{"id":6148,"date":"2023-06-12T16:22:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-12T15:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opendoorsuk.org\/?p=6148"},"modified":"2024-02-13T13:32:57","modified_gmt":"2024-02-13T13:32:57","slug":"drc-gertrude-provision","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/blog\/news\/latest-news\/drc-gertrude-provision\/","title":{"rendered":"Your provision comforts widow after death of husband and kidnap of son"},"content":{"rendered":"    <section class=\"standard-page \" role=\"document\" style=\"\">\n        <div class=\"container\">\n            \n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Helped by supporters like you, Gertrude from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is rebuilding her family\u2019s livelihood following an unspeakable tragedy at the hands of Islamic extremists.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"930\" height=\"399\" src=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/07\/12.06.23-DRC930-399.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6149\" srcset=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/07\/12.06.23-DRC930-399.jpg 930w, https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/07\/12.06.23-DRC930-399-300x129.jpg 300w, https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/07\/12.06.23-DRC930-399-768x329.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>&#8220;I thank God for how He has provided through brothers and sisters,&#8221; says Gertrude<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s a conversation that Gertrude* has replayed countless times in her head. Her husband had called to say that he would meet them at their farm. \u201cThe road is not good, do not come,\u201d she told him. \u201cBut he insisted.\u201d &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Looking back, Gertrude wishes that her husband had listened to her, or that she had tried harder to stop him. If so, she wonders if her husband would still be alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u201cIf it is death, I have no fear in my heart\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make a living, Gertrude\u2019s husband would often spend time in Beni, a city in North Kivu Province, where he sold produce from their farm, whilst Gertrude and their children stayed at their home in a nearby village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After the phone conversation, Gertrude\u2019s husband met the family at the farm and the day unfolded as it typically did \u2013 including the distant sound of gunfire, which would not stop the family from their work. \u201cMy husband said \u2018Man dies one day, and he is also born in a day; if it is death, I have no fear in my heart\u2019,\u201d recalls Gertrude.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/countries-watch\/democratic-republic-of-congo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Why is DRC number 37 on the World Watch List?\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But as the day drew to a close, armed men from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) \u2013 a militant group known for targeting Christians \u2013 attacked the farm. Gertrude\u2019s husband tried to protect her and their son.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n    <div class=\"pull-right-wrapper\">\r\n        <div class=\"cta-box\">\r\n            <div class=\"stat\">EVERY \u00a316<\/div>\r\n\r\n            <div class=\"description\">could give a month\u2019s education to four young people from persecuted families to give them hope for the future.\r\n<\/div>\r\n            <a class=\"btn btn-secondary btn-lg view-more\"\r\n               href=\"https:\/\/connect.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/act\/donate\/\">MY GIFT TODAY<\/a>\r\n        <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen he fell, he blocked the boy,\u201d she says. \u201cI crawled into the bush, hoping to climb the mountain but they shot my foot. I slipped. I tried to climb again and got another bullet in my foot.\u201d Going up a hill, Gertrude was shot again and she fell to the ground.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFrom where I was, I could see them take my boy and behead my husband,\u201d she remembers. \u201cWhen I saw them behead him, I told myself we were all dead. I lost the remaining strength I had. When they killed him, I felt dead too. It is as though I had lost my mind. I did not know where I was or where I was going. My first thought was the children. How would I provide for them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The comfort and glory of God<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gertrude fled to safety where she was picked up by government soldiers, who took her to the farm where just a few hours previously she was happily working with her family. There was no trace of her son \u2013 he had been kidnapped.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSince my husband died, I no longer go to the farm,\u201d says Gertrude, who is responsible for six of her sister\u2019s children (she was killed by the ADF in 2017) as well as her own four children. \u201cMy foot hurts if I walk too much. The children\u2019s schooling has stopped because I can no longer pay school fees.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gertrude needed to find another way to make a living \u2013 and that\u2019s where you came in. Through Open Doors local partners, she has been given the finance to start a small shop. \u201cI thank God for how He has provided through brothers and sisters,\u201d she says. \u201cPlease pray that this will glorify Him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n    <div class=\"pull-right-wrapper \">\n        <blockquote><p>&#8220;I have hope that God is present&#8221;\r\n<\/p> <cite>GERTRUDE<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This passion to honour God reflects how faith has brought solace amidst unspeakable grief. \u201cI have hope that God is present,\u201d she says. \u201cI had many questions, but as He is good, I just consoled myself. I told myself we all are sojourners on this earth. It is God alone who gives me the strength to be able to bear this pain.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The family has also been upheld by the support of a local church. \u201cWhen I feel bad, I call them for this or that, they help me in prayer, and they also encourage me to pray, and it helps me to not grow tired,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Acute threat of ADF requires urgent prayer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Helped by you, Gertrude is persevering, but she continues to need your prayers, particularly given the ever-present threat of ADF militants; attacks by the group in eastern DRC have increased in frequency and severity since 2014.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen I hear of attacks near to me, I am startled,\u201d she says. \u201cSometimes I relocate to another area for a few weeks, then I follow closely and if calm returns, I go back to my place. At one point, I couldn\u2019t even sleep. When I hear that people have been killed somewhere, all the details of the attack come rushing back to me. I can\u2019t understand how these people just continue killing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPray that God will protect us as a family,\u201d she says.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Thank you<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The impact you\u2019re having on Gertrude\u2019s life is one of many similar stories across sub-Saharan Africa. Your support is aiding Open Doors local partners across the region as they seek to come alongside our brothers and sisters who are experiencing unimaginable pain because of rising violent attacks by Islamic extremists. This faithful and generous help \u2013 including emergency relief, trauma care and livelihood support \u2013 is meeting so many varied and urgent needs. Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>*Name changed for security reasons<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n        <\/div>\n    <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":6152,"parent":8268,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[99],"class_list":["post-6148","news","type-news","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","tag-democratic-republic-of-congo"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v20.8 (Yoast SEO v28.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Your provision comforts widow after death of husband and kidnap of son - Open Doors Ireland<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" 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