Hope Sunday Feature Church: Naperville Covenant Church

In the last month, our team has had the honor of visiting Covenant churches all over the country and participating in Hope Sunday events. There are many inspiring stories to share, as we have seen small and large churches, new and traditional churches, working compassionately, in one single partnership, in an effort to break the back of extreme poverty. In the following short video clip, you will meet the acquaintance of Flory Buki, a Congolese man who now attends Naperville Evangelical Covenant Church.  Listen to him, as he shares, specifically, how child sponsorship changed his life, and the lives of those who cared enough to sponsor him.

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Excerpts from an email message sent by Flory Buki to Covenant Kids Congo

 

Reesheda,

The connection and the reciprocity between the people of the DRC and those of USA you made today made me believe that this project is heading in the right direction, and I do not want to miss out. In presentations I have heard in the past, most orators make it sound like we need Americans more than they do need us. These kinds of messages reminds me of the colonization era. But today, for the first time, you made me believe that we (Congolese) have something to teach you (Americans) as well.

As I pointed out to you today, my entire education was based on sponsorships. People gave money so that I would have an education. Today, the results are clear. I help in return about 20 more students to go back to school. I am pretty sure that some of them will also return that favor. This is the only way Congo will develop. Through this project, the thousands of students who will be educated will turn around and return the favor. The results may not be immediate, but over the long run, Congo’s education level will increase dramatically.

I am pretty sure that during your trip to the DRC you experienced corruption, mismanagement, illiteracy, poverty, etc. In some other part of the Congo, there are unending wars, women sexual violences, child soldier phenomena, and so many other social issues. In part, all these things I just numbered are due to lack of education, and the inability for some parents to send their children to school. This is when the Covenant Kids Congo project comes in handy, because so many kids will be educated; as a result, peace and better living conditions will be restored.

I would love to talk to you more about the ways I can get involved in the projects. One of the immediate things I can do is to share my own story, which is exactly the vision and goal of the project. People may want to see the results of the Covenant Congo Kids projects, but they do not need to go far to find it. I am the perfect kind of result the project will produce.

Thank you,

Flory Buki