Longing for a Heavenly Dwelling

Longing for a Heavenly Dwelling

I might have lost a leg but I regained my life.

I might have lost a leg but I regained my life.

Like any other wife in a small Burundian village, Anastasia earned her living as a farmer. She enjoyed being a wife and mother, and never complained. She was known to be a good neighbour, and her family-in-law appreciated her hard work.

Unfortunately, all that changed the minute Anastasia got sick. A small lump grew on her right foot, which she didn’t think much of at the time. However, it continued to grow, became infected, and no matter what medicines she bought, it became rotten and gave off a horrible stench. Her husband became so repulsed that he tragically kicked her out of the house along with their two little children. She returned to her parents, but as the culture doesn’t allow a married woman to go back to living with her parents, they decided to build a small mud house for her behind their property where no one would see her.

For nearly three years, Anastasia lived in total misery. Nobody cared for her or visited her. With no money or anyone else, Anastasia watched her leg get worse. It was a heartbreaking situation.

Before UCCD built Anastasia a proper house, she lived in this tiny mud hut.

Every evening, when darkness fell, Anastasia would use two canes to hobble to church and pray, hoping God would end her misery. One evening while praying there, Anastasia’s cries caught some evangelists’ ears. They introduced her to United Christians for Change & Development leader, Isaiah, who had come to preach for a few days.

Through the support of GLO, UCCD assisted Anastasia with better treatment, but it was too late to salvage the leg. It had to be amputated. But UCCD built her a house, where she moved in with her children. She received a fully equipped boutique as a gift to rebuild her life.

It turns out she’s good at business! She has become well-respected in the community, with the biggest shop in town, and is happy to provide for her children.

As an active member of her church, she’s proud to stand with others in the choir and sing for the Lord. She declares joyfully: “My favourite thing is to sing in front of the congregation and be a living testimony. I might have lost a leg but I regained my life.”

“Her incredible testimony is still strengthening many,” the UCCD team report – Anastasia attends outreach rallies, where the photo above was taken, to share her story with the crowds.

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Thank you again Simon for the stories of encouragement and how God works ain and through all of his people. Thanking God for organizations that do the kingdom work, especially taking care of the poor, orphans, and the widows.
May grace and mercy abound and to him be all of the glory.