Ethiopia: Sunday, final day

We finished packing. The guest house agreed to let us keep one room for all of our stuff. So everthing was moved to my room since it was on the main floor. We then went to church. We attended an international church. They have two services: one in Amharic, and the second in English. We attended the English one, and it was a great service.

After that, Desalegn asked where we'd like to go to lunch. We all agreed we wanted to go back to Lucy's (the lunch spot from Saturday). Then we did some more souvenir shopping. Finally, we stopped at a coffee shop just across the street from the football stadium. There was a game going on (Ethiopia's national team, and I can't remember what country they were playing). It was unbelievable how loud it was. I kind of wished we had time to go watch some of it! But we all went into the shop and enjoyed one last traditional cup of coffee, before saying our good-byes to Desalegn. We returned to the hotel, changed and finalized our packing, and then were off to the airport.

Ethiopia: Saturday, Day 6

Met for breakfast at 8:45. Then departed around 9:30. Solomon (our awesome driver - if you're ever in Addis & need a driver, let me know!!) picked us up along with Galetta (finance manager at Bethany) and one of his friends.

First we drove up to the top of a mountain for a good view of the entire city of Addis Ababa. We went to a museum about the beginnings of the church and monarchial history in Ethiopia. We saw the first emperor’s quarters. There is also an orthodox church there. We did see some men outside signing under an awning-type area. Brad, Ann and I walked over to see what they were doing. Turns out, someone had died and was laying on a bed (table-type thing), dressed in very traditional and elaborate clothing with a decorative umbrella over the body. The men were singing what sounded to be sorrowful songs – and it appeared the women had to stay away from the area, as they were sitting quite far away and were not participating in the songs. I asked if they were mourning, or if it was part of a funeral procedure, or something else. Galetta said it was more traditional things that orthodox Christians believe must be done to kind of plead the deceased’s case for heaven.

After that we drove to what they call the national history museum. We paid and went in, but it turned out to be primarily about evolution, and was not exactly what we'd expected. Plus, we were all getting hungry. So we didn’t stay very long.

We walked next door and met Helena (Sebilu’s wife) at a restaurant. I have to say this was probably my favorite meal and restaurant of the entire trip. It was a beautiful outside setting (much like a few other places we’d been). They served everyone a spicy pepper vegetable soup first and it was great. Then our food arrived and it was outstanding. The portions were huge and we all had a lot of food left over, so we had it all boxed up and were able to give it to a couple of different people around the city later in the day.

We then drove through the Markato – the enormous central market in Addis, considered to be the largest market (or one of the largest) in Africa. Street after street, vendors sell pretty much anything you could want or need.

We finally arrived at a strip of stores that specialize in more souvenir-type items. I bought a number of things, including a coffee pot and some small gifts for the boys.

We returned to the guest house for about an hour & a half. I stayed in the internet room and rested and talked to Zack for a few minutes. The others went walking and encountered some children in the shacks behind our building and decided to take some snacks to them. I gave them a lot of my snacks. I think we’ll likely go over there once more tomorrow and give them the rest of what we have left before leaving.

Solomon picked us up at 6:30 and we went to a restaurant called Top View for dinner. It has a great view of the city. Sebilu and Helena joined us there. We had a great meal, and great conversation. (Bonus: Sebilu just happened to wear a University of Tennesse shirt to dinner!)

We got back to the hotel, talked to family, and then all went back to our rooms to pack. Just one more day.

Ethiopia: Friday, Day 5

I got very little sleep on Thursday night – maybe 4 hours at best. It was hot and I just didn’t feel sleepy. Thankfully I still feel pretty refreshed this morning, and hopefully will be able to get through the day without being too tired! …

Got packed up and met in the lobby to check out. Desalegn ran into a couple of men that he knows very well. One is the national leader of one of the Ethiopian churches (kind of a denomination group). We made arrangements to meet with them in the afternoon.

Loaded up the van and then walked back to the Rift Valley Hotel next door to meet with area church leaders. The plan was to brainstorm about how we could work together. The meeting was scheduled to start at 8:30. Finally around 9:30 Desalegn decided to get things going. We were supposed to have several of the denomination/fellowship leaders and board members there but for some reason they couldn’t come so we started without them.

Things started very slowly. Brad shared openly about a number of ways that Cross Pointe could help and offer services. The leaders were all very slow to respond. They kept talking about how it was hard to speak when their fellowship leaders were not present. Desalegn encouraged them, telling them it was simply a brainstorming session and they should share all of their ideas. They finally began talking a little bit. At one point a gentleman named Mebratu spoke up. As it turns out, he works at KVI and oversees the sponsorship program. He had some great ideas and we finally started feeling a bit more encouraged.

Brad expressed an interest in connecting more with Mebratu and one of the sweet ladies from KVI that was also in attendance. So they went out into the hall to speak further. Desalegn went and sat with the other 8 leaders to tryand get them to open up about ideas. So we waited while they all talked.

I decided to walk downstairs for a minute - mainly just to move around and cool off a bit. On my way back up Brad stopped me to share something. Back on Tuesday he was insistent that we stop in Ziway. That was obviously God’s doing – because he learned from these 2 KVI team members that KVI has about 5 or 6 orphanages, including one in Ziway! We talked at length about some possibilities in partnering with them. We are going to look into a couple of possibilities.

After the meetings concluded we had lunch at the hotel. Then we went to another hotel and met the 2 gentlemen (from the morning) for coffee. The leader shared a lot with us. He told us his background and much of his story, which I wish I could share on here. But just believe when I say, God has done amazing things in his life. He told us some incredible stories about the work that God is doing through Ethiopia, as well as some details on the structure and growth of the evangelical movement. He and the other gentleman were both very interested in the possibility of partnering, particularly for things like pastoral training.

After that we headed back to Addis. Traffic was bad so it was close to 2 hours in the car. We went to the Bethany offices and dropped off our donations (thanks again to those who helped by donating clothes & toys!). They will use them primarily for the foster families when they receive a new child. Then we went to exchange money and get gas. After that it was back to the guest house to check in.

I really like this place, it is nice, comfortable, and great to be around other Americans, particularly those with a heart for orphans! (all the families here are in the adoption process) There were a few that didn't seem to be believers, so we were able to share about the work we were doing with Bethany and in the process, share Jesus with the.

We had dinner at the guest house (GREAT food!) - and we laughed harder than we had all week, as we shared stories and re-lived a few rather interesting moments from the last few days. After dinner, we were able to connect and talk with family. Another long but great day!

Ethiopia: Thursday, Day 4

Another good day! We met in the lobby this morning and once again, no internet. Walked over to the hotel next door for day 2 of the foster family seminars. Different families attended today. While yesterday’s discussions were good, I believe that today went much better. I think we stepped out of the way today and let God move, and He really spoke through us. Great discussions, and I pray that they were helpful to those involved, and that they will be helpful to others who may view the footage that was filmed.

After the seminar ended, we drove to the home of a family that attended yesterday’s seminar. The father invited us over for a traditional coffee ceremony. It was great being in the courtyard of his home, being a part of their culture and learning a bit more. The hospitality here is more than I could have imagined. The ceremony includes coffee, popcorn, roasted seeds, and roasted corn. We also had some time of sharing scripture,  the father of the family showed us the many fruit trees and sugar cane in his yard, and we prayed together.

After the coffee ceremony, we went to dinner at The Safari Resort. On the way back to our hotel, Desalegn said he'd now taken us to all but one of the resort hotels in Adama.

The internet was still down when we got back to the hotel at 9:30. So I borrowed Brad’s phone and made a quick 2-minute call to Zack, just to let him know I’m okay. As much as I knew we might not have good connectivity, it made the homesickness much harder when I couldn't check in.

Ethiopia: Wednesday, Day 3

We met in the hotel lobby around at 7:45. Had granola bars for breakfast because the breakfast at the hotel was traditional Ethiopian food, and I honestly didn't think I could eat it that early in the morning!

The seminar was held at the hotel next door, so we walked over. It was a panel discussion that was primarily for families that are in the process of or are interested in becoming foster families. Some of the families that are already fostering were in attendance as well, which brought a particularly good perspective in my opinion.

Our team was there to answer questions. there was really nothing off limit. Scheduled to start at 8:30, we finally got going around 9:00 - so basically, it was 8:30, African time :)

We began with short introductions. Then we had a time of worship through music, which was cool.  Very spirit-filled worship experience. Then a local pastor did a devotional time, preaching on Isaiah 66:1-2.

After that Brad and I did a brief introduction of our church and team.  Then we began the discussions. It went well, but went very slowly. By our first break time we’d made it through just one question. We continued on and had great exchanges with the families. It was a long day and the room was very hot (yeah, probably 85 - 90 degrees outside, and no ac!), but it went well.

We finished around 5:30 in the evening. We took an hour break and then went to a resort in the area for dinner.

Got back to hotel around 9:00. Tried to get on skype, but the internet was down. So back to the room. I was exhausted! Thankfully I got a very good night’s sleep. Woke several times and checked internet but it never came back up.

Interesting fact for the day: we asked Desalegn how many letters are in their alphabet. He answered “33”, paused, and then said “Times 7”. Big alphabet!

Ethiopia: Tuesday, Day 2

We left Addis and headed to the Rift Valley. Stopped at Bethany and picked up Desalegn. It was several hours to get to the Sabana Vacation resort. We saw so much on our way. Small towns with sidewalk vendors. Villages with thatched roof huts. Villages with mud huts. Villages with straw huts. Donkeys. Oxen. Goats. Camels. Storks.

The resort was nice. Beautiful setting with the mountains surrounding the valley, which at this spot is now a lake. I can’t remember the name of the lake, think it started with L. We walked around and took some pictures. We walked down the beach, which is really just gravel. Several families were there swimming and just enjoying being outdoors. We met some young boys from an Italian missionary school, and some of them were orphans. They were very kind and some spoke a little English. They were happy to hear about the work we plan to do.

We had lunch at the restaurant there at the resort. I had vegetarian pasta and it was great. The Italian influence on the cuisine here is very apparent!

After that, we began driving to Nazret/Adama. On the way we stopped at a small hut village. I had a bag of bubble gum and as soon as we stepped out there were already 4 children standing at our van. We exchanged smiles and shared the gum, and more children arrived. A couple of them spoke some English, and told us they were learning it in school. We told them about Jesus and how much He loves them. It was heartbreaking to see the little children wearing such tattered and dirty clothes. They were so sweet.

Next we stopped at the market in Ziway (zih-WHY). What an interesting and intimidating experience. It was an open, outdoor market much like I’ve seen in Mariupol (Ukraine). Hundreds and hundreds of people milled about seemingly endless vendor stalls. I think we were a bit of a novelty or oddity. We had some teenage boys following us for a while and we felt a little bit uneasy (although Desalegn was with us). Then a group of children saw us and began walking with us. They were cute and once we were back to the van, Steve gave them some of the gum.

After that, we finished the drive to Adama. We checked into Hotel Maya. Then we went to KVI (Kingdom Village International) Adama – the orphanage. It is a privately funded Christian orphanage and seems to be very well-maintained. We met the director and she gave us a tour of the orphanage. There are probably about 40 – 50 kids there right now. The director said they have 60 kids on average. We spent some time in the baby room first and there were 8 or 10 babies in there. So cute, but so heartbreaking to see them just lying in their beds. The good sign to me was that they would cry when they needed something and they had great eye contact. So it would appear that they are getting good attention. We went to the toddler room – there are only 5 toddlers at this time (the rest are now with adoptive or foster families!). Then we saw the older kids, they were eating dinner. This was the biggest group.

After that we went back to the orphanage courtyard and had snacks and a traditional Ethiopian coffee service. We talked a little more and then went back to the hotel. I asked the director what the greatest needs are at this orphanage. She said it's clothing for older children, and diapers (disposable and cloth) for the infants.

One of our rooms at Hotel Maya

Some of our friends at the resort

A couple of the children in the hut village

Baby rooms at KVI Adama

A couple of our friends at the Ziway market

Ziway market

Ethiopia: Day 1

Finally found my journal from the trip, so that will allow me to get this posted in a more timely fashion I hope!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We landed in Addis Ababa at around 8:30 local time this morning. Got our visas, made it through immigrations, found all 10 of our checked bags, and got through customs – all by around 10:15. And then we discovered that Sebilu (Bethany’s Ethiopia director) wasn’t there. After a bit of waiting, Brad decided to call. Good thing – they thought we were coming in at 8:30 PM instead of AM! In about 30 minutes, he was there. We hopped in the van that would be our transportation for the week, and met our driver, Solomon.

We first went to Jemimah Guest House and checked in. We checked email & let everyone know we’d arrived safely, and then we were off.

Lunch was at an international restaurant with a couple of the Bethany staff members. I'd decided to try and eat vegetarian while in country - thought it might be less risky! The only vegetarian option was spring rolls, and I wasn’t starving anyway so it was a good choice. 

After that, we drove to the Bethany office. We met some of the staff and then Sebilu did a short presentation about Bethany in Ethiopia. In addition to going over the OVC (orphans and vulnerable children) hierarchy, he explained the traditions and culture of Ethiopia, and that they greatly value family, and institutions are NOT a first line of defense for most. He also talked about the foster care program that is being piloted in Adama/Nazret.

After that we stopped by the bank to exchange some money. Then we headed back to the guest house. I went to the internet room to call Zack on skype, but the connection was terrible. While in there I met two families who are adopting: one man and his son, from Iowa, hoping to fly home Tuesday night (wife already back home with their other children). And a woman and her mom with their son – from Kansas City – they’d just taken custody of her little boy. We hung around the internet room for several hours visiting with the families and attempting to get a good internet connection. I could send emails from the iPod but nothing was doing very well with the netbook. Several more families arrived from their gotcha day. It was fun getting to meet everyone,

Around 7:00 everyone was past the point of exhaustion and decided to head to bed. I went to Brad & Ann’s room and borrowed a power adapter so I could charge the netbook & iPod. On my way back I decided to try Skype one more time. This time, success! I was so thankful to get him – feeling so disconnected was causing some homesickness. But hearing all 3 voices perked me up.

Back in my room by 8:30. We’re leaving at 8:00 tomorrow morning to pick up Desalegn and head to the Rift Valley. Gotta be downstairs at 7:15 for breakfast.

Observations from Day 1: goats. Everywhere. And oxen, too! Extreme poverty, run-down buildings, make-shift housing, pedestrians everywhere. The thing that has really broken my heart is the area surrounding our guest house. Mud-walled huts covered with tin roofs – very tiny, very close together. Little villages of sorts, with little protection from the elements. We’ve been told they’re primarily Somali immigrants. Also hear a cow moo’ing a lot, dogs barking, and a rooster crowing. Ethiopia has taken me by surprise. Not what I envisioned Africa to be. Many buildings and much more of a city here than I would have expected. Lots of people – and most are very friendly. Much milder temperatures than I imagined – around 70 or so. Lots of rain so far – they tell us it’s the very beginning of the rainy season, their winter.

Can’t wait to see what tomorrow holds, and can’t wait to figure out how we can help Bethany and the Ethiopian people in the future.

Ethiopia Recap

Well, I've been back from Ethiopia for a month now, and should have already done this. But time has simply gotten away from me.

But I really do want to write about the experiences while there... if nothing else, so that I have a record of it for myself! So over the coming days, I'll do a day-by-day recap of what went on during my time in Addis Ababa and Adama.

Stay tuned.

More of Ethiopia

Desalegn
(director of Bethany Ethiopia's new foster care program)

Heading to sell their wares at the Ziway market



Addis Ababa



Addis Ababa





Huts





Ethiopian coffee ceremony at KVI Adama
(Kingdom Village International - orphanage)



The toddler room at KVI
(thankfully, most of the toddlers are with adoptive or foster families now!)



One of the babies from KVI

I'm back!

Got back from Ethiopia Monday afternoon. Still trying to catch up - on sleep, on work, on time with my 3 favorite fellas.

So for now, I'll just share a few shots from our trip. And if you're on facebook, you can see more HERE!

Becoming Aware: Ethiopia

My eyes were first opened in November 2007, when I walked into an orphanage in Mariupol, Donetsk. God began working on our hearts long before that, but the reality of those faces in that building: that's when it really hit home. We now have two sons from Ukraine. We have hearts burdened for the fatherless. I seek to advocate for other children and families. And I lead the orphan care ministry at our church (Cross Pointe Church).

While going to Ukraine wasn't easy, most of the things I mentioned above weren't THAT far from my comfot zone. Sure, parenting was something we hadn't done before and it's definitely challenging! Advocating for others is easy and a pleasure. And leading orphan care ministry is such a wonderful priviledge!

But I prayed that God would use my passion to do something more.

Early this year, I heard about a Cross Pointe trip to Ethipoia that was focused around orphan care. I was very interested and put my name on the list to join the team. But as the date drew closer and details began to formulate, I was unsure. Did God REALLY want me to go on this trip? It would cost $3,000 - money we certainly don't have - and meant 9 days away from my guys.

I prayed. And prayed. And prayed some more. I told God, "if this is what you want me to do, I'm trusting you to provide the funds." I sent out fundraising letters and did a donation request on facebook.

Airline tickets were purchased for the team. And within just a few weeks of sending the letters, I had about 80% of the money I needed.

I remember talking to Zack one night and saying "if those tickets weren't already purchased, I'd probably back out." I had plenty of excuses. Too much time away from my family. Very limited vacation time at work. Lots of immunizations. Travelling as a team of five - with the other four being two married couples, leaving me the 'odd man out'. Yeah, excuses.

When I went to bed that night, I couldn't sleep. God convicted me BIG TIME. He reminded me of what I had prayed to Him. He answered my prayer. He provided the money I needed. I'd asked Him to do that if He wanted me to go. And He did.

So it was obvious. He wanted me to go. I laid in bed and repented. I asked for forgiveness, and asked Him to open my eyes to the opportunities ahead.

And so here we go - leaving in just 10 days! I'm totally stepping out of my comfort zone, but I'm so excited to see what God has in store!

Here's a little about our trip...



Team Ethiopia 2011



Bethany Christian Services has recently started a foster care program in Ethiopia. Evangelical churches within the country are becoming more open to the idea of foster care and adoption. But the truth is, very few people within Ethiopia have any experience with or knowledge of adoption.

 

From May 29 to June 6, our team will travel to Ethiopia to work with Bethany’s in-country staff in an educational and exploratory fashion. We will meet with foster families and those interested in or curious about foster care. We will proclaim Jesus Christ through their own adoption stories, and will seek to share how physical/earthly adoption of a child into a family is a picture of the spiritual adoption that God offers to us.

 

We will meet with church leaders and share ideas on how to address needs of orphaned and vulnerable children. We will also visit at least one orphanage in the area.

 

In all of these opportunities, we will prayerfully explore and investigate ways that Cross Pointe can provide support and partnerships that will spread the name of Jesus and live out James 1:27.

 

Click HERE to visit the team Facebook page (and be sure to click LIKE to follow along with team updates during the trip)

And click HERE to follow the team on Twitter

So now that your eyes have been opened, how can you help?

• Pray: Pray for the team: for safety in travel and for clarity in the message they present. Pray for the children of Ethiopia that are fatherless. And pray for the churches and families that are stepping up to answer the James 1:27 call. Join the Facebook page, or follow on Twitter to learn how to pray specifically, and to see how God is at work.
• Give: A few team members are still a little short on their funding. You can make a tax deductible donation to help them out! Visit http://crosspointechurch.com/. On the top-right corner click on Serving & Giving, then Online Giving. Select the Guest Transaction button. Enter desired amount under Missions. Click Continue and follow instructions to donate. DON’T FORGET– This final step is necessary for the team to get credit for your donation. You will receive a confirmation email. Please forward this email with the comments: "This donation is for the Ethiopia mission team" to ContactUs@crosspointechurch.com
• Go: Check with your church or local churches/organizations in your area and sign up for a mission trip. Or contact Bethany Christian Services (http://www.bethany.org/). 

Team members with our families