An Afternoon in Ethiopia

There we were, Sunshine and me on a bus in southern Ethiopia with two other families.  We were visiting the families of our sponsor children.  The children whom we had only known through photos and a few sentences that describe their family living situation, their likes/dislikes, etc.  We visited the sponsor children of the other two families first.  Stepping into the homes of these families was emotional.  In their abundance of poverty they overflow with hospitality and kindness.  You are royalty to them.  You are honored as their guest.  Even so, the living conditions and smells and dirt deeply penetrate your senses, deeply penetrate your thoughts, deeply penetrate your heart.

It was our turn to visit our sponsor child's family next.  The child whom we had been sponsoring, I will call him Gwatalo, had moved away from the area shortly before we traveled to Ethiopia.  We weren't sure why he had moved.  We were given another child to sponsor, whom I will call Dregos, and that would be the child we were to visit.  As we were driving, the social worker mentioned we were going to see Gwatalo next.  I told him Gwatalo had moved and we were no longer sponsoring him.  I insisted we were supposed to go see Dregos.  The social worker insisted that Gwatalo had traveled a long distance and was here to be visited by his sponsor family.

Although many of the Ethiopians know English, the conversations generally become very difficult when trying to convey complex concepts or feelings or emotions.  To try and communicate all that was transpiring became impossible.  We had brought gifts for Dregos, not Gwatalo.  We won't have enough gifts for both children.  Is Gwatalo even still part of the sponsorship program?  Would it be better to just skip this house and go to Dregos' house?  What do I say to him since we don't even sponsor him anymore?  My heavily structured mind was reeling with this curve ball and was unsure how to proceed.  Sunshine, however, was certain that we should go visit Gwatalo.  Regardless of what material things we had, we needed to go see him.  So we quickly dug through the gifts we had and split them in two and headed in to see Gwatalo.

As in all houses in Ethiopia, there were no lights.  So as we entered the house, it took a few moments for our eyes to adjust and to begin to make out the dark-skinned silhouettes in the dark room.  With our eyes straining and finally adjusting, we could see a man sitting at a table and sitting next to him was Gwatalo.  We recognized him immediately from the picture we had of him. The man sitting next to him was wearing a suit jacket.  Ethiopians are so respectful of others that they will always wear their best clothes for these types of occasions.

Within minutes, we were immersed into the details of his situation.  This man sitting next to him was his uncle.  This was not Gwatalo's house or even his uncle's house, it was just a house being used for the visit.  The sponsor information regarding his father was correct, his father was no longer living.  We were shocked to find out that his mother had died also.  He and his five siblings had to move away because his parents were dead.  Yes, in a matter of minutes, Gwatalo went from a child we had only known in a picture, to a real child who was sitting next to us, who had been orphaned, who was poor beyond imagination.  And yet Gwatalo was such a normal kid.  He smiled, he was amazed by the crank flashlight we gave him, he was thankful for the blankets and clothes we gave him.  I still can feel his hands inside my hands.  Though dirt penetrated every wrinkle and callous on his hands, they were still the hands of a child, hands similar to my own children.  I couldn't help but think of the Big Fella or of Eddie Joe.

Sunshine and I both were brought to tears at his story.  A story that can be repeated over and over by the many, many children we met.  A story that is so common that it does not even create a pause or emotion from the Ethiopians.  This is life to them.  This is normal.  This is why they have sponsorship programs and why they give their lives to reach out to hundreds of children in this one town alone.

I'm thankful to have met Gwatalo.  I'm thankful to have brought a few gifts to him.  I'm thankful to have had the chance to hold him, to tell him that even though his mom and dad are no longer with him, God loves him and God cares for him.  Even though Gwatalo now lives in an area where there is no sponsorship program, I still pray for him and know that God can reach him no matter where he lives.  God can bring peace to the life of this little boy who lives in untold chaos.  God is the answer to every need he will ever have.  And yet it still pains me to wonder who is holding him now, who is caring for him, who is providing for him?

There are thousands and thousands of Gwatalos in Ethiopia.  What will we do to help?  There are also many, many hurting souls in our own city.  What will we do to help?  How will we be involved?  God is the answer.  He knows the deepest hurts and He alone can heal them.  Whether in remote parts of Africa or in the prosperous areas of our own neighborhoods, He is present, He is working, He is alive.

It's good to be HOME!

HOME, oh how it is good to be home!  Being with my family, eating familiar food, sleeping in a familiar bed, and breathing the fresh smells of a clean bathroom.  These are just a few of the things that I have enjoyed since getting home on Tuesday.  Our minds and our bodies are so accustomed to our comforts that when they are taken away, we suddenly realize how tightly connected we are to these things.  They not only bring us comfort, but they also bring security, familiarity, predictability, and satisfaction - they bring rest and relaxation and peace to our lives.

Since being home, sleep has been overpowering in the early evening and elusive in the early morning.  My body is unsure in which Continent it has landed and to which timezone to secure itself.  Gradually, the sun's cycle and my sleep cycle are merging.

For those of you who helped support the efforts of the playground equipment in southern Ethiopia, we want to say, "Thank you!"  It was a great success and a lot of fun to watch the kids who were watching the equipment go into place.  The merry-go-rounds and slides and swings will see many, many hours of non-stop play.  The equipment will bring joy to the lives of many children who have so little.  It will give them a chance to experience exhilaration and excitement in a land where survival is all they really know.

Thinking about the many children I saw, it became clear how very similar they are to my own children.  They are not unique creatures made and fashioned to live without food and water, or home and shelter, or mom and dad.  They have needs and emotions and joys and tears just like my own children.  They have ear infections and fevers and cuts and bruises.  They enjoy sports and playground equipment and singing and each other.  They have feet that get sores and infections when they don't have shoes to wear.  They go to school and learn to read and write.  They love to sing songs about Jesus.  Yes, they are very similar to my own children.  Being with these kids brought them from a distant scenery to a close reality - a close reality where I could hold them and look in their eyes and see that they are just kids.  There are many of them that I won't forget.  Whether it was an excited smile or a weary look in their eyes, they became real to me.

In the end, what do these kids need?  They need the same thing my kids need.  They need love, family, God, school, food, water, and medical care.  And yet many of these things are missing.  Each child has a story and each child has a different need.  And thankfully the organization that we traveled with is reaching into each child's life, each family's life, to meet these needs - to make sure that these children are not forgotten.

It's good for me to be home.  And I'm praying that all of these kids that roll through my  mind would experience the same kind of home, the same kind of peace, the same kind of love.

The Lost Boys of Sudan

We watched the documentary "Lost Boys of Sudan" a couple of nights ago.  I really didn't know what to expect.  We had selected it in our Netflix cue and it eventually showed up in our mailbox.  Coordinating movie time for just mom and dad usually takes days or weeks in our house.  But, Friday night the calendars finally aligned and Heather and I had the TV all to ourselves.

 

The Lost Boys of Sudan are men that have grown up in refugee camps in neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia.  They have lived in those camps for many years and are orphans as a result of the genocide killings in southern Sudan.  Through unmentionable atrocities they suddenly were forced to leave home and country and family.  And they all did this as children, many under the age of 10 with no parents and no siblings.  Can you imagine your own children enduring this?

 

There were a number of "I didn't know that" moments during the movie.

 

I didn't know that so many southern Sudanese boys had escaped the attacks of the northern Sudanese armies.

I didn't know that so many of them had traveled for days and weeks and months across treacherous territory.  Taking attacks from gun-firing army militias, blood thirsty lions and hyenas, and the most paralyzing of all fears - starvation.

I didn't know so many of them had reached neighboring countries such as Kenya and Ethiopia and were set up in refugee camps.

I didn't know that they lived in those camps for many, many years.

I didn't know that so many had been given visas to enter the US via a government sponsored program.

I didn't know that we as a nation had turned our backs on them once they arrived.  OK, so maybe we didn't actually turn our backs on them, but how did we really help them once they got here?

In the end, the movie had a number of moments that stirred the mind to consider these people that are nearly invisible to us.  Many people have provided help in a variety of ways, but have we really met their needs?  Have we really invited them into our country and our culture?  Have we embraced them so that they feel welcome in our churches?  Have we left the comforts of our churches to go and minister to them?

 

These Sudanese men remind us of our Peaches.  They have the same beautiful dark skin.  They have similar lankiness, similar facial features.  We clearly see the connection between the Dinka people (Lost Boys' tribe) and the Anuak (Peaches' tribe).  It makes us remember where she came from.  It makes us remember the miracle that has happened in her life and in our lives over the past two years.

 

Oh God, we thank you that you brought our beautiful Peaches into our lives and that you spared her from the potential horror and pain that likely awaited her.  Oh God, we thank you that you kindly showed mercy in her life and kindly brought joy in our lives as you united us together.  How grateful we are for your mercies each day and your loving, sovereign hand.  Help us to be mindful of those around us each day.  Help us to be your light.  Help us to be your servants.  Help us to go where you send us.  Help us to love the least of these.  Help us to spread your glory.  Open our eyes.  Use us Lord.

Shining in Shone

Our group leaves for Ethiopia on March 4th.  We are feverishly working to get ready to leave.  It is getting exciting, though at times I'm feeling like, "didn't I just do this?"

Our traveling group is up to 11 from the Sioux City area and 19 overall.  We had another meeting last night to work through some of the details, including discussing the medical supplies, the swing set, the donations, how we're going to connect with the sponsored kids, and of course we had some great food, dessert, and coffee.  There were also a number of other things we talked about that resulted in roars of laughter,  but those are not blog-appropriate - please ask me in person if your interest is peaked!

We also took some time to talk about why each of us felt that God had led us to go on this trip.  It was clear that God had led each of us on separate paths in the last several years, with each path aimed toward this trip.  And the really cool part is that the trip isn't the end of the journey, it is merely just another step in each of our lives.  He will continue to work in each of us, taking us to amazing places as we yield to His leadership.  Where will each of us be a year or two years from now?  How will we be affected by the trip?  How will God show Himself to us?

I have again been thinking about the parable in Matthew 25, where Jesus tells the story of the King who separates the sheep and the goats.  The climax of the story is the realization that for both groups, their end is determined by what they did or didn't do.  Neither realized their encounters with the "least of these" were actually encounters with the King.  And their acceptance or rejection of the "least of these" was actually a rejection of the King.  Why did some meet the needs of the "least of these" and some reject them?  Was it due to goodness within them?

We are going to a place that is filled with people that our society would call the "least of these."  We will be with people who have nothing.  Nothing, that is except disease, hunger, loneliness, and despair.  We who are going are broken vessels - complete with faults, weaknesses, fears, and failures.  In ourselves, we have no ability to say yes to the needs of the "least of these."  We would reject them every time if it were up to us.  But God has poured His love into us, so that that same love can pour through us into the lives of others.  If God had not poured His love into us first, we would walk away.  We would be OK knowing that there are starving, diseased, ignored people on the other side of the globe.  We would be OK doing nothing.  The only reason we go is because God was not OK with walking away from us.

So our going to Ethiopia to meet the needs of the "least of these" does not put an emphasis on us, but instead puts the focus on God.  Because it is He that transforms broken vessels in useful vessels.  He fills those useful vessels with Himself and puts them in a place to serve others.  Not because of the beauty of the vessel, but because of the beauty of the Potter.

A Swingin' Good Time!

Peaches and T-Bird enjoying the swings at Hannah's Hope - Feb 2011

Last night we had a fundraiser / soup and pie supper / worship music night at Southern Hill Baptist here in Sioux City.  The purpose of the night was to share the needs of the trip we will be taking in March to Ethiopia.  Let me just say that it was an amazing night!  There were over 200 people in attendance.  That's over 200 people that have a heart for the orphan, a heart for missions, a heart for serving others.  Over 200 people right here in Sioux City.  It was a beautiful night to be a part of.

For those who have been following the fundraising for the swing set, we had raised $560.  In just a couple of weeks we were already at about 1/3 of the cost of the swing set equipment.  I was amazed at how quickly God was bringing in the money.  Well, you can imagine how excited I was to be given $1100 last night toward the swing set project!  That put us over the amount that was needed for the equipment.  We are grateful for all who gave and grateful that God has provided over and above our need.  We will use the additional money toward the tools that we need to bring and the additional luggage fees that will be required.

We are rejoicing in God's goodness toward the project!  We are rejoicing as we think about many, many kiddos that will soon be swinging and giggling with delight on the swing set that so many people have donated toward.  I can't wait to post pictures when we return!

So thank you to those who have given and to those who have prayed.  I wish you could come with us and push some kids to delirious heights on their new swing set!

In addition to the money collected for the swing set, we also collected over $2000 toward the general expenses of the trip.  That money will be used to help with travel expenses (~$2000 per person) and with medical supplies that we are going to be bringing.  We will be starting to organize the medical supplies list and costs next and that will likely bring some additional fundraising efforts.  So stay tuned!

We are just six weeks away from traveling.  We still have a lot to get done.  Please pray for our preparations, please pray for our additional fundraising, please pray for our hearts to be ready to go.  As Matthew 25:40 states, we are going to serve the least of these.  God is rolling that passage through my mind as we think about the why's of going to such a far-off place to serve such destitute people.  Is it really worth it?  After reading the passage in Matthew 25, it is clear that we are not just going to serve these beautiful people, but we are going to serve Jesus.  In as much as we go and serve the least of these, we go and serve Him.

Reflecting on a Swing Set

Another swing set update!  We have now received $510!  I'm amazed by all of the support that so many people have shown with money coming from many different locations.

I am constantly thinking about how we're going to get all of this equipment into our checked luggage.  Wondering did we bite off too much?  What was I thinking?  And then I start to think of the smiles that await us, the excitement of the kids as we assemble the swing set, the joyous screams of children as they swing.  And that is when I remember that the hassles that we are facing are well worth it.

I worry about raising money for a swing set, they worry about finding food.

I worry about finding space in my luggage for swing set parts, they worry about having clothing to wear.

I worry about the endless hours of travel in a cramped airplane, they worry about sitting on a street curb alone for yet another night.

I worry about all of the vaccinations that I have to get, they worry about disease that will likely end their lives much too soon.

The swing set serves as another reminder of the different worlds that we come from - our world and their world.  We have so much - and for that we should not feel guilty, but thankful.  Because we don't go and we don't give because of guilt, we go and we give because of thankfulness.  We go and we give because God has flooded our lives with His goodness - flooded us to the point where it naturally flows to others.  And we want others to experience this flooding of goodness that only God can accomplish in someone's life.

Yes, reflecting on the swing set makes me more and more ready to go!  How about you?

Swing Set Update

We are excited that $335 has come in for the Ethiopia Swing Set project.  As we have contemplated this project, I have envisioned the kids at the orphan care center watching with curiosity as we build the swing set.  Since many of them have never seen a swing set, there will be looks of bewilderment, watching the Ferengis assembling this odd contraption.

Knowing that they will giggle with glee as they experience the combination of weightlessness and gravity-rush for the first time, we press on with this project.  To us the swing set can merely be a task-oriented maze of budgeting luggage space, coordinating tool requirements, and arranging financial support.  However, to the kids who will soon be learning how rear back in a swing and reach their feet toward the sky, it represents a sense of freedom, exhilaration, and joy.

I spoke last night with Anna who has traveled many times to Ethiopia and has seen first-hand what a swing set can do for children.  Children who have nothing to call their own, who live a life of extreme poverty, and may or may not have parents or a home to call their own.  She shared with me how these kids line up for hours just to get a single turn on a swing set.  She shared how the swing sets are used constantly and become a symbol of pride for them, since it may be the only thing that they can call their own.  It may be the only thing that gives them a brief freedom from the difficult life they live.

We are thankful that God has every detail of our upcoming trip taken care of.  There are no needs that He is not aware of.  As we travel to Ethiopia, we are looking forward to loving the children, serving the workers, and experiencing what God has in store for each of us!