Photos by Ralph Freso
The Second Congo War is considered one of the bloodiest conflicts since World War II.
Grand Canyon University alumnus Bikonzi Moise and his family were among those ripped from their homes and kept in concentration camps for more than a year.
But with God’s sovereignty and protection, he and his family survived and migrated to the United States. Now he lives to tell his story while passionately serving and tending a refugee ministry.
Moise and fellow alumnus Clint Leavitt partnered to put Moise’s story into words and publish his memoir, “Cockroaches, God, Death, and Mangoes.”
“The goal was never for it be a book,” Moise said. “When I went to GCU, it was the first time my faith was really becoming my own. I kept asking God, ‘How do I serve You?’ One of the things I kept hearing God say was, ‘I have given you this story that demonstrates how powerful I am. One way you can serve Me is by sharing your story and letting My glory be seen.’”
What started out as fun, pick-up basketball games in one of the campus recreation centers turned into an instant connection, and now, years' worth of friendship for Moise and Leavitt.
When their freshman year spring break came around in 2012, they decided to go on a road trip to California with a group of GCU friends. To make the best use of their long drive, each friend took turns sharing personal testimonies.
When Moise shared, his story left his friends speechless.
“Bikonzi got going with his story and we asked a lot of questions,” Leavitt said. “It ended up being four hours because it was this remarkable, insane story from this guy we knew just as a friend from playing basketball.
“To hear his story opened a light bulb moment for me because it exposed me to a part of history I was completely unaware of. It prompted me to want to learn more about, not only his experience, but refugees around the world.”
Throughout college, Moise was often encouraged to share his story on a public platform.
It was when he heard clear confirmation from God to do so that Moise turned to Leavitt, who was a professional writing major at the time, with the idea to author his book.
“My initial response was, ‘I am not the person to write this book.’” Leavitt said. “I am a middle-class white guy from Arizona. This is not going to work well. But he said, ‘I don’t want anyone else to write it, and I trust you.’”
The duo spent the next few years researching, interviewing and learning about the story that would become their first published piece. From interviewing Moise and his family to doing extensive research on the culture and history of Congo to even partnering with a cultural sensitivity book editor, the project took roughly six years to complete.
Its title represents a list of key themes that signify specific life seasons most integral to Moise’s story and character development.
As readers make their way through the book, each of the words in the title connect the dots and become thematically important to the telling of the story, Leavitt says.
“I never really shared my story because I don’t want anybody to feel bad for me,” Moise said. “They don’t need to because so much good has already come out of my life. We wanted this to be something that shows another side of refugees because it feels like it is always negative stories told.
“We want to use this as a tool for people to hear a story of someone that was a refugee and ask tangible questions like, 'Hey, how can we help our brothers and sisters who are refugees?' We all have different passions, and we look different, but that doesn’t really mean that we should be enemies.
GCU recently hosted Missions Week to connect students with local and global church and ministry opportunities. Moise and Leavitt returned to campus as guest speakers to share their book, encouraging students to love their neighbors by extending a helping hand to those who need it and to serve as God’s beacon of light.
GCU staff writer Izabela Fogarasi can be reached at [email protected].
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“Cockroaches, God, Death, and Mangoes” can be purchased on Amazon.
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