Elalie’s story
Militia attacked Elalie’s village and killed her father, mother, and husband. When she tried to flee, they attacked and gang raped her. She managed to escape and made it to a refugee camp in Uganda with her 10 children. When she arrived there, she tried to function normally. But when she would leave her tent in the camp to get food and water, she couldn’t find her way back. She thought she was losing her mind. Someone shared about a Bible-based trauma healing group taking place in the camp. She decided to go, and it changed her life. She began to understand that God loved her and understood her pain. She learned how to share the trauma healing material with others, to make a difference in their lives as well.
Elalie’s story is too common in DR Congo—the rape capital of the world, according to the United Nations due to the gender violence that is acknowledged as a weapon of war. Trauma paralyzes individuals, disrupts family systems, fractures communities, and hinders faith development. While people in the context of severe suffering have a broad array of needs—including food security, housing, and clean water—Restoring Hope Ministries is emphasizing the underlying need for spiritual and emotional recovery with primary focus on Biblical trauma healing. This proven methodology introduces God’s Word to the deepest corners of the human heart where suffering surfaces the most troubling questions:
Is God good?
Does God care?
Is God powerful?
While the enemy has come to steal, kill, and destroy, Jesus has come to bring life in all its fullness, even to those who have suffered the most devastating losses (John 10:10). While we have no promise of avoiding suffering, we do have a promise of hope for the future. The church leaders in DRC have reported that those who have come through the trauma healing program are coming to faith in Christ. They are filling the churches. They are showing evidence of significant life change and a renewed sense of purpose.