Dear family and friends,
Blessed New Year to you all. There is something gracious and hopeful about a new year. This was demonstrated to me recently as I sat on my porch with the rain pouring off the roof. It had been raining off and on for days, a most unusual event here in Rwanda. The end of December should have been the end of the rains with only occasional showers as the dry season approaches. But that has not been the case this year. The heavy rains continued throughout December. The last Sunday of Advent the rain began about 3 a.m. and by 8 a.m., when we were gathering for worship, it was coming in torrents. People do not brave going out in the heavy rains. They are smart enough to wait them out, if possible. I did not wait. I was responsible for the service, so I forged through the downpour, soaked by the time I reached the chapel, just a block away. Seven of us gathered for worship as the rain pounded the windows and roof and seeped through to puddle on the floor. Only in the late afternoon did it let up.
On Christmas Day just as my dinner guests arrived, the rain began again. We had 38 diners from 13 different countries sharing the joy of Emmanuel’s coming. We were blessed to have no water damage but in Kigali, seven people were swept away in the flooding and many houses were damaged. The next day, I heard something that surprised me - the song of a lone bird. Many birds nest in the trees in my yard and sing me awake every morning unless it is raining. These birds do not sing until the rain stops. But this morning, in the downpour, a song rang out. There, in the midst of the storm, rang out a voice of hope. The rain did not stop for several hours, but the song and the hope continued in my mind. Since then, the rains have begun to taper off.
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