Miracles happen every day. I am thankful I get to see them in the lives of our children in Northern Uganda.

In 2006, God took me on a detour in my travel plans while in Central Africa. My plan was not to go to Northern Uganda, but I heard stories of children being abducted by a man named Joseph Kony, the leader of the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) and I asked if I could go and see for myself.

We met a young woman, Rose, who took us to visit places called IDP (Internally Displaced People) camps. Each camp had seven to fifteen thousand people living there because they escaped from the LRA’s torture. Everywhere I looked, there were orphans - homeless, bloated bellies, flies on their faces - it was horrible.

To protect themselves from being abducted by the LRA, thousands of children would walk barefoot and in rags to the “night commuter centers”. It was basically a large fenced area. They would sleep, spooned together, in these massive UNICEF tents.

I heard story after story of how young children were stripped from their parents’ arms, bound to other children and led out into the bush. Then they were given a machete and told to kill another child, a stranger or worse yet their own family members. The stories were too much to bear. I didn’t know where to file them in my American mind.

I kept thinking, “What is going on?” Rose sat down and explained that this man, Joseph Kony, had a vendetta against the Acholi tribe. He hated them because they would not worship him as God (the Acholi people are mainly Christian). For over 20 years, he went from home to home, village by village, burning down huts, killing and abducting young children to be soldiers in his personal war.

One morning I broke down and said, “God, I don’t know what you want me to do, but whatever it is, I’ll do it.” I came back to the US and I just couldn’t function. I just kept thinking, “Lord, what can I do today? Not a year from now, not a month from now, not five years from now, but today.” And it was like God was leading me day to day. Ask this person, tell this person. Share this story. And people began to give.

I quit my job with $8,000 in the bank and I thought, “This will last me a long time.” As I shared the story of the children, God opened doors and people began to give.

Six months later, while in Nashville, TN preparing to speak at a meeting, I went into seizures. They rushed me to the hospital and the doctor came out and said, “Ms. Cunningham, you have a brain tumor the size of a tennis ball.”

I cried out to God at 3 o’clock in the morning, “God, what are you doing? You called me. You wanted me to do this. I quit my job. What are you thinking? Don’t you need me?” He said, “No, Cindy, I don’t need you. But I called you and I asked you to walk alongside me, to be a part of what I’m doing. I don’t need you.”

At that moment, I realized this isn’t Cindy’s ministry that I’ve started. It isn’t my responsibility to raise money or direct the ministry, but it is HIS ministry and I just get to be a part of that. Praise God the tumor was benign.

Over the years, I have learned to thank and praise God for my tumor. People were hearing about this crazy woman who quit her job, got a brain tumor and they heard the news about what was going on in Northern Uganda. Word spread and people started joining His work.

Rose quit her job and become our National Director. I remained in the U.S. to raise awareness and funds needed to help the children.

We wanted it the ministry to be Ugandan-led. We didn’t want it to be some idea of what an American thinks these children need. Everything had been taken away from them and we said, what do they need? Well, they need their homes replaced. They need that village…a village of hope. And that’s where our name came from. We wanted God to restore what had been taken away from them. Not only their homes but also their childhoods.

So, one by one, people would give so we could build a school, a medical clinic and hire the Ugandan staff. In 2010, we opened up the first Village of Hope near a town called Bweyale. and in 2014 opened our second village near a town called Bobi for elementary children.

God is transforming the lives of these children. I’m amazed at His goodness. Over the years, we have seen Jesus transform the lives of former child soldiers, traumatized orphans and hurting hearts. Now THAT is a miracle!

We continue to minister to those that are still in the areas of the former IDP camps. Over the years, Joseph Kony has left. There is peace and families have gone back to their villages.

We often wonder how we can afford to build a home, or a school or a medical clinic, BUT God says, “This is my work. I will provide!” We have seen Him do it over and over again!!

Our goal for our kids is for them to be self-sustaining. We do not age them out at 18. We pray and desire that each of our children will grow up to be Godly men and women in their homes, communities and countries. 

We have seen God perform miracle after miracle as we provide food, an education, trauma counseling and more for 100’s of kids. But, the real miracle is the transformation Jesus is doing in the hearts of our children. THAT is the REAL miracle.