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Triumphant Graduation, Despondent Vacation Updates from Kigali // January 2026 //

Happy New Year friends and family!
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We hope your year ended well and that you are currently living your best lives as you are sticking with all your newly established habits and goals that you made on New Year’s Eve!

We ended the year on a low note, to be honest. Our Christmas plans with friends fell through as we fought a family-wide flu, but we shook that off as we were to go to the beach for a few days soon after. On the way to our hotel, we got caught in the middle of a bike race, which added a couple hours to our road trip. After a weekend of valiant attempts to enjoy the beach, despite the continual downpour, we left only to have our return trip thwarted by our car dying 20 minutes into our drive. After sitting by the side of the road for 3 hours, John took a motorcycle back to the hotel and waited for a mechanic to arrive, and Rachel and the kids hopped in a hired car with a driver.

We arrived in Kigali at 8:30pm to a flooded house, which was a delightful welcome home. I share this story not to be all, “woe is us, life in Africa is so hard” but to just share a little bit of our reality: life in Africa is often complicated and slow, and sometimes our attempts to take a break from that life end up being the opposite of life-giving. But God is good, we all stayed safe, and our kids are mighty travelers. John eventually got home with our car a few days later, and I had the joy of seeing our kids cheerfully leap into action to help mop up the flood, on top of barely complaining throughout our day of delays. They have their flaws, but I can safely say the Clifford kids are amazing on travel days.

A highlight for John was getting to see his first graduating class in Kigali. John taught a one-year class on biblical interpretation to reformed church leaders, who do not have formal theological training. These men were incredibly hungry to learn more about God’s Word. They came to classes prepared and ready to ask difficult questions and important Bible texts. One of the elders was so appreciative of the material learned and skills developed that he asked John to come and teach his church a class on biblical interpretation. Another student commented that this was the best course he has taken because it lays the foundation for everything else we believe.

John also wrapped up teaching an intensive on Advanced Systematic Theology at a local Bible college, which was very fulfilling, yet exhausting. One student said he has never been challenged to think so much in his life. Another student commented that this is the first time they have done any real research. From the beginning of the class, John kept challenging them: “Can you prove that from Scripture?”. They got so used to it that by the end they were repeatedly asking John the same question whenever he brought up something they hadn’t heard before.

Rachel celebrated a year of volunteering with Word Made Flesh, a ministry that focuses on teaching the gospel to and practically empowering women who previously lived in the slums of Kigali. She helped run a full day event that both celebrated 10 years of Word Made Flesh serving in Rwanda and gave local partners the opportunity to see the ministry center and meet many of the women that they have been praying for and supporting. The staff all went out for lunch a few days after, and it turned out to be a surprise time of appreciation for her. It was so encouraging and humbling to hear how the staff, many of whom don’t speak English, have come to see Rachel as a part of their community. Several of them shared how they see her care for them as women, her love for their children, and her willingness to join them in everything, no matter how small the job! This meant so much as it can be hard to know if our efforts to serve and love are crossing the barriers of culture and language, and this was a beautiful confirmation of God at work. They also gave her a potted plant, which showed more than anything that they truly know and love her as a person.

Lastly, a final call for our internship! Applications are OPEN and we are ready and excited to receive this year’s group of interns. Please be praying for God to speak to the hearts of those He is calling, and that they would have the courage to answer this conviction. Please also pray as John continues teaching and with his involvement in the church that has asked him to help with their English service, and for Rachel as she continues her various ministries, both in and outside of the home.

We thank you SO much for your continued prayers and partnership; we can’t help but reflect on our struggles and God’s faithfulness in 2025, and how you all have played such a big part in supporting us in both prayer and finances. Now that we are coming up on our second anniversary of living in Kigali, we are aware that the “honeymoon phase” of missionary life is wearing off, and this is where the grind begins. We covet your prayers, and we thank God for you often.
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With SO much love from Kigali,

John & Rachel + crew