I
DREAMED FOR AFRICA
Sonia Kabwa’s dreams for her homeland Burundi are realized
Sonia Kabwa’s dreams for her homeland Burundi are realized
As the church continues
to grow in Bujumbura, the capital of the Central African nation of Burundi,
one person fits the label of “mother of the sisters” there. Sonia Kabwa, a Burundian
national, was baptized in England and has been in the UK the entire period that
the Burundi church has been in existence. But it was she who invited to church
two other Burundian ladies who have then gone on to be abundantly fruitful in
Bujumbura.
Sonia grew up in Burundi but left there to pursue a degree in medicine in England, where she was baptized on the 9th of July, 1993 in the Oxford Church of Christ. A year later, while in Bujumbura for the memorial of her late father, Sonia met up with a friend of hers, Nicole. Nicole was studying in Abidjan, Ivory Coast but had returned to Burundi for the memorial of her late mother. In the process her father also passed away. At this extremely trying time for Nicole, Sonia had lengthy conversations with her and shared her faith with her. After the two left Burundi to resume their studies, Sonia wrote to Nicole from London and indicated the address of the Abidjan church.
Both Nicole and her sister Danielle went to church, studied the Bible, and became disciples. Danielle moved back to Bujumbura in 2000 to lead the women on the church planting. She invited to church and converted Prosper, Chantal, Jacky and Esperance (with the help of Chantal). Jacky in turn reached out to Yvonne and helped her become a disciple, Prosper invited Christelle, who got baptized, and Chantal invited Noella, who became a Christian. All these people’s baptisms can be traced back to the phone call and letter that Sonia sent to Nicole from Leeds.
A few years ago Sonia also reached out to her older sister, Eliane, who was also studying in England. Though she came to and enjoyed several church activities, Eliane was not willing to become a disciple. “My attitude towards Sonia,” says Eliane, “ was ‘what is this new approach to Christianity that you, my younger sister are teaching me?’ ” With time, though, things changed. “I think for me the turning point was my father’s death,” she adds. “It caused me to want to know more about life after death and about God.” And so she turned to her younger sister. The two were spending their summer vacation in Burundi at the time. “We were all very close to dad,” says Sonia, “and Eliane was still very shaken by it almost a year after his death. She asked me how I do it, said I had changed in many positive ways, and we started studying the Bible.”
Eliane attended Women’s Day shortly after returning to England and was baptized soon after, in September 1994. Sonia had prayed and fasted for her sister for a whole year. “Eliane is the person I was closest to in the whole world and we always shared everything. I had no doubt she would become a disciple but I became more fervent in my prayers when it took what I thought was a long time.”
Two-and-a-half years after her baptism, Eliane moved to Kampala, the capital of Uganda, to work. While there she reached out to Didi and Evelyne, Burundians college students who were on an English language internship in Uganda. Although the two did not become disciples while in Uganda, the seed had been sown. When the church was planted in Bujumbura shortly after the girls’ return to Burundi, they continued studying the Bible with the sisters there and got baptized.
As a young Christian Sonia dreamed of working for HOPEworldwide as a doctor and also desired to be part of the mission team to Bujumbura. Recently she visited Burundi and for the first time she got to meet her “daughters” in the Bujumbura church and to fellowship with the disciples in her homeland. She was moved. “It was so inspiring to see the unity in the church,” she said, “how quickly the brothers are rising up to lead, and how everyone is so excited and hungry for knowledge. It was more exciting than I can actually express. God has answered my prayers for Burundi even though I wasn’t on the mission team myself.” About Danielle Sonia says, “I didn’t even know that she had become a disciple until the day my sister (Eliane) told me about it on the phone when the mission team was already in Burundi in 2000! I am so inspired to see her leading the women in Bujumbura.” Sonia, now a qualified doctor, continues to hold to her dream of being part of a HOPEworldwide initiative in East Africa for AIDS patients. Quoting Philippians 3:10 she also says, “ I want to stay faithful, increase my knowledge of Christ, and share that knowledge with my people.” Sonia’s example shows us all that if we just step out on faith, compassion and a dream, you never know how much God can do through you using as little as a letter and a prayer! To God be the glory.
Sonia grew up in Burundi but left there to pursue a degree in medicine in England, where she was baptized on the 9th of July, 1993 in the Oxford Church of Christ. A year later, while in Bujumbura for the memorial of her late father, Sonia met up with a friend of hers, Nicole. Nicole was studying in Abidjan, Ivory Coast but had returned to Burundi for the memorial of her late mother. In the process her father also passed away. At this extremely trying time for Nicole, Sonia had lengthy conversations with her and shared her faith with her. After the two left Burundi to resume their studies, Sonia wrote to Nicole from London and indicated the address of the Abidjan church.
Both Nicole and her sister Danielle went to church, studied the Bible, and became disciples. Danielle moved back to Bujumbura in 2000 to lead the women on the church planting. She invited to church and converted Prosper, Chantal, Jacky and Esperance (with the help of Chantal). Jacky in turn reached out to Yvonne and helped her become a disciple, Prosper invited Christelle, who got baptized, and Chantal invited Noella, who became a Christian. All these people’s baptisms can be traced back to the phone call and letter that Sonia sent to Nicole from Leeds.
A few years ago Sonia also reached out to her older sister, Eliane, who was also studying in England. Though she came to and enjoyed several church activities, Eliane was not willing to become a disciple. “My attitude towards Sonia,” says Eliane, “ was ‘what is this new approach to Christianity that you, my younger sister are teaching me?’ ” With time, though, things changed. “I think for me the turning point was my father’s death,” she adds. “It caused me to want to know more about life after death and about God.” And so she turned to her younger sister. The two were spending their summer vacation in Burundi at the time. “We were all very close to dad,” says Sonia, “and Eliane was still very shaken by it almost a year after his death. She asked me how I do it, said I had changed in many positive ways, and we started studying the Bible.”
Eliane attended Women’s Day shortly after returning to England and was baptized soon after, in September 1994. Sonia had prayed and fasted for her sister for a whole year. “Eliane is the person I was closest to in the whole world and we always shared everything. I had no doubt she would become a disciple but I became more fervent in my prayers when it took what I thought was a long time.”
Two-and-a-half years after her baptism, Eliane moved to Kampala, the capital of Uganda, to work. While there she reached out to Didi and Evelyne, Burundians college students who were on an English language internship in Uganda. Although the two did not become disciples while in Uganda, the seed had been sown. When the church was planted in Bujumbura shortly after the girls’ return to Burundi, they continued studying the Bible with the sisters there and got baptized.
As a young Christian Sonia dreamed of working for HOPEworldwide as a doctor and also desired to be part of the mission team to Bujumbura. Recently she visited Burundi and for the first time she got to meet her “daughters” in the Bujumbura church and to fellowship with the disciples in her homeland. She was moved. “It was so inspiring to see the unity in the church,” she said, “how quickly the brothers are rising up to lead, and how everyone is so excited and hungry for knowledge. It was more exciting than I can actually express. God has answered my prayers for Burundi even though I wasn’t on the mission team myself.” About Danielle Sonia says, “I didn’t even know that she had become a disciple until the day my sister (Eliane) told me about it on the phone when the mission team was already in Burundi in 2000! I am so inspired to see her leading the women in Bujumbura.” Sonia, now a qualified doctor, continues to hold to her dream of being part of a HOPEworldwide initiative in East Africa for AIDS patients. Quoting Philippians 3:10 she also says, “ I want to stay faithful, increase my knowledge of Christ, and share that knowledge with my people.” Sonia’s example shows us all that if we just step out on faith, compassion and a dream, you never know how much God can do through you using as little as a letter and a prayer! To God be the glory.