As I am sitting on the deck of the beautiful guesthouse I will call home for the next 6 weeks, there is a cool breeze blowing followed by dark clouds, and I can’t help but wonder, why am I really here?
I started my morning, just like any other, with a big cup of
coffee with more cream and sugar than normal. (I blame the jetlag, but we all
know that’s my normal routine anyways.) Then we ventured into town to get a
look at where we would be spending the majority of the six weeks working. Stacy
had painted a beautiful picture of what Korah would be like once I got there,
but I didn’t fully understand it all until I saw it for myself. You’d think
that a town with a label such as “extreme poverty” would be such a sad, dark
place. But it was just the opposite. As I entered the compound I was greeted
with big white smiles peering through the dirt-covered faces of the children.
They grabbed my hand and led me through, stopping momentarily for hugs and
kisses from some of the sweetest ladies you will ever meet. I got to spend the
afternoon laughing with the women of Korah as they worked diligently making
some of the most beautiful jewelry and scarfs. They even let me make a few, and
graciously helped me when I made a mistake. (Which was often. Those ladies are
good at what they do!) But the happiness I felt in that small room was
overpowering. I’m sure I’ll have the biggest, cheesiest smile in all of my
pictures, but I can’t help it. They have a joy that is contagious. It’s only
day one and these people are already doing way more for me than I could ever do
for them.
I brought Kisses from Katie thinking it would be the perfect
book to read when I have some down time. The first chapter is already
stretching me even more out of my comfort zone, so I might have to put
finishing this book on hold. One thing that did stick out was the verse Luke
12:48, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from
the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Katie
writes that she has been given so much. I am no different from Katie in the
sense that I, too, have been given so much. What a waste it would be for me to
come here and boast about the things I am doing. It’s not anything that I can
do. It’s all Christ. Without Christ I would not even be here, and not to
mention fully funded. (Still praising God for that!) And to answer my question
“why I am really here” I believe it’s because I have been demanded to give much
of myself. I have a heart for the poor and orphaned because that’s a part of
God’s heart that he has entrusted me, and so many others, with.
I am beyond thrilled for this opportunity to serve in
Ethiopia and love on these precious people. There is no doubt in my mind that God
is working here and will continue to work throughout the next six weeks. And I
can’t wait to share this journey with you all through stories and pictures.
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