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Nzunga’s & Kihomi’s Mothers
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Kihomi, Nzunga’s Mother, Nzunga
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Kihomi with her Mother
Dear Loved Ones,
Peace of our risen Lord and greeting from us, the Nzunga.
We want to express our deep gratitude to those in our office for allowing us to go back to Congo after 13 years of ministries in Haiti. Our thanks go to those who sacrificially gave to pay our way home. You will never imagine what it meant to us to go home and spend time with family members.
We were happy to be home but home looked strange in many ways. Those we left babies have grown with no idea of who we were. Many young people (nieces and nephews) are parents of 3, 4 children now. Some of our good friends are no longer there. Some of them have gone to be with the Lord. By looking at those who are still there, we see how we all have aged or to make fun of ourselves “we have matured”.
The first Sunday we were at our church, we were greeted by a girl we left with no hope of her becoming a person. Today she is sophomore in college. Because of our love of the children, the girl is still called and well known by “Ma Pasteur”, Pastor’s wife, the name I use to call her then. To our big surprise, on our last day, this girl bought a Congolese shirt for me and a wrap around for Kihomi. Women of the church showered Kihomi with nice and fine Congolese outfits.
We were happy to see that our church is in the hands of the youth, those who were students then. The choirs have grown and we were happy to hear and dance the familiar tunes we used to worship and praise the Lord with when we we there. People are happy in their churches in spite of the hardship of life.
Everywhere we went and every body who visited us opened the conversation with a prayer. They shared how much they always pray for us, especially after the earthquake in Haiti.
It was weird how we reacted to everything as though people in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Congo RDC, were suffering of cholera epidemic. Drinking water has to be boiled and food served hot.
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Kihomi’s mother looks still as strong as she was years ago. She is happy in her role of deaconess and the children of the village have adopted her as the grandma to all. They play and joke with her anytime. Everybody calls her Denise.
The years have taken their toll on my mother. At around 80 years old, her mind is still as clear as it was when I was growing up. The body is fragile and her hands a little bit shaky. She never misses her church services. She pronounced our last prayer, the prayer of separation. Will we have another chance to see our mothers? Time will tell!
Thank you for allowing us to visit with family members. We will always remember your sacrifice which came out of your love to us. Without your assistance, we would still be here wondering about when we will see those who brought us into this world.
Yours serve in Haiti.
Nzunga & Kihomi
Dear Friends of Nzunga & Kihomi,
The Lord has blessed our efforts to support these two great servants of the Lord. In the almost two years since we formed their Missionary Partnership Team we have seen a generator go into service at the eye clinic, funds are available for a vehicle to use in the ministry, and we are at 87% of the necessary on-going support to keep them in the field. Many other projects such as the Kids for Kids are doing well.
However the love you have shown them by donating to send them home to visit their mothers and other relatives after 13 years of separation is really unbelievable. One could argue that this is not part of their ministry and the funds could have been used elsewhere, however I think otherwise. Taking care of our missionaries as we would our own families and refreshing their spirits so they can be renewed to carry on their ministry should be a high priority.
When the MPT was formed and I knew of this situation I wanted to do something about it. At the time it was thought that we had too many crucial needs to add this “nice but not critical” project. So we waited until the ministry was on a firmer financial foundation before we asked you to consider doing this. Your response was fantastic and I received so many notes supporting this endeavor that I am overwhelmed.
I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
In His Name,
Peace of our risen Lord and greeting from us, the Nzunga.
We want to express our deep gratitude to those in our office for allowing us to go back to Congo after 13 years of ministries in Haiti. Our thanks go to those who sacrificially gave to pay our way home. You will never imagine what it meant to us to go home and spend time with family members.
We were happy to be home but home looked strange in many ways. Those we left babies have grown with no idea of who we were. Many young people (nieces and nephews) are parents of 3, 4 children now. Some of our good friends are no longer there. Some of them have gone to be with the Lord. By looking at those who are still there, we see how we all have aged or to make fun of ourselves “we have matured”.
The first Sunday we were at our church, we were greeted by a girl we left with no hope of her becoming a person. Today she is sophomore in college. Because of our love of the children, the girl is still called and well known by “Ma Pasteur”, Pastor’s wife, the name I use to call her then. To our big surprise, on our last day, this girl bought a Congolese shirt for me and a wrap around for Kihomi. Women of the church showered Kihomi with nice and fine Congolese outfits.
We were happy to see that our church is in the hands of the youth, those who were students then. The choirs have grown and we were happy to hear and dance the familiar tunes we used to worship and praise the Lord with when we we there. People are happy in their churches in spite of the hardship of life.
Everywhere we went and every body who visited us opened the conversation with a prayer. They shared how much they always pray for us, especially after the earthquake in Haiti.
It was weird how we reacted to everything as though people in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Congo RDC, were suffering of cholera epidemic. Drinking water has to be boiled and food served hot.
/
Kihomi’s mother looks still as strong as she was years ago. She is happy in her role of deaconess and the children of the village have adopted her as the grandma to all. They play and joke with her anytime. Everybody calls her Denise.
The years have taken their toll on my mother. At around 80 years old, her mind is still as clear as it was when I was growing up. The body is fragile and her hands a little bit shaky. She never misses her church services. She pronounced our last prayer, the prayer of separation. Will we have another chance to see our mothers? Time will tell!
Thank you for allowing us to visit with family members. We will always remember your sacrifice which came out of your love to us. Without your assistance, we would still be here wondering about when we will see those who brought us into this world.
Yours serve in Haiti.
Nzunga & Kihomi
Dear Friends of Nzunga & Kihomi,
The Lord has blessed our efforts to support these two great servants of the Lord. In the almost two years since we formed their Missionary Partnership Team we have seen a generator go into service at the eye clinic, funds are available for a vehicle to use in the ministry, and we are at 87% of the necessary on-going support to keep them in the field. Many other projects such as the Kids for Kids are doing well.
However the love you have shown them by donating to send them home to visit their mothers and other relatives after 13 years of separation is really unbelievable. One could argue that this is not part of their ministry and the funds could have been used elsewhere, however I think otherwise. Taking care of our missionaries as we would our own families and refreshing their spirits so they can be renewed to carry on their ministry should be a high priority.
When the MPT was formed and I knew of this situation I wanted to do something about it. At the time it was thought that we had too many crucial needs to add this “nice but not critical” project. So we waited until the ministry was on a firmer financial foundation before we asked you to consider doing this. Your response was fantastic and I received so many notes supporting this endeavor that I am overwhelmed.
I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
In His Name,
Dennis Shewell
Mission Partnership Team Communications Advocate and Convener
Nzunga and Kihomi Ministry
E-mail: jdshewell@hughes.net
Phone: 812-569-1352
Other team Members:
Les Roberson
Diana Peysha
Shawna Gorman
Terry Bivens-Fry
Charles Newman