Cell group Bible study

My last blog ended with me heading for the cell group Bible study. (A "cell" consists of a few or many households in one area)

When Ryan and I left I was in a bad mood. I still hadn't shaken off my funk from earlier, and we were missing dinner. It was also raining and getting dark so slipped and dodged muddy puddles on our walk up the hill. Fiona was delayed by traffic and so we waited in the sogginess for a while. When she came we started walking down the road to the home of the cell group leader. We were let inside the gate of a compound that had a very nice building. The building was sectioned off into apartments so we walked up to the sliding door of the correct apartment.

We were let in to a simple, but very nice and spotless living room/ dining room. The house belonged to an Indian couple that go to CLA (the church we visited). They moved here 10 years ago, and both husband and wife are professors in Kigali. They were incredibly welcoming and sweet. We waited about an hour for more people to show up, but only one other Rwandan came, her name was Anita. Everyone else didn't come because it was raining. It seems that Africans really don't enjoy getting wet. The six of us talked for a long time. It was a lot of fun. We snacked on spicy puffed rice that was delicious. Hilde, the wife, is a nutritionist, so we talked a lot about food and eating habits. I mentioned that I was missing milk and so she jumped up and boiled me a glass of fresh milk. It was delicious! People here are the ultimate hosts, going completely out of their way to serve their guests.

We started the Bible study at least an hour and a half after we got there. They passed out sheets of music and we sang some praise songs together. American, Indian, and Rwandan voices raised together to worship God. It was great. Then we all gave testimonies of how God has been working in our lives. We also talked about the sermon given on Sunday and how we were being good stewards in our lives. Hilde was a very good listener. When she prayed for all of us she has such wonderful and insightful things to say about everyone in the group. I had a great time, and I plan on going back while I am here.

Anita drove us to our road, but it was too muddy and pot-hole-y for her to drive us the rest of the way, so Ryan and I walked. I was in a significantly better mood when I got back to the house. I ate some leftovers and played cards with people. I talked to Mom and then Dad, which was great. I am wishing them the very best as they travel to Colorado tomorrow for Opa's funeral.

On an exciting note, my brother Argusto, who is being adopted from Haiti, might be able to finally come home soon. We are trying not to get our hopes up, but Argusto had an appointment with the US Embassy to do one final review of his documents. If everything goes well, he could be approved to come to the US this week! We are praying that this is the case. March 13th is his 18th birthday. It would be amazing if he could be home for that. Say a prayer for us!