Wealth & Poverty

This is an excerpt from a letter written by Thomas Belden to his prayer team after the FH Burundi journey to Africa with the coffee and education team early this summer. We have his permission to share this with you...

"The front line FH Burundi staff are amazing people. They get up every day and face a seemingly hopeless and complicated situation. It is only by Faith in God that they do it. They live their Faith fearlessly and with determination every day. I don't know how to fully express it in words but the situation that the people of Mufumya are in can only be solved by God. Mortal solutions would fall short. And we were blessed and humbled to see God's plan unfolding. Although I would be the first to admit that whatever God's plan for Burundi is, I don't know. It's like I was one grain of sand and I saw lots of other grains of sand there, but what the sand is for... building a beach, making a sand castle, or making windows I don't know. God's plan, God's time, and surrendering to God just resonated throughout the trip. It also applies here.

I understand poverty better. We all have our wealth and we all have our poverty. The key is to listen to your heart. Share your wealth where you feel it is needed most, recognize your poverty and work on it. In Mufumya, materially it is one of the poorest places on earth. But there is also an incredible amount of wealth there. I understand FH's Mission statement and I can say they live it: "To walk with churches, leaders and families in overcoming all forms of human poverty by living in healthy relationships with God and his creation." Relating it back to our culture we have a lot of material wealth. But one area, in general, that we are incredibly poor is 'living purpose.' Creating a story or 'mythology' that gives meaning to what we do. As an example, we celebrate Easter. Why? Yes Christ died for us and was resurrected from the dead. And then there is the whole Easter bunny thing. Again, I ask why? It's not that the historical event or the bunny don't have significance. It is a matter of how do we incorporate that significance into our life and live it. Poverty is not always about money. The trip really opened my eyes to my wealth and my poverty. The parable of the talents also resonated with me. What do we do with what was given us?

You may have heard the term 'walking with' bandied about. It is a big part of FH: 'At the core of all our activities is the philosophy of "walking with" rather than "doing for." The people of Burundi are a proud beautiful people. They don't need a hand out. They are in a tough situation in a lot of ways but most of the people I met are very strong and capable. SPAC partnering with FH and sending teams to Burundi is a wonderful thing. Sometimes when you are down just knowing someone else cares is a big help. There is also a practical component. Sometimes you just need someone to offer different tools to help tackle a problem. Standing with the people of Burundi was positive experience and we all learned and grew from it."

Good news!

Good news! The coffee team is currently en route to Brussels, Belgium! The men boarded a plane today around 7:30 Burundi time, and after an unexpected 90min delay during their stop-over in Nairobi, were back in the air again. They are due home in Edmonton (after stops in Brussels, Montreal and Toronto!), around 9:15pm Saturday evening. Praise God Dennis was able to sort out their canceled flights and get them back on track only a day behind schedule. We are trusting that the remaining flights will be on-time and that they will arrive safe and sound on schedule.

Thank you again for your continued prayers.


****The team actually arrives on FRIDAY evening, not Saturday. Apologies!

Delayed

Just a quick note to let you know that the coffee team has been delayed getting out of Burundi. Their Bujumbura - Brussels flight was canceled, which of course, means they will miss their connecting flights as well.

The guys are currently settling into another night in Bujumbura and working on getting flights sorted out for tomorrow. They are currently hoping to be on the 7:30pm (local time) flight out of Bujumbura tomorrow and are working out the details for the connecting flights. Please pray for those who are working diligently on getting things sorted out for them, and that they will be able to get flights out of Brussels without delays. Please also pray for lifted spirits and the ability to see what God might have in store for them as they spend an unexpected "bonus" day in Burundi!

Coffee Team - Last Day

The coffee team has just said goodnight and have settled into their hotel in the Bujumbura for their last night in Burundi. They arrived back down from Kayanza yesterday and have spent the past two days in debrief meetings and more coffee cuppings.

I have limited first-hand information on the details of the coffee-end of the trip, but from what I have heard, things with Poul went extremely well in his time with the coffee farmers, and although there are no easy solutions, there is a great deal of hope for the future! The team reported the farm visits and cuppings went very well, and the FH staff were very interested in Poul's valuable insight and expertise. Please continue to pray for this aspect of the partnership and that God might orchestrate some amazing things as a result of this trip!

Steve Mebs and Jason Deboski were been busy filming in Kayanza, and are excited about the many interviews they captured with FH staff, Coffee Farmers, parents of sponsor children etc. There are amazing stories to be told, and they can't wait to share them with you. One of those stories is about the long road the women and children walk, upwards of 2-3 times a day, to get water from a source about an hour away. Steve and Jason walked this road with some of the kids in the community to get a better understanding of how great the need is for a clean water source within the community, and how heartbreaking it is to see 3 and 4 year olds lugging gallons of water in dirty jugs up a dusty hill multiple times a day.

A high note for the team was the time they were able to spend with their sponsor children and their families. This can be an incredibly emotional time, when sponsors are able to see firsthand the immense need for sponsorship, as well as the amazing impact it has on not only their sponsor child and his or her family, but the community as a whole. 


Another highlight was their time at Mufumya Baptist Church on Sunday, here is a bit of their experience.


"They took an offering after the second sermon while waiting for the third to start. It was amazing. The first, included money and a 'first fruits' offering where ladies with baskets on their heads brought the first harvest in. They collect beans and keep them in storage for those who need them either due to poverty or emergency. This choked me up. People with nothing, giving their "firsts" away.

Sermon 3 was about to begin, but first the visitors were welcomed. Mike gave a little encouragement speech and opened with "Amahoro".  They loved his bad Kirundi and applauded!  Then he spoke about SPAC and FH, and told them that he was so pleased to announce that his son was with him on this trip.  They loved that too.  Then he mentioned that his son's wife had been to Mufumya in November, and that upon her return she told him that he had to come and visit. They exploded in applause!  It was so welcoming. Such a blessing. We have honored them, simply by visiting we have honoured them.

I was asked if I wanted to say a few words and I couldn't resist. I took the mic and told them "ne ei twan Jason".  They loved it!  Then I told them that my dad had been to Burundi 3 times and I have only been once and I already knew more Kirundi than he did. I thought they were going to make me mayor right there on the spot. They were laughing and clapping so loud, it was hilarious.

Then I got serious and told them I wanted to thank them. I wanted them to know that they had been a great encouragement to me. They had shown me what it meant to truly welcome someone. They had shown me what it meant to be in community and how to love each other, and that I have so much more to learn from them."





Please remember to keep this team in your prayers as they prepare to make the journey home tomorrow. Again, they have tight connections and a long, virtually non-stop trip ahead of them. Please pray for saftey, sleep and and some great debrief time together as they reflect on all God has done on this trip.


Thank you so much for praying both teams through these trips. Please continue to pray for the staff of FH Burundi, the people in the communities of Kayanza, and for God to be glorified in this partnership.


If you haven't done so already, you can get a sneak peek of some of the trip photos at www.stevemebs.com/photos


Blessings.

Coffee Team - Day 4

Here is an excerpt of an email I received from my husband yesterday morning  regarding their day. Our prayer is that your hearts will break alongside ours for this community, and that you will be encouraged by what this partnership is accomplishing!

Burundi Journal 4
July 12 9:15 pm

How do I ever begin to sum up today?
We left Buj and headed up to Kayanza. The drive was like nothing I have ever seen before. Gorgeous views of terraced hills and the road was bursting at the seams with people. Our driver had to have his hand on the horn the whole time, always warning people and vehicles he was coming with a hearty beep.

The road was tight and busy. And to top it off there were guys on bikes everywhere loaded up with goods. Huge long sticks, beer, bricks, potatoes, taking it all to market in Buj.  But the road is hilly and these guys were hauling. I mean HAULING. It was amazing and terrifying.

On to the day....
First we went to the terracing project that FH has led with community associations. It is amazing. These people know what they are doing. Steve shot a video of Philip (FH Burundi Program Director) while I interviewed. Amazing stuff.

This absolutely beautiful little girl ran over to us while we were filming and wanted to watch us. We were in the middle of a terrace and she was alone, so I shook her hand and told her she could watch but had to be quiet. She was so quiet and gentle and dressed in rags. She is burned into my memory. This adorable girl who has a future because FH is in her community helping her dad grow food for her. But she doesn't have much food, many other kids who showed up asked us for food meaning she was probably just as hungry but not bold enough to ask.  I can't stop thinking about her.

From there we went to the Amahoro (Peace) seed center. A potato farm and seed shelter site that was once destroyed in the war.  Hutus and Tutsis destroyed it while fighting each other. They now work hand in hand in 12 farming associations made up of 20 people each.  The results are profitable for them. We interviewed Jeremy, who is the led agronomist on the site and his hope for 5 years from now is that these farmers (who FH has selected because they are the most poor and vulnerable) will be able to buy their own hectare as an association. FH can then bring in 12 new associations. Jeremy was so proud of this work!  It was such an honor to watch him talk about his work. FH is doing a fantastic job here.

We got back to the Conference Centre, had dinner and then Philip told us about Burundi and its history with a power point presentation, and then we fired questions at him.
This man is amazing. He loves these people and has such a great perspective on how to help them.

I asked him what FH Burundi's greatest challenge is.  He mentioned a couple of things.

1) Budget is an issue. They work hard to keep overhead low, but even so they are short funded and cannot pay enough staff.

2) The people here can't see past today. They are war torn and have difficulty seeing past the day to day.  It is every man for himself, and this is a real problem. There is a social change that needs to happen, and it will have to happen at the youth level. This will be hard to implement but is so necessary. Another great reason to keep promoting the Child Sponsorship program and work at giving these kids some real hope for their futures.

He also mentioned the never-ending threat of war that exists here.

We all got up to lay hands on Philip and pray for him, and were all struck with emotion.  It was incredible.

It's hard to think that even though Philip and Yves are at the helm of this fantastic ship that is agile and well built and headed in the right direction, no one knows how far away the shore is, or exactly how they'll reach it. BUT! God has a vision and a future for these people, and my hope is that through this partnership and these trips, that vision and hope will spread like wildfire. Philip asked us to pray, and to be ambassadors for FH Burundi, and that is exactly what I plan to do.

“O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you!" Jeremiah 32:17

 

Coffee Team - Day 3 in Burundi

Just a quick note to say that the team made it safe and sound to Kayanza this morning, and after settling in they went on a tour of FH's Amahoro Seed Centre as well as a terracing project.


'Amahoro' is Kirundi for "peace", which is a fitting name for the centre that was completely destroyed during the years of ongoing civil wars Burundi has only recently emerged from, and has been completely restored. It is now used by an inter-tribe farming group, and one team member summed the centre up in one word, REDEMPTION. What a testimony to God's work in this country!

Tomorrow the men head for the hills (so-to-speak!), and will have their first full day in the Mufumya area visiting coffee-related projects, as well as some time for Steve Mebs to get video interviews with the parents of some of the children involved in FH's Child Sponsorship program. What an awesome opportunity to be able to talk one-on-one with these parents and get their perspective on the program, and how it's impacting their families and their community as a whole.

Please pray for safety, unity, wisdom, humility and the ability to capture God's vision for this community as the team gets right down to business on their first official day in the field.

More from the Educators

Today the Educators team returned safely to Bujumbura from Kayanza and spent the latter part of the day debriefing with the members of the incoming Coffee team. The Ed team had lots to share, and after a day of meetings and hearing about what an amazing time the Educators had, the Coffee team is now winding down for bed and getting ready to head up to Kayanza and experience things for themselves firsthand tomorrow morning.


Below is another re-cap from a member of the Education team. Everything I've heard from this team since they've been away has been over-the-top amazing. It seems as though their time spent with the teachers in Kayanza was an incredible blessing - for both sides!

This is exactly the kind of thing this partnership is all about. The relationships being formed, and the fruit that comes as a result of these relationships is what really brings about relevant and lasting change in both of the communities - Kayanza and Sherwood Park Alliance Church. It's a pretty incredible thing to be a part of!


"Burundi...what a life changing experience in so many ways. We traveled half way around the world to enter a totally different culture and totally different environment. Yet, in this different world, we find so much that is the same. We find a people who love and worship the same Lord that we do, and we find god's nature surrounding us everywhere we go. So different and yet so much the same.
It has been an honour and a privilege to come and work with the teachers of Mufumya...working side by side with them as we celebrate together the value of the student and the high calling of the teacher. To be able to honour them as they work toward changing their community one student at a time, has been an awesome experience. To also proudly stand with them as they congratulate their top students for their successes in front of their parents and community has been an unexpected privilege.
Although the learning environment can be different in so many ways, we find the hearts of the teachers to be the same. They overlook whatever burdens are before them, such as high class sizes (60-90 students), and poor resources, with a desire to do the best they can for each child in their care, helping them to become the person God designed them to be. What an honour it has been to share just a small part of that dream with them."
-Tom Howard 


Please keep both teams in your prayers as the Educators prepare to head back to Canada, and the Coffee team will be leaving tomorrow morning for their trip up to Kayanza. Please also continue to pray for strength, health and stamina for the FH Burundi staff who have been, and will continue to be taking excellent care of our teams during their stay.