Curse God and Die!

The book of Job has always been my favorite book of the Bible but has become even more so since we moved to Ethiopia. When “good” people,

Boy sleeping on street

when “godly people” suffer or go through seasons, years of heartache and hurt we often ask inwardly or outwardly “If God is good, then WHY is this happening?” I often ask “Is God really just? Is He really in control?”

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is consumed with poverty, despair, filth, disease, widows, orphans, unemployment, and hunger. As we walk the streets or work alongside the staff at the drop-in center, we find plenty of reasons to question God’s goodness. We encounter numerous situations which cause us to respond like Job’s wife and his friends.

Job lost everything that made his life good, every good gift from God and it seemed every sign of God’s favor. It appears to be the same way for many of the people of Ethiopia. If God loves them then why are there so many people living with and dying from HIV/AIDS, why does the majority of the population make less than 1 US

Underground Living

dollar a day, why are widows, orphans and street children exploited on a daily basis?

This is why I love Job. Job experienced so much suffering and pain. He lost his whole family, all of his wealth vanished, he was diseased, his friends rejected him, and he was tempted to curse God by his own wife. He asked the same questions that I face weekly, daily, and sometimes hourly BUT he went to God for answers. He cried out for explanations from the only person truly capable of answering.

From Job, I learn that God treasures my righteousness above anything else. I obviously don’t have all the answers or solutions to my suffering or the suffering of thousands in Ethiopia BUT I have an intimate relationship with the Father of creation. I have an all access pass to His Word and His 24-hour chat line.

I am learning through Job’s account to love God more than all his “good” gifts and to trust the WISE goodness of God even though so many of His ways are past my comprehension or level of understanding.

The lyrics of Chris Tomlin’s song God of This City has become an anthem for me while serving in Ethiopia. I don’t know all that God has planned but I believe that His Kingdom is coming and it will be unlike anything we have ever seen or imagined! All the suffering of this world will be defeated and God and His Word will reign victorious.

You’re the God of this City
You’re the King of these people
You’re the Lord of this nation

The future of Ethiopia

You are

You’re the Light in this darkness
You’re the Hope to the hopeless
You’re the Peace to the restless
You are

There is no one like our God
There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City
Greater things have yet to come
And greater things are still to be done in this City

We believe! We believe!

WE BELIEVE IN YOU GOD!

Then Job replied to the LORD: “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, ‘Who is this that darkens my counsel without knowledge? ‘ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.”

JOB 42:1-3

karyn

Tonight We’re Gonna Party Like It’s…2002!

Did you know that today is New Year’s Eve in Ethiopia? And according to Ethiopia’s calendar, tomorrow will be 2002, not 2010! Today is Pagumen 5, 2001 for us living in this interesting country. Pagumen is the 13^th month in Ethiopia’s calendar and consists of 5 days (six days in leap years). So tomorrow will be 2002 here in Ethiopia. I suppose that makes me 23 years old rather than 30 and Karyn 27 rather than 34. Alright, we can get used to this calendar! I guess this reasoning doesn’t really work since Mac would be -6 and Jack -5 if the above were accurate, but hey, we can dream right?

It is hard for me to completely understand Ethiopia’s calendar, but I found an interesting explanation on www.ethiopianmillennium.com…

…The Ethiopian calendar retains the old Egyptian system whereby the year was divided into twelve months of thirty days each plus one additional month of five days (six days in leap years). Ethiopian dates therefore, fall 7- 8 years behind western dates and have done so since early Christian times. This discrepancy results from differences between the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church as to the date of the creation of the world.

Today in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia you will find thousands of sheep for sale and even more chickens. In the condominiums near our house chickens are awaiting their pending fate (they will be doro watt or chicken stew) on the small porches from the ground floor all the way up to the fifth. If you need a new pair of clothes, don’t bother going to the Markato (the big market) today, because if you can find anything amongst the hoards of shoppers it will cost double what you can get it for next week. Lem lem (green grass) is for sale almost everywhere so you can adorn your living room’s floor with this sign of the ending rainy season. Oh, and good luck finding a taxi bus – most drivers are taking the day off.

It is fascinating to live in Ethiopia. There are so many special things about Ethiopia that life here is never dull.

Malcom Addis Amit (Happy New Year).

Interesting Facts About Ethiopia:

• The total population is estimated at approximately 70 million
• There are 80 ethnic groups with over eighty languages, along with some 200 dialects
• Its high altitude ensures fairly consistent non-tropical temperatures around 75°F during the day to around 48°F at night.
• The calendar is seven years and eight months behind the Western (Gregorian) calendar with Christmas being celebrated on January 7 and New Year on September 11
• When the sun rises in Ethiopia our clock reads 6:00am, but Ethiopian clocks read 12:00, so if we invite an Ethiopian for Dinner at 7:00pm by our clock, we have to make sure to tell them to arrive at 1:00 according to their clock.
• There is no adjustment of clocks for Winter or Summer Time, so there is no putting clocks backward or forward an hour. Being close to the Equator there is almost always twelve hours of constant daylight.
• The Ethiopian Alphabet consists of 33 letters each with 7 characters.
• Ethiopians have a very beautiful traditional coffee ceremony. A special occasion is not complete without a coffee ceremony. Coffee is said to have been discovered in Ethiopia’s south western heartland, in a particular place called “Kaffa”.

Top 6 Differences between Ethiopians and Americans

1. Privacy – Americans need and cherish it! Ethiopian’s see no need for it and may even think of it as a punishment.
2. Greetings – Americans are okay with a simple “hello, how are you?” if there is even time for that. Ethiopians ask one another if they are at peace, had a good night/morning/day, and are okay throughout a conversation and the answer is usually always paired with Praise God. You can never greet someone too much in Ethiopia.
3. Direct Communication – We Americans tend to say what we think or want without apology. Ethiopian’s are rarely ever direct. For example, you may be asked over for dinner and then find yourself and your two year old chauffeuring a bride and groom, whom you have never met, around town (personal experience).
4. Our Children – In America children are rarely expected to sit still for long periods of time, such as at a wedding, a long church service, or a really boring meeting. Quite the contrary in Ethiopia, where children (even babies) are often seen sitting as still and as quiet as mice during agonizingly long meetings or services – I have no idea how to get Jack and Mac to do that.
5. Our Family – If asked to describe our family, we Americans usually quickly spit out a few sentences about our nuclear family – mom, dad, and children. Typically that’s who we think of when we think of our family. The same question in Ethiopia could prove to produce a very long answer as one considers his or her extended family just as much a part of the family as they do their mom, dad, and siblings.
6. Living Arrangements – How much house does a family of 4 need? I’d say a good 1,000 square feet is adequate, but would prefer 1,500. Well, in Ethiopia a family of 10 often doesn’t have more than 500 square feet of space and that’s quite a big home. Imagine sleeping in a bed with your spouse and a few of your children while your mother and father sleep a few feet away in their bed, and don’t forget to add your younger brother sleeping in between the beds on a mat he rolls out each night – that’s Ethiopia living for you.

MURAF’S CHOICE

For some time now the staff of Children’s Home Ethiopia has been praying for Maruf, one of the boys in the halfway home. Since coming to CHE’s Drop-In Center Maruf has been challenged to consider where to put his faith, in Allah, the god of his family or in the one true God and His son Jesus Christ. About a week ago Maruf stormed out of a devotion time that Abezu (the halfway home’s house mother) was leading and went to sleep. That very night he was tormented with dreams about whom he would

Maruf and Joe at the Drop-In Center

choose to follow. The next morning he told Abezu about his restless night and that soon he knew he had to make a choice.

Today Maruf made his choice. After stating that he knew he had to choose Christ last night during prayer time at the halfway home, today he joyfully confessed Christ as his Savior. Feeling a bit skeptical, Abezu had her eyes on him during church today. She was overjoyed to see him lifting his hands in worship to our Lord and Savior. At that very moment she began trying to call Nega and anyone else she could think of who had been praying with her for Maruf’s soul. Eventually she reached Zede, CHE Drop-In Center’s former night guard, who is now living in Chencha, Ethiopia and working as a guard for the Kota Ganate Project. Just 20 minutes ago we (Karyn, Jonathan, Nega, and I are currently in Chencha visiting Kota Ganate) sat speechless as Zede relayed the exciting news.

I had to pass the news on ASAP so you can praise God with us for His work in Maruf’s life. Please continue to pray for Maruf as he grows in his faith.

PRAYER AND PRAISE

PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Jon will be traveling to Ethiopia on August 3^rd. Please pray for safe travels and for his wife, Jess, and their son, Dawit, as they will be
  

  Jack being his silly self!

  spending a month apart.

• Jon, Joe, Nega, Jack, Mac, Rosa and I will drive to Chencha very soon after Jon’s arrival. Pray for safety and NO sickness for the kids.

• Jack and McLaine are both getting over a bacteria infection plus a parasite/amoeba. Please pray for a continuous time of good health for the kids.

• I now have an eye infection but I think we are treating it effectively. Pray that I will get well soon and also have a continuous time of good health.

• Joe and I start language school on August 17^th. We hope to complete at least two 12-week sessions. Pray for a supernatural ability to learn the language and that we will not be afraid to use what we’re learning.

• CHE has set up the temporary halfway home for 4 boys at the Drop-In Center but we are looking for a reasonable permanent home once we return from Chencha. We would like to have a place all set up before the start of the school year in September.

• We also have a staff retreat at the end of August. Pray that this will be a time set aside for God to reveal further vision and purpose to the entire CHE staff. It’s exciting to think about what He has planned for the children of Ethiopia. Joe
  

  Yene coinjo!

  and I will be doing some children at risk training and introducing our Child Protection Policy.

• Continue to pray for the children of Ethiopia. We want them to know Christ. To have His unfailing love and hope in all circumstance. The
  staff has seen significant changes in Metu’s behavior since accepting Christ. Pray that she will continue to be changed by the Holy Spirit and that the staff will continue to place importance on discipleship of new believers.

• The rainy season is in full swing and it can get monotonous and somewhat depressing. Pray that we will have mornings or afternoons of sunshine to lift our spirits.

PRAISE:

• We continue to praise God for the 3 new believers, Ashenafi, Asrat and Metu. It doesn’t get any better than seeing one of our kids realize the love of Christ and accept if for themselves.

• God has continued to provide for us through our financial supporters. We are amazed that so many continue to faithfully support us even
  

  Maruf and Joe at the Drop-In Center

  with the uncertainty of the economy.

• Praise that land was finally provided for CHE in Chencha and that Jon is coming in August to begin and finish fencing the property and planting some crops.

• Praise God for the temporary halfway home for 4 boys: Asrat, Yohannes, Ashenafi, and Maruf. These boys stay at the drop-in center day and night and do not go out on the streets.  It’s amazing that they recognize this great opportunity and that they are grateful!

The Longest Road

The nasty road in front of our house

Last Sunday we sang a very simple yet profound song at our church called I Am Yours Lord. It is basically made up of that phrase, “I am yours Lord,” repeated over and over. I know I’ve sung this song before, but this time it had a new meaning to and impact on me. As I stood there holding my son with Karyn beside me holding our baby girl I remembered our journey to church that morning…

After pulling on our huge waterproof boots Karyn wrestled to pick Mac up along with her diaper bag and I hoisted a very cranky Jack up on one hip while holding onto our Bible in the other hand. Then we headed out of our compound and down what seemed to be the longest, muddiest roads ever to get to our car that cannot be driven on our road during the rainy season. We park the car at some nearby condos where we are typically surrounded by about 10-20 children, all of which seem to ask for either mastika (gum) or money. This Sunday was no different as we had to push our way through the crowd to get to our little car. At this point Karyn and I were both wondering if it was even worth the trouble to go to church in the first place.

While I sang, “I am yours Lord” over and over I thought, If walking down a muddy road with 2 kids in tow and being assaulted by about 20 children when we reach our car is what I have to endure in this – God’s will – I will do it and more, because I am yours Lord.

I’m embarrassed to write this as my complaint/struggle is so minute compared to what Christians face

Jack's the only one who seems to enjoy the mud

in other places in this world, but hopefully this is a step towards saying “I am yours Lord” even in the midst of unbearable hardships for His sake.

In the same breath – man what I would give for a paved road!

A LITTLE LOOK AT OUR HOME

Our House in Addis Ababa

We have heard that everyone is very curious about our home. I will do my best to explain our house and the ins and outs of home-life in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The Compound

For the most part, in Ethiopia when you have a house, it is within a compound. A compound is basically a walled off area that contains a yard (some bigger than others – ours is quite big, which was a selling point), and a house or houses.

After traveling down a very rocky and muddy road you arrive at our compound. Our compound is quite spacious, in a very new and quiet neighborhood, and is a work in progress. When I say our neighborhood is new, I mean really new. Our house is the only finished one in sight and the others are just empty concrete structures. Our neighbors are actually the workers who are building the local houses. They live in structures made of unprocessed wood (trees that have had their bark and limbs removed) and big tin sheets. We love living amongst Ethiopians although we have a hard time communicating, but that should improve with time.

Jack and Adunya in our front yard

A work in progress… When we moved in the yard was dirt. Since that time we have planted a garden with the help of Andrew who lived with us for about 3 months. We are currently growing tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, corn, beats, and onions. We have also tried our best to grow some grass. It’s starting to come in, but there are still large spots of dirt (now mud, since the rainy season is upon us).

The House

Our house’s layout is normal for Ethiopia, but different from what one sees in the States. It has 5 rooms and 2.5 baths. Let me explain it from left to right as if you were standing in the front yard, looking at the house. Before I start explaining the rooms, understand that there is a long front porch that extends from one end of the house to the other. Every room, except for the living room, exits out to this porch, so you have to go outside to get from one room to another.

1. Bathroom #1 and work sink… This bathroom goes unused as it is far from bedrooms and has no hot water. The work sink is where we wash clothes and attain water when cleaning.
2. Guestroom/guard’s room… Next you come to the guest room. It is a modest room of about 8×10 square feet of space. It has become our night guard’s (Murad) room since a snake found its way into the guardhouse. We’ve discovered that a lot Ethiopians are petrified of snakes through this experience.
3. Kitchen/office/dining room… Our kitchen is a nice size and where we spend most of our time – Jack and Mac love to eat. It’s probably 8×16 square feet with a wall that partially divides the kitchen area from what we’ve made into our office.
   

   Karyn with McLaine in the kitchen

4. Jack’s room… Next we come to Jack’s room at the same size as the guest room. It’s filled with books – Jack’s favorite pastime – some toys, a crib, and both of the kid’s wardrobe. Jack likes his room, except for when it’s used as a timeout spot.
5. Karyn’s and my room… Our room is next door to Jack’s and is the same size. Our queen size bed takes up most of the space, leaving a small walkway to get around to the door that leads to the bathroom with hot water and our living room.
6. Half bath… When you exit our room onto the porch the next-door down is a half bath. I suppose you could call this the guest bathroom.
7. Living room… From our room you can also enter a hallway that has a full bath (the one we use) and a living room off of it. The living room is our biggest room at about 16×16 square feet. This is where we have a couch and chairs, Mac’s crib, our wardrobe, and a toddler bed (just in case Jack needs it). We like to play with cars, letter blocks, play dough, and the walker in this room. We also sometimes eat dinner here when guests come over.

Adventures With Power and Water

Let me explain our power and water situation. Currently, every other day we go without power, as does the rest of Addis Ababa. We have heard rumors that this will change in about a week since the rain has come (the power shortage is supposedly associated with the water shortage). Also we have gone without water twice – once for 6 days and once for 1 day. The first time it took me going to the water and sewage office twice to get water in our community – the second visit I had 2 screaming dirty children, one in each arm. At this second visit I secured the direct number of a woman, whom I called the second time we were without water, thus making it only a one-day event. It think the screaming dirty children were a nice touch!

Having fun on the front porch

Finally, we do love our home despite its many quirks and inconveniences. To us, things like no power, walking outside to go from room to room, and muddy shoes have become a normal part of life. Usually we don’t even flinch at such events as we did when we first arrived.

A CAR THIEF AND HIS ACCOMPLICES (And More about Life in Ethiopia)

A very excited Jack after pretending to pick up a VERY large pumpkin!

So when Joe is off at the drop-in center or working on TFC tasks, I typically spend the day at our compound with Jack and Mac. Although our ministry in Ethiopia is to street children, I believe the children that God gave me personally should be my main focus.

So I often spend most of my time playing cars, dinosaurs, roaring like a Daddy lion, a Momma lion, a Jack lion, and a Mac lion (yes, they each sound different), singing “silly’ songs, running really fast, practicing letters and numbers…

…reading books, coloring, making snacks, carrying Mac around, wrestling, pillow fighting, watching Barney & Praise Baby (if we have power), checking for choking hazards, cleaning snotty noses, changing dirty diapers…you get the idea, right?

And truly, for the most part this is an absolute joy for me, though I’ll admit I am pretty much completely exhausted by the end of the day.

Enter The Play Date Pack…

Mac laughing at BIG brother Jack

In addition to hanging out with my own kids each day, we also have a number of children that come by for play dates with Mr. Jack.

There are 3 families in our kebele with children…

• One mother has a little girl a bit older than McLaine that we call MeMe (a nickname for baby girls in Ethiopia).
• Another couple has a little boy named Yesu (who used to scream every time he saw Jack) but we call him Momush (a nickname for baby boys in Ethiopia).
• Then there is a couple with 2 boys and a girl whose names are Leguessay, Adunya, and Brickay.

A Brief Backstory…

So MeMe and Momush come over maybe 3 times a month but Leguessay, Adunya and Brickay would come every day if we let them. We try to limit their time at the compound to afternoons at 2pm but we usually end up letting Adunya come while the other 2 are at school.

Adunya is school age but he broke his arm playing futbol (soccer). And sadly, his family ended up needing to use the money set aside for his school fees to pay for his doctor visit.

Adunya and Jack are the best of friends so if Andunya comes by while the others are at school then we usually let him play until Jack’s nap. Some of their favorite things to do are running each other around in the stroller, playing cars, drawing on the compound walls with sidewalk chalk, eating popcorn and wrestling.

Little Thieves!

One day, an older friend of Leguessay’s named Melaku attempted to steal a matchbox car from Jack. I saw him slip it into his pocket and when I confronted him about it he said that he wasn’t going to take it. So we did not allow Leguessay or Melaku to come to our compound for 2 days.

After 2 days Leguessay came back over to play and I suppose must have been feeling pretty guilty, because he sung like a canary!

Jack and the boys

He ended up spilling his guts to us that Melaku had actually stolen soust (3) cars plus an anbesa (lion), a nibirr (tiger) and another animal.

So at this point we decided Melaku is bitam rabash (a lot of trouble) and not allowed to come over anymore.

But no, that’s wasn’t the end of it! While mom was here she happened to spy Adunya slipping cars under the compound gate to Melaku & a friend on the other side.

So we explained (through an interpreter) that stealing was not acceptable behavior and told Leguessay and Adunya that they could not come to play with Jack or his toys for 1 whole week.

That’ll Teach ‘Em…Right?

WRONG!

A week flew by and the boys were allowed back over.  And that very day when it was time for the boys to leave, as Joe walked them to the gate of the compound, I saw through our kitchen Leguessay bending down to pick up a car, looking slyly around to see if anyone saw his deviancy and then placing the car ever so carefully into his pocket.

Can you believe it?!?!?!?

The little leba (thief) thought he got away with it UNTIL crazy Karyn came running out of the kitchen yelling “DROP THE CAR!!”

Adunya, Birchie and Jack

Understand, these kids live in a small house made of metal, wear clothes that are close to rags and either too big or too small (in fact, Jack actually tries to pull his diaper and pants down to show his bottom like Leguessay), and have few toys, if any.

And here I am chasing them down over a matchbox car.

Though it’s entirely appropriate to require that these boys respect and obey us, I realized anew how necessary it is for us to give them some extra measure of grace – which in this case means time to learn how to respect other’s property.

We are also trying to teach them the forgiveness that we have received from the Lord, and this little “car theft” experience gives me just the perfect chance to do just that.

A Look at Friday: Drop in Center Day…

After 4 days at home with my children, I get to spend Fridays at the drop-in center.

Art Class with Bizrat as interpreter and special helper

So here’s a snapshot of what each Friday typically looks like for me…

• Devotion with the CHE staff,

• Teach an hour of Art,

• Sports with the kids (under Nega’s instruction),

• Lunch with the staff,

• And then investing the rest of the afternoon with various and asundry activities, like organizing supplies, meeting with the staff and/or children, preparing for my next Art lesson, jumping rope, playing jacks, breaking up fights, teaching a new game, etc.

Last Friday Joe’s mom and I washed the children’s feet, applied lotion and administered basic wound care if needed. Then in the afternoon I taught several of the children how to play UNO.

(Interesting Side Note: It can be a real challenge teaching kids a new game when you only speak tenish (a little) of the language.  But add to that the fact that these kids are used to lying and cheating just to survive…well that makes for one exhausting time!

As you might imagine, I really had to stay on my toes to keep kids from skipping turns, playing the wrong card or even just snatching a glance at their neighbor’s hand.

And well, come to think of it this is about what you get from most kids playing UNO, isn’t it? ) children playing UNO).

As you might expect, I usually come back from the drop-in center dirty, exhausted and anxious for the next Friday with the kids.

Surprised by Surgery (and a Timely Visit from Saint Mom)

In case you haven’t heard, we had quite an eventful past 2 months.

It all started in the beginning of April with what seemed at first like a simple problem Karyn was experiencing related to nursing McLaine. We tried to deal with it on our own at first, but despite our best efforts, her condition wasn’t improving.  So we took Karyn to a clinic near the end of April.

That’s when the circus started. And after being referred to 3 other clinics and visiting these clinics a total of 8 times in a single week’s time, as you might imagine we started feeling really pretty discouraged. Frankly no one seemed to know what to do for Karyn, and she just seemed to be getting worse.

Finally after our eighth clinic visit we got a call from Char, a good friend of ours here in Addis Ababa who, while praying for Karyn the night before, suddently found herself reminded of another friend of hers named Judy who worked as a lactation specialist nurse at a new hospital called CURE International.Char thought maybe her friend Judy could help.

Still discouraged but hopeful, Karyn gave Judy a call, and the next day we all found ourselves loaded into the car, headed for an appointment with Judy at the hospital.

A Bigger Deal Than We Thought…

Noting that Karyn’s condition seemed quite severe, Judy called in a Doctor.  And after examining her, he immediately informed us that Karyn should be admitted to the hospital for I.V. antibiotics without delay.

Wow.  OK.

So we quickly drove back home, packed up all the stuff we needed (we have a lot of those with 2 little ones), and headed back to CURE for what gratefully ended up being the beginning of the end of Karyn’s illness. (By this time she had become really pretty sick.)

After two days of heavy antibiotics the doctors determined that Karyn needed surgery. She had basically developed a “walled off abscess” that had a staff infection, and needed to be dealt with aggressively and without delay.

Needless to say we were pretty unnerved and frankly overwhelmed by this for several reasons:

1. First, it’s surgery. Always risky.
2. Secondly, we were in Ethiopia. Surgery is often a whole different deal here.
3. Thirdly, we were beginning to see the bills really rack up.

We originally thought this condition would have an easy remedy. Jack was staying with our friends, and the expenses were steadily increasing.

But even still, we trusted that God had brought us to this amazing hospital that was far better than most you’ll find in Ethiopia, He’d allowed us to catch this thing before it got really even more serious, and He’d just proven himself faithful every step of the way.

So Karyn Went Under the Knife…

And amazingly she started feeling better almost immediately after the surgery. (well, after the drugs wore off ) With the abscess / staff infection out of her body, she was like a brand new woman – though she still needed some down time to recover from the surgery.

That’s when another giant blessing dropped on us in the form of my (Joe’s) mom, Bonnie.

You see, it just so happens she’s a nurse herself.  And a Mom.  And a grandmom.  And hearing what was happening, it seems she almost couldn’t help but drop everything and fly right on over to Ethiopia so she could help us through the recovery time.

And while a last minute trip to Ethiopia is no small decision…

Here’s What Makes it All Even Crazier…

Mom didn’t even have a passport when she made the decision to come to Ethiopia.

Mom, Jack & Mac at Home in Addis Ababa

So she found a ticket, packed her bags, and drove with my dad to Washington D.C. to grab a last minute passport. Yeah, seriously!

After a day of paper work and waiting she boarded a plane the following day, passport in hand, headed for Addis Ababa.

She touched down on May 2, 2009…after making her initial plans for the trip …only 4 days earlier.

And boy were we glad to see mom!

She came for a month and almost every moment she was here someone was sick and needing TLC – over and above Karyn’s recovery!

End the end we decided to rename her “Saint Mom” because she basically saved us from what could have otherwise been one of the most horrific months of our lives.

So What’s Happening Now?

Well thankfully we’re all feeling much better – and Karyn is back to 100%!

Sadly mom left earlier this week, but we were so incredibly blessed to have her when we did. And she was blessed to see her grandchildren, take care of us, visit Children’s Home Ethiopia where she even gave special training on basic wound care, and she actually lived to tell about it.

We thank God for such a wonderful mother who loves us and who loves the ministry we are called to. We love you Saint Mom!

Life in Ethiopia is…

Overwhelming – Needs abound here unlike anything most people experience in the developed world. Take one step onto a street in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and you are likely to see unmet urgent medical needs (at least in a Westerner’s perspective), subtle and overt child abuse (again, in a Westerner’s perspective), heart wrenching poverty, and stares so intense that you wonder if your soul is exposed.

Humbling – Despite the extreme poverty faced by most Ethiopians, you can expect to be an honored guest whenever you visit an Ethiopian’s home. Whether you want it or not you will be served their best food, provided with a beautiful coffee ceremony, and provided with any comforts they can find in their humble homes. Usually I leave such experiences blown away by the hospitality that abounds in this amazing country.

Confusing – Going to any government office to seek help (for instance, trying to inquire as to why your water is not working) will make your head spin. Not only is there no designated place to ask questions, but there are also no such things as lines here in Ethiopia. You may think you are the next person up, only to become severely disappointed when you are quickly passed by a little old lady desperate for help herself. The amazing thing is, this is not rudeness or selfishness oftentimes, but rather a mere difference between Western and Ethiopian cultures. Who am I to fault this person who has never had to stand in a line her whole life? Isn’t culture funny?

Convicting – At one moment you may be complaining that there is no electricity at your house, only to feel severely sorry for such an attitude when you see a child asleep on a street corner. Coming from a country like America where anything you need is at your fingertips makes transitioning to life in Ethiopia a struggle. Nothing is easy and often you go without, but that “without” is often meager in comparison to what your new neighbors have never had – running water, electricity, for some, a roof, and the list goes on.

Fun – Ethiopians know how to have a good time. Whether it’s joking with your friends while having a cup (did I say cup, I meant cups) of coffee, playing football (soccer) in your small front yard after dinner, or participating in an off the cuff fashion show with the neighborhood children, you’re sure to find yourself laughing a lot here in Ethiopia. I’m beginning to believe that God gives us laughter to deal with the difficulties that life often brings. Maybe that’s why Ethiopian’s are so good at laughing – life for them is very difficult, but they still find joy in the small things.

I thank God for my life in Ethiopia. I believe I will be a better man and a better follower of Jesus because of it!