And he did graduate with distinction! And he found a lovely woman to marry! And he’s now a Dad! * I just came across this and realised we hadn’t posted it, having filmed it a couple of years ago. Still worth seeing! He’s still trying to set up a pharmacy, but maintaining his integrity in the process is challenging, so do pray for wisdom and breakthroughs there.
Doubling Sophie’s Choices in Burundi…
Have you seen that film or read that very moving story – Sophie’s Choice? A mother has to choose which of her two children to save. I can’t imagine anything more heart-breaking, can you? Yet, our teams in Burundi face choices like this every day. When I’m in Burundi, like I will be next week, I have to make decisions like this too. It’s a heavy responsibility to discern God’s will. Who to help? Now, thank God, we can literally double our choices, with some assistance from you, if you are willing and able? One of our fantastic supporters has […]
Learning to Dream…
“Before I came to this school, I didn’t know I could have this dream… or any dream.” This is simply beautiful. Can you imagine walking two hours each way to and from school, as well as fetching water, cooking, etc and being so grateful for the opportunity…? So why don’t you sit down with a mug of tea/coffee with your kid, grandkid, neighbour’s kid, or just yourself, and get some perspective and a renewed sense of gratitude and wonder through this lovely film of our partners, Harvest Initiatives. It gives such a vivid picture of a typical day in the life of a determined […]
Resurrecting Hope in Burundi…
In the back of beyond, in what many might consider a ‘no-go’ area in Northern Burundi, nestles a special remote community. Here the Kingdom of God is quietly growing against the tragic backdrop of the trauma and bereavement of years of conflict. Very, very few visitors venture here, but one young man’s prayers and tears of compassion for forgotten widows and orphans have led him to reach out with beautiful results. God is very much with Bosco. He is one of the amazing network of dedicated and sacrificial leaders we work with in Burundi. Despite seeing his mother brutally murdered […]
Multiple Power Encounters in Burundi!
Greetings! Our massive summer outreach is always fiercely contested and hugely fruitful. This (the 14th) year was no exception. Some of the teams faced real opposition, and needed breakthroughs to operate at all. In any case, I’m pleased to be able to feedback to you that 700 people went out in 35 areas for 2 weeks, and they saw 8,900 choose to start following Jesus, with several dozen dramatic miracles taking place. Stories are still coming in, but the below are what I received yesterday, which I wanted to share with you – to encourage and stir your own faith, […]
10 Top Lessons from 20 Years in Burundi…
TED/MAP talk in North Carolina at New Wineskins Conference Hello, my name is Simon Guillebaud. I’ve recently completed 20 years working in Burundi, a conflict zone in Central Africa, and one of the most beautiful but broken countries on the planet. That’ll do on introduction, time is short. This TED/MAP talk is just 15 minutes to share my top ten lessons from two decades of cross-cultural work – isn’t that an impossible task? I’ll try. So I’m picturing Paul in his cell in Rome, and he’s about to be led away to have his head chopped off (he probably died […]
Big Smiles in Burundi…
Just a few weeks ago, 1200 parents in Burundi were wondering where the money would come from to get their children back to school. Thanks to your generosity and swift response, we’ve been able to help keep around 3600 children in education for the coming year. Thank you SO much! We distributed £30/$40 to each family, which, for many, has made all the difference between keeping the children in education, going into debt or losing their place(s) at school. One parent, Odette, sums up the gratitude of so many: ”We are so grateful for the help. Books have become so […]
Forget What’s Gone, Now Press On!
1st talk: One Thing I Ask2nd talk: One Thing You Lack3rd talk: One Thing I Know And finally the 4th talk: One Thing I Do, click on here to be encouraged to ‘forget what is behind, strain towards what is ahead, and to press on towards the goal to win the prize…’ Download audio (mp3) Below are some juicy quotes that I used which are worth cogitating over: “When God forgives, He forgets. He buries our sins in the sea and puts a sign on the shore saying, ‘No Fishing Allowed’.” (Corrie ten Boom) During the Truth and Reconciliation hearings in South Africa […]
What’s Your Story, Blind as a Bat?!
What’s your story? I was driving along one of the most dangerous roads in the world with my team. Many had been killed in ambushes on it. Yet we talked away cheerfully, having total assurance that our mission was worth the risk. Next to me in the front seat, Etienne looked across and said: “Simon, isn’t it exciting? We’re immortal until God calls us home!” This is the 3rd talk in the ‘One Thing’ series I gave recently at Lee Abbey. 1st talk: One Thing I Ask2nd talk: One Thing You LackAnd now 3rd talk: One Thing I Know Download […]
Living with No Regrets
In 1910, William Borden went to Yale University as an undergraduate and afterwards became a missionary candidate planning to work in China. When he made his decision to invest his life in this service, many of his friends thought him foolish. He had come from a good family. He had wealth and influence. “Why are you going to throw away your life in some foreign country,” they asked, “when you can have such an enjoyable and worthwhile life here?” But William Borden of Yale had heard the call of God. While in Egypt, on the way to China and even […]
Worrying about a lot of $£%@!
The Gospel according to Hollywood sometimes nails it. In the film City Slickers, starring Billy Crystal and the late Jack Palance, they are riding slowly across the range on horseback, discussing life and love. Palance plays a wily cowpoke, while Crystal is a tenderfoot from Los Angeles who has paid for a two-week dude ranch vacation. Of course, he gets more than he bargained for, and in the process, Crystal learns something important about himself. Listen carefully to their slightly edited conversation: PALANCE: You city folk. You worry about a lot of $£%@!, don’t you? CRYSTAL: $£%@!? My wife basically told […]
Desperate to Learn in Burundi…
“Simon, we can’t send our children back to school this Monday because we have no money to buy the uniform and school book and pencil. We go without food, sanitary towels, everything, but still can’t make it. It’s often the children of parents in ministry who are the first to drop out. Please, please help my team, I beg you!” Charlotte cried as she pleaded with me – she wasn’t just desperate for herself but for her staff at the life-changing ministry she runs and which GLO supports. And as my three children prepare to start at a beautiful school […]
Trophy of Grace!
Another story of the impossible in Burundi – from street kid to being a national sporting hero and using his gifts to promote reconciliation and forgiveness, this is a beautiful testimony of hope…
Nuts to be Normal
Should this become a book? That is the question I’m wrestling with. Maybe your honest feedback will help me make my decision. During our year of travel, I started with writing a book as my intention, and below is what I’d begun with. But then a few months in, a few key folks said I should drop it and live in the present, rather than sharing our lives too publicly. So I dropped it. But the kids thought it was a good idea. And then a number of folks have written asking me to. So, what to do? I don’t […]
Confidence, Comfort, Challenge…
‘We believe…’ series, ‘in the resurrection of the dead’ – Revelation 21:1-8 Do click on the above link to listen to a recent talk I gave at Holycross on Sullivan’s Island in South Carolina. Belief in the resurrection brings confidence, comfort and challenge. Below are a few of the juicy quotes I shared: Dallas Willard: “We should not think of ourselves as destined to be celestial bureaucrats, involved eternally in celestial ‘administrivia’. That would be only slightly better than being caught in an everlasting church service. No, we should think of our destiny as being absorbed in a tremendously creative […]
The World Tour in Numbers…
I’ve purposefully hardly shared about our travels this year – choosing to live in the present and not putting it all ‘out there’. So the focus of this blog has been largely on Burundi; but many of you have asked about our travels, so here’s one way of reporting back – and others have been asking about our summer plans, so I’ll paste details of them below as well: 43,000 miles in travel 1,700 new GLO supporters for our database 304 days away, of which… 284 days staying with people (so only 20 days in hotels or AirBnB) $220 for […]
The Cost of Obedience…
This is some of my friend Yve’s story. He’s moved on to a new place of work now, but his faith still challenges me… I love sharing
Bleeding Beautiful…
I never thought I would be writing a blog about sanitary towels and now it has happened twice (the first is here). Thousands of girls in Burundi give up school every year because they don’t have any sanitary towels. They are simply too ashamed and embarrassed to go to school anymore, so they give up. But without education they are stuck in abject poverty. Then along comes Eva, a local Burundian girl. If Eva were on Dragon’s Den she could be one of the most successful entrepreneurs ever. Her brilliant solution is to manufacture re-usable sanitary towels from cloth and […]
Beautiful New Life, the Seemingly Impossible Happening…
Nobody would have ever believed it possible, but it has indeed happened. There is always hope, even in the most apparently hopeless situations. So I just wanted to share the joy of Freddy (formerly-melted-faced-beggar-now-graduated-with-distinction-from-university-and-married) and Floride having their first baby yesterday. Oli weighed in at 3.5kg and came into this world by C-section. For your prayers, he’s trying to get set up with a new pharmacy business, but it’s hard to do it honestly, which is causing significant delays. May there be a breakthrough somehow. Wishing them all joy and success in their new adventure together! Read the background to […]
Grenade Thrown in His Dorm…
At the height of the crisis in the 1990s, when he was a student at university, someone threw a grenade into Leonidas’ dormitory. Nobody was killed on that occasion, but amongst his many shrapnel wounds, the piece that lodged in his eye has caused ongoing issues ever since. Yet he is not one to seek revenge or harbour feelings of resentment or bitterness. Leonidas is one of our turbo-charged evangelists, preaching forgiveness and reconciliation around the country through Scripture Union. He’s been greatly used, and continues serving faithfully through many constant challenges. I love highlighting stories of hope when so […]