To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE


SHARE THIS ARTICLE Printer friendly version of this page

Rwandan Garbage Dump Boys Start Gospel Music Group "Shining Hope"—Get Radio Play

Mark Ellis : Feb 21, 2014  God Reports

The impact on the three boys has been profound, as they recognize God's influence on their lives.

HFLM(Rwanda)—Garbage and filth surrounded their makeshift shanty in a small-scale dump in Kigali, Rwanda. Five years ago, three street boys, David, Pacifique, and D'Amour lived in this squalor, their minds obsessed with survival and numbing their pain. (Photo via God Reports blog)

After they were taken in by a ministry that operates a small home for wayward boys, they never dreamed they would one day become Gospel artists, with their first song receiving local radio play.

"They had no hope before they came to us," says Hilliary Anderson, founder of Hope for Life Ministry (HFLM), based in Kigali. HFLM's aim is to transform the lives of vulnerable street kids by providing housing, Christian counseling and discipleship, and resources to break the chains of poverty.

Last year the three boys formed a Gospel band called Shining Hope and produced their first song, "You Are Precious," singing about their transformed lives since they began to follow Jesus.

"When we recorded this song they were so excited," Anderson notes. "They never believed anything like this could happen."

A volunteer at HFLM brought Shining Hope's song to a Gospel radio station in Kigali. The radio host loved the song, partly due to the boys' story. He invited the band to come in for an interview the following day.

"You can imagine the boys' elation after hearing they would be on the radio," Anderson says. At the radio station, the host played "You Are Precious" and interviewed the band members for 30 minutes.

David Hitimana, 19, the main songwriter and leader of the group, was one of the first boys taken in by HFLM. "David came from a neglectful family and had a hard life," Anderson notes. "But he didn't do drugs on the streets because he didn't want to ruin his brain," she says. "He's been a role model to the other boys."

HFLMHFLM is currently re-integrating David to his family and paying for his education in secondary school.

Another band member also overcame tragic circumstances. "D'Amour's parents were killed in the genocide," Anderson recounts. The Rwanda genocide involved the mass murder of Tutsi and moderate Hutu by members of the Hutu majority. During a 100-day period in 1994, an estimated 500,000-1,000,000 Rwandans were killed.

"After that, D'Amour lived in a child-run household, but ended up going into the streets." D'Amour would like to become a minister or leader in the future.

Pacifique Niyitanga was also orphaned at an early age. He ran away from an abusive relative's home to the streets. After his second arrest, he came to live at Hope for Life.

The impact on the three boys has been profound, as they recognize God's influence on their lives.

David was exultant after the boys' visit to the radio station. "I thank God that it happened. It was a huge celebration to have finally made it on the radio. I never expected to make music that was played on the radio When I got home, I wrote down my whole experience so I would never forget that day."

Anderson invites people to encourage the growth of Shining Hope's music by liking their Facebook group, and by listening to their music and sharing it with others.







SHARE THIS ARTICLE Printer friendly version of this page

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

Other Recent Articles from Breaking Christian News

Long Beach, California Cancels Their Popular July 4th Fireworks Show, Even for America's 250th Birthday, Citing Pollution as the Reason

Digital Nightmare? Anthropic Withholds AI Model Too Dangerous for Humanity

'A Victory for All Pro-Life Oregonians': Federal Judge Rules State Can't Force Oregon Right to Life to Pay for Abortions

10 Republicans Side With Dems to Provide Amnesty to Haitian Illegals

Virginia Dems Pass National Popular Vote Law that Experts Warn Is Unconstitutional

Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Begins; Trump Says Iran's Regime Agrees to Give Up Having Nuclear Weapons

President Trump: Strait of Hormuz 'Fully Open', Oil Prices Drop

Clarence Thomas Destroys 'Progressivism' in Ruthless Speech

Trump Reveals He Has Multi-Pick SCOTUS Plan Ready as Justice Retirement Speculation Heats Up

Trump Admin Pushes Global Plan to Protect Kids Online

Youth Mental Health Deteriorates after Gender Reassignment Services, Extensive, Long-Term Study Finds

Trump Administration Pulls $11 Million in Funding for Catholic Charities that Sheltered Illegal Alien Minors

Prayer Alert: Former Democrat Lt. Gov. and Wife Found Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide; Kids Were Home at the Time

Israeli Forces Discover Huge Hezbollah Weapons Cache Inside School; Destroy 70 Hezbollah Terror Sites in Lebanon

US War on Iran's Regime Could Be Ending Soon; Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon Announced

Melania Trump Joins Lawmakers for Roundtable Discussion on Empowering Foster Care Children

Heroic Oklahoma High School Principal Shot in the Leg as He Tackles Would-Be Shooter Before Gunman Opens Fire on Students (VIDEO)

Teachers' Union Webinar Sparks Indoctrination Fears

'Deadnaming' Is Now Classified as 'Gender-Based Violence' in Liberal Canada

The War on Biology Is Far from Over



Search the Articles Archives

Keyword:  
Author:  
Words Posted On:  
Day Month Year



Subscribe to
Breaking Christian News


Follow BCN on Twitter
Are You Praying for Our Government Leaders?
BCN Staff

Steve Shultz
Steve Shultz, Managing Editor
Founder and Owner


Aimee Herd
Aimee Herd, Editor


BCN Plus
Are You Praying for President Trump?
 
 

All articles on this site and emails from BCN are copyrighted property of Breaking Christian News. Permission is given to link to, or share a BCN story if proper attribution is given to both the original writer and summarizer of the story. Breaking Christian News 2005-2019. All Rights Reserved.


Breaking Christian News is a division of Elijah List Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved


Disclaimer: Articles and links, as well as the source articles linked to; do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Breaking Christian News.

editor@breakingchristiannews.com