Wow, I can hardly believe my time in Addis has come to a close. The past 2 ½ months have been more than I expected and I feel abundantly blessed to of been able to serve in Addis for this summer. It is hard to even sum up the experience in a quick entry and try to portray all the work the Lord has done. He had me here for a purpose and I feel so grateful to be apart of the work being done here. God has been so faithful and my love for Him has grown in ways that are new and exciting each day. I am leaving with many memories, deep friendships and a rich love for the orphans of Ethiopia…I couldn’t of asked for more ☺
So, to give you a glimpse of my last few days in Addis: they were quite eventful and filled with many unexpected events!
• The staff at Bethany threw me a surprise 25th birthday party on Saturday! They were all so kind in their thoughtfulness for me. They gave me two traditional dresses (one from northern ET and the other from southern ET)… and then I did a fashion show for them! They had a lot of fun taking pictures and dressing me up as a true “habesha” woman! There was also a coffee ceremony, cake and many treats ☺ I had such a wonderful birthday and felt so loved by them!
• On Sunday, I went to an Ethiopian church with Konjit (BCS staff) and was the only “farenjee” (foreigner) in the entire attendance of over 1,000 people. As we sat towards the back, I enjoyed the beautiful worship, as they sang in Amharic. However, suddenly I was VERY surprised when the pastor invited all the “English speakers” to the front of the congregation. As I hesitantly walked through the sea of people, sticking out with my blonde, curly hair I became more nervous when he told us to come on the stage. I walked up on stage, with about 15 other “English speakers” and was overwhelmed when he handed me the microphone and told me to lead the congregation in a song! (By the way… I’m not quite the singer!) So, I conquered my fears in that moment of singing in front of a large group and led the church in “Open the eyes of my heart Lord.” I stood there, looking out at the sea of 1,000+ people and laughed to myself at the randomness of this moment. God is funny in how he orchestrates events! Who knew that I would in one moment be sitting in the back of a crowded church and then next, leading worship for all ☺ (By the way… did I mention that the service was being videotaped?? I think I need to find that copy!)
• Later in the day, I got to see an Amharic movie with Konjit at the cinema. She translated the entire movie to me, whispering it into my ear. Quite the experience! (I am starting to learn more and more Amharic each day)
• On Monday, Mahlet and I (BCS staff) were commuting to work and took the HIGER bus together. This is a regular occurance, but today we were running a little late and had to cram onto this huge bus, which was definitely maxed out for its occupancy limit. Literally, Mahlet and I climbed in and she was squished up against the door and I was sandwiched between people in the aisles, with the only support around me from others holding me up. Everytime we hit a bump, the mass of people would sway and there would be a domino effect of people falling on one another. All we could do is laugh at the situation, as I had my face and body pressed up against random strangers on this bus for the entirety of our commute. Ethiopian transport is quite the experience ☺
• On Tuesday, I was on my way to work again (traveling alone) and decided to take a minibus (smaller buses that fit about 10-12 people). Again, I was squished in between four people sitting in the back seat and was talking to my neighbor, when suddenly we got hit from the side. It wasn’t a major accident, but it happened in the middle of a busy road (Bole) and both our doors of exit were smashed in. (Thank goodness that God protected everyone and no one got hurt.) As people began to collect themselves after the impact, we quickly found out that we couldn’t get out of the doors. We were trapped inside. Then, someone near the front had the idea to start opening the windows and climb out. So, I quickly found myself climbing over the seats and jumping out of the bus window, with the help of strangers who caught me as I jumped. I found myself standing in the middle of a busy street, as people started congregating around the accident scene, trying to decide the next move to make. Again, I thank the Lord that He protected us all!
• Wednesday, I had some last minute shopping to do and found myself feeling pretty sick as I was going in and out of shops. I soon decided it would be a good idea to head back home, and hopped on a minibus with Mahlet to get some rest. Somewhere in between all this, my cell phone got stolen- right from my pocket! When I realized what occurred, it was too late to try and trace where it was taken. Thankfully nothing else was taken, and I made it home safely to get some needed rest. (So, watch for pickpocketers… they are tricky!)
• The rest of the week was filled with other crazy mishaps like: Casey (one of my housemates) caught his shirt on fire in the kitchen, visits to the hospital from sickness, hail storms, car accidents, and other close calls! God definitely had His hand of protection on us this past week and I was reminded many times of how He protects and guides us, no matter what the situation! He has been proven faithful.
Even though all these crazy adventures happened this week, I was reminded as Bertikan (an amazing servant of the Lord and ultimate “Proverbs 31 woman”) would say “Satan is not happy about the Lord’s work going on here!” God has proven faithful and sovereign in all situations. There is so much that the Lord has been teaching me about trusting Him in all circumstances, which are out of our control.
It was a memorable way to end my last few days in Addis ☺ I am really going to miss this place and cherish the time that I have been given here!
Thank you for joining me in this adventure and supporting me with your prayers! (They have comforted me throughout this journey and I am very thankful)
My surprise birthday party!
I am an official "Habesha woman" doing a coffee ceremony! haa.. 🙂
For my goodbye ceremony- they killed a goat for me!
poor goat....
Tendai, the BCS African Director has been here for my last few days. He is such an amazing man who I have felt blessed to get to know personally. Thank you, Tendai!
Mahlet and I have shared many crazy adventures on the minibuses and she has done a great job of teaching me all about Addis 🙂 Love you, Mahlet!
Nesibu and Bertikan's family. I have been richly blessed by knowing these two servants of the Lord and their family:)
Bertikan and I... love her!
crazy hailstorms... the size of marbles!
I will miss these girls! (Senait, Helina, Blen & Mahlet and Hanna)
james 1:27 