No Missed Opportunities!

I had another week of ATL (Ask the Lord) while racers spent time with parents at Parent Vision Trip.  I had the privilege of staying at Ordinary Heroes Guest House-which was probably our nicest housing arrangement on the race. 

Korah

First, the front desk staff were AMAZING!!!!  Birara ended up taking us to Korah, where he grew up in the trash dump (another blog to come on this!  Stay tuned!).  We learned about how people dig through the trash to find food and also resell it to the poor community.

On another day we went to play soccer with his friends and the kids in Korah.  We ended up just talking for 2 hours because we had difficulty getting a ball.  It was such much fun and just got to pour out some love on his friends and the children.  I wouldn’t have traded that time.  

Warm Blankets

Fray, who also worked at the front desk invited, us to pass out blankets with her in Entoto, one of the coldest parts of Addis.  It was about an hour and a half drive there, but it was worth EVERY second!  Fray started her own business called “Gabies For Good”.  Gabies are large, traditional cotton shawls/blankets.   Fray was inspired by guests who stayed at the Guest House and who handed out blankets to others.  She thought, “Why not me?”  She was also inspired by Tom’s Shoes (buy a pair and they donate a pair).  She decided to do this with her blankets.  For every 2 purchased, she gets one made by a local company (much thicker than the ones she sells) and then delivers them to the people in the mountains.  It was such a joy to see the smiles on the faces of the recipients. 

Fruit Stand

I absolutely love being able to walk 5 minutes down the street and having the ability to buy bananas, avocadoes, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and oranges.  And for a good price! A kilo of avocadoes or bananas was about 30 birr or 1 USD.  When I was at debrief, I started going to this lady named Esther.  She was so kind to me.  I had told her my name on that first occasion and she told me to come back to her.  So, I did, every other day or every 3 days.  Every time I came back, she got this huge smile on her face, called me by name, and gave me a hug.  Her sister also worked at the stand with her and every time she would see me walk by, she would tell her sister to look and we would all greet each other.  Esther’s little nephew was also there and we would greet him.  His laugh was contagious.  Madison ended up coming with me to her stand often, and we just created a sweet relationship.  They were all sad when we told them we had to leave to go to a different part of Ethiopia.  Although we tried to pray for them at one point, the Orthodox way seemed to hinder this freedom of prayer.  She felt like she had to be in the church for us to pray for her.  We tried to explain, but her English was not the best.  We ended up just praying for as we walked down the street.

Roaming the Streets

Prayer walking was a common ministry.  Just walking down the streets to destinations (like the grocery stores, markets, or restaurants) we would pray to ourselves for the people we saw.  We would also tell women that they were beautiful and just say hi to everyone.  You never know how one interaction could change a life around. 

Ride

In Ethiopia they have “Ride” instead of “Uber”.  So, every time we got in a vehicle it was a chance to share the gospel or about Jesus.  One of my most memorable rides was when we were going to hang out as a leadership team.  Our driver said he was a Christian, but was not playing Christian music.  TT ended up playing music off her phone, and then eventually I said something to him about the music we listen to can influence others.  Did he know that he had that power to witness about Christ with the music he listens to while driving people around?  He ended up telling us that he normally does listen to Christian music, but someone had just shared this music with him so he was taking a listen to it.  Friends, you have power to witness in car!  Just find a way in to a conversation with Christ 🙂

Casual Restaurant Conversations

After ministry the one day, Mads, Ash, and I were eating at a restaurant.  We all ordered some Ethiopian food.  Mads and Ashley’s food had come out and we were waiting for mine.  We decided to pray over the food so they could start eating.  A man who was sitting nearby came over and told us we didn’t have to worry about the food—it was safe to eat.  I ended up talking with him a bit about the WR and what we were doing and then he went back over to his table so we could enjoy our food.  When we were finished eating, we were trying to get the check.  Mads finally went over to his table to see if he could help us tell the waiter, because the waiter spoke very little English.  We all ended up at his table, sharing brief testimonies from our lives, and learning about his life and also his friend whom he was having dinner with.

One day I was eating with the leadership team and met a man who was so kind to us as well.  He travels all over the world teaching people how to be teachers.  We had specifically come to this one place to eat because online it said it had the best Wi-Fi.  When we arrived, the Wi-Fi was basically nonexistent.  This man, who we didn’t know at all, gave us all access to his personal Wi-Fi router.  I ended up talking with him a bit learning about him and his wife and his travels.  God is so good in providing and leading us to people! 

You never know when an opportunity will arise to share the gospel or be a reflection of Christ…don’t miss it!  Be brave. Be Bold. Be confident.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”  Matthew 5:11-12