy over e-mail.

Worlds Meet

Dear Family and Friends,

We had an exciting day Tuesday we could not wait to share with all of you. We were invited to see the arrival of President and Mrs. Bush to Rwanda. We were only one of 3 non-official American families that were invited to attend. One of the other couples was Jessica Brogdon whose husband Todd, is CEO of Opportunity International in Rwanda and the other couple is Kelly and Laura Sager, missionary friends of ours. The invitation came from some relationships we formed due to Jana’s work in helping families adopt Rwandan orphans. Our personal escort for the event was Major Ned Biehl, one of the President’s helicopter pilots. We were able to get to know Ned through a mutual friend, Shannon Miller, the wife of the U.S. Embassy Military Attaché, Ron Miller. Ned and his wife, Meagan are in the process of adopting a Rwandan orphan, and Jana has been advising them on the process.

On Sunday night before President Bush arrived, Ned took Dave and our children to see the President’s helicopter. The kids had many questions. There are many things we give up to be in Rwanda, but also since it is such a small community here we also are able to have experiences that we never would have if we lived in the United States.

On Tuesday morning we were escorted in to the reception area at 7:00. There were Rwandan traditional dancers and a brass band. We had to wait a couple of hours for President and Mrs. Bush to arrive. But while we were waiting, Ned introduced us to several Americans that are on the Presidential staff and we were able to introduce him to several Rwandan Ministers and their staff. Our friend in the Rwanda President’s Office, John Nkuranga particularly helped.

It was a great opportunity for relationship building and making connections. We had an extended conversation with the Rwandan Minister of Family and Gender which has been an important relationship for the adoption efforts. This was extremely helpful for the Biehl’s upcoming adoption.

Most importantly, we were able to share with many people the work that God is doing in Rwanda.

We stood near the press and could see very clearly. We can’t describe our emotions as we watched Air Force One land. Then we saw the President and first lady come down the stairs followed by Condoleezza Rice and others.

It was thrilling to be part of the group welcoming President Bush to Rwanda. Our two worlds of Rwanda and America rarely meet. It was extremely emotional as we watched Presidents Bush and Kagame stand on the platform together and heard the national anthems of both the United States and Rwanda.

After everyone left Ned was able to get us close to the plane and got pictures.

Attached is a picture of us with Ned and Air Force One in the background.

In two weeks, we’ll celebrate the 1 Year Anniversary of the new and growing church.

Christ’s Church in Rwanda will have a special time of worship on Sunday, March 2 marking our first year. Dr. Zac Nsenga, former Rwandan Ambassador to the US and a regular attendee at CCR will be our special speaker that day. We are praying for and working towards having 400 people in attendance to hear the message of hope in Jesus Christ.

Imana Ikurinde (May God Keep All of You),

Dave and Jana

Education Opportunities Begin Tuesday

You are invited to attend classes offered by the Rwanda Outreach and Community (ROC) Education Center. The Education Center's purpose is to aid in widening the scope of educational opportunities available in Rwanda. Please see the information listed below for times, dates, fees, and more information about these courses. These classes are sponsored by Christ's Church in Rwanda (CCR) as a partner of Vision 2020 and its desire to increase and improve educational opportunities.

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS & SCHEDULE, FEBRUARY & MARCH 2008

Survival English

Instructor: Ms. Jane Mukamongi

Choose either Class 1: Tuesdays, 6:00 PM-7:00 PM (begins February 19)
or Class 2: Thursdays, 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM (begins February 21)

(only one session per week)

Course Fee: RWF 3,000

Location: Christ's Church Rwanda conference room upstairs in the Caisse Sociale Estate Hall

This Beginning English course is designed for those who have no prior knowledge of English. Subjects covered will include the building blocks of the English language and Basic English phrases that might be used in daily conversation. Limit 16 per session; course is for 2 months (8 class sessions). This is not a certificate course. It is intended for those wanting to learn the most basic English and not intended for gaining fluency. If you are reading this message you do not need this course. Each section of this course is limited to 20 people on a first come, first serve basis. Additional opportunities will be made available in the future.

Visual Presentation Skills Seminar

Instructor: Mr. Bryan Hixson (B.A., Graphic Design, M.S., Educational Technology)

Course Fee: RWF 2,000

Course Dates: February 26 or March 25 (6:00 P.M.)

Location: Christ's Church Rwanda in the Caisse Sociale Estate Hall

Part one (30 minutes) of this two hour seminar will present basic presentation skills that are necessary for effective verbal and visual presentations. Part two (90 minutes) will cover basic visual presentation skills for projected (PowerPoint) content. Many presentations are a distraction to learning or dissemination of information. This seminar will help you eliminate some of those distractions and be a more effective communicator whether you are a teacher, business person, or civil servant. Seating is unlimited.

How to Create Effective PowerPoint^® Slides

Instructor: Mr. Bryan Hixson (B.A., Graphic Design, M.S., Educational Technology)

Course fee: RWF 2,000

Course Dates: February 19 or March 18 (6:00 P.M.)

Location: Christ's Church Rwanda in the Caisse Sociale Estate Hall.

This session (90 minutes) will be a demonstration of how to create effective slides using PowerPoint. Seating is unlimited.

Please call 08-232-785 or e-mail ROC.education@gmail.com for enrollment in the Survival English course or other information.

Planning for CCR 1 Year Anniversary

None of us can remember our 1 Year Birthday. However, some of us can remember the 1 Year Birthdays of our children. It is usually an event of both reflection and joy.

I particularly remember the event for our first child. Before the birth we did all the reading, attended classes, and asked as many questions as we could. In a certain way we became parenting experts when we had yet to become parents. However, deep inside of us the lingering question remained - Could we manage this whole endeavour?

Occasionally, we would listen to other's "war stories" of birth and child raising and think "surely we can do it better." However, still our questions remained.

Then came the birth and our entire self imposed confidence fell apart. None of our plans worked.

Children don't always fit well into programs and theories. Instead we had sleepless nights and struggled just to do the most basic tasks of feeding and bathing. A few times we seemed on the verge of total parenting collapse and wondered if both we and our children would survive.

Then came the time of our child's 1 Year Birthday - We had made it. Survival was possible. We invited friends, served a cake, and were deliriously silly. However, our 1 year old child just stared at us and then smudged cake into her face. She had no idea why we were so thrilled.

For me this last year has felt much the same. The birth has been difficult, but thrilling and stretched us to the very edges of our capacity. Yet the Lord has sustained us through it. It is now time to celebrate.

Celebration should always be a community event. It's just too good to not be shared. No individual should consider it his possession.

Our CCR 1 Year Anniversary will be in just a few weeks on Sunday, 2 March. For the next several weeks we will be planning the event. I would love for you to help us plan the celebration.

This coming Saturday our Planning Group will meet at Bryan and Holly Hixson's home, 276 Jacaranda Sud in the Caisse Sociale Gaculiro Estate at 2:00 p.m. Please feel free to join us in planning the celebration. If you need more directions please feel free to call me at 08-675-122. I hope to see some of you this Saturday.

Dave

Prayer Bulletin

Dear Family and Friends,

Thank you for the support, prayers, and concern many of you express to us on a frequent basis. Several of you have contacted us concerning our safety after the earthquake in Southwestern Rwanda. We are all well. The earthquake took place about 125 miles from us. We felt a shaking on Sunday morning before church, but that was about it. We have friends that work at the Kibogoro Hospital in Southwest Rwanda who are busy treating the injured who would appreciate your prayers. For our family and ministry we request your prayers in the following matters this month:

1. Church attendance continues to be good in the early weeks of 2008. We seem to be hovering in the range of 150 to 160 different individuals. We feel very thankful when we consider that we have only been meeting for 11 months. Also, we continue to attract many who are thought leaders in various capacities in Rwanda. One of our struggles is that our core group that does most of the work only numbers 15 to 20 people. Many of the others who attend are exploring faith and also in the habit of being church observers instead of participants. May the group of gathering seekers move to becoming committed disciples in our faith community.

2. On Sunday, March 2 we plan to celebrate our 1 Year Church Anniversary. We see this as an opportunity to both gather more seekers and create vision ownership for the seekers gathered. A year ago, we asked the Lord for 300 to attend our March Fourth Grand Church Opening and 332 attended. This year we are asking the Lord for 400 to attend our Anniversary. May the Lord gather those He intends on 2 March. May this be an opportunity for those who are catching the vision to begin actively sharing their faith with their family and friends.

3. Kigali International Community School (KICS) continues to show an incredible niche in Kigali. Our new term opened with 87 students from 23 nationalities. Growth is only limited by quality teachers. Our Principal, Brian Dolinger, will be on a recruiting trip from February 7 to 21. We hope to have 14 full time teachers by September. May God call those he desires to join us at KICS. May Brian’s travels be safe and productive.

4. Kigali is a relatively dull place on most weekends. However, it is also a very youthful city. Thus we plan to begin a Friday evening Youth Program in the next few months as an alternative to discos and bars. A friend of ours from Uganda, Moses Mbabaali, plans to join us this week to work as our Youth Minster in this endeavor. May Moses adapt well to Kigali and find the Lord’s unique calling. May the Lord use our humble efforts to gather young people eager to discover more faith.

5. Our youngest son, Timothy struggles with a minor case of Cerebral Palsy on his right side. He is now 5 years old. Timothy is thriving academically. He has one of the strongest senses of determination we have ever observed in a child. Also, he has almost completely overcome the disabilities on his right leg, and may be one of the fastest children his age in school. However, his right arm continues to be a struggle. Over Christmas, he asked us for “a new arm.” Since being in Kigali we have not been able to find an adequate Physical Therapy situation for him. We have mostly focused on just encouraging his sense of determination and desire for continual activity. However, we realize that Timothy needs something more. This week, we are looking and praying for an option that will help him overcome May we find Physical Therapist who can work well with Timothy and take him to a new level in ability.

Again, thank you for your prayers, support, and encouragement that empower our family and ministry.

Imana ikurinde (May God Keep All of You),

Dave and Jana