Siritual Suitcase - God Moment No. 2

Our first Saturday in Ethiopia began with a devotion by Carolyn about how an oyster pearl is formed as a result of trauma to the oyster.  That was followed by a visit to a small village church in T'ede.  Pastor Zerihun's (pictured with Brita) faith journey began when he gave his last few dollars that he was going to buy poison with to commit suicide to a homeless man.  The man gave him in return a pamphlet about Jesus Christ.  Pastor Zerihun now has flock of 50 that gathers in the in the church building that he built.     Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Spiritual Suitcase ~ No. 1

From John's Spiritual Suitcase God Moment No.1 A custom-made day God shared with us in the village of Gutumuma.  Twenty young women and men and a member of our mission team, Tim Snyder (A.K.A. Dr. Jones) were baptized in the lake by Pastor Mark.  Hallelujah!   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Spiritual Suitcase

I can not talk right now because while in Ethiopia I was given a spiritual suitcase full of God moments.  I am still unpacking…

Hello, this is Rick, just wanted to thank you for the support. It really takes the body of Christ to accomplish a mission such as the one we went on. I underestimated the humanitarian aspect of this trip. We made a huge difference in many lives in the name of Christ. Even those who watched from a distance gave thought to what we did. I pray those thoughts end with Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

I also believe that Ethiopian Christians could easily come here to the states to share the gospel. They truly know what it is to be in need and what real oppression is. And would expose the curse we Americans have because of the wealth, TV, worldliness, and PRIDE.

Religion and other gods have confused the people of Ethiopia similar to what it has done here. Many believe "working" your way to God is needed so that God will accept them based on their merit. Only thing wrong with that is that faith in God is taken out of the picture (Eph 2:8-10). It also diminishes the death of Jesus.

We are back!

Praise the Lord!  We made it home from Ethiopia today ~ Saturday, 17 April!  What an amazing adventure we have had!   I am sorry for not keeping up with the blog but I (Brita) got sick on Tuesday and then we did not have Internet access the rest of the week . . . bummer!  I promise to get you up to speed ASAP . . . I'm just a bit tired right now! The team would like to thank everyone for praying for us during the past two weeks.  Your prayers made our trip more successful than any of us will ever realize.  We thank you from the bottom of our hearts!   Peace and blessings to you this Saturday evening!   Love,   The Team   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Monday

It is wonderful to wake up and realize you have been eaten alive at night by mosquitoes!  Thankfully we have a malaria medicine!  Let's hope it works!  The Ethiopian sounds of car horns and birds singing is a delightful alarm clock . . . providing you got enough sleep!  Rick gave today's Devotion based on Phil 3:14 . . . spiritual maturity and laying a strong, good foundation.  This tied in great to our visit to the construction site of the new Widows and Orphans Home.  It is wonderful how all of our devotions are tying in so easily to this Mission Trip! Today was a nice relaxing day at the Widows and Orphans Home.  We are busy holding babies, playing with bouncy balls and coloring in coloring book with the younger children.  What a great way to be Jesus to these children!   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Misc Thoughts . . .

It's hot!  Blazing sun! Houses made of mud, scrap metal, any found material. Train tracks . . . but no trains!  How silly is that! Ethiopia is a land locked country so shipped goods come from a port in Djibouti . . . we have seen quite a few cargo containers so that is why we learned this fact. Brita's little friend, who could not be more than 2 years old, knows how to fold a plastic bag.  (The only way this could be possible is if she has seen her mother do this for years . . . how sad is that?!) Rick gave his Amharic Bible away to a young man. Doug was speaking to a group of men about this trip, and when he spoke of our helping the orphans the young men wanted to know what we were doing to help his family. It's a legitimate question, one we didn't have an answer to. Toothpicks are big here!  Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Shopping

Shopping Because today is Sunday, we were going to relax a bit and go to a shopping area.  Tezera took us to some shops where she knows the owners and they would give us a fair price . . . theoretically.  We bought fabric, cups, spoons made of goat bones, jewelry, cultural clothing and other neat things. Brita and Rick were a bit adventurous and went out to the back of the main street.  Brita made a new friend with a little girl who could not have been more than 2 and Rick made friends with young men by talking about Jesus.  It is funny how God leads you where you need to be.     Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

After Church

When church was over, we met with the pastor and church leaders.  They shared with us the status of their church . . . they have 186 children in Sunday school but they have no teaching materials.  They rent this space and as we saw, it is pretty dilapidated.  Despite the situation, the church members are so joyful! After this meeting, we walked back to the Home and had lunch.  Once lunch was finished, we all loaded up in the van and headed to the new site of the Widows and Orphans Home.  They are busy building a new, bigger facility.  The new place is 15 minutes away from the current location.  The new site has a nice bit of land but there is a drainage problem . . . during the rainy season, which is 15 June – 15 Sept, the stream that runs through the back yard overflows, and it could overflow into the new house!  In order to fix this problem, the Home needs 40,000 US Dollars to build a retaining wall.  As you can imagine, this is an impossible amount of money for Tezera but she has faith that God will send the money somehow.    Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Church on Sunday

When Tezera's story was over, it was time to go to church.  The church was not far so it was neat to be able to walk the streets in Tezera's neighborhood.  As you can imagine, we were a sight for everyone to see!  The roads in Adama are just as bad as in Addis . . . large rocks that are not level and tiny rubble.  We wonder how many sprained ankles happen in one day here.  Thankfully, none of us has fallen . . . at least not too badly! When we approached the church, we could hear singing . . . loud singing!  People were shouting "Halleluiah!"  You could feel the energy coming out of the place!  We were ushered into the front rows and quickly took our seats.  There were approximately 500 people at church this morning.  There really aren't walls; it is simply the sides of the buildings next door.  The rafters were made of wood and the ceiling was made of scrap metal.  There are gaps where the scrap metal does not meet the walls so there are holes in the ceiling but if it were raining, the rain would be contained to the edges of the worship space.  The stage is the only permanent structure in the church; it is made of cement and has 5 steps leading to the stage.  The stage has a cover made of wood that is painted white.  The back of the stage is covered in white fabric and adorned with blue fabric that goes about 1/3 of the way down from the ceiling.  Plastic white flowers and green, flashing lights (Christmas light style) hang from the blue fabric.  There is no cross hanging on the wall but there is one on the podium.  When we made it to our seats, the prayer leader was leading the congregation in song.  Soon after that, the choir (15 woman and men) came on stage and sang some amazing songs!  We were later told the songs were about Job, his life and struggles.  The choir members were so joyful in the singing!  Their faces radiated with the joy of the Lord!  There was no band but there was a tract and a young man playing keyboard.  The music was simply remarkable!  (And the base was shaking the rafters!) When the choir returned to their seats, the pastor invited Mark, Andrea, Tim and Rick up on stage.  Andrea and Tim represented the team while Rick said the verse John 3:16 in Amharic by heart!  The congregation applauded when he finished! After the team members returned to their seats, Tezera offered to translate the sermon to Brita so she could write it in her journal.  The sermon was about the Will of God and how blessed one will be if they follow and live in the Will of God.  Now that is something to contemplate while on a Mission Trip in Ethiopia!   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Widows and Orphans Thoughts . . .

Along with the 10 widows that live in this compound, Tezera and her staff support 31 other widows in the community.  They have monthly meetings where they have fellowship and prayer.  During these meetings, they widows receive food for the month.   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Tezera’s Story

Tezera, an amazing Christian woman, feels that she has been called by God to minister to the widows and orphans in Ethiopia.  This calling is so strong she will stop at nothing to see this vision to come fruition.  She used to work for Compassion International, an organization that helps poorer families in Ethiopia, before she founded this Widows and Orphans Home.  When she was working for Compassion International, she had a dream about starting a place for widows and orphans.  The dream was so real and vivid she remembers it to this day.  She shared the dream with us . . . she saw a group of Americans, 12 white people and 1 black woman.  The black woman asked so many questions.  One of the white people was an overweight man.  In the dream, he was crying uncontrollably and his wife was rubbing his back consoling him.  Tezera was given a gift in the dream . . . it was an apron; green, brown and white stripes with two big pockets in the front and a metal ring to adjust the length.  Talk about a vivid dream! Tezera shared this dream with her family and most people made fun of her.  Despite this, she believed the dream was from God and she was going to keep praying to make the home a reality.  Seven years went by and Tezera's brother-in-law called her one day and said, "Your American friends are here in my office."  Tezera, who had been teased by this brother-in-law for years about the dream, quoted a verse from the bible about not joking and then she hung up the phone.  He called back and say, "Really, there are 12 white and 1 black American here in my office.  We will come by tomorrow.  And they did! During the first meeting with the Americans, someone translated for Tezera because she did not think her English was good enough.  When she left the meeting, she was not pleased.  She did not feel her message came across.  Thankfully, there was another meeting where she told the story herself.  Tezera shared her dream and her desire to have a home for widows and orphans in Adama.  By the end of the talk, the black woman was asking a ton of questions and the overweight man (Big Daddy) was crying and his wife was consoling him . . . just like the dream!  The Americans told her that they would help her start this house and they meant it!  In a matter of months, she received 100,000 Birr from the Americans to pay rent, buy beds, etc. etc.  Her dream was becoming a reality!  But the best part is that along with the money, she also received the green, brown, and white apron, with two big pockets and a metal ring for adjusting the length!!  God is amazing!   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Sunday Morning

Mornings in Adama are a bit different than Addis . . . the first and biggest difference we noticed is the heat.  Even in the morning, it's warm.  The birds singing and horns beeping remind you straight away that we are in Africa.  Praise the Lord!  What a blessing to be here today! Sunday morning began with breakfast by the pool and Devotions in Mark's room given by John.  He focused on Phil 2:13 ~ Enable me to do your will . . . I'm here, use me!  John quoted the Catholic Theologian Thomas Merton during his devotion in order to help us understand that one's movement causes others to move.  Andrea was moved to come to Ethiopia and help the orphans and widows.  Because of that movement, we were moved to join this team.  Because of our movement, others will be moved to do . . . who knows what?  We don't know yet, but we have faith that God knows how our movements will inspire others to make a difference in the world!  Now that is a cool thought . . . first thing on a Sunday morning. After Devotions, we were off to the Widows and Orphans Home.  We could not wait to see our new friends and get those amazing hugs!  The smiles when the woman and children see us are . . . indescribable!  The church that the woman and children go to is just around the corner so we put the widows on the van and let them have a drive . . . they LOVED it!  The church is pieced together with wood, sheet metal and a stone wall.  There are traps sown together covering some holes. It is a humble dwelling where over 850 people worship God. Like all things in Ethiopia, Church does not really have a beginning time.  When we arrived, we were told that church would begin in one hour so we walked back to the Home to hear Tezera's story.   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Down Time

One neat aspect of our new hotel is the pool!  In the Ethiopian culture, it is not acceptable for men or women to show their knees so we have been wearing long pants or skirts every day.  The idea of putting on shorts and swimsuits is a welcome relief to the blazing heat we are experiencing.  Saturday evening, some of us swam while others lounged by the pool listening to, get this, country music!  It is a wonderful blessing to be surrounded by such fun loving people on this trip!  Thank you, God! Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

It’s a Miracle!

It's not every day that you are part of an honest to goodness miracle.  That was our experience our first day here at the Widows and Orphans Home.  When we arrived, the nannies had 2 ½ cans of formula left . . . for 11 infants!  That means that they had less than 24 hours of formula left.  Just contemplate that for a moment.  11 infants, precious little babies . . . some as young as 23 days old, others up to 18 months. Who doesn't get formula first?  Who should get a smaller portion?  These were just two of the countless worries that Tezera and her staff face daily.  Their prayer was "Let God fulfill this burden."  They had faith that God would come through for them but they had no idea when it would happen.  This is real life in Ethiopia, a real life and death crisis.  Then the Americans arrived . . . with over 150 pounds of formula!  Praise God!  The desperately needed supplies were donated by many people ~ such as Harvest House in Arizona, M.O.P.S. (Mothers Of Pre-Schoolers group at VBUMC) and Atlantic Pediatric's in Virginia Beach, just to name a few.  When Tezera saw the formula, she exclaimed, "IT'S A MIRACLE!"    Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

Adama ~ Day 1

When we arrived in Adama, we went first to our hotel (which is AMAZING!  Swimming pool and all!).  After we were all settled in our rooms, we hopped back into the van and came to our second orphanage The Widows and Orphans Home which is run by Tezera, an amazing woman.  The compound is nice but small.  There are 11 infants, 5 toddlers, 5 older children and 10 widows that live here full time.  The infants were abandoned at the hospital, dropped off at a police station or simply left under a tree somewhere.  Tezera is licensed through the government and the Office of Woman's Affairs so she is given infants and children when they are found.  The widows were brought here as they are found as well.  The inspiration for this home comes from James 1:27 "Religion is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world."  Tezera takes this passage to heart and lives it on a daily basis.  There is a bible verse taped to the wall in the main sitting area (which is on the porch) that reads "A father to the fatherless, a defender of widow, is God in His holy dwelling.  God sets the lonely in families."  Psalm 68: 5-6.  This verse speaks for its self.  That is the motto of this home, to be God's hands and feet when it comes to orphans and widow and the ladies here are surely being God's hands and feet everyday! Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!

More Thoughts . . .

People picking trash out of a dumpster . . . in order to survive. Round huts and thatched roofs . . . Donkeys and carts caring people and goods . . . Sweeping the dirt ground . . . seems a bit bizarre! Two lane roads and three lane roads . . . but the three lane road has no lines and the middle lane is open to anyone . . . in any direction!  Yikes! When getting gas, the car remains on and one of the gas station attendance pumps the gas for you . . . and there aren't really bathrooms at gas stations . . . we found that out the hard way . . . augh! City buses and taxi/vans . . . some are so full, people are hanging out of them! Preaching the Gospel on the savannah's in Africa!   Life is too short and the planet is too big to stay in one place too long!