_ this is the first day of my life.: I don't want to study...

You know I'm really looking for a distraction when I turn to my blog to occupy my attention. I'm really not a good blogger - I realize this. I just get baffled with how quickly time slips by. I mean, I feel like I just posted on here last week!

Anyway, the reason I'm blogging now is because I don't want to do what I ought to be doing (Romans 7, anyone?), which is studying. On Monday I am scheduled to take the GRE (Graduate Record Exam), a standardized test that is required for admission to graduate school. I'm applying to grad school - have I mentioned that? Well, I'm supposed to be studying but am in need of a little motivation. And hey, blogging totally counts as practicing for the essay portion of the exam, right?

I do actually want to report on a trip that I took to Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last week. It was great! A group of us went down - it was me, Shelah, Harriet, two psychiatrists/counselors/professors/pastors extraordinaire and their wives. We were holding a 2-day conference for about 40 pastors and ministry leaders on counseling people who have been traumatized by war and conflict. The participants were primarily from Goma in Eastern Congo, where there has been terrible violence and war for decades. Others came from Rwanda, which is itself still healing from the tragic genocide of 1994.

The conference went very well, though it seemed like the pastors would have liked to stay for weeks to continue learning. At one point they were asked to raise their hand if they themselves have suffered traumatic experiences, and nearly every hand in the place was raised. They were asked to write their stories down as part of the healing process, and the accounts they gave were shocking. I can't even imagine being in their position - being charged with shepherding people through such difficult times when they themselves are also the victims. Please pray for these leaders as they have gone back to their flocks, that God would use them to bring a message of hope, healing and forgiveness to those He has put in their path.

The day after the conference was an extremely exciting day for me. We went across the Rwandan border into DRC for a one-day whirlwind tour through Goma, the provincial capital. Goma has been the site of very intense fighting between government and rebel troops over the last year, and to visit such a place was utterly fascinating to me.

Before we even crossed into Congo, the roar of low-flying aircrafts carrying relief supplies drew my eyes to the sky. I actually saw "blue helmets" - United Nations peacekeepers who are known for their blue berets and helmets. There were trucks loaded with them all around the city. And merchants selling endless sacks of USAID grain lined the sides of terribly potted, muddy roads.

The real reason I was excited, though, was because we got to meet some of the secondary students we are sponsoring in school there. A small group of demobilized child soldiers awaited us at the Shalom Church in Goma, which we are partnering with to serve these students. DRC is a French-speaking country, and oh how I wished I had studied French at that moment! It was great to see these guys, but far too short. It also became interesting when about 8 other demobilized soldiers showed up at the church and kindly requested that they could also be sponsored in school. This was one of those times when I wished money grew out of my ears, because we just don't have the resources to support any more students right now. That was hard. But because we only had one day in Goma and had to make it back over the border that afternoon, we had to move quickly. We had other places to visit.

At the church we also met a women's group which has organized to reach out to women and girls who have been raped, visited a center where rape victims can receive treatment and rehabilitation (rape is terribly widespread in DRC), and saw the church's health clinic. Another highlight was getting pulled over by police twice during our day in Goma and having to bribe our way out both times. Corruption is also rampant in DRC.

By the time our few short hours in DRC were over and we crossed two more borders - through Rwanda and back into Uganda - I couldn't get that place off my mind. Even now, my memory is prodding my imagination with thoughts of what could be done there. Good grief, I haven't even left yet and already I'm thinking about coming back!

Again, please pray for the people in Goma. Pray for peace to finally find a foothold there, for reconciliation among the people and for wounds of every kind to be healed.

To read a bit more about the trip, see my post on the Refuge & Hope blog. Here are some photos from the trip: