A year or so ago my buddy Ern forwarded me an email excerpt from an interview with Rick Warren. In the interview he said several interesting things about the troubles we face in life. I want to share a couple here before I go on.

 We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn’t going to make sense. Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.

No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on, and no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.

One of our present challenges is learning a difficult language. However difficult it is there are many things that I like about Amharic. One of those things is how it views trouble. For instance, if I catch a disease, in English I would say, “I am sick” in the same way that I would say “I am Jonathan Bridges”. We claim that sickness as a part of ourselves. We also “catch the disease”, as if we are actively pursuing it, or “I am in pain” as if we are swallowed up by it. In Amharic sickness and pain are viewed much differently. They simply use the term “Amemagn”. There is no great translation of this to English, but it carries the idea of “the sickness is affecting me”. Notice the difference. The sickness is viewed as something external to the person.

We have a few problems swirling around us right now, immigration issues, bureaucracy, culture stress, illnesses, etc. It is important how we view our troubles and our blessings. We can be easily consumed by the trouble in our lives if we allow it, but that’s our choice. God has given us everything that we need to overcome, but we have to be willing to fight.

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Psalm 9:9

I have developed a new analogy for life based on these observations and my present living conditions. (Of course, this works for me, but you should take it with a grain of salt, as that’s all that most cute analogies are worth.) I am viewing life as compound. Within this compound are all of God’s promises and God’s blessings. Lurking around outside of the compound walls, like thieves, are all of life’s troubles. They are trying to find a way in to rob me of my blessings. Occasionally one of the troubles finds its way in and I have to fight against it to get it out of my compound. Each time I overcome one of the troubles my wall gets taller and stronger.

Mr. Warren also said, “You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems.” This is not to say, “ignore it and it’ll go away”. Instead, he is acknowledging that we are all here for a reason and we were made for a purpose, the primary one being to glorify God. Let’s keep our attention on this and simply let the problems be a vehicle to glorify God all the more.

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

I have also found that my day whether in the states or in Ethiopia goes pretty much the same. There is always plenty of cooking, cleaning, laundry and playing to fill the day. Our routine is slowing working itself out and once I begin language school, November 7th, we will have a definite routine.

We’ve all enjoyed getting to spend time with the kids at the Half-way Home, the Onesimus staff and the kids at the Drop-in Center. Of course we miss our family and friends in the states but it is a wonderful feeling to have “family” and friends here in Ethiopia. It is also such a comfort to have a home sweet home. We are truly blessed.

Compound area

Front porch complete with drying laundry

Living room and dinning area

Our bedroom

Bathroom complete with temperamental hot water heater

Dawit's room

Dawit's room 2

Wash area

Our kitchen-at the end of the day when it is all clean

Roses from our compound

The first week was spent just trying to get settled, while suffering from some pretty horrible jetlag. God helped me a lot. I was able to find a comfortable house in a great location just in the nick of time. The day after I signed the lease the guesthouse informed me that they had given my room to someone else. I had to go. So I bought a small mattress and spent the night at my new house. I spent the rest of the week gathering a few basics for the house and helping Nega get ready for a team from America.

Once the team came they pretty much consumed my life, but it was worth it. Rarely do we have the opportunity to share in such wonderful ministry as I did last week. This single team actually performed three different ministries, each corresponding to a specific facet of our ministry here.

First was the discipleship conference. The guys from DownLine Ministries taught two three day conferences at a local seminary. The first was for students of the seminary. The second was for pastors and church leaders. DownLine focuses on teaching the biblical principles of discipleship as exampled by Jesus.

The second part of the team did a four day medical and dental clinic at our Drop-in Center. It was a huge success, more than anyone expected. Over 800 people, from street children, to crippled grandmothers, to government officials were treated. For many, this was the first medical care they have ever received.

The third part of the team was a few bright, successful, business minded fellows who came with sustainability in mind. They came to help me with one of my main roles of finding creative ways to make our partners self-sustaining through income generation. They made contacts here in the city and we spent one day in northern Ethiopia visiting a very successful hatchery operation.

If there is one lesson that I learned this past week is that effective ministry many times means stepping away from the to-do-list and taking time for people. This hit me during the second day of the medical clinic. There was a man about my age hovering around, getting in the way. I had spoken to him a couple of times, trying to be polite enough while keeping busy with my work. He finally cornered me and asked me for some food. I tried to get away. I thought about sending him away since he’d already been treated, but I finally relented and asked the cook for some bread. I brought it to him and poured him a cup of tea, but before I could dash away he announced that he was a Muslim and he knew about Jesus. Jesus, he said, was a messenger from God. He had me! There’s no way you can leave that hanging. In reality he was simply manipulating me to get more food. Nevertheless, the truth of the Gospel was at stake and needed correction. So I forgot my duties for 15 minutes and ended up having a very pleasant conversation about Jesus, about family, and about life. Once he finished his meal he left having accomplished his mission. I just pray that in the process I accomplished mine.

Jonathan

I won’t bother giving specific days of the week because they’ve been scrambled together in my brain. I didn’t exactly hit the ground running. I allowed myself to sleep day one away, not waking until after 2:00pm. That afternoon I went to the office to greet the staff. My breakfast was fandisha (popcorn) and coffee. After spending some time with the staff and few of the kids Winoshet, the cook, served Nega and I some pasta and wat that was leftover from lunch. Nega had worked through lunch so I figure he deserved it more than me.

Day two was house hunting day. Nega and I spent the day meeting with brokers to look at available houses. Brokers are like real estate agents, but they act like the worst stereotypical used car salesmen that you could imagine. I ended up making my choice based on that old real estate saying “location, location, location.” We saw two houses that were really nice, but they were located on rough muddy streets far off the main road and far away from where we’ll spend most of our time. The house I chose isn’t much to look at. Definitely below the standard of living that we’re used to in America (Those of you who know us know that our standard is pretty low already), but it is in an area that we know and that is convenient for us. The house and the compound are fairly roomy and it is semi-secluded so that we won’t be bombarded when we leave the house. It’s within walking distance of a shopping center and café, a few good restaurants, a grocery store, and the church that we usually attend. It’s also just one taxi ride away from the office and the language school.

Today started kind of rough. I overslept and missed breakfast. I got downstairs just as the kitchen staff was clearing the tables. One of the friends that I’ve met here at the guesthouse noticed my sleepy, bewildered look and invited me to eat a couple of muffins that he had squirreled away. Then it was rush, rush, rush to get out the door to meet to sign the rental agreement for the house. It was a damp and drizzly morning, but we got it all done. Nega was then released from babysitting me and could go back to his real job. I went to find some coffee and run some errands. I went back to the store to try to get my internet working. It took two days to complete the process so I assumed that it was finished. I should know better. There is apparently some mysterious process still ongoing at the telecommunications office. We have to wash away our American mindsets here. You can’t just go about checking tasks off of a list and you certainly can’t let the completion of those tasks define the value of the day.

In the afternoon I rode back out, just because I didn’t feel like being cooped up in the guesthouse. I went to buy a few little odds and ends. On the way back the car broke down. Once again I was the helpless ferengi (that’s what they call white people here) waiting to be rescued by Nega. I sat on the side of the busy road and just waited. Finally, when Nega arrived the engine had cooled enough to start. We filled the radiator with water and took it to the garage. It seems that the water pump went out. It also seems that I’ll be getting reacquainted with the taxi buses sooner than I’d hoped.

The only other thing to mention is the friends that I’ve met here at the guesthouse. Yesterday morning I sat down to breakfast with a family of seven from Australia. The dad is an Anglican minister on a break from work, well sort of. He’ll actually spend six weeks teaching at a church in Bahir Dar. They invited me to go to church with them on Sunday. I happily accepted. Last night I met Trent (the guy who shared his muffins), his wife and their two kids. They are here to work with street kids also. As we talked Trent realized that he had met Joe last year on the plane while they were both traveling to Ethiopia. They are just starting out on a five year stay. Since we had a lot in common we talked on for quite a while. It’s nice to stay at this guesthouse because there always seems to be families here. Getting to merge in to one of these families even if it’s just for a brief meal helps to ease the pain of separation from my own family.

There you have it. All in all things a moving along nicely and I’m doing well. I hope to be able to move into the house next week. We also have a group from Memphis coming later in the week. Part of the group will be doing a medical and dental ministry and part of the group will be doing discipleship training.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

In a nutshell, this is the fulfillment of our mission. Starting farms, teaching English, and digging wells are all well and good, but they are really just sub-plots in a much larger story. We are going to Ethiopia to play our small part in God’s master plan.

• Pray for these things:

1. That we will bring glory to God in everything from our specific ministries to the daily chores of running a household.
2. That we will be effective in expanding God’s kingdom here on earth.
3. That God’s will is done through us and our ministry.
4. For wisdom to see how all aspects of our lives are intimately tied to these three goals.

• It is fine to pray for things like safety and health, but only as it applies to this list. If I don’t make it off of the RDU runway, as long as these three goals are accomplished then so be it. Mission accomplished!

“Give us today our daily bread.”

Every missionary’s constant struggle. It shouldn’t be this way, but it is. We give up the security of a steady paycheck. We go to lands were life’s necessities are scarce. The missionary life can easily turn into a struggle for survival rather than an effective ministry. Time must be taken to secure food, clothing, and shelter for our families. The more time that takes, the less time we have for ministry.

• Pray that:

1. Our needs will be supplied so that we can focus on our ministry.
2. People will be willing to support us in the work that we are doing.
3. Missionaries around the world will be generously supported by churches here.

“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

In Ethiopia we don’t face so much persecution as we do prejudice. Because we are white and American, people there believe that we are wealthy and many see nothing morally wrong with taking from the “rich”. As a result we are constant targets for manipulation, theft, price gouging, and other similar mistreatment.

• Pray for:

1. Forgiving, gracious, and merciful hearts in the midst of being singled out and being taken advantage of.
2. Humility, as Christ had. He was constantly mistreated and still looked on people with compassion.
3. Wisdom to see past the specific situation to the root of the issue. Then how to address the deeper issues.

“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

The evil one is out there prowling around and he’s not going to be very happy about us attempting to accomplish this mission. He’ll be coming at us from all sides to stop us or to make us ineffective. The Greek word for temptation here can also mean testing. We certainly expect to be tempted and tested in so many ways. The first temptation is to give up this mission and to stay in the luxury of America and the comfort of home. The first test will be our separation for a month as I go ahead of Jess and Dawit to prepare a home. These will be small compared to those that we can’t even begin to imagine.

• Pray that:

1. God will shield us from the attacks of the evil one.
2. We will be able to stand firm in the midst of temptations, trials, and tests.
3. God will turn each and every attack by the evil one back on his own head and that they will ultimately turn out for the good.

“For Yours is the kingdom, the power and glory forever. Amen”

It is important to remember who we are working for. Sure this is our mission, our calling, our work, but there are three questions that we should always keep in mind. Whose kingdom are we helping expand? Whose power do we rely on? Whose glory do we seek? If we show up in the answers to any of these questions then our priorities are way off and we are better off just staying home. In the end this is God’s work to build His kingdom by His power for His glory.

•  Pray:

1. Constantly for our humility. It is easy to develop a “God complex” when you are constantly put on a pedestal and treated as being much more important than you actually are.
2. That we will rely on God’s power for everything. This is especially difficult for us with our “do-it-yourself” personalities and our independence oriented culture.
3. That God will help us see the big picture. We are talking about forever here and we are so shortsighted. We need help to see how every action we take has an impact that lasts forever.

The Words

Incarnational Ministry – Philippians 2:5-8

Jesus left His home, His high position, and His very good life in heaven to go and live as a servant among poor, needy, and hurting people. Out of an extreme love for these people He developed relationships with them and ministered to all their needs – physical, emotional, and spiritual. This is our first model, to leave our comfort, our luxury, and our “good life” and go live among the poor, needy, and hurting people of this world, make relationships with them and meet their needs.

Transformational Ministry – John 3:3 and 2 Corinthians 5:17

Jesus described it as being born again. Paul said that we become new creations. However it is described, there is a transformation that occurs in our life when we give our life to Jesus Christ. We have witnessed this type of transformation in the lives of dozens of street kids. A transformational ministry uses the relationships that develop out of incarnational ministry to share the life-changing grace of Jesus so that hurting people can go from lives of despair to lives of hope.

As we think of our work in Ethiopia in terms of these two ministry models we can start to put the puzzle pieces together into a bigger picture. We know that to live incarnationally, as Jesus did, means developing relationships and meeting the needs of the poor. We also know that true transformation only comes through knowledge and faith in Jesus, which means evangelism and discipleship. When we phrase it like this these may seem like two very separate things. In fact, many today view these as mutually exclusive goals; either you alleviate poverty or you preach the Gospel. We see them as one and the same. Jesus taught and modeled that they actually fit seamlessly together and that we must do both. If we look at Jesus command when he sent his first disciples out we see that he expected both.

As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. Matthew 10:7-8

The power of the message comes through the love that is shown by the messenger.

Putting it into practice:

The question that must be answered is how this will play out for us personally on the field. The first step is to simply go and live among the people of Ethiopia. We will learn their language, live with them and get to know them. Then we will follow the command to love our neighbors as we love ourselves by responding to their needs. The physical and material needs in Ethiopia are overwhelming and realistically we won’t come close to meeting them all. We have a few skills to help meet the most basic needs – food, water, education – and a large part of our ministry will center around this. However, the point isn’t to alleviate every need; that simply isn’t realistic. The point is to respond to each need with compassion and wisdom, knowing that we are limited and most of these needs will go unmet.

Though we can’t meet all of the people’s needs we do have a way to alleviate much of the suffering that is caused by them. Most often the specific need – sickness, hunger, poverty – is superficial to the lack of love and hope in people’s lives. It is the emotional and spiritual suffering that is most intense. Focusing solely on physical and material needs is like putting band-aids on a cancer patient. Notice how Jesus interacts with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4: 1-42). He specifically targets the emotional baggage in her life and brings about a spiritual change in her by revealing Himself. The joy and hope that she receives overshadows any of the temporary wants of her life. The real power that we have to alleviate suffering is Jesus Christ.

Our work in Ethiopia is simple. It is following the great commission in response to the two greatest commandments; to love God with everything that we are and to love our neighbors as ourselves. If we do that our mission will be a success.

The spiral staircase has loomed dangerously in my parents living room for years. Many of the kids and adults in the family have received lumps on their heads from the metal edges which protrude into a primary traffic and play area. This was the worst header that I’ve seen. Dawit was in a great playful mood. We sat around laughing at his antics as he ran around the living room. Our laughter was quickly silenced when Dawit caught one of those metal edges right in the face at a full run. Of course, in that next instant the worst ran through my mind. Did it get his eye? Did it break a bone? I scooped him up and held him close as he screamed. Within five minutes he was back at his antics as if nothing had ever happened. I, on the other hand, remained shaken the rest of the night.

It is hard for me to describe the pain that I felt during this incident. I think it would’ve been less painful for me to have taken the hit in place of Dawit. In fact, I wish that I could have. My love for him is so deep that when he hurts, I hurt. I find that when I am ravenously hungry I’m willing to give Dawit the first bite off of my own plate. When I am thirsty it reminds me to give Dawit a drink.

Now I know what it feels like to live out that second greatest commandment, love your neighbor as you love yourself. It’s a common saying these days that “you have to love yourself before you can love others”. Though there is some truth to that, there is little use focusing on it. The truth is that we already love ourselves plenty. When we are hungry it makes us uncomfortable so we eat to relieve that pain. When we are thirsty our only thought is for a drink. If we’re cold we put on more clothes. We care for ourselves because we love ourselves.

No wonder Jesus seemed compelled to heal and feed those people around him to the point of being overwhelmed. His love was such that he felt their pain. When he saw someone hungry he couldn’t be satisfied until they were fed. When the lepers came to him his heart was crushed by the pain that he could see in their eyes. When he met the woman at the well, though he was desperately thirsty, he passed up a cool drink of water to address the emotional and spiritual turmoil that was in her life. That is the love that I have for Dawit and that is the same love that Jesus expects me to have for all people.

We are comfortable and safe in Lebanon, IN.  We are staying with the Timmons family who have been incredibly gracious hosts.   Our stay here is leading up to Hope Fest on Saturday.  Jonathan will be doing a well drilling demo and he has been working on getting the last of his supplies.  Dawit is having a blast playing with the two youngest Timmons boys and checking out the Timmons’s goats, pigs and horse.  I’ve been filling in where needed and relaxing before we head back to NC at the beginning of the week.

Yesterday we headed into Indianapolis for the Strawberry Festival with part of the the Timmons crew and spent the morning enjoying some of the sites on the circle. The weather was perfect and the kids had a great time.

During our entire trip (TX and IN) we have been so blessed to be around such faithful folks who have fed us both physically and spiritually.  Though we have hated missing loved ones and some major events at home we know that God placed us in these areas for a reason.  Jonathan and I both have gained much insight and encouragement, just what we need as we finalize plans and head to Ethiopia.

Can you believe Jon didn't let us stop at this exit. It has everything!

We made it out of OK and to Missouri. We paused for a family picture.

The Gateway Arch as we left Missouri

No sign for Illinois, but we got Indiana

Strawberry Festival

Our crew for the fest and the fare for the event...strawberry shortcake with berries, ice cream and whipped cream.

Dawit eating some strawberries

Dawit, Micah, Derek and Faith knocking at the door

Getting some wiggles out

Tomorrow we will arrive in Lebanon, IN to get ready for Hopefest 2011. Our friends at Hope for His Children are putting on the event to raise awareness and funds for orphaned, abandoned, and impoverished children. On Saturday we’ll be at Hopefest talking about Ethiopia, children, water issues, and whatever else comes up.

Click this link to find out more about Hopefest: Hopefest 2011