Day 2 & 3 of the Marriage Conference: Rated PG-13 🙂

Hello everyone, Shane here. Wow, what a great last two days of our Marriage Conference. Yesterday morning began with a teaching session from David and Lucy on “Communication in Marriage.” They did a fantastic job. They walked through some excellent verses on the issue and did a great job making sound application for the couples and illustrated their points very effectively. Even though I’m not much older then they are, as their pastor, I sat and watched like a proud dad with a big smile on my face.

After a great lunch, Neal and Christina spoke on “Trust and Physical Intimacy in Marriage.” They really did a great job sharing biblical truth and tackling the sensitive issue in such a transparent, godly, and helpful way for our pastors and wives. There is so much misunderstanding here as to God’s intent for sex in the marriage context. Neal and Christina really did an excellent job righting some misunderstanding in such a gracious and biblical way. After that session, Lucy followed up with a basic presentation on sexual anatomy and how mild forms of contraception actually work. Again, there is so much misunderstanding when it comes to the biology of conception and how forms of pre-fertilization contraception actually works. Lucy was amazing, unashamed, and even had the pastors and wives act things out with drawn pictures of eggs, sperm, and even had David act as the contraception to block the men that were the “swimming” toward the egg! It was hilarious, fun for the couples, and really went a long way toward helping them begin to make biblical and informed decisions now as a couple.

Christina here to add to Shane’s content…John and Peggy taught the last session this morning on “Parenting as One”.  John gave a great recap of all the teaching topics, and also shared honestly about some of his own successes and mistakes as a dad.  A lot had been simmering in his heart over the last day or so concerning the pastors’ views about submission in marriage.  Many men, and even some pastors, believe that they are the “king” of their home and that the women are supposed to do just what they tell them.  John gently, but firmly, quoted various Scripture imploring the men to set aside their pride to be loving to their wives and children:  “You’ve trusted the Lord with your calling, why won’t you now trust Him by loving and prioritizing your wives and children.   They are your first ministry.”  Peggy followed up with a compelling teaching about being our children’s first teachers of God’s Word.  She shared how she and John taught their children Bible verses from an early age and how they continue to do so with their grandchildren, praying with and over them regularly.  When Peggy read Scripture verses in kinyarwandan, all the people went crazy with applause!

Lastly, Bishop Theophile led a final celebration.   He challenged the pastors and wives to apply all that they had learned and how they can teach and shape the marriages in their own churches.  Theo then recognized and thanked each of the team members, presenting gifts of baskets, beads, pictures and shirts/dresses.   After lunch, each pastor and wife went home with a 55 lb bag of rice (some men AND women carried it atop their heads!), fabric for the wives’ dresses, money to make the dress and also to travel home.   There were many tearful, but joyful, goodbyes.   God is so good, once again teaching us so much and blessing us to be a part of HIS work of transformation in Rwanda.