Update From Ambo, Ethiopia

We arrived safe and sound in Ambo, Ethiopia and things are going well. It has been quite rainy here, but it has not stopped us, just slowed down the process. Please pray for dry weather so we can finish what we came to do! The shower house was not as far along as Ron had hoped, so you can pray that we are able to do more than we thought we were going to have to do before next Thursday.

This is a great team! Everyone has stayed positive and very supportive of one another even through difficulties and disappointments. We started Vacation Bible School today! We are having three days on baptism and come Saturday we will be baptizing seven children or more here at the orphanage.

We will be using the well water! Little did we realize just how many ways God would use that water system we installed for His glory! Thanks for all your prayers! They carry us through.

One Day Before Departure

Getting ready to travel to Ethiopia doesn't seem to get much easier. After a handful of trips, I would have thought that it would be simple. No such luck. I have all the tools packed in one bag. (52 pounds...do you think the airline will notice?) I have Luke all packed. (12-year olds can wear anything right?) Now I just have to take care of me and my clothes. (I just can't seem to get 5 days out of one pair of work pants like Ron.) At least I have a beautiful Friday to finish packing.

As I started the day, (sitting in the hot tub with fresh coffee - ahhh...) the stars were still out. I have never been able to get out at night in Ambo to see the stars. Maybe I will this trip. Ethiopia is so near the equator (5 degrees north) I wonder what I'll recognize? Soaking there, thinking about the trip and day ahead, I did think to ask
"God, is there anything I'm forgetting?"

I'll let you know if I get an answer.

Steve

Two more days to go and we head out to Addis. Both Ron and Ryan got back all excited about their adventure to check out possible churches we might be able to help in Ethiopia...beyond successful...other than they are not doing too well today due to food and water issues.

Those who have been here know what that means, those who haven't can take a guess. Please pray for their digestive systems to come to normal. Lots of work to be done and we need everyone healthy! New Hope Center has a new director on campus. Her name is Chaltu and she speaks good English...so we have become fast friends. She is a great help.

We are midway through our time with the kids. Ron, Ryan, and Dawit went with Pastor Kenaa to check out some possible churches that we might be able to help them with in the future, God willing. The rest of us will continue to the work at the Orphanage. Yesterday I had Bible study with the kids and it was fun...at stretch since Dawit was not there to interpret...but we managed and it was wonderful. The men are working very hard with the Ethiopians to get the pluming to a place where we can pour flooring. We need your prayers for this to happen. We are finding that many hands make the work light and the heart merry!

Dona Kabeary

First Day in Ethiopia

Our first day of work out at New Hope was very productive. We joined the Ethiopians and they were happy to have us join in and be a part of their team in building the bath house. The best way to get the children involved is to bring out my camera and here are some of the results! Many hands not only lighten the load...but make the work merrier! The team is doing well and we give thanks for all of you who are praying for us! No way to do this apart from the prayers of the saints and the power of God!

Team Leaves Today

A group of seven are going to Ethiopia to lay the groundwork for a new bathhouse for the Ethiopian orphanage - New Hope.

hello family!

it's currently a balmy 80 degrees (or so) here, and sunny. beautifully sunny. and it's barely 8:30. we heard there is snow in denver and in the mountains near bozeman so i'm sure it'll be a rude awakening when we land in billings on sunday evening. (we kind of might deserve it though, after 2 weeks of perfect weather.)

it's wednesday morning, which means we have about 2-2.5 work days left. we have a lot to do, but each morning we walk into that building and proclaim our amazement at how far it has come. yesterday we began the cement floor. ron ordered a cement mixer so we didn't have to mix it by hand, but we did carry load after load after load of cement on these little wood and tin "wheelbarrows" that in and of themselves are not light. then add 4-6 shovel fulls of cement and you've got some sore muscles today.

we have so much help from the church members, people on the street, children, the pastor, his family, etc., that we don't even know what to do with ourselves. without them, we definitely wouldn't be as far along as we are. it's beautiful to watch them work on their church and claim it as their own. they're so proud of it and so excited to get it built and have a place of worship.

speaking of worship, we spent saturday with new hope having church with the kids and sunday we went to the foursquare church. ron gave a powerful message and we then blessed the children and pastor kena and his wife titu. that church is going to be a lighthouse for this community. that's already apparent and it's not even completed.

this week dona is working with the children to get new sponsorship letters and photos (mark is doing an amazing job) and we are rush-rush-rushing to get everything done in the next 3 days before we come home.

evan and i found out we can order ...... GRILLED CHEESE AND TOMATO SOUP from our hotel's restaurant and we started a new trend. it's almost as good as grandma's.

we have been earnestly praying for each one of you and we are beyond ecstatic to come share this amazing adventure with you. please continue to pray for our safety and health as well as the people we are connecting with here.

larissa

Round Tuits

It’s 4:30 AM here. A kamikaze mosquito has had me under attack for an hour or so – you know, the ones that buzz your ears -. Even with earplugs, I couldn’t sleep. So, I’m on the balcony looking at the stars trying not to wake Josh, my roommate.

We have gotten a lot done in three days. The roof rafters of eucalyptus are almost up. We resolved 220v tool problems and low voltage issues by slicing our American extension cords and wiring into the main line coming into the church (don’t try this at home). We hope to be putting up sheet metal today (maybe – this is Ethiopia you know and anything can happen).

Yesterday we had a pause in the building while we cut ‘Round Tuits’ for the kids. You know what those are – thin slices off a tree branch in the shape of a coin. When you get one, you never have the excuse of not getting something done because you didn’t get “around to it”. Anyway, I took these 2 inch wooden coins and wrote a name on one and a date on another and gave them to the hardest working lady I’ve ever seen – Lily. (She can use a handsaw faster and longer than any of us white guys – SERIOUSLY). And, she loved them. Once she had a few, then others wanted them. So, Warren made more and more –and we handed those out with verse references, hearts, smiley faces. Everyone loved them, and in the giving, we left smiley faces and warm hearts in everyone who got them.. We had time to drill a few with holes for necklaces and I’m sure we’ll drill a lot more today.

Warren commented that when I stared, he wondered about wasting time. But when he saw how they were received and saw the connection it made with people we couldn’t connect with because of the language, God showed him the time use was invaluable. (Me, I was just wasting time and having fun! Little did I know I was going to be a mini sermon illustration for us all).

So, as today starts, we are all going to try to remember that God wants to help us get work done, but he also wants us to see that he has plenty of time for us to get around to doing lots of other little things that show His love for people. We don’t have to wait and get around to it. I’m going to make Little Round Tuits for the whole team.

Thanks for sharing that Warren.

Photos

Here are a few pictures Steve Hovis took of the church we're building. Over the past few days we have the rafters up and are working on finishing the support for the tin "shingles."

We began painting yesterday, and hopefully we'll be able to finish the concrete floor. On any given day we have probably 10-20 Ethiopians helping us so immensely. Everything is coming along great, our team is wonderful and hard working. Thank you for all your prayers!

Greetings from Ethiopia

Hello family!!!

We are here and safe! It's mid-day Wednesday and we cannot believe how much God has already accomplished here. The church is coming along with so much help from so many Ethiopians. We are learning to do things their way and to be patient as usually, this isn't how we would do things. =] It's hard, but it's effective. They're hard workers and they know their matterials.

Dona, Pam and Linda are working at the orphanage planning the VBS for the kids. They are in awe of the stories and Evan and I get to share Philippians with them tomorrow. It's our favorite book, we are so excited.


The children are so healthy and so happy and have grown so much. There was not a dry eye in our group when we first met those beautiful faces.

Please keep us in your prayers as several of us have gotten quite sick from the water, bugs, and heat!


Love to you all from ETHIOPIA!!!