It is with deep sadness that I announce the passing on of my daughter, Israella Bushiri. As a Father it was my desire to see her grow and serve the Lord, however, the will of God was for her to return back to Him.

Shepherd Bushiri and his wife Mary have announced the death of their daughter Israella who died today. Bushiri took to social media to announce the death of younger Israella in a post that stated that he feels if she had been attended to earlier she wouldn’t have died:

Israella was born during a time when my wife and I were going through great persecution, and she has lived her life witnessing what it means to fight and labour for the Lord despite trials and battles. She came at a time when we really needed her and through it all, she offered my wife and I, including the entire church great comfort and enlightenment. We are a church built on faith and if we aren’t careful to observe the ways of the Lord, we can mistake God’s will for God’s punishment.

If things could be reversed we would have desired it to be so. However, the will of the Lord is above our desires. We have experienced it and have accepted it. We are a church of God’s love and strength and His love and strength will carry us forward from this day forward. Israella was a strong young girl who loved to worship and serve God, despite her young age. She was brilliant in her speech and possessed divine excellency in the way she spoke and even tackled her studies.

Today, all those that encountered her testify that they felt a certain special aura that oozed divinity. She was a walking angel. In our darkest moments, she gave us light and in our lowest moments, she lifted our spirits. I am grateful to God to have fathered an angel of such spirit and beauty. She will always be my little girl.

When I spoke to the Doctor, he highlighted that if she had not been blocked at the airport the first time she needed to travel to Kenya for medical assistance, she wouldn’t have passed on. It is very disheartening and sad, therefore, that my daughter has become a victim of the persecutions that we are facing from South Africa. However, my wife and I, bow to God’s sovereignty and as this is his will, it could have happened anyway.

Today, my wife and I choose not to mourn her but to celebrate her life. I do not believe that the devil could take the life of my daughter. She was a child of God and she passed on to be with Him according to His will. We prayed and we fasted, we commanded out- and in this week, when the Lord spoke to me that it will be a week of His will- His will has taken place.