Rwandan Vineyard's Discipleship for Developement

The weather has been strange here in Rwanda lately. We seem to have missed out on a dry season altogether. Two of the small groups from our church have embarked on a very ambitious business scheme. They have rented more than 5 acres of land and are preparing to plant beans as a first crop. Not too much profit but safe. It is hard back breaking work to get the land ready for the first planting but future crops will be much easier as 'Farming God's Way' does not require digging again. We are praying for the rain to hold off another few days to get the rest of our 80 kg of beans planted. We are short on fertilizer so we are fertilizing with prayer also. Please add your prayers to ours that this aspect of God's kingdom among us will bear as much fruit as the lives that have been changed through faith in Jesus. The picture shows 9 members of our Tuesday group preparing the soil for planting.

Coventry Vineyard Visit

For the past week we have been blessed with 2 visitors from the UK. Germain Ndaruhutse who is a Rwandan living in England and Nick Sutton who pastors the Coventry Vineyard with his wife Vicki have been checking out our development projects and doing training with some of our small groups. We've been to visit 3 genocide memorial sites and have had some great times of fellowship. Our Sunday service ended with a time of real celebration where most of the congregation including Germain danced in the traditional Rwandan style. Afterwards we got together for a group photo with Nick in the center. We look forward to developing a lasting relationship with the Coventry Vineyard.

Gathered at the shore of Lake Muhazi

A few weeks ago we had our second Baptism ceremony on a sunny Saturday morning and this time we decided to go to Lake Muhazi about 40 km outside Kigali. We hired 2 busses and pickup was at 9.00 am by our Church. Some who wished to come were disappointed and we ended up with 47 people at the lake. We arrived at 10.30 and had to take a number of boats to the other side as there were fewer reeds and less chance of snails carrying bilharzias (one of the many less desirable tropical diseases in this area).

We had 17 people who were baptized and it was a very joyous occasion. The busses and the boats reverberated with songs of praise. At church the following day we heard many powerful testimonies of God's wonderful work in bringing people into a life enriching relationship with Him.

Brendan lending a hand

Brendan spent this morning peeling potatoes and serving a meal to 150 orphans at a local AIDS widows and orphan ministry run by our friend Chrissy. Afterwards all the children were given a box of treats and a sweater to bring home. Brendan was very pleased to be able to serve.

Wishing you all a Joyful Christmas Season and Blessed New Year

We would like to wish all our family and friends a joyful Christmas holiday and a New Year filled with God's blessings. We will put out a newsletter in the New Year and let you know how our Christmas in Rwanda has been. Many thanks again for the wonderful support and encouragement we have received this past year.

In Christ,           

Patrick, Valerie, Joel and Brendan

 

Welcome

A warm welcome to all the folks who joined our Google Groups to get regular updates about what is happening with the Vineyard in Rwanda. We hope to keep you all well informed with developments in and around our small community. We greatly appreciate your interest and support and hope you will visit us regularly on our website. Seasons greetings and God's blessing be with each one of you.

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Rwandan baskets

Esperance has recently completed a course in basket weaving. This is a sample of some of her work. We want to help her get set up with her own business in the New Year. The basket with the lid is woven from very fine Aloe Vera fiber, takes about a week to make and sells for $10 here in Rwanda. Esperance is supporting her 4 children while her husband is doing community service.  

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