1. 70 million people - 3rd largest country in Africa
2. 50% are under 17
3. roughly 25-40% of the population is Muslim, with a fairly strong cultural influence
4. It is the birthplace of civilization, or, really, humanity. Civilization began in Mesopotamia.
5. But they did invent coffee! Thank you, Kaldi!
6. But probably one of the things of greatest interest to me about Ethiopia is the fact that it is relatively hidden and obscure. It is a nation rich with history and legacy, and yet, for the most part, it is overlooked, passed by in the sweep of history and the great powers. This excites me. Not only does it mean that American culture is ubiquitous, it is also in these kinds of strategic and out of the way places that God loves to break in with His Kingdom, and that is just what He seems to be doing there right now.
The Pool Party
Jim, Megan, Eli, Esther, Eden and Olive
Showing posts with label ethiopia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ethiopia. Show all posts
25 February 2008
19 February 2008
One thing I didn't expect about Ethiopia
was the countryside. it is high plateau, with some hills and "mounts." not quite mountains, but more than hills. especially when you're already starting at several thousand feet. addis ababa, the capital, is the third highest capital in the world, at over 7000ft above sea level. most of what we saw in ethiopia was what you might call "high desert." it reminded me a lot of idaho. rolling hills, tough grass, rugged trees. all in natural colors. i know that probably sounds dumb to say - calling the outdoors natural colors - but i think you get what i mean. every thing was shades of brown, and ochre, and such. i didn't expect ethiopia to look like idaho. but i hadn't expected idaho to look like idaho, either. and i really liked them both. i felt right at home in that countryside. another thing they have in common is "teff." teff is the local grain the ethiopians use to make their very special bread - injera. they eat everything with injera, which is a kind of mildly fermented bread pancake. apparently, teff grows real well in idaho, too. i'm not surprised. anyway, that's my africa update for tonight.
18 February 2008
Out of Africa
One of the things that has most stood out to me since coming home from Africa is how much we eat here in America. While in Ethiopia I usually ate only light meals, often skipping lunch altogether, and I didn't really seem hungry. Since coming home it has been a shock to my system to go back to 1/2 pound burgers and loads of fries and three full meals.
Another thought I've had is that even though I can come out of Africa, I'm not so sure I'll be able to get the Africa out of me. I showed a slideshow of pics from our trip at church this Sunday. Watching it made me want to go back. Africa gets inside you. I think that's what those who've been there knew, the ones who asked me, "So will this be your first time in Africa ...?" Those knowing dot, dot, dots say it all. They know, because the Africa is still in them too.
16 February 2008
Impressions of Ethiopia
So I've just returned from 11 days in Africa. While there I tried to keep a record of my impressions ...
1. People walking. Everyone walks - and they walk all the time - in Ethiopia. It sorta seemed to me that the roads were more like sidewalks that they decided to let cars use too. It is no wonder they are such good marathoners. We had 10 year old kids running easily alongside our truck for long distances.
2. Animals. Animals were everywhere. Wandering freely. Roosters. Goats. Sheep. Cattle. Dogs. Cats. Donkeys. Horses. Monkeys in some of the cities.
3. All of this activity meant that there was lots of dust. It was the dry season, too, so there was lots of dust everywhere.
4. But for all this activity, the pace was slow. While we were there, we were always busy, but NEVER rushed. Ethiopians don't really get rushed.
5. One night we had been out late for a full day of visiting 5 churches and on the way home, in the dark, on a road in the wilderness, it started pouring down rain. (Actually, this was a blessing to the countryside, and most of the folks we visited would have seen the rain as evidence of our having been a blessing to them from God.) Anyway, so we come across a big spread of water covering the "road" and there's a car stuck in it, with water up to the bottom of the grill. Its battery died. Without even hesitating, our driver gets out and lends our van's battery to them, so they can drive out of the puddle, rev up their car and then switch the battery back to us. It took nearly an hour, while we were packed like sardines in this van, but the plan worked! Amazing.
6. Needless to say, the Ethiopians are also very hospitable. They are a warm-hearted people with quick, full smiles.
7. At the Red Cross guest house where we stayed, every morning by 6:30AM we were greeted with the sounds of three things, which lasted 60-90 minutes - roosters, men chanting their (Orthodox Christian) prayers over loud speakers, and the aerobics class on the first floor (with open windows) pumping out an exercise bass beat and the men chanting "Owu!" ("yes!")
8. Blue and white taxis - motorized tricycles, cars, vans.
9. "Afromatics." In the arithmetic of Afromatics, if you say you'll arrive somewhere between 3 and 4, that means that you're very likely to get there at 7. As a rule, Afromatics always involves adding 0.5 hours onto any time.
10. "Munee!" Anytime any young male saw us, pretty much the first or second thing they shouted was "Munee!" (money) This was usually closely followed by a plaintiff look, a hand to the mouth, and "Hungree!" If you gave them money, which we never did, but saw others doing, it was immediately handed over to an older guy hanging around on the margins, who was their boss.
11. Odd clothing matches. Men wearing suits and dress shoes in dirt floored, mud hut churches on a farm in the wilderness. Lots of western clothes being worn in very different settings.
12. Being there I felt much closer to biblical times and the logic of biblical narratives, especially the parables of Jesus. Sheep and goats and threshing floors are very real things there.
Overall, I felt totally at home. It never really felt foreign or strange. Only at one or two points did I feel like I was in the set of a movie. Which was cool. My heart broke for these people and their country. I absolutely enjoyed our two main hosts - Woudineh (Woody) and Shimeles. What awesome men of God! God is good. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to have gone and I look forward to next time.
Those are my impressions and a few quick highlights. I'll share more in the days to come.
1. People walking. Everyone walks - and they walk all the time - in Ethiopia. It sorta seemed to me that the roads were more like sidewalks that they decided to let cars use too. It is no wonder they are such good marathoners. We had 10 year old kids running easily alongside our truck for long distances.
2. Animals. Animals were everywhere. Wandering freely. Roosters. Goats. Sheep. Cattle. Dogs. Cats. Donkeys. Horses. Monkeys in some of the cities.
3. All of this activity meant that there was lots of dust. It was the dry season, too, so there was lots of dust everywhere.
4. But for all this activity, the pace was slow. While we were there, we were always busy, but NEVER rushed. Ethiopians don't really get rushed.
5. One night we had been out late for a full day of visiting 5 churches and on the way home, in the dark, on a road in the wilderness, it started pouring down rain. (Actually, this was a blessing to the countryside, and most of the folks we visited would have seen the rain as evidence of our having been a blessing to them from God.) Anyway, so we come across a big spread of water covering the "road" and there's a car stuck in it, with water up to the bottom of the grill. Its battery died. Without even hesitating, our driver gets out and lends our van's battery to them, so they can drive out of the puddle, rev up their car and then switch the battery back to us. It took nearly an hour, while we were packed like sardines in this van, but the plan worked! Amazing.
6. Needless to say, the Ethiopians are also very hospitable. They are a warm-hearted people with quick, full smiles.
7. At the Red Cross guest house where we stayed, every morning by 6:30AM we were greeted with the sounds of three things, which lasted 60-90 minutes - roosters, men chanting their (Orthodox Christian) prayers over loud speakers, and the aerobics class on the first floor (with open windows) pumping out an exercise bass beat and the men chanting "Owu!" ("yes!")
8. Blue and white taxis - motorized tricycles, cars, vans.
9. "Afromatics." In the arithmetic of Afromatics, if you say you'll arrive somewhere between 3 and 4, that means that you're very likely to get there at 7. As a rule, Afromatics always involves adding 0.5 hours onto any time.
10. "Munee!" Anytime any young male saw us, pretty much the first or second thing they shouted was "Munee!" (money) This was usually closely followed by a plaintiff look, a hand to the mouth, and "Hungree!" If you gave them money, which we never did, but saw others doing, it was immediately handed over to an older guy hanging around on the margins, who was their boss.
11. Odd clothing matches. Men wearing suits and dress shoes in dirt floored, mud hut churches on a farm in the wilderness. Lots of western clothes being worn in very different settings.
12. Being there I felt much closer to biblical times and the logic of biblical narratives, especially the parables of Jesus. Sheep and goats and threshing floors are very real things there.
Overall, I felt totally at home. It never really felt foreign or strange. Only at one or two points did I feel like I was in the set of a movie. Which was cool. My heart broke for these people and their country. I absolutely enjoyed our two main hosts - Woudineh (Woody) and Shimeles. What awesome men of God! God is good. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to have gone and I look forward to next time.
Those are my impressions and a few quick highlights. I'll share more in the days to come.
01 February 2008
A Call From Home
So I was at work, yesterday, I think. This last week or two has been something of a blur. Anyway, like I said, I was at work and my cell phone rings with a call from home. I answer. As expected, it is Megan. "Eli has something he's concerned about and wants to tell you." "Wait," I hear in the background (its Eli), "I have to wash my hands." A minute later, after the scamper of feet to and fro, Eli's on the line. "Dad, I'm concerned that a bad guy who doesn't listen to Jesus is gonna point a gun at you and shoot you." "What else?" Megan says in the background. "Dad," he continues, "I'm concerned a rock will fall from the sky and hit your plan and make it crash." "Eli, wow. You know that won't happen. Do you know who will protect me?" A quick "Jesus" is shouted before he runs off. Interesting. We're praying for Eli. He's been a little irritable all week and now we realize that he's probably just concerned and doesn't really know how to express it. We're trying to help him talk about it and I know Meg is praying with him too.
23 January 2008
"Why Ethiopia?"
After hearing about our upcoming mission trip, some people have asked me, "Why Ethiopia?" This leads me to believe that I've not done enough to talk about why we're going. That's pretty obvious. My plan all along has been to spend quite a bit of time talking about it after we get back and I feel like I've got more to say, rooted in first-hand experience. I think this was part of the problem with our (short-lived) involvement in Kenya - I didn't have enough firsthand experience. So I've not wanted to moderate my talking about it. But I've realized people like to know why their pastor and another key leader (Rebecca Chadwick) are going to another continent for the better part of two weeks. And there is a story. So I guess it is time to tell at least part of it.
The story of "Why Ethiopia?" begins, I suppose, with "Why not Kenya?" The leadership of River Valley Springs Children's Project are wonderful people who are passionately devoted to Jesus and his Kingdom. The work they are doing is good and I think it makes Jesus happy. Yet, after roughly 18 months of involvement, several things became clear: 1) there was a gap in our expectations; 2) our level of involvement to see the kinds of things happen that were really on
our heart would require more time and energy and expertise than we really had; and 3) it became clear that we shared a different philosophy of ministry. This last point had especially to do with wanting to connect what we were doing in with the larger Vineyard work in Kenya and East Africa; we wanted this, but it became clear it wasn't going to be possible.
Anyway, so around the same time that we were wrestling with the decision to potentially leave the River Valley Springs partnership and consider another, the church sent Rebecca down to Florida to participate in an international African Vineyards Partnership Summit. It was inspiring and challenging. She met with leaders of several partnerships and heard lots of great testimonies of what God is doing in Africa through the faithfulness of everyday Christians and everyday churches just like ours.
Among the best interactions was the opportunity to meet a dynamic young African-American couple from suburban Los Angeles who've been going to Ethiopia for the previous several years. There had never been a Vineyard church there, but now there was a growing church and a local leader dedicated to planting churches in his culture. Since that time, a number of other small faith communities have sprung up, so that now it seems there are seven Vineyard groups throughout the country. Ethiopia has a legacy of deep Christian commitment and a history of famine and intense suffering. More recently, Ethiopia has become a front line in Islamic missions. A number of prominent Muslim leaders have declared that they want to make Ethiopia into a Muslim country, in a fashion similar to much of the rest of North Africa. And, like much of the rest of Africa, Ethiopia faces looming environmental and economic crises, besides the ever-present specter of AIDS and other diseases. In other words, it is a people and a land ripe for God's Kingdom.
Throughout most of 2007, I spent time in prayer and discernment over where God would lead us for our mission to the nations. Africa and the Muslim world have consistently stood out, because of their timeliness on the world scene, our church community's passion for these areas, and our own setting here in metro Detroit (with such large African-American and Muslim populations). And as I've prayed, Ethiopia keeps coming to the forefront over other possibilities. So that, in brief, is "why Ethiopia."
Now for the trip and we'll see what God will say and do.
The story of "Why Ethiopia?" begins, I suppose, with "Why not Kenya?" The leadership of River Valley Springs Children's Project are wonderful people who are passionately devoted to Jesus and his Kingdom. The work they are doing is good and I think it makes Jesus happy. Yet, after roughly 18 months of involvement, several things became clear: 1) there was a gap in our expectations; 2) our level of involvement to see the kinds of things happen that were really on
our heart would require more time and energy and expertise than we really had; and 3) it became clear that we shared a different philosophy of ministry. This last point had especially to do with wanting to connect what we were doing in with the larger Vineyard work in Kenya and East Africa; we wanted this, but it became clear it wasn't going to be possible.
Anyway, so around the same time that we were wrestling with the decision to potentially leave the River Valley Springs partnership and consider another, the church sent Rebecca down to Florida to participate in an international African Vineyards Partnership Summit. It was inspiring and challenging. She met with leaders of several partnerships and heard lots of great testimonies of what God is doing in Africa through the faithfulness of everyday Christians and everyday churches just like ours.
Among the best interactions was the opportunity to meet a dynamic young African-American couple from suburban Los Angeles who've been going to Ethiopia for the previous several years. There had never been a Vineyard church there, but now there was a growing church and a local leader dedicated to planting churches in his culture. Since that time, a number of other small faith communities have sprung up, so that now it seems there are seven Vineyard groups throughout the country. Ethiopia has a legacy of deep Christian commitment and a history of famine and intense suffering. More recently, Ethiopia has become a front line in Islamic missions. A number of prominent Muslim leaders have declared that they want to make Ethiopia into a Muslim country, in a fashion similar to much of the rest of North Africa. And, like much of the rest of Africa, Ethiopia faces looming environmental and economic crises, besides the ever-present specter of AIDS and other diseases. In other words, it is a people and a land ripe for God's Kingdom.
Throughout most of 2007, I spent time in prayer and discernment over where God would lead us for our mission to the nations. Africa and the Muslim world have consistently stood out, because of their timeliness on the world scene, our church community's passion for these areas, and our own setting here in metro Detroit (with such large African-American and Muslim populations). And as I've prayed, Ethiopia keeps coming to the forefront over other possibilities. So that, in brief, is "why Ethiopia."
Now for the trip and we'll see what God will say and do.
And then, when we get back, we'll talk further about it as a church. This is, after all, a partnership of church communities, and so, as much as possible, we want to own this together.
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