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| View from the Ministry Department Office at the Day Center |
We made it friends. As I sit here and type, I can hear the call to prayer at a mosque in the distance…a reminder, as if we needed one, that we are not in Kansas anymore. The sights, sounds, and smells are all familiar, as this is not our first time in Addis, but no matter how many times you travel here, the culture shock sets in immediately.
We arrived at Bole International Airport here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Sunday around 7am where we were picked up by our good friend, and MYM founder/director, Trent Post. We loaded up our 23 pieces of luggage, yes…I said 23, and we headed off to our new home here in Addis. We feel extremely blessed to have the house that God allowed us to have. We actually have more room than we need, so maybe the Thomas family will expand in the future??? We are so blessed to have Jerri and her four year old daughter Enishu living here on our compound with us. It definitely helps to ease our anxiety knowing that we have an Ethiopian living with us who speaks the local language and can show us the ropes of living here in Addis. There have been numerous occasions already in our short time here that Jerri has brought over coffee (amazing roasted from scratch coffee) for Courtney and I. She is super sweet and a true blessing to us.
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| Coffee thanks to Jerri |
We have felt so welcomed here between Carmen and Trent Post’s hospitality and everyone we have come in contact with for the most part. We have only been here five days, but it has been a very busy, yet productive, five days. A large amount of our time this week has been spent scavenger hunting for items we need to furnish and settle into our new home. Let me just tell you, this is no easy task! It takes much longer here in Addis to do everything…especially shopping. What we could have accomplished back in the states in maybe a good full day has taken us five days here, and there are still a few items left on the list. There is no Ikea, Walmart, or Target here. Certain items can only be found in specific areas of the city. Once you find the part of town that has the item you are looking for, you may have to visit 5, 6, 7, 8 stores to get a fair price or to find the exact item you’re looking for. Trent has been exceedingly gracious and helpful in driving us all over Addis to find the items we need. Bless you brother!
Nara is adjusting exceptionally well. The first day here in our home we couldn’t find Nara, so Courtney walked over to Jerri’s room and there was Nara…squatting down on the floor stoking charcoal to help Jerri make some coffee. I am so envious of Nara’s ability to enter into basically any environment and to flourish and excel so quickly. She and Jerri’s daughter Enishu have become best buddies. It’s so cute to watch them try and communicate with each other. Enishu’s english is very limited as is Nara’s amharic. Enishu will just rant and spout out a long line of Amharic and Nara will look at her like she’s crazy and then laugh. However, this has not stopped them from having so much fun together. Its so encouraging to see Nara doing so well here.
We did take a break from our house item hunting and unpacking one day this week to go see the MYM Ethiopia soccer team play one of their games. Boys from the MYM Day Center, PLF Home, and Keeping Kids Home families have formed a soccer team and they play organized games in the local area against local teams. Courtney, myself, and Nara certainly stood out amongst the spectators…we pretty much stand out everywhere we go, which is hard to get used to. The kids watching the game would linger close by where we were standing and by the end of the game we had quite a crowd of them around us. Several of the young boys spectating would come by and rub on my arm looking at my tattoos.
We’ve had the opportunity to check in and visit with the four boys at the PLF Home that whom we spent a lot of time with last summer. They all seem to be doing very well. Trent and I stopped by their house today to do some electrical work in their kitchen. I stepped outside the kitchen and all four boys were sitting on the ground with a plate of food in front of them, and had stopped to pray as brothers for the Lord to bless their meal. That is what its about my friends! I am excited to get started with the ministry side of things, but for now it has been nice to just be able to spectate a little and to get our feet wet a little at a time. There is no shortage of work to be done here, and I feel so honored and blessed to have been asked to join this fight to defend the defenseless alongside Trent and Carmen.
We want to especially thank our financial partners who have made this whole adventure possible. Now that we are on the ground we can’t help but to be so thankful for the generosity of our partners who are giving. Everything around us is on account of your generosity…the house, the food, everything. We thank God for you all that you have decided to let Him use you in this way to fulfill his divine purposes and plans in Addis.
For now that is all, but I am sure as the next few weeks come and go, we will have more stories to tell and reports of victories to come.
Here are a few current prayer requests:
- Pray that we continue to adjust to our new environment and home.
- Pray that God will give me (Ryan) the vision that He has for MYM Ethiopia’s Ministry Dept.
- Pray that God will continue to lead us to the children and families that He would have us minister to.
- Pray for the hearts of those whom we will be coming in contact with in the weeks to come.
- Pray for many to decide to follow Jesus and that those whose hearts are guarded by the walls that Islam has built around them will crumble by the saving power of the Gospel.
- Lastly, pray that Courtney and I can learn the language quickly! This is one of our biggest hurdles in feeling effective in ministry here.
