As our month in Ethiopia continues, I wanted to share with you somethings I’ve seen and experiences my team has had over the past few weeks. It’s been truly amazing to see God work and provide, putting people in our path who we can partner with in ministry, who we can share our stories and our journey with, or who we can just simply share a meal with. Our time here has been very different from the other countries in Africa, and for me personally it has been a lot heavier.
I wanted to share first of all, in case anyone was wondering or worried, my team is SAFE and we were not directly affected by the landfill devastation that happened here in Adis Ababa a few days ago. For those who may not be aware, a massive tragedy occurred this past Saturday when a landslide happened at a local dump where a mountain of refuse toppled onto a neighboring community, killing about 100 people. I was told that it made both national and world news, and the surrounding communities are still cleaning up from the accident. The guest house we are staying at is just a few kilometers away from the site and the road we walk each day has been closed since we arrived, swarming with security guards and police cars and construction vehicles that continue to dig for the remaining bodies. The local school has been closed for the week and massive funerals have been held for the past few days. At one point we past a tent that was holding a funeral service for three children that had been lost in the accident and I couldn’t help but cry as I heard the wailings and mourning of the families who had lost their dear little ones. The life that so many of these people live is already devastating, calling the dump their home, scavenging for food and shelter, being outcast by society and pushed to the dirtiest, only “affordable” part of town. I cannot imagine the pain of losing a child or loved one, the only thing of real value most of them have, on top of the hardships of living in poverty. Which brings me to the second thing I wanted to share….
The depth of poverty that we have witnessed in this place is indescribable. We have been helping at a ministry called Community Transformation Ethiopia, which assists families and individuals living in extreme poverty, usually single parent homes or orphaned children, trying to get sponsors who will pay for their living and education. We were able to go on some home visits with Fikadu, the founder of CTE, to see where some of these families live and bring them gift bags with food and water. I honestly was not prepared to see what we walked into during these visits. One of the homes we went to was inside a cow stable, which was a “building” made of sheet metal held up by wooden posts, housing about half a dozen cows. The family living there had sectioned off a small room inside the building with some wooden poles and cardboard, just large enough to fit a small bed and make-shift stove. We were each offered a seat as we entered, which was made of cinder blocks and wooden planks along the floor. We met the young mother who was nursing her newborn baby, only 45 days old, while Fikadu shared the story of how she had been brought to this place from living on the streets and been allowed to stay for a short time until other shelter can be found. I couldn’t help but notice the giant spiders crawling along the wall, right next to the laundry that was hanging up on hooks and string. The smell of cows and urine and dung with countless flies buzzing around our faces made it difficult to breathe. To say we were sitting in the middle of poverty would be an understatement. I wanted so badly to speak this woman’s language; to tell her how beautiful she is, to ask if I could hold her baby, to hold her hands during prayer, to tell her she is SO loved by God. I think for me one of the most difficult challenges of this journey is the language barrier; not being able to communicate with people. I just want to have conversations with them, to be able to ask questions and share my faith. One of the greatest lessons God is teaching me, however, is that sometimes all people need is a smile, a friendly handshake, an eye-to-eye moment of connection…and that even if they don’t understand what I’m saying or I don’t speak their language, HE understands EVERY prayer. I’ve quickly realized that one of my favorite parts of prayer is the “Amen”. I always know that, even if nothing else was understood, an Amen signifies an agreement that we all trust the same God and Savior to hear our prayers and answer them. So anyway, one of my teammates prayed for the young mother and her children and we left to go to another house. We got to experience a very special moment at the last home we visited, where the single mother of four children served us some food. She had a smile on her face from the moment we entered her home until we left. She prepared potatoes and injera (a sourish pancake food Ethiopians use to scoop up other food rather than using a fork), and washed our hands before and after the wonderful meal. Her generosity in the midst of her poverty was inspirational. It continues to amaze me that people experiencing “lack” can be so generous and giving to those who they know possess much more than they do. That has been another great lesson for me, to see people living out the command spoken in Acts 20:35, “it is better to give than to receive”. She allowed us to pray for her also and then spoke a blessing over us in the name of Jesus as we left her home. Fikadu told us that she is a Christian, and I could honestly see the joy of the Lord in her smile and her selflessness. It is so humbling every time I realize that these people who we are sent to serve and love end up being more of a blessing to us than I ever could be to them.
We still have another two weeks in Ethiopia and I am SO excited to see what else God has in store for us here! The coffee is amazing, the food is delicious, and the weather is wonderful. We have many opportunities in front of us with lots of ministries to partner with, places to go, and experiences to have. Please pray that we will be used where God wants us to be, that we will serve this community well during this difficult time, and that we will spread His love and share the gospel where ever we go, whether in word or deed. I can’t wait to update you again with all that we will get to see and do! As always, thank you SO MUCH for all of your love and support.
