This month our ministry is called “ask the Lord.” We do not have a ministry host or any plans for the month, except that we were told to reach the Oromo Karrayu people group. We were simply asked to ask the Lord where we should go and what we should do to reach this people group. Going into this month I was super excited! I am not one that likes plans nor limitations, so I loved the freedom that ATL brings and the ways it allows the Lord to have complete control. Honestly, I am just so excited for what has already happened this month I want to give you a little spoiler alert into the rest of this blog and tell you that …MAN, the Lord’s is so good!!! Every little thing this month has been divinely orchestrated by God alone. He gets all the Glory.
Within the first 24 hours of arriving in Ethiopia, my teammate Zach, met our person of peace, Tamerat. My team leader, Emily, had prayed for and voiced out loud the previous week that she was praying for a person of peace. Someone who would bridge the gap between us and the Oromo Karrayu people.
The next few days we spent time hanging out with Tamerat. Going to church with him, fellowshipping with local believers over Ethiopian meals and the traditional coffee ceremony. We met Nego and Abucah’s family through Tamerat and his church. Nego’s family invited us over several times to eat and to pray and ended up allowing us to stay at their house our last night in Addis. The day before leaving Addis, Tamerat helped another team get to their ministry location and while there he got connected to a pastor who works with the Karrayu people group in another town. So, the day before we are supposed to leave Addis, God provided us with a direct connection to the Karrayu people group, two direct forms of translation through that church, and a place to stay. Our last night in Addis, at Nego’s house, the church’s prayer group came over just to pray for us. We worshipped together, prayed over our journey, and were prophesied over.
That next morning, we were off to Metehara, not really knowing what is next, just resting in God’s provision so far. As we left Addis, the women at the church battled for us in prayer all day. Through the pastor in Metehara, we got connected with a local hotel, owned by a sweet lady named Zena, who we would shortly fall in love with and refer to as mommy like all the locals did. The day after arriving in Metehara, we met with Pastor Abebayehu, Dagne, and Odda. Pastor Abebayehu spends his months in different locations, spreading the gospel and encouraging the local churches that work with different people groups. He ends each month, spending a week at home with his family. Dagne and Odda have beautiful powerful testimonies. Odda’s family practiced witchcraft and his brother was sick. They had tried all the witchcraft traditions on his brother, but nothing worked. Someone recommended they go to a church, so the sick brother could be prayed over. After being prayed over the brother was healed. Soon after, Odda, became the first follower of Christ in his family, his family shortly following. Dagne’s testimony is just as powerful.There is a tree that a lot of people worship in Ethiopia, it might be connected to witchcraft. As Dagne was heading to school for a big exam one day, he passed the tree, and said, “if I get a 10/10 on the language portion of the exam then I will worship you Jesus, but if I get a 10/10 on the science portion of the exam then I will continue worshipping this tree/witchcraft.” God willing, he got a 10/10 on the language portion of the exam and was open to Christ. Sometime later, he was overtaken by an evil spirit that was taking him down to a body of water to kill himself. That same day, two ladies from a local church, felt it in their spirit that someone was going to kill them self that day at the water. As Dagne was walking, the ladies approached him and stopped him from going to the water. They invited him back to the church and prayed over him. That was the turning point for Dagne in his faith. The bad spirit then left him, and he began living for Christ. Now, Dagne, is a faithful follower of Christ. Dagne, spends his days boldly sharing the gospel and normally sleeps an average of two hours a night, while the other hours are spent in prayer and worship to the Lord.
Throughout our time in Metehara, we walked around the town and through the local market sharing the gospel, we attended a local church, visited a local Karrayu village, spent a Saturday morning at a compassion international school with over 100 kids, shared scripture and testimonies at the church’s youth group, played and shared the love of Jesus with numerous of kids that would stop by at our hotel, and participated in a handful of coffee ceremonies with local women and mommy Zena.
In the 10 short days we were in Metehara, my heart was overwhelmed with love for these people and was on fire for the passion that the locals had in sharing Christ. When walking through the streets with Dagne, Odda, and Tamerat, crowds would gather. Was it to see the spectacle that was the white person or was it to hear the message that was being proclaimed, either way the gospel was proclaimed and in that we shout for joy. Hearts were opened, and ears heard the greatest message in the world. I watched as three fearless Ethiopians shared Jesus as Lord. I watched as people starred at the message that was being shared. They were curious. They wanted to know. I watched as names were written down, and as people voiced they wanted to know more, they wanted a bible, they wanted to come to church, and that they loved this Jesus that we were talking about. One man approached me asking for his picture to be taken, after taking his picture, me and Tamerat were able to talk to him. We shared with Adam the gospel and then I shared what Jesus had done in my life. Adam says, he is a muslim, but he “loves this Jesus.” He asked for a bible and wants to know more. We got his contact information and he plans on visiting church on Sunday.
After playing games, sharing scripture, and performing a skit for the kids at the compassion school, a couple of days later a group of girls approached Tamerat on the street, running up to him and asking if he was with the group that shared Jesus with them on Saturday. The kids proceeded to tell him they wanted to accept Christ. Dagne then lead the kids to Jesus. Pray for this group of kids and all the kids at the Compassion International school.
One afternoon we visited a Karrayu village that Dagne had previously shared the gospel with and lead two men to Christ, them being the only believers. When we visited the village, the believers said they wanted a church to be built. The boys told them that they could start their own church, meeting together to read the word and pray. Dagne, Tamerat, and Odda, have plans to continue visiting the village to continue sharing the gospel, teaching, and encouraging the few believers there. Pray for the Karrayu people and this village and the thousands of more just like it. Pray for the work Dagne, Odda, and Tamerat will continue to do there.
While we were in Metehara, the gospel was spread!! People heard the answer to life. Seeds were planted, seeds were watered, and God did some growth. I also think it is so cool, that God allowed His children to come together to do the work of the Kingdom. It would be easy to become selfish and think we as world racers could do this on our own, but we could NOT have without our Ethiopian brothers. How cool is it that God brings our paths together, to do His work. This is a part of my teams journey, but God also saw Tamerat and wanted to bring him on a missional journey and God saw Dagne and Odda and wanted to use them. God is so cool in how He brings us together to do His work and how He so generously provides us the way and direction to do it when we are willing.
Please be praying for everyone that heard the gospel this last week. That the Lord would continue to stir in their hearts and send people there way. Please please pray for Dagne, Odda, and Tamerat. Pray for their safety and work the Lord is doing in them for the Kingdom. Pray for Metehara and Addis Ababa and the whole country of Ethiopia!!!
The Lord is on the MOVE here! The Kingdom is being built. The followers of Christ here are passionately pursuing God. They are living out the great commission. They are living out the spiritual gifts! They are on fire for their country to know Jesus. My brothers and sisters in Christ here, have wrecked my world for good. They have inspired me to live out the great commission, by sharing the gospel in any given situation. By not taking a single moment for granted in sharing what Jesus has done. They have pushed me to not suppress the Holy Spirit, but to use every one of the gifts that He has freely given us. They are “proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hinderance” (Acts 28:31). I witnessed this this past week as we walked through the streets of Metehara and as we were bombarded with children.
Today we are back in Addis for a couple of days, due to a teammate with a bad ear infection. Within the next couple of days, we will be heading somewhere else, wherever the Lord leads, to continue sharing the GOOD NEWS!! Please be praying for my team, for good health, for the spirit to lead us where He wants us to go, for boldness, and for all the people we will meet. Pray that we would have eyes to see every opportunity to share the gospel!
AMEN!!
