Thanksgiving

Last weekend was a special time at our church. We got to give! Above and beyond our normal giving, we got to share our abundant blessings so that God's people can be blessed. And Yezelalem Minch will be one of the recipients of these gifts again this year! It is such a joy to be able to serve them and the orphaned and vulnerable children in Ethiopia in this way. I have been giving plasma in order to save up a special gift to contribute.

As far as what I am thankful for this year...I am thankful to have spent time with orphans, widows and those who live on about what I spend at a vending machine every day. And I am thankful to know the people who are daily being the hands and feet of Jesus in their lives. I am thankful for what I learned in the simple embrace from an 18 year old boy serving as the head of his household. And I am thankful that God reached out to me, forgave me, and revealed to me the beauty of simplicity and the danger of materialism. My prayer is that I would continue to loosen my grip on all that I think is "mine," and to continue to give of my time, energy and money for the Glory of God.

May you all have a most wonderful Thanksgiving celebrating with friends and family (if you are so blessed to be able to do so). But let us not forget those without family. Let us continue to pray for and be active in loving the nearly 40,000 children, who on the very day we are "giving thanks", will be receiving the tragic new title - orphan.

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.
James 1:27 NLT

More photographs

"Beauty in Chaos"


"simplicity"


"Kitchen for a family of seven"


"In case of rain..."


"Bonded"


"Endurance"


"My eyes have seen the Glory"

When God moves...

Growing up, I had the opportunity to go boating with the Cook family on the great Missouri river.  We would ski and tube and sometimes we would make a stop on a sandy beach area where we could get out of the boat, stretch and swim around a bit. 

At was always made very clear - "don't swim too far out from shore because the current is stronger out there and you will be carried away."

There have not been a lot of times in my life when I feel like I am in the middle of the current of the mighty river of the movement of God.  But the more I spend my time and effort living out James 1:27, it sure seems like I can feel that current.  The more I talk about, teach about and make practically caring for orphans and widows what I "do" with my faith, the more I feel my faith grow.

There have been many encouraging and amazing events since we returned from Ethiopia.  I pray that God continues to allow me, my family and our church to be a part of His movement.  As Birtukan would say - "Zot is goood!" 

Still processing...

I love this excerpt from the link below...
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Jesus loved to teach through unlikely heroes. He never said, "Look at this leader in economic growth, this political giant, or this religious leader known throughout the world." Instead he said look at a child and learn humility. Look at a widow giving her last coin and learn generosity. Look at a woman of questionable repute washing his feet with her tears and learn worship. Look at a sinful tax collector and learn repentance. He said "Blessed are you who are poor," not because the poor will receive gifts from the wealthy, but because theirs is, already in their poverty, the kingdom of heaven.

 

Certainly whatever culture or economic level we come from, we need to ask God how we can pour ourselves out generously as servants for God's glory. May it not be said of us, though, that we've studied, sacrificed, and visited the poor just to fix them. Instead, we need to hang out with the poor knowing that we also are being fixed and that God in his funny way of working loves to teach us and shape us through heroes among "the least of these."
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it came from this article...
http://www.esa-online.org/Article.asp?RecordKey=CEDEB395-75B9-4B7C-B79D-D9BBE012E075

May we continue in humility to process what we saw and learned on this trip...to learn and grow and be a blessing, not to try and fix people.  We traveled with Christ to a place that Christ has existed all along.  We did not bring Him there, but I believe we got a new view of Him that we have never seen before and may never have seen in a long life in America.

In the article it also mentions "luminaries of faith" that exist among the poor.  I believe we met some of these in the Women's self help group in Holeta.  These women, in their poverty, pooled their extra money together to help one among them who was in a desperate situation.  Most of us do not really know "sacrificial" giving, but that is an amazing example! 

Praise God for allowing us to meet these amazing people who showed us what faith and trust really mean!

d

THANK YOU!!

I am working on a more formal way to do this, but I wanted to go ahead and say an initial THANK YOU to all of you who supported the recent Ethiopia Vision Trip through your generous gifts, prayer and donations!  Also, to the families of the team members who sacrificed time away from your spouses/parents to allow us to take part in this great trip.  Please know that your gifts and prayers and sacrifices were greatly appreciated and made a big impact!  It was such a blessing to be able experience what we did, but the blessing is meant to be shared.  So we are excited to share the amazing things we experienced and help more people understand God's heart for the materially poor, the orphan and the widow and the HUGE blessings to be gained by both parties when we share what we have.  Not just a one way exchange of cash either, the ultimate blessing is when the whole body of Christ comes together for His glory and no one is excluded based on their income level - see James ch 2!

Praise God for the amazing work he is doing in Ethiopia and in Iowa and all around the world!  And thank you for helping us to grow in our faith, to be a blessing, to be blessed and to see God in new ways!

Please consider sponsoring a child from Yezelalem Minch through their partner ministry HIM! - http://www.helpsinternationalministries.org/outreach/yezelalem.shtml

If there is any question in your mind if this organization is "worthy" of getting your support and if they are financially responsible, I know that this entire team would answer with a resounding YES!  But if you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to let me know and we will get answers for you. grimesd98@gmail.com

God Bless and Thanks Again!
Dan

REPOSTS

So, I have reposted everything from the trip. For the best "flow," I
would suggest heading back to Day 1 and move through sequentially.
Please leave comments or contact me if you have any questions or want
to know more!
grimesd98@gmail.com

Dan

Day 6 REPOST - Final Day in Addis

The final day was a busy one. A late breakfast, shopping in the
morning, lunch at the Guesthouse, coffee ceremony after lunch and then
to the YZM office. We had requested to meet one of the 20+ child-
headed families that Yezelalem Minch has in their program. That
wonderful staff had actually brought in 2 families (child-headed) as
well as a few of the sponsor children who had gifts from their sponsor
families that we brought. We first gave a couple of the children
their gifts from their sponsors. Next, we did a formal hand-off of
the medical supplies we brought to the nurses of Addis, Holeta and
Sobeta. I can't believe they brought those nurses all the way for us
to do that - it is a long drive.

We then got to sit down and "interview" the child-headed families one
at a time. "Child-headed family" is not a term we hear much in the US
because it doesn't really happen. The first family we met had four
children. The oldest boy (2nd oldest child) was the head of the
family. He is 18 now, but he was 10 years old when his mother died in
a fatal car accident. There father was away trying to make money for
the family. When he returned he was completely heart broken and about
1 year later, he too passed away. Now, at 11 years old, the boy was
in charge of his family. The driver who had killed their mother was
never brought to justice, so no compensation had been made for that.
The youngest daughter was still a baby at this time. Through tears,
they gracefully told their story. It is a sad reality of the sin-
stained world that we live...the fact that orphans exist at all. But
especially the fact that some children spend their child hood
concerned about how they will provide for their siblings, where their
next meal will come from, afraid of threats to their safety, grieving
the loss of their family, and struggling the temptation to run away
from it all. We met walking examples of a faith and trust in the
providence of God that we simply do not see very often in America.
And these children are not unique in this country.

The second child-headed family that we met was another difficult story
of loss and hardship. In this family, the youngest boy (~12 yrs old)
said that he has a dream that he will finish school and someday do
something to help other orphans. This is the story behind Yezelalem
Minch - Burtikan, a World Vision sponsor child, was used by God to
begin an orphan care ministry which has grown from 1 child to over
1000 children in just over 10 years! Burtikan shared her story with
these children which prompted tears and we did our best to pray for
them...but we have not the words to comfort those in situations that
we cannot fathom. It is only the Spirt of God who can heal the pain
that they deal with on a daily basis.

After that amazing time, we headed directly into another amazing time
with the YZM staff. We sat around and thanked each other, praised God
for what he did this week, tried to express our mutual respect, and
then that amazing and sweet staff at YZM blessed us with gifts. They
gave a beautiful framed nickel cross for Parkview Church, shirts for
the men and scarfs for the ladies. We are truly bonded with these
beautiful and faithful servants of God. We are in awe of what God is
doing (and has been doing) here in Ethiopia, and we are SO thankful
that he has revealed this amazing opportunity to join hands with them,
to be a blessing and to be blessed by being about God's work.

It is truly amazing! The last 7 days have been absolutely life
changing. God is so much greater than I understood before and there
is so much to be done to break the stronghold that is upon our nation
that keeps the blessings of God to truly flow. This is not one way.
We are not abundantly blessed in every way in America. We lack VERY
MUCH! What we lack is found in abundance in the places we visited
this week - FAITH, HOPE and LOVE. And what they lack in found in
abundance in our communities - MATERIALS, KNOWLEDGE and MONEY. What
we learned this week, is that when we live in unity with people who
possess what we do not, we see a more complete picture of the body of
Christ - and it is stunning!

I pray that God will guide us and that it will be the Holy Spirit who
grants us success as we return to Iowa as co-visionaries of Yezelalem
Minch. May blessings flow from Ethiopia to Iowa and from Iowa to
Ethiopia for the Glory of God!

Day 5 REPOST - Addis is great, but the country side is astonishing!

Today we took a 2.5 hour drive West of Addis Ababa to Hot Springs in Ambo. We invited all of the staff of Yezalalem Minch Addis Ababa office to come with us for a time of relaxing, swimming and to show our appreciation and gratitude. It was a wonderful time to spend with our new friends!

The drive was stunning!!

We stopped on the side of the road to rest at one point. A couple of runners approached and Phil couldn't miss the opportunity to spend a 1/4 mile running with them. In his words, "these guys were the real deal!"

At the Hot Springs place in Ambo we toured the facilities, saw some monkeys, swam, enjoyed a wonderful meal, and even played some new pool games (apparently unique to Ethiopia!) You practically have to be a mathematician to keep score. Burtikan gave Phil an honorary bite of injera and she even tried her hand with the pool cue (not too successfully however). It was so great to see the staff really enjoying themselves in the pool!

Tomorrow we wind down with some shopping in the morning. But in the afternoon, we will have the amazing opportunity to meet one of the 20+ Child-lead family leaders! This girl will likely be between the ages of 11 and 16 and she is completely in charge of her brothers and sisters because both parents are gone!!

And then, we get on a plane (around midnight local time) for our LONG flight home. Please pray for safe travel and successful adjustment back to America. We have been praying and discussing this a lot. We have so much to share! We have seen God in bigger ways! In the words of Burtikan, "It's AMAZING!"

Praying for God to use this team in big ways to impact the ministry of Yezelalem Minch, which in turn will impact the orphaned and vulnerable children of Ethiopia!

Dan

Day 4 REPOST - A big day with few pictures

Not too many pictures from today, not because it was not eventful however.

After breakfast, we attended church with Burtikan, Nesibu and their family. An hour straight of worship was difficult for us "ferenge" (white people) to keep up with. Nearly 700 people crammed into this building consisting of three rooms. Many people actually participated from a separate room where they watched through windows! The sound system was loud and the music was extremely energetic. The power went out twice and the first time, there was actually no interruption to the worship. The drums, keyboard and guitar were all missing, but the voices carried loudly the praise of God. When the bible talks about worship as a fragrant offering, I believe that aroma may be rising stronger from this area of the world.

After church we were invited to a special lunch at Burtikan and Nesibu's house. She gave us a feast that is typically reserved for holidays! They have blessed our socks off all week. Literally, many of us didn't have socks on. Anyway...

Finally, Burtikan shared her testimony and the vision of Yezelalem Minch. We have heard there are people who have heard her story and told her "you should write a book or make a video of your story!" I couldn't agree more. This woman is an absolute inspiration, especially to women. Also, it is clear that Nesibu is a Godly man of great character and integrity! Joe pointed out that he is such a great role model!

Ultimately, they made clear that this is God's story and God's ministry! He is the Father to the Fatherless and he will accomplish His purposes in His time! We are just so thankful that he has invited us and hopefully YOU into this!!!

In the evening, some of us enjoyed a great walk down the streets of our local area. We draw a lot of attention when we are out. I wish so much that I could just soak up the culture without causing disruption in it, but it is just a natural part of the experience.

Praise God for this beautiful country, these beautiful people and abundance of blessings we have received! I spent some time looking through pictures last night (couldn't sleep) and I came across the picture of our team that we took at the CR airport before we left. I marveled at the difference I could see in each of us. We are changed people!! (see pic below)

Day 3 - REPOST - Kids, kids and more kids!

Today we held hands, played games and touched the faces of nearly 300 children. We continue to be amazed at their joy in such circumstances. In the morning we joined the Sobeta project for their Saturday Feeding program. We were blessed to help distribute a wonderful meal to each of the children there. We also played games and sang songs. We draw a lot of attention everywhere we go, but we are always treated with so much respect...so much different than other "minority" groups. (pics below show some of the action).

We also got to meet our sponsor new sponsor children!! Since our (Dan & Shadley) sponsor child is being adopted we transferred to a new child who is even younger. I got to meet him and his mother at Sobeta. Also, some other team members were blessed to be able to meet the children they will sponsor. We look forward to getting more information about these children and their circumstances through email from the sponsorship staff at YZM. We also look forward to encouraging more and more people in Iowa to join with us in supporting this AMAZING ministry!!!

(sorry Rae & Jason, I didn't find a picture for you)

Remember 2 days ago when we visited a family in need and Phil gave 50 birr to help with her debt? She was there for a wonderful reunion.

This afternoon we got to help distribute some of the shoes and clothing donations we brought to children in their youth group. Phil (Scheels sales person) was definitely in his element as he fit each child with shoes. These children were all older than 12 years old. They were a little more shy and reserved than the younger kids (teenagers are teenagers, in America or Ethiopia!) but were very appreciative of the gifts. We have such a hard time accepting the appreciation because we feel so unworthy. We have tried to hard to give all of the glory and praise to God, but it still feels like we are not worthy of their admiration and respect for us.

This evening we enjoyed traditional music and dance at a cultural restaurant. Ethiopian culture is SO rich! Dan was even pulled up onto the stage for some dancing! Expect to see that video on YouTube soon!

We are starting to wind down on our interaction with the kids and YZM beneficiaries. We will enjoy church with Burtikan and Nesibu tomorrow morning, lunch at their home and we will spend the evening learning more about Burtikan's story and her vision for YZM!

TO ALL OF OUR FRIENDS & FAMILY - We miss you! We Love You! We appreciate your sacrifice during this time!!!

Love - the team!

ps - keep praying please!