Ethiopia Report to the Church
This morning, Danny (from “learning…“) and I gave our report to the church that sent us to Ethiopia. We had a great time reliving the trip and telling stories. There were about 120 photos and 14 videos in our presentation. Unfortunately, even though we took 1 1/2 hours for our presentation, we still did not have enough time. So, we’ll probably be telling stories for a long time to come, in person and on our blogs.
I’ve included a few pics in this post from this morning. Click on the images for larger pics.
Beginning tomorrow, I’ll publish blog posts about our trip. I hope you enjoy the stories, discussion, pictures, and videos from the trip.
One of my favorite Ethiopia pics
This is one of my favorite pictures from Ethiopia. At least, it’s probably in my top 100 favorite pictures. 🙂
Seriously, I really like this picture. I’ll explain to our church tomorrow why I like this picture, and I’ll explain on my blog next week.
Until then, anyone (besides Danny or Dave Black) wanna guess why this is one of my favorite pics? (Click the image below for a larger view.)
About Ethiopia… Not Yet
This Sunday, August 1, Danny (from “learning…“) and I plan to report back to our church about our trip to Ethiopia. If you’re in the area and are interested in hearing our presentation, you are welcome to come. We will start around 10:30 a.m. and you can find directions to our meeting place on our church’s website. If you come, please bring some food to share (pot luck) and join us for lunch afterward.
I’m still processing and planning that presentation, so I will not post anything here until after Sunday (well, except for the picture for this post). My post Monday morning will be called “We were your apostles,” and explains our understanding of our role and our responsibilities to the church that sent us and the church in Alaba, Ethiopia.
There is so much to think about and learn from and share. I hope you enjoy the stories and lessons as much as I will enjoy reliving them.
(By the way, Danny has posted a picture and a story on his blog.)
Home
Our plane left Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia around 11:00 p.m. local time (around 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time) on Tuesday, July 27. After two stops, we touched down at Raleigh Durham International Airport around 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, July 28.
The strangest part of the flight had to be the 9+ hour stretch from Rome to Washington D.C. When we took off from Rome, the sun was just starting to rise. When we landed in DC, it was 9:00 a.m. the same morning. That was a loooong morning. The flight was very good, though. In fact, all of our flights were very smooth.
It’s good to be home. It’s good to be spending time with my family.
I’m still processing much of what happened in Ethiopia. No, we did not operate exactly according to the planned schedule that I had posted on my blog before we left. There were several changes to the schedule. But, we were very excited to see what God is doing in Alaba, Ethiopia, and we were humbled and amazed that He chose to work through us for part of that.
This Sunday, Danny and I are presenting a trip report to our church. We saw ourselves as representatives of Jesus Christ and our church family. So, we very much want to share with them what God did through all of us in Ethiopia. Please pray for us as we sort through the many pictures and videos trying to decide what to share and what to leave out.
If you are in the Raleigh/Durham area and are interested in seeing our report, we welcome you to join us. We’ll start around 10:30 a.m. Sunday, August 1. We plan to eat together with the church afterward, so bring some food to share (pot luck). You can find directions at our church web site: messiahwf.org
There are many things that I want to share about our trip on my blog. But… I don’t know where to begin. So, I’ll save that for another day.
Thank you for your prayers while we were traveling.
Day 15 – Arriving Back Home
My friend Danny (“learning…“) and I will be joining Dave and BeckLynn Black in Ethiopia for two weeks. I will not be able to post updates while I’m in Ethiopia, so I’m publishing these posts to keep you updated on our plans. We would appreciate your prayers.
If everything goes according to plan, we should arrive back home – well, at least to Raleigh-Durham International Airport – early this afternoon after almost a full day of flying.
There’s always a chance that I will post a quick update later today… but don’t hold your breath.
If you want a complete itinerary, you can find it here.
Day 14 – Travel, and special prayer request
My friend Danny (“learning…“) and I will be joining Dave and BeckLynn Black in Ethiopia for two weeks. I will not be able to post updates while I’m in Ethiopia, so I’m publishing these posts to keep you updated on our plans. We would appreciate your prayers.
We spend most of today traveling. First, we travel from Alaba back to Addis. Once we get back to Addis, we will have one last meal in Ethiopia, then later in the evening we’ll catch a plane back to the United States.
Also, I have a special prayer request for today, July 27. This is my daughter Miranda’ thirteenth birthday. I know that I will miss her (and my entire family) very much by this time.
If you want a complete itinerary, you can find it here.
We returned to Addis Ababa a day early
Our scheduled was rearranged, so we returned from Alaba to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia a day early. The drive was terrific, and traffic was lighter than expected.
After we arrived at our guest house, we ate a pizza at an Ethiopian Italian restaurant called Metro Pizzeria. I had to order the menu item called “Pizza Margarita.” 🙂
Our flight leaves Bole Airport in Addis Ababa around this time tomorrow evening (10:00 p.m. local time or 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time). Then, we’ll land at RDU in Raleigh around 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Day 13 – Meet with Evangelists
My friend Danny (“learning…“) and I will be joining Dave and BeckLynn Black in Ethiopia for two weeks. I will not be able to post updates while I’m in Ethiopia, so I’m publishing these posts to keep you updated on our plans. We would appreciate your prayers.
We plan to meet with the evangelists of the Alaba church today. The “evangelists” are similar to the senior pastors of American churches. Typically, they are formally educated and supported by the churches.
If you want a complete itinerary, you can find it here.
Day 12 – Another Sunday with Alaba Church
My friend Danny (“learning…“) and I will be joining Dave and BeckLynn Black in Ethiopia for two weeks. I will not be able to post updates while I’m in Ethiopia, so I’m publishing these posts to keep you updated on our plans. We would appreciate your prayers.
Today, the plans are for us to each teach in a different church in the Alaba region. I hope to teach from Hebrews 12. Again, I think this book, and this chapter in particular, can offer alot of hope to people who are struggling physically and spiritually.
If you want a complete itinerary, you can find it here.
Day 11 – Last Day of Conference
My friend Danny (“learning…“) and I will be joining Dave and BeckLynn Black in Ethiopia for two weeks. I will not be able to post updates while I’m in Ethiopia, so I’m publishing these posts to keep you updated on our plans. We would appreciate your prayers.
The picture today shows an Ethiopian woman preparing coffee. I’ve heard that their coffee is good and strong.
I finish teaching a conference for elders on the book of 1 Corinthians. I plan to teach 1 Corinthians 15 in the morning, and I plan to teach 1 Corinthians 16 in the afternoon.
Danny also finishes teaching through 1 Timothy to believers in a local prison, and going to villages in the afternoon.
If you want a complete itinerary, you can find it here.