A couple of months ago our laptop crashed. We lost everything, including many email addresses. Today I would like to post our latest newsletter for you to read. If you would like to get back on our mailing list, send your email address to harderl@mts.net
Greetings From The Harder's
Well May is here and almost gone. We are patiently waiting the arrival of summer in Killarney, though over the last few days we've been experiencing frost warnings over night. It has warmed up nicely during the day which allows our children to spend more time outside. This past week we built Judah a huge sandbox (yeah I got a little carried away) in our backyard. This keeps him busy and out of Laura's hair!!!!!!!!!!
During the month of May I (Joel) turned over a new leaf . . . I've begun to read more . . . at a rapid pace. Okay, I've finished two books which for me is pretty amazing!!!!! While in Winnipeg a few weeks back, I picked up some books written about ex LRA child soldiers (First Kill Your Family and Warchild), and a couple of books based on Rwandan genocide survivors (The Men Who Killed Me and As We Forgive.) I've found these books extremely hard to put down and at times have felt that I am that child who has been abducted or that man who has just witnessed the killing of his family. As I continue to read about genocide and the use of child soldiers, my heart continues to ache for the people of Africa. My wife has been reading these books as well and her passion to help these people continues to grow as well!!!!!!
I remember when we were learning about Congo and the years of genocide which they have faced. When we arrived in Bukavu, it was hard to comprehend that such evil ever took place in such a beautiful country. In a country where the media has made it out to sound like God has abandoned them, God was moving in ways we could never imagine. I learn't one valuable lesson from the Congolese people . . . God is good and you need to put your trust in Him!!!!! Even though it looked as though these people didn't have much, they continued to give God praise for what they had. This has been a constant reminder for us as we seem to take things for granted. We have so much . . . but are we thanking the Father for what He has provided us with? Laura and I can hardly wait for the day when we can use our skills and our blessings to help others in Africa.
A couple of weeks ago we did a presentation at a school in Selkirk (just north of Winnipeg) based on the Congo. Our Pastor, a Congolese friend and myself had the opportunity to talk to the students about the Congo and our time spent there. It was awesome to see a teacher who has taken the time to teach her class about genocide and the use of child soldiers in Africa. Every student in the classroom listened intently to what we had to say. You could sense that these young adults were very concerned about what is going on in Africa. They were full of questions and very receptive to hearing how they can help the people of Congo. We need to start small for it to turn into something big . . . and that is why I appreciate what the Teacher in that classroom is teaching her students.
Thanks for taking the time and reading our newsletter. For those of you who are receiving a newsletter for the first time . . . welcome aboard. God bless and we will keep you posted!!!!!
Blessings,
Joel and Laura Harder
Well May is here and almost gone. We are patiently waiting the arrival of summer in Killarney, though over the last few days we've been experiencing frost warnings over night. It has warmed up nicely during the day which allows our children to spend more time outside. This past week we built Judah a huge sandbox (yeah I got a little carried away) in our backyard. This keeps him busy and out of Laura's hair!!!!!!!!!!
During the month of May I (Joel) turned over a new leaf . . . I've begun to read more . . . at a rapid pace. Okay, I've finished two books which for me is pretty amazing!!!!! While in Winnipeg a few weeks back, I picked up some books written about ex LRA child soldiers (First Kill Your Family and Warchild), and a couple of books based on Rwandan genocide survivors (The Men Who Killed Me and As We Forgive.) I've found these books extremely hard to put down and at times have felt that I am that child who has been abducted or that man who has just witnessed the killing of his family. As I continue to read about genocide and the use of child soldiers, my heart continues to ache for the people of Africa. My wife has been reading these books as well and her passion to help these people continues to grow as well!!!!!!
I remember when we were learning about Congo and the years of genocide which they have faced. When we arrived in Bukavu, it was hard to comprehend that such evil ever took place in such a beautiful country. In a country where the media has made it out to sound like God has abandoned them, God was moving in ways we could never imagine. I learn't one valuable lesson from the Congolese people . . . God is good and you need to put your trust in Him!!!!! Even though it looked as though these people didn't have much, they continued to give God praise for what they had. This has been a constant reminder for us as we seem to take things for granted. We have so much . . . but are we thanking the Father for what He has provided us with? Laura and I can hardly wait for the day when we can use our skills and our blessings to help others in Africa.
A couple of weeks ago we did a presentation at a school in Selkirk (just north of Winnipeg) based on the Congo. Our Pastor, a Congolese friend and myself had the opportunity to talk to the students about the Congo and our time spent there. It was awesome to see a teacher who has taken the time to teach her class about genocide and the use of child soldiers in Africa. Every student in the classroom listened intently to what we had to say. You could sense that these young adults were very concerned about what is going on in Africa. They were full of questions and very receptive to hearing how they can help the people of Congo. We need to start small for it to turn into something big . . . and that is why I appreciate what the Teacher in that classroom is teaching her students.
Thanks for taking the time and reading our newsletter. For those of you who are receiving a newsletter for the first time . . . welcome aboard. God bless and we will keep you posted!!!!!
Blessings,
Joel and Laura Harder
Hi there... just wanted to let you know we have a couple of friends who are sudanese refugees. They are living in winnipeg and im not sure if one of them is still there, but he was a child soldier in Uganda i believe. I might be able to get a hold of them if you like... my family was the "host family" for one of the families ten years ago that came. Blessings... Heather
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