Focus on the Family Magazine - April/May 2023
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics. Every issue comes packed with relevant advice to build up your kids, strengthen your marriage, navigate entertainment and culture, and handle common challenges you may face in your marriage and parenting journeys. Plus you'll find seasonal advice ranging from back-to-school activities to date night tips for you and your spouse.
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics.
Every issue comes packed with relevant advice to build up your kids, strengthen your marriage, navigate entertainment and culture, and handle common challenges you may face in your marriage and parenting journeys. Plus you'll find seasonal advice ranging from back-to-school activities to date night tips for you and your spouse.
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ADVOCACY / KIDS & TEENS<br />
I DIDN’T HAVE A NAME<br />
until I was 2 years old. During <strong>the</strong> time<br />
period when I was born in Uganda,<br />
most babies born to poor families<br />
weren’t given names because <strong>the</strong>y<br />
didn’t live past <strong>the</strong>ir sec<strong>on</strong>d birthdays.<br />
When I did, my mo<strong>the</strong>r gave me<br />
<strong>the</strong> name Peter Habyarimana. To my<br />
mo<strong>the</strong>r, I was a gift given from God.<br />
But my fa<strong>the</strong>r didn’t see me that way.<br />
I can’t remember a kind word from him.<br />
All I heard was “Peter, you will never<br />
amount to anything,” and “I wish you<br />
had never been born so I wouldn’t<br />
have to feed you.” It’s hard to hear those<br />
words every day and not lose hope or<br />
dreams for a better life.<br />
I grew up hungry, walking 3 to 4<br />
miles a day for drinking water and<br />
helping my mo<strong>the</strong>r grow crops to feed<br />
our family in a small village near <strong>the</strong><br />
Rwandan border. And I did all of it <strong>on</strong><br />
an empty stomach most days. When<br />
we did eat, it was usually potatoes and<br />
beans—day in and day out, m<strong>on</strong>th<br />
after m<strong>on</strong>th. Christmas and Easter<br />
were <strong>the</strong> <strong>on</strong>ly times <strong>the</strong>re were different<br />
foods <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> table.<br />
At age 10, I was c<strong>on</strong>vinced my dad<br />
would take my life. So I ran away, not<br />
looking for a better life, but because<br />
I knew my life would end. I didn’t want<br />
my fa<strong>the</strong>r to be <strong>the</strong> <strong>on</strong>e who ended it.<br />
I had never been more than 20 miles<br />
away from home, yet I ended up more<br />
than 300 miles away in Kampala, <strong>the</strong><br />
capital of Uganda. I wanted to put as<br />
much distance between my fa<strong>the</strong>r<br />
and me as possible. Eventually, I even<br />
changed my surname. >>><br />
Peter’s childhood home in Uganda.<br />
APRIL / MAY <strong>2023</strong> FOCUS ON THE FAMILY 41
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