The Christmas season is particularly special for YADA this year, as it marks our ten year anniversary 🎉 We have some amazing plans in store this Christmas, which we’re excited to invite you into below (don’t miss it!), but this moment beckons a holy pause of reflection on all God has done in the last decade.
Ten years of seeing God’s faithfulness.
Ten years of forming deep relationships that slowly bring transformation.
Ten years of our friends transitioning from starvation and hopelessness.
Ten years of answered prayers.
Ten years of seeing God’s kingdom come in Burundi as it is in heaven.
We are overwhelmed with gratitude and praise as we look back and think on the years behind us and all the breakthrough in what felt like impossible circumstances. Yet, as we celebrate the victories and the success we’ve seen, we also remember that it has not come without a price.
Ten years punctuated by sleepless nights.
Ten years of fighting against corruption and oppressive power structures.
Ten years of keeping an anxious eye on our often meager budget.
Ten years of silent and sweaty car rides home after long hours in the elements.
Ten years of fighting off discouragement in our spirits and disease in our bodies.
While fighting for freedom, empowerment, and transformation on behalf of the poor and powerless in our world is deeply rewarding, and is indeed one of our greatest callings as followers of Jesus, our gray hairs and extra wrinkles are evidence that it has not been easy. The words of King David in 2 Samuel 24:24 echo in our spirits:
“I will not offer to the Lord that which cost me nothing.”
Yes, the cost has been great. On our families. On our bodies. On our finances. But as a team we stand back and say with a united confidence that it has been worth it.
For every family who believes that they are loved and known (yâdaʻ) by a good God who cares for them and their needs…It was worth it.
For every mama who has been able to start her own business and support her family with dignity… It was worth it.
For every child who no longer is wandering the dump in rags and is now safe in our tuition program and excelling in school…It was worth it.
For every father who was able to bring home some food to cook and fill his children’s stomachs and model to his family the love of God…It was worth it.
For every curse that has been broken over communities stuck in cycles of poverty, abuse, and hunger by the powerful name of Jesus…It was worth it.
We know that many of you have gone without and lived sacrificially in partnership with what God is doing in Burundi through YADA. You have fought in prayer for breakthrough. You have sound-boarded our ideas and given sage – wisdom. You have held up our spiritual arms like Aaron did for Moses when he was too tired to carry on. You have come to visit us with encouragement and invested in our team. You have given out of your finances to be the hands and feet of Jesus to some of the world’s most vulnerable people. 🙏🏾🙏🏻
Your offering to the Lord cost you something. And we cannot help but thank you and tell you of our deep gratitude. What an honor it is to be trusted with your offerings for the last ten years.
This calls for sacred celebration. This calls for praise. This calls for feasting. 🥘🍴
In honor of our first Christmas meal shared in Nyarumanga ten years ago at YADA’s inception, we are continuing our yearly tradition of hosting a Christmas meal for all our families. What was then a few dozen children has turned into nearly 600 adults and children. We will dress up. We will dance. We will sing. We will feast. And in this way we will have a small foretaste of what it will be like when all communities and tribes of this broken earth get to stand together in worship in the kingdom of heaven, with fully restored bodies and hearts, free of poverty and strife for all eternity. ✨ Even now we can taste it! ✨
As a staff, we are dreaming up some fun ideas for an extra Christmas gift for each of the households and lovingly lavish these families!
➡️➡️ Your Christmas gift this year will cover the cost of our Christmas plans for the communities – the meal and household gifts, as well as the next 6 months of food packages. Last year, we received far beyond what we prayed and asked for, and we were able to sustain our food program in Gihanga for many more months as well as meet other needs within YADA!
First, it’s worth noting how much has been done in Gihanga since last year…
- We’re a month out from seeing the well finished. No more 2-4 hour walking trips to find dirty river water to drink! Now Gihanga will have clean, beautiful water for drinking, bathing, washing, and irrigation! 💦
- Our community center is built and fully functional. Now we have a place to meet with our community, safely store supplies and food, house our staff overnight, as well as provide temporary shelter to families who have lost their homes in the floods.
- We’ve are in the finalizing process of purchasing 3 plots of land for long-term food sustainability. With these 3 plots of land, each family will be able to cultivate enough to feed their families year-round and will no longer require food packages to survive. 🌱
We’ll spend more time in the coming weeks diving into each of those bullet points, but while much has been done, we are still working on a couple areas that require 🚨immediate attention and funding 🚨
- FOOD: While we’ve finally secured the 3 plots of land for farming, they won’t be producing a harvest until mid-next year. Until then, Gihanga is experiencing an intense food crisis. To give you an idea of the cost of inflation – in just a few short weeks, 1 kilo of beans has tripled in cost. It is just not possible for these families to eat on less than a dollar a day.
In response, we’ve focused our small remaining budget on a malnourishment program for the Gihanga children, but it is not enough. Until the newly purchased land is producing a harvest, we need funding for food urgently.
- HOUSING: You’ve heard us talk a lot about the dire housing situation in Gihanga, and we’ve spent the last year fundraising and drafting up blueprints for homes. We’re finally ready to start building, and we have enough to get started on a few houses. We advised the community to elect a committee to decide who should have their home built first, and they chose Sage – Femme, the elderly village midwife who is in the greatest need. We would like to continue building homes as quickly as possible, especially now that the rainy season is in full swing, but further funding is required.
- ONGOING NEEDS: It’s pretty easy to talk about food and housing, as they are very visual and alarming problems that need immediate attention. However, the day-to-day cost of running a charity in Burundi is impossible to dismiss. Our small staff, who give more than full time hours to serving our communities, are in need of support so they can feed their own families in this cost-of-living crisis. On a daily basis, needs are always shared with us – a child in our community in desperate need of medication and hospital care….something has broken on our tuition center in Nyarumanga and needs fixing… You get the idea. It’s wonderful to receive funding for food and housing, but these ongoing day-to-day needs require our attention and assistance, but they are less flashy for fundraising.
As Christmas looms closer, and you start pondering your wish list and gift list, we would humbly ask that you would consider partnering with YADA in these ongoing efforts. Maybe get creative and go in on a gift as a family or church group or book club this year! Any extra funds will go towards our ongoing efforts of food, housing, and day-to-day needs.
⬇️ Giving is EASY! ⬇️
🇺🇸 If you’re in the US, please give at this link. 🇺🇸
🌍 If you’re outside the US, please give at this link. 🌍
Both options are tax-deductible. If you’re eligible for Gift Aid within the UK, please select that option.
We’re excited to keep you posted on what is happening, so stay tuned! And thank you again for your partnership over the years. We appreciate you and hope you’ll be celebrating with us in spirit this holiday season! 🎄🎁🌟
