CRESTVIEW — A survivor of the 1994 genocide and civil war in Rwanda, East Africa will speak at two local events on behalf of Operation Christmas Child, a program run by Samaritan's Purse.

Alex Nsengimana, 28,  will speak at 6 p.m. June 24 at Woodlawn Baptist Church, 824 Ferdon Blvd. N., Crestview. His second presntation is 10 a.m. June 25 at the Convergence Coffee House, 498 Wilson St N., Crestview.

"A lot of people here pack shoeboxes, but they never get a chance to see the other side, so we hope to share the impact of that shoebox…so that more people can get a chance to participate.

"Because each and every time a shoebox is packed, that's a chance for a child to receive a shoebox like I did. That's what I get a chance to do," he said. 

Creating new memories

A Samaritan's Purse video of Nsengimana's experiences during the war and his work with OCC is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo-oz_IYZWA.

Nsengimana, his brother Fils, and sister Lillian lived with their grandmother and two uncles in Kigali, Rwanda's capital. They saw two of them, his grandmother and one of his uncles, killed by their neighbors, members of the militia in Rwanda.

They were among almost one million people killed from April 6 through July 4, 1994, making over 400,000 children orphans.

Nsengimana and his brother came to live in an orphanage with 250 other children, and his sister lived with friends of the family.

They lived at the orphanage for several years, and it was where he received his OCC shoebox.

"I remember I was so excited, because we still had to hold it until everybody had got one, but for some of us we had to hold our presents for about five minutes, five long minutes," he said.

School supplies, hygiene items, toy cars, balls, coloring books, paintbrushes, and other items were inside.

"At 7 years old living in an orphanage, we really didn't have that many toys to play with, so the shoebox items brought us that joy. They reminded us that we are cared for—we are loved, and it gave us something to hold on to.

"And it planted new memories in our mind, because of what had happened during the war and what…was so traumatic that the shoebox became an opportunity to plant new memories in our lives."

The items themselves had lasting value for Nsengimana.

"One of my favorite items was a hair comb that I kept for the next three years … I would take it everywhere I went for the next three years. That's how special the items were." 

After Nsengimana and his siblings survived their experiences, two came to the U.S. He and his wife are Minnesota residents and his brother lives in Wisconsin. His sister lives in Rwanda with her family, including two sons.

"I'm a very blessed uncle and I get a chance to see them every time I go back," he said.

As an OCC spokesperson, he has met other shoebox recipients as well.

"It is so encouraging to see all of us shoebox recipients coming out and sharing a very unique story of how that shoebox made a difference in our lives, made an impact (and) launched a process in our lives of hope and love," Nsengimana said.

Since the OCC ministry started in 1993, volunteers have packed over 157 million shoeboxes and distributed them all over the world.

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This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Christmas shoebox helped genocide survivor create new memories

CRESTVIEW — Milligan residents Kim and Rick Shelley are requesting prayers and support for their family and the people of Guatemala since the Fuego volcano erupted there June 3.

The couple has two sons, Chris, 30, a project manager who lives in Crestview, and Stephen, 27. Stephen and his wife, Michelle, are missionaries in Guatemala.

Kim, Rick and Stephen answered the following questions.

When you first learned your son was moving to Guatemala, how did you react?

KIM: At first, I didn’t want him to go because it is so far away. As his mom, I wished he lived closer, but I know God has called Stephen and Michelle to the mission field.

RICK: Stephen was called by God to the mission field back in 2014. He went on an 11-month mission trip called "The World Race" that took him to several countries in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Central America, including Guatemala. I remember being apprehensive, and prayed at first only for his safety, but one day stopped in mid-prayer. If I wanted him just to "stay safe," I should have tried to talk him out of going in the first place … Shortly after (the World Race and a) few months of training, he returned to Antigua, Guatemala, high in the mountains just west of Guatemala City. He has been there ever since.

How did you first hear about the Guatemala volcano?

KIM: We were talking with Stephen and Michelle on FaceTime right as the volcano was erupting! They were driving, held up the phone, turned the camera around, and their windshield was trying in vain to wipe away the volcanic ash.

RICK: Volcan de Fuego ("Volcano of Fire") is about 10 miles west of where Stephen and Michelle live … [They] were headed home due to respiratory and other concerns associated with the volcanic ash, but were not in any immediate danger otherwise. They described it as tiny rocks falling from the sky.

We checked back a couple of hours later, and they were hunkered down indoors until the ash fall stopped. Note that Antigua, Guatemala is on the east side of Volcan de Fuego; the devastation we have heard about and seen on the news is primarily on the west side, as the lava and pyroclastic flows head toward the Pacific Ocean.

How did you end up living in Guatemala? What do you do there?

STEPHEN: My wife and I both felt called to come to Guatemala when we were still single. (They met in 2016 and got married in Antigua in January 2018.) We both originally were sent through an organization called Adventures in Missions. We recently transitioned into a staff position with an international church plant called Shoreline City Antigua. Their main campus is in Dallas, Texas. We work with their church plant in Guatemala, Shoreline City Antigua. It launched officially about 15 months ago. We lead worship for the church, as well as are heading up the church's relief efforts in response to the eruption.

How much danger were you and the people you work with/assist in when the volcano erupted? How has it affected your day-to-day life there?

STEPHEN: The volcano erupted Sunday around noon. We were finishing our Sunday service in Antigua when ash and debris began to fall on the town for about an hour. We drove home through the ash fall thinking it was a bigger eruption than normal. (Fuego erupts often, but not at this magnitude.) We found out the next day that areas west of the volcano were hit hard and covered heavily from the pyroclastic flow (this is the fast moving mixture of rock, gas, and lava with scorching temperatures close to the eruption). Antigua is … still susceptible to more ash from further eruptions. Some major roads near the affected areas were closed for safety concerns as damage is still being assessed and rescue efforts continue.

What's the top priority for yourself and the mission organization you work for now?

STEPHEN: Over the next few weeks, we will be contacting disaster relief groups, as well as various other ministries and organizations, to see how we can best allocate any disaster relief funds we have collected. Shoreline City Dallas has set us up for people to give online toward our volcano relief fund.

How to help

Visit shorelinecity.church/pushpay and use the Guatemala Volcano relief tab to give easily and quickly online, Stephen Shelley said. All funds will go toward the relief efforts in helping Guatemalans who were affected.

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This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Milligan couple requests prayer, support after Guatemala volcano erupts

Why do some people not tell the truth? Why do some people do things behind another’s back? Why do some people try to manipulate friends or acquaintances to say or do things they normally wouldn’t? 

Sometimes it is because they are trying to cover their tracks and not get caught or blamed for something they did wrong. Skew the facts. Deflect the suspicion onto someone else. 

Sometimes they want to make someone else look bad in a fit of jealousy or rage. 

Sometimes it is because they want to gain something for their own selfish pleasure or advancement. 

I go back to my question. Why?

It’s because we live in a broken world. Since the beginning of humanity humans have always thought they knew better than God. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were not satisfied with what God provided, so they disobeyed in order to get more.

God set down expectations for how God wants humanity to live. Far too many thought they knew better and fell hard from grace. 

God continuously pursued humanity, doing his best to have people freely return to him and live in his grace. Yet, his attempts fell on mostly deaf ears.

Yes, God created a perfect world for us. And we broke it. And when things don’t go right? When tragedies strike, when plans don’t go our way, when murder and injustice and hatred all rear their ugly heads – who gets blamed? God!

Friends, it is not God’s fault!! It is ours.

We are the ones who don’t tell the truth; who manipulate persons and circumstances; who sneak around in the darkness doing unspeakable things; who seek pleasures at the expense of others.

 God does not force anyone to do those things. People freely choose to do them. And such choices, I am sure, break God’s heart.

 But God does not – and has not – given up his pursuit of humanity. God came in Jesus Christ to show us how to live, act, and react. God comes in the presence of his Holy Spirit to give us wisdom and courage to live as he desires.

Just as God has not given up on any of us, don’tgive up on him. If you will live by the “royal law,” you will find what God desires. The royal law says, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If we all did this, imagine what this world would be like.

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: How to live, act, and react

Psalm 42:1-2 states, "As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God."

Many of us have been thirsty during our lifetime, but have you ever been so thirsty that all you could think about was having something to drink? I have. It is a terrible feeling. The tongue becomes dry. The throat feels like sandpaper.

The body starts to react in ways it is unaccustomed. The brain starts to cry out, "When will this horrible feeling end? When will this thirst be quenched?" Satisfaction becomes an obsession.

That is how much our souls long for God. The soul cries out as it longs to be fed and nourished by God. It longs to be satisfied in a way that can be provided only by God.

If you feel a restlessness that you seem to not be able to satisfy, if you feel as though something is missing from your life but just don’t seem to know what it is, I dare say you are hungering and thirsting for the living waters that flow from God.

In order to find the comfort you are seeking, you must consciously avail yourself to pathways of nourishment. You must take steps to allow God’s life-giving water flow into your heart, mind, and soul: read the Bible, pray, make time for silence, worship.

Our God will satisfy the longing of your heart. He will grant you more fulfillment in life. He will quench the thirst of your soul.

Psalms 42 verse 11 says, "Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.

Yes, put your hope and trust in our Lord. He has promised to hold you in the palm of his hand and satisfy the longing of your heart. Trust his promise. It’s a good one!

The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Hope and trust in God