First Stop: Go Ethiopia!

 

Hello dear friends and family!

           Well, it’s the beginning of the semester and life seems to be moving at full speed. I’ve been back in the United States for almost a month now and still haven’t processed everything that happened these past few months. God used this summer to continue to open my eyes and heart to the reasons behind why we are called to do missions. And the more He continued to stir something inside of me, the more I realized that I was right where I was meant to be…right there in Ethiopia, Africa and right there in Haiti, sharing the love of God and the love for God with my unreached brothers and sisters in Christ.

            My trip to Ethiopia was unlike anything I had ever experienced. It took even a few days for it to sink in that I was, in fact, in AFRICA. After a day and a half of travel, our first two days being at Project Mercy (which is the compound where we stayed) was spent becoming familiar with the area and starting to build relationships with the orphans that lived there. In all honesty, the week started off a bit slow. Being that this was our first time working with Project Mercy we were unaware of what God had in store for us. Compared to the United States and even my previous time spent in Haiti, it was a much laid back atmosphere and it was a vast adjustment for all of us. We all remained patient and trusted that God would provide opportunities throughout the week for us to fully serve Him, connect with the Ethiopians, and find peace in His presence.

On Sunday we attended the “worship service” (which it is referred to as such because the majority of the population is Muslim). While we were there we were humbled when we observed their immense passion to worship God. That same day we were given the opportunity to hike/climb up a mountain to see a waterfall. It was the most vigorous, dangerous, exhilarating, and divine experience of my life thus far! Not only did we learn to trust the members of our team, but we learned how to put all of our trust into God. That night, after such an emotionally and physically draining day, our team had a night of reflection and prayer that left tears in each of our eyes. God used that experience on the mountain to bring us together in order to better serve Him through out the week.

The next couple of days the team worked on random projects around the compound which included painting the kid’s dining hall and cleaning, scrubbing, sanding, painting, and assembling their benches they sat on. What I found so amazing was that these orphans continued to offer a hand with whatever we did. They helped us paint the dining hall in the beginning (which ended up being way too messy!) and helped us clean and sand the benches. They enjoyed working with us because it gave them the opportunity to spend time with us, and we also loved it because it gave us the opportunity to love all over them.

One of the mornings I had an opportunity to walk up to their hospital to observe and learn more about the healthcare and education in Ethiopia. I was impressed with their facilities and was so privileged to have been able to see nurses working in a third world country. The rest of our week was spent doing Vacation Bible School with the orphans and other children in the community. We had a bible story, games/relays, crafts, and music station for them to be able to interact, worship, and learn more about God. It was the FIRST time these children had ever done anything like VBS. That simple fact right there is what makes me believe there is much of God’s work to be done all around the world.

            On Friday, we had the opportunity to go to Butajira (the nearest town) to attend market day, walk through the streets, and look at their shops. Our last day in Ethiopia was spent in the capital, Addis Ababa, to absorb a little bit of the culture. We drove through the city taking in our surroundings, had our last lunch in Africa, and bartered on the streets. We were also able to shower and change at the missionaries house before venturing on our long journey back to the States. 35 hours later we were back home in Fort Wayne. I was relatively jetlagged but knew it was time for me to start preparing for Haiti.

            Some of you know that I was able to share my Africa experience with Brad and Vanessa Johnson (our partner missionaries in Haiti). I absolutely adored the chance to get to know them and start a long-lasting friendship with them. I was able to get the “behind the scenes” information of what it takes to run Mission of Hope in Haiti. I was able to ask endless questions and grasp the vision they have for glorifying God in Haiti. Spending time with them and learning about their passion for Haiti prepared me for my upcoming trip…

 

The next post is a continuation of my trip to Haiti–>

 

 

           

Advertisement