A woman whose missionary husband was killed by terrorists in Burkina Faso has said she will continue their work in the country.
Amy Riddering told a news conference that she and her husband were called to the West African country and that carrying out the work is tremendously rewarding.
Michael Riddering was killed when Islamist attackers stormed a café and hotel last month, leaving a total of 30 people dead.
Orphanage
The family left the USA in 2011 after selling their possessions. Michael and Amy’s four children are now aged between four and 24 – two of them were adopted from Burkina Faso.
The missionaries went on to set up an orphanage, school and women’s centre – caring for widows and hundreds of children.
Speaking to journalists, Amy said: “God did not only call Mike to Burkina Faso, he called me, too.”
Rewarding
The Associated Press reported that she explained her situation in a “calm, relaxed and cheerful voice”.
“Our following God’s call and our work with orphans and widows is the most rewarding thing I can imagine”, she said.
Michael’s older brother Jeff said he felt no ill will towards the people of Burkina Faso, and that the attack was most likely to have been carried out by outsiders.
Amy said regardless of any troops being sent to tackle the terrorists, it was an issue of needing to change a mindset: “Really the only way to do that is more love.”
Elisabeth Elliot
In June, Elisabeth Elliot – a Christian missionary, author and speaker – died after suffering from dementia.
In 1956 her husband Jim and four others were killed by members of a previously unreached tribe in Ecuador.
Elisabeth and her daughter Valerie later spent two years living with the same tribe who had killed Jim, in order to share the gospel there.
While in Ecuador, she wrote the best-selling book Through Gates of Splendour, which tells the story of Jim Elliot and their work together.