Ethiopia 2011: The Hands and Feet of Jesus

When I finished my second blog about Ethiopia, I was feeling like I had one more in me. I realized that I had not really talked about the part of the trip that had the greatest impact on me. I loved the experiences that I had over there, I loved the sweet little faces that I got to spend time with virtually every day that I was there, and I loved spending time with my friend Lauren and her mom Patty, relaxing and learning about that fascinating country. But what impacted me the most, what will take me back to Ethiopia at some point, or on many occasions in the future, was seeing God at work over there.

I had never been on any type of mission trip before, formal or informal. And I don’t really know what you would call this one, but in any event, I was over there to help Him with His work. And I don’t think I even knew what that would be like, how it would feel, or what it really meant. When people said to me, “Lisa, go be the hands and feet of Jesus over there”, I thought to myself, “Don’t you have to be qualified for that? Shouldn’t you have to pass a test to be the hands and feet of Jesus? Shouldn’t I know the Bible backwards and forwards?” Well people, I am NOT qualified, I have NOT passed any test, and I do NOT know the Bible backwards and forwards.

What I do know, is that I love Jesus. I believe in Him. I love Him with everything in me and strive every single day to call on His name and do something that will glorify Him. I know that I still screw up, and that He loves me in spite of that. I know that I do things that He should be upset with me for, but He continues to give me His grace. And it is with this love and this grace, that I stepped out to Ethiopia to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

More importantly, there are so many people at work for the Lord over there. In a country with an overwhelming population of Orthodox people, God is working overtime; He has to! We were blessed to be able to see several examples of His work in a country that a lot of people have forgotten about.

Men of Korah

They are affectionately known as the “Men of Korah”. They are 20 somethings who grew up in Korah and now live to serve there. They are men of God. They have incredible servant hearts. They are handsome and strong. And they are truly the hands and feet of Jesus. I have rarely, if ever, seen a more powerful, impactful, representation of that in my life. These men are part of the Great Hope Ministry in Korah. Korah is a leper community of over 100,000 in Addis. As my new friend Eve so descriptively states on her blog (http://hopeforkorah.blogspot.com), Korah is a place “where His precious children are living in oppression; in garbage dumps and makeshift homes filled with darkness. The community is consumed with poverty, where families are broken through illness, death and persecution”. And Great Hope Ministry strives to get them out of that poverty and oppression; to give them hope; and to show them the love of Jesus.

We were fortunate enough to get to travel with Eve to Korah during our trip, and spent the better part of a day there alongside Eve and the men of Korah. During our day there, we participated in three home visits, played with children, and participated in helping Eve distribute new suits to all of the elderly leper men who are served at the Great Hope shelter.

The Men of Korah feed these elderly lepers every day. They visit families throughout the Korah community, taking them items and just visiting with them, learning of their problems, and trying to come up with solutions. They provide a shelter and a church where the people of Korah can go for food and a good, healthy dose of Jesus. They are the hands and feet of Jesus in Korah, every single day.

Compassion Family International

They show up like clockwork every morning. Their bellies are empty and their minds are open. They come for food, but more importantly they come for a shot at life. At Compassion Family International (“CFI”), we spent every day on our trip observing, participating, creating with, and loving on 24 kids who are continually shown the love of Jesus by the CFI staff.

Peter & Elizabeth run CFI and treat each of these kids as their own. They are the poorest of poor kids who need an education before they fall too far behind and will likely never catch up. They are smart, sassy, and enthusiastic. Some of them walk an hour each way, on streets with no names, through dirt and garbage, just to get to this place that is a safe haven for them. At CFI, they can be free to be the little people that they are, without the worries and troubles that live at home with each of them. At CFI, they aren’t put to work, they get to learn. They don’t have to sit hungry in a dark tin shed, they sit outside in the sunshine and eat lunch with their classmates.

One of my most treasured memories of my time at CFI was our surprise “farewell” presentation that the kids put on for us. Each kid presented us with a homemade thank you card, and Peter, Elizabeth, and the staff thanked us for spending our time there. And then the staff asked the kids if they had anything to say to us. And every single one of them raised their hand with complete exuberance! They took turns thanking us for various things, like the witness bracelets we made with them, the foam crosses that we helped them put together, the new clothes and toys, etc. And then one of them simply said, “Thank you for playing with us.” And I was a wreck. Sometimes that’s all it takes. Playing with them and spending time with them is more impactful than anything else. And I truly can’t envision anywhere else I would’ve rather been at that moment.

We were so blessed to be able to spend time with these children. We may have taken them donation items that put a smile on their faces for an hour or a day, but spending time with them has left me with a smile on my face for so much longer. God is so clearly at work with CFI and these precious little souls.

Authoritative Guidance (spoken like a true auditor!)

As a result of this Ethiopian adventure, there have been a lot of discussions around adoption – that is what started this entire trip after all. And there are a lot of orphans in Ethiopia, more than anyone probably cares to know or admit. And they are children – some normal, some not-so-normal, some infants, some teenagers. But they all have a story, and they are all tiny people with the right to have a chance at life.

A common discussion topic with friends and family when talking about my friend’s adoption and my mission work over there, was “why international?” A lot of people have been curious why her adoption, and our desire to serve, were focused overseas. Well, I will not put words in her mouth regarding her adoption, but why did we travel across the globe to serve others? Because we are called to go and make disciples among all nations. The Bible, the only authoritative guidance that this world needs, says so:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” – Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)

We may not have baptized them, but we showed them the love of Jesus. We told them of that love. And we did it in a foreign land. We served those people. And there are so many other servants in Ethiopia. It really is astounding and such a true testament of the power of God’s love. People like you, and like me, and like the men of Korah, and like Peter & Elizabeth at CFI, who truly are acting as the hands and feet of Jesus.

I’ll leave you with this: You don’t have to be a pastor to be the hands and feet of Jesus, nor do you have to be an expert on the Bible. What you do need, is to be a believer, and not just within your perfect little world, but in other places too. You need to “serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people”¬ – Ephesians 6:7 (NIV) and act on what the Bible is telling you to do. It’s scary at times, and it is certainly uncomfortable, but when you walk in a place like Ethiopia, or Korah, or among the streets with no name, or even somewhere closer to home; when you just spend time with people, you will have the opportunity, whether you realize it or not, to be the hands and feet of Jesus. And that, my friends, is what this life should be all about.

“If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.” - 1 Peter 4:11 (NIV)