Travel Day #9 July 7, 2013
Today we got to sleep in! We went to Beza Church, which was very interesting. I have
experience full gospel worship before even though it’s far from Church of
Christ. Beza was on fire for God. That’s really the only way I know to describe
it. That type of worship gives everyone the freedom to praise God how they like
which was refreshing and energizing. It was very interesting how this whole
week we really have not seen “rich” people, but there at church people were well dressed, well fed, spoke English well, etc. This church could have
easily been in Nashville, Tennessee. It was very strange compared to the
devastation we had seen all week.
After church we ate a quick lunch in the parking lot before hitting the
road back to the Hope for the Hopeless (H4H) country-side “campus”. Last night
we had packed all of the blessing bags so we could hand them out. The last time
we went there were tons of kids hanging out outside the H4H gate begging for
food and clothes, so we were excited to get to bless them with the bags.
It poured down rain and hail on the way to H4H and had stopped but the
clouds were very dark when we arrived. We assigned each dormitory room to an
age and lined the kids up outside the gate and sent them in two by two. They
first got wiped down and then sent into the rooms for new clothes, shoes, and a
toy. After everything we had seen this week, it was like I had a weight on my
heart for all of these children that needs so much. Today, while blessing these
people with new clothes and shoes, it felt like some of that weight was lifted.
To be able to make an immediate difference in these children’s lives was amazing.
There was also a medical clinic set up where people could get checked out
and a dentist clinic set up. Kelly Soutas, a friend and dentist on the trip got
right to work, but the power kept going out making his work difficult. They
encountered several kids that needed much more work than they were able to
provide under the circumstances. Some had teeth pulled, others had teeth
filled, and one had an infection so bad it would have killed him within
the year, if not for Dr. Soutas. It’s a joy and a pride to know the Soutas’ and I am so glad I got to
see them work and serve the Hope for the Hopeless kids.
We returned to the Life Center after a long day on the road and helping
these sweet sweet children. After dinner we gathered and got to hear Bissy and
Kelly Putty’s story. I had heard them both prior, but before the backdrop of
Addis, it was powerful to listen to their hearts and their passion to serve.
Travel Day #10 July 8, 2013
We needed to get to the Hope for the Hopeless house in the city early so
the Soutas’ could get their dental clinic set up and start work on the city
kids. The children did a great job. I can’t imagine how scary that is having
never seen a dentist and with most needing teeth pulled. We played with the
kids, started a soccer game and even gave a dental clinic showing them how to
brush and floss their teeth.
We left to get lunch at (according to Ryan Daly) the only respectable
burger place in Addis. We crossed town only to discover they had no food. To
Americans this seems strange, but it’s life in a country where food and money
is scarce, especially if quality is what you are looking for. We decided to
head back to Metro Pizza where we had eaten earlier in the week. Pizza,
calzones, and french fries were ordered and we continued to get to know each
other as a team. It truly is beautiful when you meet people with the same
passion, in all different walks of life. We all had different experiences on
this trip and all of our hearts were pulled for certain organizations and
causes.
After lunch the plan was to return to the IAG transition home, where we
visited the very first day under our fog of jetlag. We are visiting Addis
during the rainy season. It rains every day without fail. This results in a
very muddy city and country-side and makes playing outside and service projects
a challenge. On this particular day it poured and poured during lunch. We had
to make several detours on the way to IAG, one of which involved driving the
wrong way down a highway…our driver didn’t seem phased by this. We nearly
arrived at IAG at the same time we were supposed to be back to the house to
pack up and leave so we decided not to go. It would have been to sad to see the
light on those kids’ faces, just to have to leave in 15 minutes.
Earlier in the day we started collecting money for anyone who wished to
give to Endihnew Hope (the starving mountain children). This particular
organization was especially dear to my heart. Seeing those kids with the hope
of food in their eyes and there not being enough was too much to bear. I was so
excited that just within the team members we raised close to $700 USD. This is
HUGE!! This will help feed ALL of the children for 3.5 Saturdays!! I would
really like to find monthly sponsorships for Endihnew Hope. Maybe church groups can
commit to a Saturday a month or something like that? We got to present the
money to Mesfin and that was fun. I cannot wait to see lives changed with that
money. It didn’t take anything for us to throw a few dollars in, but it will
make such a difference to those children.
Saying goodbye was really really REALLY hard. We had the best receptionists,
drivers, translators, cleaning crew, security, and cooking crew we could have
asked for. Plus, a host of children stayed with us throughout the week. Some
were sponsored kids from the neighborhood, others were sponsored kids from
Kore, others were sponsored kids from Hope for the Hopeless. By the end of
this week they were all like family. These boys are really good boys just
trying to make it in a world that is really difficult and trying. It was great
to show them love all week, hug on them, encourage them, feed them, cloth them,
welcome them into our hearts and our community. Naturally it’s not easy to
break away, especially when you don’t know when you will be back. We will be
back though and that’s encouraging all in itself.
We made it to the airport to wrap up our trip. It’s interesting how
something can seem so long and so short all at the same time. I have extremely
mixed feeling about leaving. This trip has changed my life. To be honest, I
have read blog post after blog post, heard stories, seen pictures, and thought
I had an idea what to expect and how I expected to feel. The reality is that
the situation in Addis is so much worse than I had ever imagined. I will
probably never know what it feels like to not be able to feed or clothe my children,
to share a tiny one room hut filled with disease and despair, to know my child
is sick and slipping, and not be able to fix it. This week, it felt like these
children were my children and I had to do everything I could to fix it and make
it better, but the need is far far to great for one person or for a team of 30.
Thankfully, nothing is far too great for God. My prayer is that each and every
one of those people are provided for above and beyond what we could every hope
for. That is exactly what God promises and their faith is strong and complete
and raw and unshakable. It’s easy to get bitter about where we live and how God
as blessed us in comparison, but I fully believe that we are blessed so we can
bless. We can show Jesus’ love through blessing the least of these and they can
show Jesus’ love through their faith and reliability on God.
I am excited to go home. I cannot wait to see Nicholas, Holden and
Adelaide. I cannot wait for modern conveniences like flushing toilet paper,
drying my hair and internet. I cannot wait to breath in smog-free air. I cannot
wait to share the need that is Addis Ababa, and inspire other people to be an
ordinary hero. Step out in faith, change a life. It’s so easy to read about and
forget, but when you look into a staving child’s eyes, you cannot forget. I
seriously encourage everyone to sponsor a family or child. This is not a
detached relationship. It’s a BIG deal to these people and they consider you
family. All of this kids that stayed with us were sponsored and it was amazing
to see how their lives were changed. They have a hope for a future when there
was none.
Lastly I want to encourage everyone to go on a mission trip. Immerse
yourself in what you think you understand but don’t. See, feel, hear, smell the
desperation of these families and you will never ever be the same. We are all
made in God’s image and we are all called to love. It’s not comfortable. It’s not a
vacation. If I even begin to scratch the surface of my emotions over what I’ve
seen, I may never stop crying, but it’s not about me, it’s about love and
service, faith and duty. As an added bonus, the people you experience these
things with will turn into family in a very short period of time. When God is
speaking to hearts and revealing Himself, we come together and focus on Him,
His will, His people. Lives are changed all around and it’s a beautiful thing.
