Why are we adopting from Ethiopia??

A new AWAA friend posted the following video that she and her husband made regarding Ethiopian adoption. You can read her blog here. It is beautiful and does an excellent job of explaining why those of us who love Ethiopia are drawn there vs. other countries. Enjoy!!

Blog Rewind : CSP Projects

Originally posted February 2009. To show you what $20 can do: Day 10 of our trip was to be our last. I would love to say I cherished every moment of it - but getting out of bed that last day was tough. I was sick and I was tired. I wasn't able to eat much. And I really missed MY babies. BUT... God in his wisdom, took me back to a place of joy and of rest, knowing that we had come for a reason. On that last morning we visited one last Child Survival Program (CSP) in Addis Abada. At this program were the most beautiful children, the most loving mothers, and a wonderful morning to book-end our time in this beautiful country. Who wouldn't smile when greeted by these little munchkins?? It was here that I met the woman I had spoken of in a previous blog that volunteers with mothers in the community. To hear her talk about "so many disabled babies", and once again, see these beautiful and healthy children - I knew Compassion had made a difference in the lives of these mothers. Just the weight that must be lifted when you know that your child will not starve to death, or die of a preventable disease like diarrhea or malaria, must free these mothers to instead hug their babies every day, without the fear of loosing them. And to know that your baby will have the opportunity to go to school, to learn, to just be a child - is priceless. It is a gift that we take for granted everyday. Yes, I worry about my children. But my worries are more the "what ifs". Sex. Drugs. Pregnancy. Homosexuality. Atheism. Selfcenteredness. Naivete. Most of those worries are for another day and not the survival in the here and now. (Although Braeden likes to test that theory...) In that church, we had a wonderful morning playing with those babies and it really put my heart at peace. If it had not been for our ride to the center through the poverty and the dirt, if we had just been placed in the little church compound, you would never know that we were in a place of immense poverty. Now I don't want to brag about the wonderful thing that the great America was able to bring to those mothers and children. It wasn't like us high and mighty Americans were happy to see what great things our money could do in that barren land. Now follow me here: instead - it was mothers meeting mothers. God's children playing with God's children. We were not giving to them, not blessing them with our presence. God had found a way to level the field and bring His blessings to His people in that land. And we were there to be able to witness that and to see the smiles His gifts had born. To remember with humility that those children are healthy, and smiling, and playing - because God gave to us, so we could give to them. And that was my peace. It's not about us. It's all about His children.

Luke 18:16 "But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."

 **90% of Child Survival Project babies meet their developmental milestones on time. **At the first CSP project we toured, over 1000 mothers stood in line for the available 50 slots. **Why not help more? Because we need you to help first. Matthew 25: 34-36,40 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'... "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"

Date at the Nile

So the past week, on my blogging hiatus - I spent my days basking in the beautiful sunshine that is Florida. Soaking in the waves and the rays. And since we were vacationing with my parents, our first thought was DATE NIGHT - For FREEEEEEEE!!!!! And since I have been trying to persuade somebody, anybody, to go with me to an Ethiopian restaurant with me, since, oh, February - I thought this would be a good opportunity to guilt my husband into driving me the 1 hour distance to find a restaurant in Orlando.

Before we even left for the trip, I had researched restaurants on the web, looked at menus, looked at reviews. Cause this was a once in a lifetime deal. He hates it - I'm not getting an easy re-do.

I settled on The Nile in Orlando as it looked cozy and was run by an Ethiopian couple who were noted for their good service and hospitality. So we start out around 6:15, head in the wrong direction, then run into the longest and most torrential rain shower EVER, and finally arrive close to 8. Good thing this place is open until 10 as I was getting worried.

Now kicking myself for not taking photos - but The Nile was situated in a little strip mall and really was a cute little place. The hostess led us to a table/chairs but when Tony asked what the floor seating was for, he said that we might as well experience the whole experience and we moved to the little stools around the woven table. (The following photos are from my trip as I was photographically challenged that night, but the food looked and tasted just the same)

So I decide to order us a beef combination platter for two for $29.95 which came with 3 beef dishes (beef key wat, alicha, cubed beef tibs), and 3 vegetables (green collards gomen, split peas kik, and salad). Now I really wanted Tony to try the shiro, as that is what we were offered most in the home visits in Ethiopia. But the shiro dish was an extra $10.95. I tried negotiating a vegetable substitution. But "no shiro". The friendly waitress then went, unasked, and talked to the manager about letting me have my shiro. Yeah!! (shiro with injera)

So with little flasks of the included home-made honey wine, we were quickly served our food on the oversized plate covered in the spongey bread (and eating utensil) called injera. So the wine we really didn't care for. BUT the food was fantastic and Tony really liked it. We picked that big plate clean! And no, he didn't like the shiro as much as I did. But I would say that for a beef and potatoes kind of guy, just getting him in the door was a huge success. (we didn't have the eggs as that is served with the chicken dish, of course...)

The really fun thing is a tradition that my friend Jerry taught us in which you use the injera to pick up some food and then feed it to your friend or family member. The tradition is called gusha and is meant to demonstrate love. So like dating teenagers, we even gave each other gusha at the dinner table. (Go ahead, cue the "awwwwws")

We then asked for coffee and the sweet waitress said she would go ahead and do her nightly coffee ceremony for us. She roasted the green coffee beans, brought the black ones around for us to see and inhale (yum), and then served us the coffee in the little teacups. After about 3 tablespoons of sugar to the 1 oz. of black coffee (table sugar is just NOT as good as the raw we had in country) - I was back to my original cup some 4 months ago. And loving it.

And note: if you should happen to ever try The Nile, ask for the bottled honey wine tej. Even the owner (who WAS very friendly) said she didn't like the home-made wine but many customers still request it. The bottled variety was very good. (the owner and a youtube video about The Nile. For those of you who are still interested after this completely self-serving post...)

From Abraham

Just in case you haven't been convinced YET about the effectiveness of Compassion (and I'm not talking about the economic success stories, but instead the Heavenly ones..) Another of the translators from the trip, Abraham, has wrote me as he felt led to share his testimony with me. Which I now feel led to share with you. I did run that thought by him and he enthusiastically agreed, but did ask me to clean up the grammar errors, so here is the edited version. I'll let him speak for himself and let you be led to do with this info as God wills it.


Today I am inspired and encouraged to share my life testimony with you. The following is what God did in my life through Compassion. I was born on July 14, 1984 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I am about 24 years old now and I am soon to be 25. I am the first born of my family. I have one brother and one sister. I think my father married my mother at an early age as she was not mature enough for marriage. They divorced after I and my sister were born, and after many discussions, they remarried again and then my brother was born on July 10, 1993. After that, they divorced permanently. Now my father is married to another lady and is living in one of the country sides of Ethiopia, which is about more than 500 km away from where I live. By the way I don't know who my father is, as from my early ages I was living with my grand-father and grand-mother. From an early age of 2 or late 1. My parents were not in agreement on the place to live, so they were most of the time fighting. And after my mother divorced, she joined us in the home where we are living now (my grand-parent's home).

This is a little bit about my mother and father and let me tell you how Compassion impacted my life. My families were very poor, meaning they were from the poorest of the poor. It was really very hard for all of us to survive as it was very hard for all of us even to eat three time a day. Forget the clothing and the school fees, it was so hard for all of us to eat three times and be satisfied. No one was permanently employed and even those who are employed were daily laborers. Their pay per day was less than 1 USD. We (all of my families including me and my mom) would gather fire wood and sell the fire wood so that we could support our selves. Life was becoming so hard and so harsh for all of us. My mom couldn't bring fire wood as the goverment wouldn't let her. And this was the time that my mom heard about Compassion and went to get there to get me registered. The first time she went there she couldn't get me registered, as the due date had passed and the quota had already been reached. So she was hopeless and helpless to feed me and others too. And at the time we are very much in need, God brought me another opportunity to be registered in Compassion, when I was a grade 2 student. And through the project, each things which were important for growth were fulfilled. We were given the chance to have food supplied every three months, cleaning materials, clothings, school fees, and we also were given the chance to have recreation program and so on. By the way my family was a large family. In a single room there were more than 8 members of the house. And as I told you, almost all of them were unemployed.

God started to lead my life to His ways. When I started to get those things I started to be encouraged. God brought me to His ways. My families were from the Coptic Orthodox faith. And I was not in Christ. I was a demon possessed boy. When I was a grade 8 student I was converted and God brought me to Christ. And I was released from the spirit when I was a grade 10 student. And I started to live a safe life in Christ. Then I started to learn the basics of Christianity and I went through baptism on June 04, 2002. I started to serve God as a youth Bible Study leader. And also I was serving on an Evangelism team which served in reaching the lost ones. The other thing I was doing was teaching my peers, or leading them in Bible study.

When I was about to join University, I heard about the Leadership Development Program (LDP). I applied for the program and with God's help, I joined LDP in October 2006. There God was inspiring me to do a lot. In LDP, I was fully sponsored. Meaning my school cost sharing was covered, school fees were covered, and there was also pocket money. And beyond that, we were inspired to be a leader. There is something that I want say here. That is about John the baptist's ministry and its relation with compassion's ministry in my life. As you know he was paving the way for Christ. As John the baptist was doing, in my life the Child Development Sponsorship program was paving the way for Christ, for me to be converted and to accept Christ as my personal Savior. And the other thing, LDP was paving the way for me to be a servant leader. Now I believe that God is making me a fulfilled Christian Adult and now I am a servant leader. Thank God He did this in my life. Now in my family I am not the only Christian. My brother, my Sister, three of my aunts, and my nephew are now converted. They accepted Christ Jesus as their personal Savior.

In my Campus I was serving as a fellowship leader.I graduated from Campus in June 07, 2007, and from LDP in November 17, 2007. My degree is in Forestry. For one year, I was teaching kids. And now I am working for Compassion as a Sponsor and Donor Ministry Associate. And also, I am serving as a youth Bible study leader and on a committee of LDP Alumni. This is a little bit about my life and what God has done in my life. So please be encouraged through this life testimony. Be a defender of the poor and speak up for those who can not speak for themselves. God Bless you very much for the ear that you gave me to hear my life testimony. You are doing great thing. There is a reward for you in the hand of God. And so sorry for the poor English that I use. I will try to share with you more about the vision that God gave me some another time.

Ethiopia - Day 10 - His Little Children

Back on track: Day 10 of our trip was to be our last. I would love to say I cherished every moment of it - but getting out of bed that last day was tough. I was sick and I was tired. I wasn't able to eat much. And I really missed MY babies. BUT... God in his wisdom, took me back to a place of joy and of rest, knowing that we had come for a reason. On that last morning we visited one last Child Survival Program in Addis Abada. At this program were the most beautiful children, the most loving mothers, and a wonderful morning to book-end our time in this beautiful country. Who wouldn't smile when greeted by these little munchkins?? It was here that I met the woman I had spoken of in a previous blog that volunteers with mothers in the community. To hear her talk about "so many disabled babies", and once again, see these beautiful and healthy children - I knew Compassion had made a difference in the lives of these mothers. Just the weight that must be lifted when you know that your child will not starve to death, or die of a preventable disease like diarrhea or malaria, must free these mothers to instead hug their babies every day, without the fear of loosing them. And to know that your baby will have the opportunity to go to school, to learn, to just be a child - is priceless. It is a gift that we take for granted everyday. Yes, I worry about my children. But my worries are more the "what ifs". Sex. Drugs. Pregnancy. Homosexuality. Atheism. Selfcenteredness. Naivete. Most of those worries are for another day and not the survival in the here and now. (Although Braeden likes to test that theory...) In that church, we had a wonderful morning playing with those babies and it really put my heart at peace. If it had not been for our ride to the center through the poverty and the dirt, if we had just been placed in the little church compound, you would never know that we were in a place of immense poverty. Now I don't want to brag about the wonderful thing that the great America was able to bring to those mothers and children. It wasn't like us high and mighty Americans were happy to see what great things our money could do in that barren land. Now follow me here: instead - it was mothers meeting mothers. God's children playing with God's children. We were not giving to them, not blessing them with our presence. God had found a way to level the field and bring His blessings to His people in that land. And we were there to be able to witness that and to see the smiles His gifts had born. To remember with humility that those children are healthy, and smiling, and playing - because God gave to us, so we could give to them. And that was my peace. It's not about us. It's all about His children.

Luke 18:16 "But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."

Please remember, that for more children to be released from poverty, in Jesus' name through Compassion's assistance - the current waiting children need a sponsor. You will not miss the money. You will not regret your decision. You will not be throwing your money to the wind. There is no greater gift than to be able to be a part of God's blessings. Sponsor today. Partner with Compassion in helping to lead a little child to spiritual, physical, emotional, and social health. Matthew 25: 34-36,40 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'... "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"

Ethiopia - Day 9: African Tourists

Day 9 we left Nazareth and it's 5 a.m. truck traffic / wake up call, smog, and mosquito netted beds to head back to Addis. This was to be our tourist day and we headed out to a resort and spa called Sodere. I really was excited to be going back to the Ghion hotel and it's pay-by-the-minute dial-up internet service. It was so hard not to be able to communicate with T for 3 days!

Now before all of you who helped to support my missions start calling me and complaining about our spa trip - let me just say - I DID NOT have a massage, I DID NOT have a pedicure, OR EVEN a manicure. But we did have a good time and it really was a neat and interesting place to visit. So thank you for my couple hours spa experience.

Sodere is the home of natural hot springs. I had expected that we would be driving up to a creek or a mini pool of water, bubbling up like a babbling little fountain or something. But instead, Sodere's hot springs looked like this:

On our trip was a family of 6 that was just awesome. The young girls from the trip got in the pool and said, "this is HOT!!". I'm thinking - "it can't be all that hot... Maybe bath-tub water hot?"

Let me digress by mentioning that my roommate Gina was also a microbiologist. Her job is to test water and hunt for protozoans and bacteria. Well, she was NOT getting in that water. But my curiosity got the best of me so I lower myself into really, really, HOT water! Cause, you know, I'm only in Africa once (kind of like when I tried everything on our buffet that first breakfast and puked all day afterward?) I'm not really a fast learner when it comes to new experiences ...

Anyway, the all-natural hot springs pool was actually pretty soothing but like a too-hot jacuzzi, after about 10 min., I was done. So my friend JoAnna and I stroll down the path on a safari for monkey viewing. I figured we would see about 5-10 but those little jokers were everywhere. And they really weren't scared of us at all. We could get within about 3 feet of them to take their pictures. I was a little squeamish that one of them was going to take a flying leap for my face.. But I loaded up on monkey pictures to bring back to my little monkeys. See, mommy WAS in Africa after all?!?


We also wandered down the the adjacent river beside the resort and were treated to pretty scenery ala putrid smell. I joked with JoAnna that I had better not fall in that polluted water or Gina wouldn't allow me to step foot back in our room due to my bacteria count!!

(This is JoAnna's room at the Ghion. I never took a picture of mine.)

Speaking of bacteria, after a cheeseburger lunch, most of us had sherbet ice cream which was 'probably safe'. Yeah.... I'm thinking not so much, as about 10 min. after eating, I was pretty sick again. Don't I ever learn?!? To make matters that much more pleasant, immediately after eating we board our fun-bus on the 2 1/2 hour drive back to Addis. Let me tell you - it is no fun to have a bacteria wreaking havoc on your stomach with no Exxon's in sight!! Thank goodness for Gina whipping out the Cipro antibiotic or I may have been 12 pounds lighter by the time I touched on American soil again.

When we got back to Addis Abada we were headed to the open air market to buy our souvenirs. **Here is where I could politely skip over the fact of making our bus wait for me (and a friend) outside of an Addis Piano Bar while I run in and praise God for the hugest sign EVER which says "Toilets". I really think I could also hear the angels singing at that point! And yeah, that seemed safe. Two female Americans running into a dark bar in a foreign country? But when a girl's gotta go...** At the market I was really at home, since I am a bargain shopper by nature. I, seriously, spend 4 hours in a huge warehouse twice a year to buy all 3 children the cheapest (but yet stylish) brand name consignment clothes at about $300 for an entire season. So to haggle over a pretty little Ethiopian embroidered dress? Got that $12 bargain for only $8!! In addition to a coffee pot (which the airlines broke) and a little girl bust for my display table, I also bought myself grand-baby #452 for Addison to love on - it is hilarious. His feet are about as big as mine! I really thought customs may give me a hard time about having huge brown baby feet sticking out from the top of my carry-on. But she loves him. And really, how often can you bring a foreign baby into the states for $7.50 without even paying for a passport??

Ethiopia - Day 8 : Weak, silly Americans

For those of you complimenting me on my gift of writing and encouragement - this will be a downer for you as I had a really bad day so there's not much meat to this post ....
Day 8 was Sunday. We were still in Nazareth and dressed to attend a local church project's Sunday morning service. So here we go, all 35 of us pearly white Americans (with a couple Ethiopian handlers, haha), marching into a packed church of about oh, 500-600 Ethiopians. The church was kind of like a warehouse with one open wall in back where even MORE members and children were seated on benches out in the sun. They started off with music. Now my dad will tell you, he is not a fan of MY church's worship services. Loud, long, repetitive verses, all while standing and sometimes (gasp) even clapping. Very, very loud. But Daddy, we have really short and reserved services compared to these guys. Not saying that's a bad or a good thing.....

Now please keep in mind that this was a bad day, so my estimations of time, place, and events may be a bit skewed. After what I think was about an hour or more of Ethiopians worshiping God with all their heart - little kids dancing around up front, even a little boy prostrate down on his hands and knees with forehead on the ground - I gave up. I could NOT stand up any more. The weather there was not that hot, maybe 80-85 degrees. But in a warehouse of about 600 people with no real draft, breathing and profuse sweating was becoming an issue for me. So at about hour 1 and a half, my head falls forward, barely missing the pew in front of me and my good friend Mike punches our Ethiopian tour guide Demissee to get me out of there. (Thank you MIKE!!) Propped up on Demissee, I stumble out to his car, weaving through the many benches, members, and kiddos. What a weanie, this little American!! While in the car, Demissee and our Nascar bus driver used their hats to fan me and get my temp. back down. They would then help me drink water as the rest of Nazareth paraded down the street to peer in the window at the weak white girl who couldn't sit through a church service without making a scene...

So for the next one and a half hours, in my semi-conscious state, I'm thinking "we've GOT to get them out of there!" As if my compatriots were on a battle-field. Even Demissee was fretting, "this is too long..... This is too long!.... For Americans, this is too long." Go ahead, read that as "those puny Americans!" Let me add that we had several elderly individuals on our trip. Several. None of them ended up in the back of Demissee's car, hmmmmm??

Anyway, when the white people are finally free to leave, we head back to the hotel. My girls carried me into my friend JoAnna's room where I lay with no energy and a wet washcloth on my forehead the rest of the day, with her and Corinne as my nurses. So thank you, JoAnna and Corinne! I think the rest of our group went sight seeing, shopping, or maybe a 6 hour hike, in Nazareth. The puny one just chilled out and drank lots of really nasty water and snacks my marathon running friends forced on me. No wonder I don't work out! I couldn't take the protein this-or-that or electrolyte liquids. Yuck!!

The really sweet thing was that my buddy Addisu had been at the church and had come to the hotel to check on me. When I came down for our dinner meeting that evening, he and his friends were still there, just hanging out with those sickly, weak Americans.... or maybe it was just me.

I also joked all week about how idiotic we must have looked to the Ethiopians with our incessant picture taking and video taping of every house, tree, cow, chicken, store, and monkey. Especially if they had never seen white people before. Look at the silly Americans! They must have never seen a goat before!!! So in honor of all the other silly Americans, here are some pictures that I took with my incessant picture taking, or that I stole from other silly Americans on our trip... Enjoy!

Ethiopia - Day 7 : Sugar on Valentine's Day

The morning after our visits with our children, we left out on our speedy yellow bus on the way to Nazareth, a good 2 1/2 hour ride through rural Africa.

While I'm on the subject of our bus ride, let me just take this time to explain that this vehicle and it's driver would give Dale Jarrett a run for his money on a test track! Our driver loved his little musical horn. Any car/truck that happened to venture within his safe zone (about 2 inches radius) was treated to the music of an ice cream truck. Same for any animal that even glanced at the road if we were within eye shot. But really, eye shot didn't matter as our driver was passing 2-3 transfers, other buses, or dumptrucks on the wrong side of the road..... in curves...... and on hills. Let me just say - prayer works!!!

I also have to say that I completely take the blame for my screwing up of this year's Valentine's Day! This was the first V.Day that I didn't spend the late hours explaining to my hubby how I don't care about roses, jewelry, or nice Hallmark cards - but a hand-written note, at the very least, would be great! Anything showing thought or preparation. In his defense, he always says that since he tells me he loves me every day, why does he have to make a big deal about loving me on just one?? To make matters worse, if you remember this post regarding our surprise 4-legged family member, my last written words to him were "you...are....so....dead" - and then I up and leave for 3 days into remote Africa with no internet and no way to even say "Happy Valentine's Love, I was just kidding.." Completely unintended punishment, I promise.

Anyway, once we got to Nazareth we were to spend all day at a project with arts, crafts, and sports activities. I came all prepared with paper bag puppets (which were gone in about 15 minutes!) to make with the little ones.

I was also able to meet the Director and look at the Child Survival Program where the babies are weighed/charted, vaccinated, and their mothers are trained on infant care and how to stimulate their minds and development. In the main office, we were able to look at individual files on children and see their age progression pictures, grades, health tracking and test results, and home visit information. Compassion keeps a great deal of data on each child! In the main office was this artwork which says "The Lord is my Shepherd" in Amharic letters and was made by a Compassion student. Pretty impressive?!?

After lunch we split up to visit some of the senior's homes. I jumped out at our first stop, the home of a boy named Robel (Robert). He lived with his grandmother and little sister as both his parent were dead, although he didn't elaborate on what had happened. He and his friend, Addisu (Addison), were the best hosts! It was here that I learned the majority of my facts about Ethiopia. Both boys plan to go to the university to be engineers. Robel had even had the chance of coming to America as an exchange student for a year but turned it down to stay with his grandmother and friends. The boys had been part of a choir that sang Ethiopian praise songs for us and then broke into "Lord I lift your name on High". Pretty neat to hear on Ethiopian soil! These guys had awesome English and asked great questions about the US and religion. When I asked them if they had ever seen white people before, they answered, "only in the movies..." (I assured them not to believe everything they see.)

Robel's grandmother, like every other hostess, was so gracious. After our coffee, bread, and popcorn, she proceeded to bring out more injera and shuro (a spicy sauce made of beans which I would love to get the recipe for!) Robel's yard had orange, mango, and coffee trees and when he asked me if I had ever tried sugar cane - I told him no, thinking he probably had some growing around the corner! His eyes lit up and he asked excitedly, "do you want to try some??" After I agreed, he ran to his room and brought out several birr which he handed to his sister to run to the market to buy with! I felt awful as this young boy had just spent money which he probably, no definitely, needed - to buy me a treat! When I told him no and insisted on paying, he told me, "I am your host! For you to pay would be insulting!" I tell you what - we had the MOST fun that afternoon socializing with those guys and chewing on our sugar cane. They had to teach us to peel it back with our teeth, grip and tear an inch or so off, and then chew on the cane until it looses it's flavor. My entire face and arms were covered in sticky but it really tasted great! I'm still counting myself lucky that I didn't break a couple teeth off though! So ladylike peeling, chewing, and spitting my cud - but by far one of my most memorable experiences of the trip!



When asked about his sponsor, Robel ran and retrieved his photo album and pointed out each picture of his "family", with a proud smile. He and his friends meet every Saturday, just to pray. He has a 4.0 GPA. Addisu was just the sweetest guy and had such beautiful and caring eyes and smile. He is to be an LDP student after graduation. On Robel's desk, in addition to his textbooks, were an Amharic and an English copy of the Bible. I could go on and on about how great these young men were. They impressed our entire group with their maturity, both spiritually and intellectually. I can only imagine how God will use them in the coming years and feel a little envious that I wasn't able to be their sponsors and be able to claim them as additional sons as they would make any mother proud to call their own!

Friends Zerihun, Addisu, and Robel (Zerihun didn't speak as much English or was very shy! We didn't get to learn as much about him.)


A billboard in Nazareth voted "The Best Billboard EVER" by our crew:
"The only soap that eliminates unpleasant smell of foot."

I stand corrected...

Now usually I can't stand being wrong about anything, but in this case - bring on the corrections!! Remember my addition in regards to the number of people brought to Christ, through the LDP student Jerry, because of her sponsorship by a gentleman in Canada?? My total was 10. Well, I was wrong...

Jerry read my blog and wrote to correct me. For English to be her second language, she does a wonderful job of writing to get a point across! (I did correct a little grammar to make it easier for quicker reading). I asked for her permission to post her comments as I wanted you to all see that Compassion does MAKE a HUGE difference. And you never know how far reaching your little $32 a month, or your little letters, or your small relationship, could make:

Here are the details of our ministry:-

As you said my Canadian sponsor invested just on Jerry, but here is the tree with a root founded on Jesus and with extended branches as follows.

The reason that I decided to write you the details is that to re count the saved ones one more.

The name of our ministry is called, Mori’ah Deliverance of Ethiopian Children. Our mission is to:-

1. Re union family and

2. Help orphans.

I think here is new update for you about the Re union of family.

Most of the street children are out of home just because of silly reasons. I didn’t know this before, but when I experience working in our ministry, I understand that some of these kids, children, and youth can go back to their family and live again peacefully.

Some times it becomes hard for them to go back, because they will be addicted to drugs on the street. We know this very well, so the first thing we do is to tell them how Jesus loves them and we too. And we also tell them Jesus’ mighty power of delivering them from what they are possessed. The second thing we ask them is, from where they came and whether they do have family or not. If they don’t have family they joined our orphan center and if they have family we help them to go back to their family.

Tracy …focus… here is our job right now, we asked them their willingness to accept Jesus and then we go to church with them and pray together. We changed their clothes and shoes. We ask them to drop their bad behavior and when they begun to learn about Jesus they definitely decide by themselves without any effort. So we don’t want to push them. In this way, thirteen boys reunite with their family, all of them accept Jesus and when we help them go back, we cover the transportation, change clothes & shoes, and maybe some money for small expenses too. Most of them are from rural areas, not from Addis Ababa. We do still have contact with them. Amazingly, they are the ones who call, not us, especially their parents called frequently and give us thanks. Some times when I think of their parents I remember my childhood when I accept Jesus at 13, and see forward ahead, of their parents, and dream their salvation too. Amen!!! …..Are you counting or sleeping with my long update?.......

……………………1+2+7+13+wait - read the following too………

In July, my friends who are in the ministry went to the place called Arsi especially name called Bekoji, and preached gospel for street children and the people of the city too. Since it was summer break for all Ethiopian school we all were free. But I was in LDP training, so I didn’t go with them but I also contribute money for transportation and for some expenses. The city is full of Muslims and they hate Christians, but Hallelujah God was with my friends so they preach Jesus’ Gospel so that many heard about Jesus. Among those who decided to follow Jesus, my friends pick nine of them and from these nine they rent house for two boys ( 12 and 15 years old) who have nowhere to go except to sleep on the street. My friends have good relationship with church there so they gave responsibility for them and we send money every month and extra for school, uniform, food, and clothing too. Five of them have parents or single parents but live with deep poverty, so we also send money for them monthly so that they can survive and also the nearby church is helping us a lot by looking and encouraging them to keep walking with Jesus.

My beloved Tracy you can add now nine:- 1+2+7+13+9+ extended branches like their parents, relatives, friends….= 32+branches.

Do you think Mr. Smith in Canada would have ever thought about the impact on at least 32 people he was making 13 years ago when he sponsored Jerry at age 8?? The God we serve is not a small God. And no sacrifice made in His name will come back empty. Speaking of sacrifice - Jerry continues to amaze me - the rest of her note:

Tracy, you may wonder from where we get income to rent house, change their clothes, shoe, school fee, school uniform, transportation for family integration, food, and when they get medication for their pain, and so on….but as the name indicates, God is providing for us and individuals are helping us a lot whom consider that we are students and saw what we did. Even our friends who are out of the ministry are willing just to contribute money. Tracy please, don’t think huge things from us. When we change their clothes they may not be brand new, we often give them our clothes. As you see their age is almost equal with us so they fit our clothes and shoe.

For instance last Christmas, one of our children at home among the orphans doesn’t have shoes, he is good at soccer so that he finished his shorts and shoes frequently. Imagine we couldn’t say; stop playing because you are causing us to have an extra expense… who knows he may be international soccer player tomorrow! So fortunately, one of my friends visited me and gave me brand new, shoes for me, awesome that they were for both boys or girls, I mean it was sport shoe! Then immediately I wrapped it and ran to our kid's home and my family laughed at me, because they thought that I was kidding. Do you know why they laughed at me? The reason is, it is too new, so I should wear it at least for a week! You can think as a young girl, how it is difficult to give brand new shoes with out hesitation. But I knew from how God raised me, I learned this from you Compassion sponsors. I think some times God lets us to pass through difficulties to help the next generation learn. I think you are seeing how God is providing for our kids and youth. We are not giving our money to those beloved ones, rather we are sharing what we are given from family, friends, and from Compassion. I think there is a difference between giving and sharing. For instance, I’m sharing from what my Canadian sponsor sends every month through Compassion. Difficult to realize, students who are sponsored by kind Compassion sponsors and are now sponsoring others……….Does it mean that, I’m a sponsor too, like you guys?...........!

I wrote back to tell Jerry that she reminded me of the story of the widow's mite. That she and her friends have given so much more than we in America. They give sacrificially to those they serve. For in these tough economic times, when we in America may have to eat out at nice restaurants less frequently, wear shoes a little longer, or skip a trip to the theater and instead just rent a movie - There is still so much abundance and waste here and yet no one is ever satisfied. As a lady at church told me Sunday, that in Ethiopia or anywhere in poverty, they can see Christ so much clearer because they don't have the distractions that Satan puts on those in the US. We sacrifice so little. And often from what is left over, after our wants have been met in addition to our needs.
In doing so, we often miss out on the joy and the blessings that are gained by sharing as Jerry and her friends have. Because we will never see how far God's branches can reach until we just plant the seed.

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Many have looked at my pictures from the trip of the poor and dirty neighborhood children or have read my blog and have asked, "Why can't they all be helped? How do the staff pick who gets help and who doesn't?" The answer is - that Compassion picks the poorest of the poor. But regretfully, with us in America feeling an 'Economic Flu'. In third world countries, they now have 'Pneumonia'. The prices of food have increased dramatically and projects are having to figure out ways to stretch their sponsorship money. For each child registered and without a sponsor, that Compassion partnership church is still serving that child through school fees, food, medicine - without the monetary assistance from America for that child - until that child is sponsored.

Currently -

Compassion has over a million children registered worldwide.

173,000 children worldwide are registered and still waiting sponsorship

Last year at this time, 2,000 children had been waiting for over a year.

At this time this year, 20,000 children have been waiting more than 12 months.

Children waiting for sponsorship also equals children waiting in poverty who cannot be registered. Please pray and search your heart about giving sacrificially to "the least of these." And if you already sponsor or just cannot find the funds to do so, can you tell others who may be able to?? Eileen in El Salvador, age 9.........Negele in Ethiopi, age 9......Reller in Nicaragua, age 10. All real little faces who may one day bring 32 or more people to Christ because of the love of Christ that you show them. Sponsor Today.

Matthew 25:40 (Christ speaking of the little children):
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.