MY SPIRITUAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY
My calling is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am willing to make Jesus Christ known around the world. My personal conversion experience occurred in 1987 when Jesus Christ Himself appeared in my room at night and showed me a light in three distinct periods. My conversion was transmitted to my Bishop, who, in 1991, asked the Annual Conference of the Rwanda Free Methodist Church to ordain me as a Pastor. In 2011, the USA Free Methodist Church recognised my Rwandan ordination. Since then, I have worked officially as a Minister at the Free Methodist Church in the USA. In 2016, I was assisted by the United Methodist Church in using their Building and Sanctuary in Huber Heights, USA, for my Ministry, where I serve as Senior Pastor.
The spiritual context is characterised by our way of life and our zeal for the Lord's work. Our religious context is that our ministry is committed to making Jesus known and evangelizing for the salvation of many people. In other words, our ministry is to teach people how to live a spiritual life so that it can become the centre of their hearts. They become familiar with the complexities of their inner life, as Henri Nouwen wrote in his Preface to Following…. “Spiritual formation presents opportunities to enter the centre of our heart and become familiar with the complexities of our inner life. “Our vocational identity is focused on making Jesus Christ known as Lord and Saviour for salvation. Faith in Jesus Christ is the key to salvation.
After the war and genocide of 1994, my family moved to a house in Murama. That house was very close to where we built the Kinyinya Parish building some months later. In 2002, Pastor Silas Kanyabigega of the Free Methodist Church, Kinyinya Parish, built another Chapel in Bumbogo. Both chapels work very well to present. Silas Kanyabigega is now a pastor in the United States.
My father, Thaddeus Buhake, was one of the sons of Ntamuvurira, one of the sons of Kanyoni. Kanyoni was one of the sons of Ndorimana, and Ndorimana was one of the sons of Segatake; Segatake was a member of the Umugesera clan group in Rwanda. Segatake lived in Gisaka of Abazirankende in Kibungo. My father was born in Mugozi. The place of our ancestors was Gisaka of the Abazirankende, which was part of the Bagesera group. The oldest ancestor known to us is Segatake. My father’s mother was Nyirashyirambere, and her birthplace was Mubuga in Kibuye. I also attended Sunday school at Bweza of the Free Methodist Chapel in Mugozi. I attended kindergarten at Karambo–Mugozi, run by Frédéric Buguru. I attended primary school in Kigarama and continued my elementary education at the primary school in Musengesi, Rwamatamu. I spent the last year of my preliminary studies at Shara-Bugarama of Cyangugu Province. My high school studies took place at the official technical school, “E.T.O Don Bosco, of Kicukiro, located in the Kicukiro district. I obtained a Bachelor’s degree from France as an Electrical Technician and studied as a Radio-TV-HIFI Sono Engineer in Belgium. I also hold a bachelor’s degree in Theology and Religious Science from the National University of the Protestant Churches in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I pursued theological studies for the Master of Divinity degree (M.Div.) at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio, and later at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia. I graduated with a Doctor of Ministry (Theology) from the Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) in New York City. Also, I hold a PhD in Systematic Theology from IMC Theological Seminary in Ohio, USA, and a PhD in Educational Leadership from National University in California, USA. Later, I founded the Movement for Christ Ministry in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (also known as the Republic of the Congo), Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, and Cameroon. I also started the International Movement for Christ in the United States at 7505 Sulphur Grove, Huber Heights, OH 45424.
My Childhood
God allowed me to be born into a Christian family member of the Free Methodist Church of Rwanda. My parents took me to church every Sunday, and I was very involved in Sunday school and our family devotionals. I prayed before every meal and set an impeccable example for us children to observe and follow. My parents taught me about God; through them, I learned about His grace, forgiveness, patience, love, and kindness.
I grew up with the idea that Jesus Christ died for us to save us from eternal fire. When I remembered this fire, chills of fear ran icy fingers up my spine. I was baptised at the age of twelve.
While attending Sunday school and worship services every Sunday, I was unable to gain a sufficient understanding of salvation. I followed the sermons and the history of significant personalities in the Bible, such as David, Samson, and others. It was interesting to listen to, but the teachings did not show me the necessity of salvation. It was like a routine. I was a church member and liked attending my “Daddy’s “church. My Special Adolescence
Despite this, even if I do not understand much about salvation, I sensed an invisible presence of God, and I feared God in my consciousness. I lived as if God were not far from me. I was expecting a particular mystical revelation through the unexplainable faith, an unconscious faith, that was within me. I thought of becoming better, but did not know how to do that. However, by continuing to attend church on Sundays, the conversion idea was already in the process of being born because of the multiple ways church leaders have shown the congregation how to approach God.
Even before my conversion to Christ, the Lord had inspired me with a gift of spiritual songs, and I still possess that gift, as I occasionally receive inspired spiritual songs. At a young age, the Lord inspired me to voice songs, and I asked the Lord to give me appropriate words for every song. I felt great joy in knowing I was blessed that way, but I did not understand when or how I would put my gift into practice. However, I was pleased to see God willing to use me in different circumstances. It is in this framework that I received the voices of the short spiritual following songs:
1st song. “Ijuru rizasuma, ibicu bizahinda, uko ni ukwrerekana uko idukunda” (I think here was the first encounter with Jesus in that way. I was attending Sunday school, and the song I received was probably one of the Adventist spiritual songs I did not know before, but the Lord inspired me to see how terrible the End of time would be. I envisioned the End of Time when I was singing this song. I saw a red cloud in the sky. The song means: “The sky will make a loud noise; the clouds will cry loudly. By this, God needs to demonstrate how highly He loves us”. 2nd song. “Simon Pierre était l’Apotre de Jésus Christ” means “Simon Peter was the Apostle of Jesus Christ” around the 1970s. The voice was an audio indicative of the German Radio “Deutsche Welle.” I had not heard of this German radio station before. I was only listening to the radio of my oldest brother, who lived in another province and was visiting us. He brought the radio, which I heard in this German radio introduction. The Lord inspired me with the words for the radio’s voice introduction above. Later, I worked at the same radio station. 3rd song. “Bakuye Umwami wanjye mu gituro, ariko ntituzi aho bamushyize”. These are also the Bible’s words. This means, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” (John 20:2 [NOAB]).6Words of Mary when she was at the tomb of Jesus. The Lord inspired me with the voice and words of this short song.
Our family was one of the low-income families, but not as poor as the other families around us. I never realised that our situation could be different and better when I considered our social and economic position. At a young age, I realised that some students at my school, especially my classmates, were more affluent than I was. I noticed that when they purchased food, other students at the same school would bring it to sell, such as peanuts, pineapple, candy, and other items.
At a young age, I believed in the existence of God, and above all, I was afraid of God. I often thought that fire would consume Satan and sinners. With this fear of fire, I was constantly assured that there was God. I was tormented every day by the fear of the existence of a fire that would consume the sinners, and I was afraid to sin.
In my young adulthood, I firmly believed in the Bible as the Word of God, which is why I was afraid of the fire that is reserved for sinners. So, I believed in the reliability of scripture. Since my childhood, I have always believed in the reliability of scripture. Even if the pilgrimage is sometimes complicated, I have continued to believe in the reliability of scripture. The Bible was for my protection because, since my childhood, I have felt a connection to what the Bible says. That’s why I was afraid of eternal fire. I was shaking when pastors preached about the punishment that awaits Satan and sinners. I did my best not to be among those who went straight to this terrible punishment. However, this fear of punishment has not been able to influence me to be saved. I was only in fear of retribution.
I also believed in the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection and all the historicity of Jesus Christ. I knew Jesus of history, and I firmly believed it. In Sunday schools, the teachers teach us enough about death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We had some Biblical verses that we had memorized. This teaching had penetrated me so that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was something in me that I could not doubt. I was always thinking that Jesus Christ was very close to me. Therefore, this demonstrates that the resurrection was sure in me. So, I believed with all my heart in the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection.
I remember when I abandoned school for a few weeks and was part of a circle of rebellion with a classmate from a lousy neighbour. I was brilliant in class, but I was in the company of a less intelligent classmate who wanted to influence me to drop out of school. We spent weeks playing with mud and river water together. By the grace of God, a neighbour woman saw us, followed our movements every day, and said this to my parents. My mother beat me and asked me to take the way to school. I returned to school and continued my studies as usual.
At my youngest age, I realized sin was not good. I was not an angel, but I was a Christian striving to maintain a good attitude, as instructed by the word of God. Since my God-fearing life, I have had no depression problems. God did not reveal to me the issues I faced, mainly because I lived in the countryside, far from the capital and the development projects. My family was not the poorest in the region, but we were poor compared to people in other areas of the country. God hid all this from me, so I did not have depression because the Lord hid all this from me. Nonetheless, I can say that I did not understand the word of God enough, and therefore, it would not be a lie if I said that I knew the crisis of darkness.
Growing up in age has made me grow up in thought, word, and work, but spiritually, I did not grow up because I was not yet born again, so I had not yet been saved. My growth results are found only in my adolescent and adult years. My encounter with God occurred in July 1987. I was sleeping; it was around 3 AM. I saw a lovely man approaching me. He approached me. When I saw him the first time, he was about 70 Meters or 229.65879 Feet Away. He slowly came and approached me. He had a lamp in his hands when he came before me; he lit the lamp in his hands. When he lit the lamp, I saw a great light spring at the mountain where we were. I saw like I was up in the mountains of Israel, even though I did not get there! He showed me the light and returned where he had come from. Arriving where I had seen him coming, he came back to me, and he did the same thing as before, and he turned at the place of the beginning. He returned for the third time, showed me the same light, and returned from where he came. He did not return to me when he left for the third time. When I saw this, I was asleep, but not in a state of unconsciousness. Then I woke up. I understood that person to be Jesus Christ. I soon realised that I was a sinner and lost. I immediately asked for forgiveness of all my sins and decided to believe in Him as Lord and Saviour. Since that day, my life has changed, and I am proud to serve the Lord throughout my life. My Crisis of Faith and Spiritual Growth
When I was in High School, I was preoccupied with my studies. I was a student in a Catholic Salesian school. At that school, there was no problem with denominational differences; I did what Catholics did. However, a Protestant pastor came to give classes on Thursdays, and we, as Protestant students, had Sunday Services at the same time as the Catholic services on Sundays.
Sometimes, the same pastor from outside the school would come to lead our Protestant Sunday service. I was in a crisis of faith because I was studying religion only to have a good grade. Faith needed to be addressed more. I was spiritually cold during school, and the same happened during the vacations. Crises of faith marked the high school period. Fortunately, despite my spiritual situation, God has allowed me to study the Engineering Radio TV program formation in France, with headquarters in Liege, Belgium. I also followed the Emmaus Bible School program in Morsbach, Germany.
My behaviour grew negatively because of drinking beer. Another negative aspect was the use of time. More time was lost as I was in nightclubs, bars, and other unnecessary scenes of juvenile delinquency. The behaviour was negatively growing.
My relationship growth was also damaged because I had terrible company, and therefore, I was hostile to the possibility of making good friends, especially Christian friends. I did practically nothing for the Lord during that period because I was spiritually severely positioned. Instead, I needed someone to help me. Fortunately, as I mentioned above, the Lord rescued me. And he succeeded.
A little before 1987, a young Congolese Christian called Mamseka was on a visit to his brother named Toto, who worked with me at the German Radio” Deutsche Welle.” This young man was incredibly spiritual; I don't know how to put it into words. He asked me to leave my house so we could spend time together in private, allowing him to discuss spiritual matters with me. We left the house together, but honestly, he has spiritual beauty, so I wanted to, and I was proud to listen to him. Before this, I wouldn’t say I liked talking with Christians. I despised Christians. He then began to tell me about Jesus Christ and asked me to abandon old worldly things I loved. I felt the need to leave these things, and I obeyed Jesus. I discarded a few things, but not many. These young people returned home to the Congo. He has left me as I was, with the idea of change, but I had yet to change completely.
One of the most important things I cannot forget about this young man is that he gave me the address of Emmaus Bible School in Morsbach, Germany. He asked me to take these courses, which could help me spiritually. I started these courses, but I focused only on getting good grades and earning my diploma. Indeed, I studied seriously for grades, but in fact, I generally understood what these courses were saying; however, they did not change me spiritually. These courses were similar to the biblical courses I had received in the Adventist Church before, which did not change me. I also followed these Adventist courses to get my Diploma. I responded to the questions until I accepted the Sabbath, but did not have faith in it. However, upon returning to these Bible courses at Emmaus in Germany, I found that they had been of great importance, especially the Epistle to the Romans, which helped me understand salvation and faith. I understood who Jesus is and how to believe in Him as Lord and personal Saviour. So, I continued the Emmaus courses, especially the Epistles of Paul. After my salvation in 1987, I gained a deeper understanding of many spiritual things, and I was spiritually enriched at a very young age. Indeed, after my conversion, the Lord had already planned my spiritual food, including this German Emmaus Bible School course. My Spiritual Experience
I also frequented one of the Pentecostal Churches around me because the Methodist Church, my church, had not yet established a local church in my location. It was in 1990 that the Bishop of the Free Methodist Church of Rwanda established, through me, a local Free Methodist Parish in my area, Kinyinya – Kigali City. The same Bishop invited me to his office to talk to me, especially to explain that I could still be saved without changing my Church, the Free Methodist Church. He told me that being Pentecostal, Methodist, or Baptist is not a problem; he continued by saying that the important thing is to be saved and serve the Lord, regardless of which church you belong to. So, I understood and obeyed the advice of my Bishop, and I stayed in the Free Methodist Church. I did not attend the Pentecostal Church, where I had worshipped for three years.
Since 1987, when Jesus came to visit and save me during my sleep, I began having prayer time with Pentecostal members, and from there, I started experiencing some charismatic phenomena. When we organised prayers at home or during Church services, I felt the Holy Spirit acting through many charismatic signs: chills, speaking in tongues, prophecies, visions, and even a voice.
A few months after my salvation, I had a crisis of faith because I thought drinking alcohol was not a sin. I drank two bottles of beer because I felt that religion was only enough and that I only had to focus on the Ten Commandments of God and not give too much to the magnitudes of other biblical requirements. I remember not even trying to kiss my fiancée, whom I had just met a few months prior. But in this spiritual decline, I did not hesitate to kiss her. I also remember many attempts I had, wanting to sleep with my fiancée before marriage. If the Lord had not intervened on time, my fiancée would have been pregnant and given birth before the wedding.
Despite that, I still drank beer some months after my conversion; it did not last because I finally took a few weeks to abandon this negative attitude a little later. To clarify, I did not drink beer directly after my conversion; it took a long time before I drank beer again. From that second abandonment of beer, I have not tried to drink alcohol anymore, and I have overcome the devil by the precious name of Jesus Christ. So, I do not drink alcohol anymore, and I do not even consider it an important thing to do. It is a forgotten affair; now, I hate alcohol with all my heart.
I got married on April 1, 1989, and have lived with my dear wife and our seven children since that day. We are blessed, and we praise the Lord for his love, mercy, and protection for us.
Since I was born again, I have always believed in God’s existence and constant watching. I recall a day when I was on vacation in my hometown, and a girl approached me. As the devil began to tempt me to sin, I saw the eye of God upon me; I saw a great, piercing eye staring at me, looking at me intently. I was immediately scared and ran, abandoning the girl who had come to visit me. When she saw me running, she also ran behind me, and we returned home, both of us running, disappointed.
I have always believed in the reliability of scripture, especially in my Adulthood. At that time, I firmly believed in the Bible. I was more motivated to discuss the Bible, particularly preaching the Good News to the public. Even if I had not been ordained a pastor, I made known Jesus Christ. Therefore, I now confirm that the Bible is true. The Bible is the Word of God. I trusted in the Bible, and I always confided in it. I preached the Word of God because I believed in it. I leaned on the Holy Scriptures, and I preached the Gospel, especially according to Matthew 28:18-20
After my conversion to Christ, my life was radically changed, and the result of my spiritual growth was visible to everyone. The results were visible in all aspects, spiritually, scientifically, socially, and economically. In all areas of my life, I noted progress and growth. My adulthood has seen, like all other Rwandan people, the war and genocide that happened in my country, Rwanda.
I was ordained a Pastor in 1991 in the Free Methodist Church. I led a parish until 1994. In 1992, I founded, in collaboration with other pastors and evangelists, a ministry called Movement for Christ in Rwanda, “MPCR.” It started in Rwanda and then in other countries such as Burundi, Congo DRC, and the United States.
After the war and the genocide in Rwanda, I continued my pastoral activities in the Free Methodist Church in Rwanda. The Church, before and after the war and Genocide, had appointed me to a place where the Church does not have any building. I built chapels myself in these locations. I created a parish church in Kinyinya, Kigali, and another in Bumbogo, Kigali. These parishes have a large number of church members and are making significant progress. For now, Kinyinya is a parish, and Bumbogo is another one.
I can say that these two events, church and ministry, are supposed to be encounters with God because I cannot say I deserved these two callings. Only God decided I would become a pastor in His church and a minister in His work. Praise the Lord; I have encounters with God.
After I finished high school, I started to work at a German radio called “Deutsche Welle.” This new life has profoundly influenced me spiritually and continues to do so throughout my life. I was in a spiritual perdition position throughout that time. I lived through the dark days during that period, and therefore, I experienced moments of crisis of faith. Some years later, I attended a theological university, the National University of Protestant Churches of Congo Kinshasa. After that, I continued my studies for a Master of Theology in the United States.
I graduated with a Doctor of Ministry in Theology degree in New York City, United States of America. I earned my PhD in Systematic Theology from OHIO, USA; and a PhD in Educational and Organizational Leadership from National University, in San Diego, California, United States of America. I’m experiencing intellectual growth, and it is exciting to see myself developing in a field that interests me and aligns better with my spiritual aspirations. With my Doctor of Ministry, I will best serve the Lord Jesus Christ, who gives himself to redeem me from eternal death. During my adulthood, especially after being saved through faith in Christ and gaining extensive experience in the Lord's work, I have seen positive growth in my behaviour. I became more beneficial to my family, church, friends, and community, including universities, seminaries, and other institutions. The aspect that positively promoted me in all that is my salvation. My faith in Jesus Christ has had a profound impact on my character, and my behaviour has undergone significant changes for the better, benefiting both myself and society.
Since I became a Christian, my social side has grown ordinarily. Even if I lost some of my “friends” of the past life, sinless life, my friends after my conversion are more than those I had before my conversion. I feel more comforted when I remember that the Christian friends I have now will be with me for all eternity. So, I can say with certainty that my relationships have grown. The Christian life has more advantages than the life of sin. One more exciting thing in my adult life is knowing what I’m doing, why I work for the Lord, and the eternal impact of all that. I know that I work for God. I put zeal into everything I do for the Lord because I am convinced, according to the Bible, that I do nothing in vain.
I will harvest at the right time. So, I noticed, probably with others, that I grew up in service day after day. Therefore, there is growth in the service sector. Concluding my spiritual autobiography, I have come to realise that the most important thing to do is to love one another. A relationship with low-income individuals is essential for a fulfilling life. Imitating Jesus Christ and sacrificing for another is the best way to live. To know that if you lose your life, you will find it. I live much more in the present now. I accept myself more fully and no longer strive to be anyone else. I have found a call that brings me great joy. Being a pastor, learning theology, and leading people of God in my Church and ministry brings me great pleasure. To serve the Lord is the highest privilege in a man’s life, and God gave me (like other pastors) that privilege.
At my age, I still trust in my Lord, who assures us of success, as stated in Philippians 4:13: “I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me.” I also greatly thank God for allowing me to write some books. I recognise that privilege from my Lord!
