Go in Peace?

Finally found some internet! In fact, not just internet, but electricity! We've been out in the sticks for the last week, so facebook and all those luxuries have been hard to come by! But it's been a great week. We have been running a pastors conference in reconciliation and peacebuilding, and it was an incredible time. The team has done amazingly, really stepping up to the plate and preparing so well for the talks we've been taking. I've been so impressed and blessed by seeing them work so well as a team and also individuals this week!

However, the interesting thing is that it was a week that very nearly didn't happen!

Cast your mind back a week to Sunday morning. Rema Ministries, the team running the conference has arrived and is packing our stuff on top of their landrover ready to leave in a few minutes. At this point in time, someone hands me the number for the US embassy in Bujumbura. I call them to make sure that it was okay for us to travel upcountry, what with the trouble that had been going on. He tells me that there is NO WAY we should be travelling upcountry, and that they are currently ''hunkered down'' in town! So, this changes things for us.... I gathered the team together and we sat down and talked and prayed about this recent development. As you can imagine, we were a little on edge...

We prayed and felt God telling us to ''go in peace and protection", but i remained very aware of this warning from the embassy... We asked the head of the ministry Theo, an incredible man, what he thought. He called the 2nd in command of the police in Burundi! We're running in well connected circles! And HE said the compelte opposite of the embassy, that upcountry was completey safe and the city is the dangerous place! So, we are faced with this crazy decision... Two pretty reputable sources saying completely differnet things! So, what could we do?
We went to prayer again, and heard the same thing, that we should go in peace. After a quick early morning wake up call to the head of YWAM NI back in Belfast to confirm our decision, we decided to go with the advice of those on the ground in Bujumbura, and who likely know the situation, and headed upcountry!

We believe we made a wise decision and one based on God and His plan for this outreach. And we were so blessed by this past week of ministry and the pastors we met, that we realised that this truly was God's plan for us this past week.

We recognize God's hand in our outreach and the things that have happened, that He truly has been our protector! Things are still touch and go in Burundi, so we appreciate your continued prayer and thoughts!

We are staying and working in an incredible Youth for Christ orphanage this week, the kids are amazing, and we're looking forward to playing with and learning from them, seeing God's face in them this week after the pastors last week!

Hope all is well wherever you read this from,

Blessings,

tom