I was born in 1981. My parents, who were Christians, loved me very much. In return for their love, I promised them I would work hard and be successful in life. At the end of my primary schooling, I passed the exam with enough good grades for me to go to a special college. This made me very happy and I looked forward to making my parents happy too.

Rwandan nightmare

Then something happened that shattered my life – war broke out in my country. Most of my family members died in the 100-day Rwandan nightmare. One of these was my father. I loved him dearly and he was my role model. Others in my family disappeared and I have never seen them since. At that terrible time in my life, I first asked this question – 'Does God love me?' – but I found I did not have an answer.

Low grades

I could not go to the special college, but I did get a place in a secondary school. There I worked very hard to get good enough grades to go to university. But I became sick while I was doing the exams, so my grades were not good enough for me to go to university. All I had was my secondary school certificate. For the second time I asked, 'Does God really love me?' and still I could not find the answer.

Walking the streets

After this I spent two years walking the streets of towns and cities looking for work. But there was no work to be found. Life became even harder for me. I was very unhappy. Again I asked myself, 'Does God love me?'

At last

Finally I went to study at a private university. I started to go to Christian meetings there. I told the Christian students about my unhappy life and my question. They taught me about God and his love for everyone. At last I found the answer. Now I know that God loves me and looks after me.I am happy because I know that nothing in the whole world can take us away from God's love. The very worst things can happen to us, but God still loves us.