In 1994 there was a genocide in Rwanda where the Hutu people group hunted down, tortured and killed their Tutsi brothers and sisters. These people used to be neighbours, living together in harmony on the beautiful hills of Rwanda.
At the genocide memorial museum, we heard stories of Tutsi families slaughtered by their Hutu friends. The friends they thought would protect them. This was truly inhumane and our Rwandan friends agreed that it was impossible for a whole people group to turn into murderers if it was not by some demonic force. This attack definitely started in the spiritual realm.
In our time in Rwanda we experienced nothing but hospitality and love. We were amazed at the cleanliness of the streets and the development of the city of Kigali. We experienced no hatred among the people. Rwanda felt like home to us. We had to ask the question: How did they get back to and beyond where they were before the genocide?
The answer to this question seems obvious in theory, but is almost impossible to apply by human ability. The only way that these two groups could reconcile and love each other was by true forgiveness. But how do you forgive someone who mutated and killed your family? How do you forgive yourself for being swept up in the wave of killing? This reconciliation also had to be supernatural. The healing would have had to happen in the spiritual realm before it could materialise in the physical. Only God could bring this power to work. The power of forgiveness. The power that slowly rebuilt lives, that rebuilt a country, that is still working healing in the hearts of people.
Today, the people of Rwanda still remember those terrible days. They remember it when they see the scars on bodies, the loss of limbs, the empty spaces in houses. They also choose to remember. To not repeat past mistakes.
I believe we should also remember and learn from Rwanda: The power of forgiveness.
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