A New Way of Life

I never thought of myself as privileged until moving to Addis Ababa.  There are many thoughts and emotions that have crossed my mind since landing in Ethiopia, but one that seems most prevalent is, why me?

After being here for 5 days, I am starting to settle in quite nicely.  It is a completely different way of life here at Bingham Academy (the school where I am teaching and living).  We usually eat dinner early in the evening, and you very rarely eat alone.  You are living in a community and you get to take advantage of dining with other staff members and their families.  Everyone leaves their doors unlocked, even the classroom doors.  No one is allowed inside of Bingham without permission.  We have guards that regulate who comes in and out, so you don’t have to worry about your belongings being taken.  I have been given my own apartment, and I will have a house helper assigned to me.  She will help with my cleaning, laundry, and cooking on the days she comes to help.  This is normal for foreigners in the city.  Foreigners pay their house helper a very small wage, but it provides much more than many of the other jobs.  Having a house helper, is a way to help support a family here.

These are the things about Ethiopia that I have come to love in my short time here.  When I describe all of these things, I’m sure it makes some of you envious of the life I am living.  It is pretty great!  I start to like it more and more each day I spend here, but it does not come without its trials.  If I did not have Bingham, I’m not sure how I would be feeling on day 5.

I’ve never seen anything quite like Ethiopia.  I’ve experienced culture shock since the beginning of the ride home from the airport.  The city is huge, and there are millions of people who live here.  The driving is CRAZY!  There seems to be no method to the madness.  People pull out in front of each other, people drive on the wrong side of the road.  There seems to be no rules, but yet I am told that somehow it works.  The roads are crowded and they are often shut down. But what is even more shocking than the driving, is the number of people that are walking.  I come from a city that doesn’t even have public transportation.  I never see anyone walking unless it’s for exercise.  However, here in Addis, there are more people walking than driving or riding in the crowded streets.  Women, men, and children, walking to their destinations, often times carrying very heavy loads or herding sheep or goats.

The power in most third world countries is either non-existent or unreliable, and the same goes for Ethiopia.  Since I have been here, there have been 3 power outages.  The power goes out unannounced, and you don’t know when it will come back on.  It has typically been coming back on 3-4 hours later.  This has become normal for the people living here.  They have candles placed around their houses in every room, and they have activities that they do to keep them busy in the dark.  It doesn’t seem to faze them; it’s just a part of life.

The food here in the stores is very cheap from our American perspectives.  I bought a whole carton of strawberries for less than $.20 USD.  I got more vegetables than I would normally buy on a grocery trip for $2.00 USD.  It is unreal, how inexpensive things are here.  But that is from my ignorant perspective.  I read a statistic in my community manual that said the average American consumes as much as 520 Ethiopians in a year.  The groceries that I bought for myself yesterday, would probably be enough to feed dozens over the next couple of weeks.  The prices have to be cheap or the local people would not eat.

I really don’t know what to do with everything I am seeing and taking in while I observe the culture and customs of the local people.  There is no way I could leave this experience unchanged.  I will never go back to America with the same mindset.  My prayer to God is why me?  Why am I the privileged foreigner who doesn’t have to worry about where my next meal will come from?  Why have I been so materially blessed while others go without?  What am I supposed to do with the knowledge of this world around me, and how can I help the people?

Lasts

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people, and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you”….So Abram left, as the Lord told him.” Genesis 12:1,4a.  God laid this same request on my heart, and I waited patiently for the Lord to show me the land He was sending me.  He had me wait so long, that when He finally revealed where He was leading, I didn’t care where I was going just that I finally knew!

The days leading up to the time for me to depart to Ethiopia were bittersweet.  This whole process has been a whirlwind; I’ve had assurance, peace, and joy about this decision, but it was not until the few days before I left that I had the opportunity to fully realize the implications of the sacrifices I would be making. 

God was asking me to leave my country; its customs, my way of life, my people; my closest friends, the people I surround myself with, and my father’s household; my family, my parents, grandparents, and siblings. The reality of leaving became real during my last few days of being in America.

It was when I started thinking about all of the “lasts” that reality starting to sink in my heart and mind.  The last time I would go to Bible study on Tuesday nights and get to spend time with the girls that I have become very close with.  The last time I would go to see a chick-flick with my “chick-flick” friends.  The last time I would play catch phrase at an RA staff meeting.  The last time I would walk the campus of DSC, my favorite place in the world!  The last time I would go to a Rock Bridge church service.  The last time I would have lunch with my friends and coworkers.  The last time I would spend with my closest friends, talking into the night about God, love, and life.  The last times I would spend with my family...  The last football game I would watch of my little brother.  The last family dinner we would have together.  The last time my mother and I would fight over her chair in the living room.  The last time I would feel the hugs of the people I love most.  The list could go on…..

Of course this is not the last time I will ever experience these things; just the last time for a while.  At first, I did not let myself dwell on the sacrifices.  Sometimes it is easiest to ignore the deepest longings and parts of our heart.  If we ignore the true and deep feelings we have inside, we do not have to experience the reality of their pain.  However, ignoring these feelings would also cause me to cheapen my relationships and the customs I have come to cherish here at home.

When Jesus called the disciples, He asked them to “drop their nets” and follow Him.  They were so honored by this request of the Rabbi, Messiah, Son of God that they did not even stop to calculate their losses.  That is exactly how I felt from the moment God called me to go to Ethiopia.  I do feel HONORED to be chosen by God.  I’ve been sheltered by His provision, lavished by His favor, and enthralled by His love.  I’ve watched Him work out all things in His timing.  Every little road block I came against, He challenged with a divine alternate route.  It has been simply amazing!

The disciples were honored to be chosen by Jesus; I’m sure they acknowledged that in their hearts many times.  I’m also sure though, when they lay their heads down at night, that they sometimes had a hard time falling asleep.  They probably thought about the people they loved and missed at home and maybe even shed a few tears. 

However, they were never overcome by their sorrow because of the presence of Jesus; Jesus sleeping near them.  To all of my family and friends, I honor you by dedicating this post to you.  I will truly miss each and every one of you! I have shed many tears at the thought of leaving you behind; I have stayed up at night thinking about you and the times I am going to miss spending with you.  But I have not been overcome with sorrow because of the presence of my Savior.

He knows the sacrifices we all have to make to follow Him, but His promise is that He will never leave us or forsake us.  Isaiah 64:4 says, “No ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.”  1 Corinthians 2:9 says it like this, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.”  I step forward into faith believing those promises.  I believe them because He has always been faithful before. 

Fear...

Fear is a funny thing.  I've been pondering the purpose and reality of fear over the past couple of weeks.  Many of the wonderful people I have in my life have expressed a concern about my safety in Ethiopia.  Many people have commented on the location of Ethiopia in relation to its surrounding countries, others have mentioned the possible sicknesses I could come in contact with, one good friend jokingly mentions the idea of pirates being close by.  Others wonder about the fact that I won't know anyone, or the conditions of the city I will live in.  Many of these things have crossed my mind, but that still hasn't caused me a bit of hesitation.  Some people might think that I am making a blind or unwise decision.  Should I let the fear of what could happen to me stop me from going?


Is fear a bad thing?  I think that many times it can be, but others times it can be an asset.  I guess what determines consequence of fear is what we do with it.  FDR said in his first inaugural speech about fear, "The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself."  Fear causes many people to shy away from adversity.  Fear causes others to give up instead of pushing on, and realizing the dream to which they are called.  To others, fear brings out courage.  Mark Twain wrote, "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear.  Except a creature be part coward it is not a compliment to say it is brave."  One can not be brave without the presence of fear.


Now I will attempt to honestly answer the question, 'are you afraid?'  I would use the word fear to describe my overriding emotion.  However, it is not the fear that I will be in danger, or the fear that I will be lonely, or the fear that I might get sick.  Instead, it is the fear that if I don't go, I will miss out on what God has waiting for me there.  I fear many things in this world; I fear many things in accordance to my relationship with God.  I sometimes fear that He won't provide.  I sometimes fear that He will not come through for me.  I sometimes fear that I will lose someone or something I love.  But the one thing I fear the most, is missing out on God's best.  I wholeheartedly believe the scripture in Jeremiah 29:11 that says, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"  


There is another part to that scripture that many people leave out.  The scripture says in verse 12-14, "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.  I will be found by you."  Five years ago the Lord brought me to that scripture, and it became a life verse for me.  My prayer was that I would be able to seek God with all of my heart so that I could truly find Him.  That is still something that I strive to do to this day.  What I have come to realize is this, when you seek God, you sometimes have to go where He goes.  And for me to continue to seek God, I have to go where He is sending me, and that is Ethiopia.


So nothing that I may face there will compare to the joy I have in seeking and following the Lord.  So to reiterate the statement, am I making this decision blindly?  No.  I realize the dangers and I'm not afraid.  For if my God is for me, who or what can be against me?