I was born a few years after the end of first civil war in Sudan that lasted for 17 years. Again I grew up and studied during another civil war that lasted for 21 years in the united Sudan. In fact I belong to that generation of traumatized children who grew up in constant panic, fear and war-experiences, needless to mention bitterness and revenge cycle between Arab-Muslims from the north and African-Christians in the south during the united Sudan. My generation knew very little about the meaning of such words ‘peace’, ‘love’ and ‘reconciliation’ simply because the environment that surrounds us was hostile and unpredictable.

I lost my mother at age of 6 years. When I was growing up just like any village boy, I never heard such statement “I love you” even from my polygamous father. Instead we could hear some weird statements from the community members. Some said “this orphan, his/her father was killed by the Arabs soldiers who come from Khartoum”. Imagine, my own uncle told me that the good Arab is the dead one! They called Arab-Muslims from the north our enemies. In our local language Arabs were known as “minga” or “mundukuru”. They told me that these Arabs soldiers slaughtered your maternal grandfather in front of villagers simply because he was trained and served in the colonial British Police. Again we were told that the Islamic government in Khartoum had only one agenda towards African-Christians community in south Sudan and beyond: “to kill and Islamize African indigenous population by force, occupy their land and rule them with strict Sharia Laws”.

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Unfortunately those Arab-Muslim soldiers from Khartoum, majority of them were Darfurians and Nubians community. They were sent by the Islamic regime based in Khartoum to terrorize and kill our innocent people in the name of Islamic ‘Jihad’ which is Arabic word which means ‘holy war’. Now with such evil plan, decades of civil wars and bitterness between the two warring communities, chances for reconciliation were unthinkable and impossible to say the least. Of course with God there is nothing impossible.

Before I received Jesus Christ as my personal savior, I had negative feeling towards the Darfurians and Nubians communities. But I did study with many of them during my secondary and college education in Khartoum. I had interest to associate and friendship with them. Yet for several years I served as a leader of Young Christians Students. I avoided working with any member from the two communities. Simply because I believed that they had murdered my grandfather and killed thousands of our people. Secondly I did not experience the true power of forgiveness and reconciliation as carnal believer. But when I received Jesus Christ as my personal savior many years late, God turns everything upside down for me. Jesus infected me with love and compassion towards my enemies. He messes up with all my plans. Then I began to experience the power of forgiveness and reconciliation. Because reconciliation with God is not something we do, but something God provides and we receive. It means those who receive the message should be reconciled to God (2 Cor 5:18-21).

Reconciliation in the NT comes from Greek word “katallage”, it means reconciliation. It was used only by Paul in four passages (Rom 5:11; 11:15, 2 Cor 5:18-19). But in Rom 5:11 Paul says believers have received reconciliation as a gift. In all four uses of the word reconciliation God is portrayed as the Reconciler and sinners as the ones reconciled.

But in the OT prophet Isaiah said that men are the ones who broke the relationship with God. “But your iniquities have made separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that he does not hear” (Isaiah 59:2).

If you visit south Sudan today or a decade of years ago, the story is completely different. The two communities of Darfurians and Nubians and south Sudanese are reconciled and living together in peace and harmony. The sacrificial love of Jesus Christ has mended the broken relationship. Again my work with African Leadership has exposed me to work with all kind of leaders, both the Church and Community leaders. I am grateful to God for African Leadership Inc US. They have helped me to make friends from Darfur and Nuba communities. Today I am mentoring 4 pastors/teachers from Darfur and 2 pastors/teachers from Nuba respectively. John MacArthur states that reconciliation is not what man accomplishes but what he embraces. Reconciliation is a divine provision by which God’s holy displeasure against alienated sinners is appeased. His hostility against men removed, and a harmonious relationship between Him and men established. Indeed I have learned to handle conflicts biblically when relationships are broken.