Furaha1 was devastated. She was grieving because her baby was stillborn. This was the third time. Her husband had now had enough and kicked her out, not wanting to have anything more to do with her. The chaplain stopped by her bed and listened to her. He shared the good news of Jesus Christ, and Furaha gave her life to Him. Her circumstances did not change, but she left the hospital with her heart full of peace and joy. Furaha is now a beloved child of the King.
God is at work at Kibuye Hope Hospital. Furaha was one of the 1,523 individuals who accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior in 2022 at this hospital. Kibuye is located in Burundi, Africa, and is typical of many mission hospitals. Working in suboptimal conditions, the medical staff treat the sick and share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the patients and their families.
One of the realities in a developing country is the lack of good, clean, reliable electricity. This can really affect a hospital. Without electricity, much equipment and many services would stop. This includes lights in surgery, ventilators, lab tests, x-rays, etc. To better serve the people who come to the hospital, Kibuye Hope Hospital put in solar electricity several years ago. Now they needed more.
SonSet Solutions missionary, Earl Hartwig, was privileged to go with I-TEC (www.itec.org) on a work team to Kibuye Hope Hospital. For three weeks in January, this work team installed and commissioned an addition to the solar-electric system. Now this 300-bed hospital has a functioning 144 kW electrical system with 737 kWh storage to get them through the night and low-sun times. This 24/7 electricity will help the hospital to better serve those with physical and spiritual needs, to be the hands and voice of Jesus as the staff minister to those who are hurting.
1Name changed to protect privacy
By Earl Hartwig, March 2023