Ethiopia Trip Update #8
It is my eighth day on the other side of the world, and I still wake up each morning and have to remind myself where I am. The plan for this day is only church and preparing to depart early tomorrow. We will only be gone for two nights, so we will not take all our luggage. There is a special storage location where we will keep most of our belongings while we are gone.
After getting ready, which was made more difficult by my inability to find my black tie in my suitcase, I made my way down for breakfast and was blessed to find that Samuel, Hanook (a friend of Samuel’s from Blaine, MN who came for the wedding and to visit family), and Melkam (Samuel’s 10-year-old daughter) were just finishing. I thought they would be gone for church already. After some updates on our health and sleep, they departed, and I spent time having a light breakfast and refreshing myself on my sermon.
While I waited for my ride, I spoke with a gentleman, who I would guess is in his late 20s or early 30s. We had a nice conversation about faith and raising children in the modern world. There is universality at this time regarding concerns about raising children in the faith amidst the distractions and pressures of the modern world.
As our conversation was coming to a close, my ride arrived. This Sunday, I knew who I was meeting. Pastor Joel was a part of our classes, and his confidence in English was a huge part of fostering our discussions during the week. I felt bad having to skip out on the final morning of class due to my stomach bug, so I was excited to see him again to say goodbye.
I was pleasantly surprised to get to his car and discover that his wife and son were attending the church with us. Interestingly, Joel’s car is the first vehicle I’ve ridden in with an automatic transmission. Unsurprisingly, this provides a much smoother ride in the traffic and on the rough alleys as it was easier to ease out of the ruts.
Being Sunday, the traffic decreased, but not as much as I had expected. Joel explained that many extra people were moving around with yesterday's Holy Day celebration. Epiphany is very important to the Ethiopian Orthodox. Many people would have come to Addis Ababa for the celebration, and many buses lined the roads. These may have been transporting people back home today.
I had been to the church on Tuesday when we met the men at MKA Ministry’s Homeless Outreach. Traffic on that road was substantial, and several places where traffic split and came into the road we were on. The most obvious sign of the impact of the Epiphany Celebration was that at one point, a very large truck was coming at us in the same lane. Turns out a large stage had been set up on the other side of the road. No signs. No roadblocks. Well, that’s not really true; I guess you could say the stage was a roadblock. The traffic was just merging from four lanes into two. Like I’ve mentioned previously in mentioning the traffic it wasn’t scary as we never really travel at very high speeds. Instead of fear, I find myself curious how these drivers all merge into and get through these choke points without running into each other.
We arrived later than expected and as we pulled up Pastor Andrew’s familiar face was waiting for us on the side of the road to tell us they had saved us a spot to park. Andrew was also a member of the “Preaching Christ from All of Scripture” class this past week.
I haven’t previously mentioned the friendly greeting that men give each other. When I got out of the car and greeted Andrew, we not only shook hands but also leaned in and bumped our right shoulders. I personally like this greeting as it is more than a handshake but not quite a hug.
We were escorted to the front of the church and invited to take a seat. There were probably about 15 more minutes of singing and prayer. I thought as soon as that concluded, I would be introduced, and I would preach. Instead, it was time for the offering, and instead of passing the plates, nearly every man, woman, and child came to the front and placed their giving in a bag.
After that, the children were invited to come forward. I wasn’t sure what was taking place. I thought maybe it was a children’s message or a blessing. Pastor Fitsu (also one of the students from class during the week) invited five children to come forward, and he handed the one closest to him the microphone. The child, who I would guess was four or five years old, spoke, and Joel, sitting next to me, told me they were sharing either a Bible verse or song. The keyboard player and congregation would join in when a student shared a song. All five spoke confidently. I would say that the children who spoke ranged in age from 4 to 11.
This time of worship and the children sharing was a blessing, but as I sat there, I realized that I was not at 90% like I thought I was. It was more like 70%, and I was feeling mildly lightheaded. Looking back, I think it was the lack of air moving in the space. Regardless, I spent the time Fitsu introduced me praying for physical and mental strength.
Prayers were answered as I felt much better with a big gulp from my water bottle and getting up and moving. Working with Joel as the translator was a different experience than the previous Lord’s Day. Joel had translated previously. He also had spent the week with me, had heard me talk extensively, and had an idea of my approach to scripture. A few times, he interrupted me inadvertently because he already had a feeling of where I was going with my sentences.
During the message, we had two times when the electricity went out. After the service, Fitsu told me that it happens semi-regularly. It wasn’t a big concern for me or Joel as we spoke more loudly. It was not a big space, and there wasn’t much reverberation either.
After the service, I thanked Fitsu and Andrew for their hospitality. It was good to be able to say goodbye to them, as I will most likely not cross paths with these brothers again while I am here.
Joel and his family gave me a ride back to where we are staying. I thanked them for their kindness and said goodbye.
The rest of the day will be spent resting and rehydrating. Tomorrow, a new part of the adventure awaits us as we travel to the MKA Ministries School in Hosanna. I look forward to seeing a different part of the country and sharing the experience with you!
