The Very Best First Day

Today I watched my four year old fall in love with Korah. We had no idea how Zoie would react coming back to the village she was born … would she be nervous, scared, shy, or refuse to get out of the van? It was our first day of loving and serving with our brothers and sisters and multitudes of children running around on their summer break. There is nothing I love more than watching children sprint toward the visitors coming for hugs and playing. Korah is constantly on the move. There are mothers walking by with their babies strapped to their backs and elder men with leprosy walking for lunch and children playing on the dirt road in front of Great Hope’s bright blue gate. Don’t forget the dogs, donkeys, cats, and cows that pass by too.

We wanted to stop and say Salem (Hello) to the thirty-five women working with Mission Ethiopia in the heart of Korah. They create stunning magazine and clay bead necklaces for order here. They also have hand made rugs, scarves, mats for online orders. I hope everyone of my bloggy friends check out the Mission Ethiopia website and help support these amazing, strong business women.

It was such a hoot getting our first Amharic lesson from the women. They giggled as Roger and I struggled to learn 2 simple words … how are you? “Tenayistillign endemen not?” and I am well. “Dehna negn.” We butchered it so badly they couldn’t stop laughing. The proper way to greet a friend in Ethiopia is to say … Name first, and ask, how are you? But, you say a different phrase for male and female. Whew!! As we helped shine the clay beads rubbing gently tiny pieces of sticks, we worked hard on our words. The BEST part of visiting these women everyday is that our precious friend, Mulu is part of Mission Ethiopia. Can you believe how happy we were to spend time with Mercy’s mother today and chat about her daughter’s miracles!! We are grateful she understands English better than we understand Amharic.

Our next stop was visiting a wonderful daycare ministry founded by our friends Jerry and Shannon – Embracing Hope Ethiopia. They have a beautiful facility that has 66 children from babies to toddlers. Single mothers or widows can join the program that need a safe place for their children to play and cared for during the work day. Is this incredible or what! Just think how many families they are saving with this one of a kind ministry in Korah. This family’s ministry is featured here in a short documentary film. Please take the time to view and share your thoughts. This is what living radical and loving big and making a difference really looks like.

What would you do if you HAD to work to live, but didn’t have anyone to watch your children during the day?

After visiting the daycare, we headed to meet for the first time in real life our friend, Emily (Cornish) Tenker and her brand new hubby, Berhanu, one of our dearest friends working with Great Hope Ministry. Their new home is beautiful! Zoie loved holding their new puppy … we had the honor of naming him, too! We all agreed he looked just like a Simba! Emily has faithfully helped Mercy the past year get her medical visa paperwork finalized. We have Mercy’s US Embassy appointment on Monday, June 25^th! Please pray for favor and help spread her story on your blogs or facebook.

We ended the day with our new Ethiopia Guest Home (EGH) friends at Kaldi’s for coffee and fellowship! We are thankful that God gave us the opportunity to live in Ethiopia for His glory and service. Will you pray for the missionaries and ministries here in Korah as they learn to work together in unity?

Live Dead – None of us lives or works in a vacuum. Pray for the first believers in the people group. Pray that there would be loving, trusting communion between them. Pray against jealousies and the lies of the devil. Pray for the missionaries working among those people. Pray for UNITY, BLESSING, AND JOY in the Holy Spirit. Division among new believers and missionary colleagues is a primary tool of the devil. Pray for God’s blessed unity to prevail.