In December, I had the privilege of meeting some amazing men and women while in Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Conga (DRC).  I’ll be sharing some of these stories in this and future blog posts.

Originally from Burundi, Dr. M and his family, fled to Zaire (now DRC) when war invaded his home land.  Despite the difficulty of being in a new land, he established a thriving medical practice.  He and his family were doing well.Then it happened again, another war.  This time in the DRC.  There was no chance of fleeing to refuge in another country, as neighboring Rwanda was having its own problems.  Today we call it Genocide.

With no other option, Dr M., his wife and five children fled to the Equatorial Forest with only the clothes on their back.  The Equatorial Forest had its own challenges, food was scarce to non-existent. Dr. M. told me he often told the children they were going to pray and fast for several days because they didn’t have food to feed them.  When they did find a snake, wild mushrooms or wild herbs they rejoiced for God’s provision.  Another struggle of living in the forest was dealing with its primitive inhabitants, the tribal people still ruled by kings who were not fond of outsiders.

Over time, he began developing relationships with the tribes and their kings.  People, somehow from outside the forest, were able to bring him medicines and salt.   He used the medicines to provide medical care to the tribal people and the salt as gifts for the kings.  The tribes began to watch out for the doctor and his family, warning him if the guerrillas were coming and their need to flee.  The time in the forest drew Dr. M closer to God and he committed his entire live to serving Him.  He began by sharing the gospel with the tribes.  Several churches were planted and are going strong today.

Today, Dr. M and his family have returned to their homeland of Burundi.

They have begun rebuilding and the growth is phenomenal.  In fact, he now owns several acres of land which God provided, fulfilling His promise.  He said, “When I was in the forest I had a dream.  In the dream I returned to Burundi with my family, we had much land.  On this land we built a church, our family home, a medical clinic and multi-room hospital, a guest house and even land to raise animals to provide food for him, his families, the pastors working with him and guests.”  The land has been provided as people would come to him and say, “You have to buy my land.  I do not want it.”  He would tell them he didn’t have the money, but the land owner would refuse and they would set up a contract of payments.  God would send the doctor patients, and piece by piece he has acquired the land.

His wife, not an architect, has been leading the construction, now working to complete the hospital and their family home after finishing the medical clinic and guest house.   She told me, “I will have a dream and so I’ll tell the guys what to do and that is how we have been going step by step.”  They have a church with branches in DRC, Burundi and even China.  They have several animals including chickens, turkeys, cows and goats.  God is fulfilling His word to them.

But, they are not done.  There remains a need.  “We have many churches, but are people are not adequately trained.  We know we need more training to strengthen our church.  We have heard about the Bible schools you have started with Pastor Felix in Uganda and DRC.  When will you bring us a one so we can train our people and strengthen our churches?”

Personal Reflection:  Doctor M and his family are passionate about the Lord.  They’ve suffered much but their hearts have remained soft.  In fact, it was because of the hard times that they really began to seek God.  It just makes me think, how am I handling my difficult times?  Am I becoming hard or I am allowing God to use them to shape me for His purposes and glory.  Diamonds are created with the right amount of pressure and variables, over time.  Could it be that some of my difficult or maybe your difficult circumstances or pressures are just the thing He is using to mold us into His image?