Rwanda- here we come!

Well, I guess you can feel the excitement.  The anticipation.  Waking up in the night with a groggy determination to remember to pack your water bottle, pick up a month's supply of your medication or cancel the mail from the 13-20th.  Those have been before are more overwhelmed than those who have not.  

We remember the flotilla of children, the babble of the language we could not begin to understand, unlike "hola" or "au revoir", and the eyes.......the eyes of the children that melt your heart, confirm why you came, and encourage you to action.  They tug at your heartstrings unlike anything I have ever known.  They are hopeless, yet happy.  They are needy, yet so giving.  They are reserved, yet welcoming.  They are an oxymoron, and I cannot wait to see them again.  I don't know about you, but my prayers this time have been for the hearts of the children.  I have begged the Holy Spirit to go before us, to prepare the way and to change hearts, lives, and a country.  

Also, please be in prayer for Satan to be bound as we head down the final stretch.  He seems to want to discourage, thwart and inhibit every trip especially right before we go.  Please pray for God's protection, especially for our fellow traveler, David Mattingly.  


His arm is not too short.  Ours are.  Thankfully we are not there to change hearts.  God is.  We are not there to teach.  God is.  We are not there to change a generation.  God is.  So, whatever insecurities you may be feeling, whatever limitations you are focused on, whatever frustrations you are concentrating on, remember, YOU are not in charge.  God has picked you to go.  He will do the work.  Praise and glory to the Lord Jesus. 


For Him, 
Sam Olson

Rwanda Update 3-18-2012

These strapping young men kept watch over our bags during our time in the cathedral. They are the discipline enforcers!

A shot of part of the cathedral full of children! You can barely see Charles, one of the better translators, holding the red microphone in front of the hanging canvas. Rachel the Banana is in front of the canvas, out of sight in this picture.

A sea of children, and this wasn't even all of them!