By Rachael Burnett: Have you ever thought about what it is going to be like to worship in heaven—all tribes, all nations, all tongues lifting voices to the King of kings? I think our team got a little taste of that today as we worshiped at the International Evangelical Church. It was so neat to look around and see people from many different backgrounds—Ethiopian, Asian, Australian, Swedish, and other Africans—all praising the same God! I am so grateful for a God who just sees hearts, and it was refreshing to be able celebrate the Lord with other believers half way around the world from our home.
After church we drove to Debrazite, a town about an hour outside of Addis to have lunch. This town is known to have beautiful lakes, and the place where we had lunch overlooked a gorgeous one. It just so happened that there were two weddings going on at the restaurant while we were there. It was so fun to get to witness the way different cultures do weddings. One couple was making their grand entrance on a boat from the lake. The other couple was being led in by their family and friends; singing and clapping. The brides were beautiful, dressed somewhat in the traditional white gown. It was so fun to watch even though we felt like “wedding crashers”!
During our debriefing time tonight, many of us discussed the shocking and saddening sight of the dump that we have passed several times as we have been riding through the city. The dump is huge—hard to even explain how big—and there is a community of people who have made homes literally on top of the piles of garbage. Liz noticed several vultures that were picking at the trash and not three feet away, there were several people picking at the same trash. How do you even comprehend this? As privileged Americans, I don’t think we can even fathom the thought of living in the utter squalor and stench of a dump, even less can we grasp digging through trash for our food alongside vultures. So as followers of Christ, what is our response to this reality—beyond the initial feelings of shock, pity, etc.? It’s a hard question to an even harder reality.
We are headed to bed now to get some good rest since we begin working at Onesimus tomorrow! We are so excited to get started. Please pray for the kids and for us as we work with the staff and love on kids!
