Even Protestants have their saints.

Maybe not canonised or titled but clearly there are those 'heroes of the faith' who are held up as shining examples of having done exploits.

Having lived in Bristol for 5 years, I couldn't miss the presence of St George Muller whose buildings stand as witness to his faith and the effort involved in providing for the orphans of the city and beyond.

The slim paperback with extracts from his diary caught my attention as it lay on the bookshelf here in Buna. I found it tedious reading as Muller kept track of all the halfpennies and shillings which were given to fund the orphanages. But the book continued to bug me.

Everyday I pass the corner plot where Pastor Djadri has been tasked by the church to care for street children of Bunia. He started off with a few children. Too few to deserve a grant from the NGOs who are saving children in town. Gradually, a small cook house went up, a gazebo, a small dormitory, a latrine, a well. Some good ladies of the church come every day most faithfully to cook a basic meal for the boys. Lusi mothers them and they call her 'Mama'. Pastor Djadri cares for them and they call him 'Papa-Mwalimu' (teacher). He's worked hard to get them enrolled in local primary schools so they can be usefully occupied. When the boys aren't in school they sit around and play cards or play ball or rough and tumble.

Sometimes they just take off and wander the streets. They aren't at the 'centre' by court order, or under social service care. There are no walls, no boundary fences. They are free to come and go. They go and they come back. It would seem that they bring back others with them because the numbers have increased.

One day I was talking with Pastor Djadri. I told him about George Muller caring for orphans back home in 'my' town. Hopefully to encourage him, to inspire him. Later, he came by the house to ask more questions about this George Muller and what happened to the buildings and where the money came from and how they operated. He borrowed the book. (I assume his English can cope with the Language of Zion of the 1800s!)

Pastor Djadri will probably never keep a journal and have it published. The mud huts of his construction won't last as a testimony for generations to come proving that God is faithful. (But then again, the current generation knows only that those buildings in Bristol now house Brunel College and serve as the exterior set for the TV programme 'Casualty'.) But maybe Djadri's faith will inspire others as he provides a stable environment for these 'enfants de la rue' that annoy people but don't incite their compassion. Who knows what will become of this centre, as Pastor Djadri and his small team strive to grow these boys into good citizens and disciples of Jesus Christ?

'When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? The King will reply, 'I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me!' Matthew 25:37-40

Blessings