141 Rescued from Poverty with Norah Birungi

141. Rescued from Poverty with Norah Birungi

 

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” 

 

Norah B. Birungi is resiliency embodied. The youngest of six children born to a Ugandan mother and Rwandan father, she was raised in Kampala, Uganda, at the height of civil conflict in the region. Her father served in the Rwandan army until he and his entire family were killed in the 1994 genocide. Her mother’s job as a hairdresser was insufficient to provide for the family so Norah’s brothers went to work at a young age to help out financially. She and her siblings lost the opportunity to attend school due to lack of resources. Overtaken by a strong sense of hopelessness and despair, she felt her life had no value or purpose. 

 

When one of her mother’s clients learned that Norah wasn’t in school, she connected her to a local church for assistance. Norah was sponsored into Compassion’s child development program through that church when she was ten years old. She was able to return to school and receive a quality education. She also learned values and life skills, and was introduced to the transformative love of Jesus. Through the leadership development program, Norah had the opportunity to attend Uganda Christian University and obtain her bachelor’s degree in social work and social administration. 

 

Norah lives in Germantown, Maryland, with her husband Godfrey and their three beautiful children. By God’s grace, the hardships she endured made her strong and resilient rather than bitter and despondent. A powerful advocate for children and the marginalized, Norah enjoys speaking on poverty, vulnerability, health and wellness, and her personal journey from desperation to hope. 

 

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Gospel Scripture: (all NIV)

 

Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

 

Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

 

Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.” 

 

Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” 

 

Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

 

Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” 

 

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

 

Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” 

 

Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

 

Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”

 

Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession- to the praise of his glory.”

 

Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”

 

Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“

 

Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“

 

Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”