Beautiful Feet - Ethiopia

Easter Sunday

Sunday

It’s midnight, and I am sitting on a rooftop terrace under a cloudy Ethiopian sky, looking out over the lights of the city and listening to the barking dogs of Addis Ababa.  Today was Easter in the U.S.  It was not Easter in Ethiopia.  However, Beza International Church, the protestant church we attend while we are here, had a full Easter service this morning.  I LOVE Beza church.  They know how to worship, and they preach a good message.  However, today either I was off or they were.  I’m sure it was me.  The worship was wonderful, but I struggled during the sermon.  It was good, and I actually learned a lot from the message, but I found it hard to listen and frankly, had to fight hard to stay awake.  Very unlike me. 

We left Beza and returned to our guest house for lunch.  Yeshi is the wife of Ephrim, who runs the guest house, drives us everywhere we go, and generally takes complete care of us while we are here.  Yeshi is the best cook in Ethiopia.  We had a lovely lunch, and then took a walk in the neighborhood around the guest house.  Some of the guys, one of them being Tyler, an eighth grader, wanted to find a pick-up game of soccer with local kids.  We walked to a vacant field where some cattle were grazing (yes, we are in the city), and immediately a soccer game ensued.  The guys and kids soon had an audience, as the locals watched the firenjis play soccer with the local kids.  The hot Ethiopian sun was shining, but the cool Ethiopian breeze was blowing.  The sky was blue, with a few rain-filled clouds, and I suddenly realized how beautiful the day was.  It occurred to me again, “Today is Easter.”  Throughout this trip, I have been constantly reminded of God’s goodness, His beauty, His tenderness, and His love.  This was one of those moments. 

We returned to the guest house to sort out all those bags of donations we had brought with us.  The work was fun. Seeing all the wonderful gifts we get to bestow on those who need them and on those who will put them to good, kingdom work was a blessing.  Soon it was dinnertime, and Yeshi really outdid herself.  On top of a salad, which you just can’t ever eat here except when Yeshi makes it, we had two main dishes, bread, and my very favorite – sambosas.  Sambosas look like empanadas and are every bit as tasty.  Yeshi made both meat and vegetarian sambosas, and they disappeared quickly.  To top it all off, she made us a chocolate cake, “because it’s Easter”.  We never eat dessert in Ethiopia, so chocolate cake was a special treat.

Nega (from Onesimus, a ministry for street kids) and his wife Emebet and their 4 month old miracle baby joined us, along with Jonathan and Jess Bridges and their 4 year old son and 3 month old baby girl.  Jonathan and Jess are Americans who have given up everything to move to Ethiopia and support the Onesimus ministry.  Peter and Elizabeth and Joshua were with us, too.  We enjoyed fabulous food, great conversation, and then heard Jonathan and Nega talk about how both their ministries were started.  Hearing of their work with street kids (orphaned, abandoned, forced out of their homes, runaways escaping homes of alcohol, abuse, poverty, or worse), rescuing the vulnerable and serving the ones hardest to love and yet in the most need reminded us all why we were here.  With tears we prayed for them and then said our good nights. 

It was a strange Easter.  No Easter baskets or fancy clothes.  No candy or traditional Easter feast.  No standard Easter church service.  Nothing at all American style Easter.  Physical weariness was combined with great joy, beautiful moments were followed by stories of great sorrow.  No family members were present, and yet we had sweet fellowship with wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ.  And a story that reminds me of what Easter really means:

The first child Nega served at Onesimus was a boy named Desi.  Nega invited Desi to the Onesimus drop-in center and ministered to him, even allowing Desi to live with him and Emebet for a while.  Nega loved Desi, but Desi wasn’t really ready to be loved.  Desi returned to the streets.  Again, Nega sought out Desi, asking him to return to the drop-in center.  Desi did, only to leave again.  Again Nega pursued Desi.  Again Desi ran away.  Seventeen times Nega followed Desi, and 17 times Desi rejected Nega, returning to his destructive life on the streets.  Finally, Nega found Desi again.  Desi returned to Onesimus.  Finally, Desi stayed.  He entered and stayed in school and began to straighten out his crooked path.  Began to really live.  He met Jesus and found the Saviour he’d always looked for.  Jonathan, who told us this story of Nega and Desi, concluded by saying,  “Desi’s story is all our stories.”  He explained: We run from God again and again, turning our backs on Him, rejecting Him, choosing our own destructive ways.  And God is just like Nega.  He pursues us again and again, always imploring us to return to Him – to grace and forgiveness, to love, true love.  Nega and Desi are the perfect picture of God with us. 

And Easter appeared to me so clearly:  Jesus came all the way from glory to the cross, the tomb, and the throne because He really and truly loved me.  Me.  And you, too.  And every single one of those street kids that are still out there. 

I hope your Easter was as blessed as mine.