Family & Friends,

As you know from the last Fortnightly, I had to put away my loin cloth and nose ring and preached in a dress shirt and tie in Kagayo, Rwanda.  They announced that “Dr G.G.” was the speaker.  The added G came from my new Rwandan moniker, Gasangwa.  So it went from Dr G to Dr G.G.  My Bible had red dust on it from the group dance which send a plume up and of course it came down.  What a joy to tell a story that God said everyone in the world should hear.  I summarized the parable of the lost coin and the lost sheep before the lost son.  African Christianity has a tendency to legalism, but the only legalist in the story is the elder brother who misses the party.  God the father waits in grace for every sinner to come.  I proclaimed to the 1,000 people that God was waiting for each of them.  “More than waiting, God is looking for you.  He is looking for you like a woman who has lost her coin, like a shepherd who has lost a lamb and like a father who looks down the road every day for his son.”  One boy we all noticed walked very awkwardly as his knees were on backward.  He was at the back of the crowd and listened to every word.  At the invitation he appealed to all of his friends to come, but they would not.  He would not be dissuaded and came up as quickly as his legs would allow him.  He joined about 75-100 others who repeated a prayer of salvation on the spot. There was rejoicing before the angels in heaven  … and also in the dust down below.

Gasangwa (aka G)