Answering, I hear the sweetest sound that this Saturday could bring ... Doug's voice!
The update that followed was also a fun and sweet one. While our minutes were surely a small fortune, their is nothing as priceless as hearing the joy in my hubby's voice and getting the mental picture of his amazing team at work!
He said the team is doing AWESOME! Zach is a kid magnet and doing awesome (the youngest of the group). Everyone is having a wonderful time, is healthy and READY to get to Warancha! Doug also said they have gelled beautiful, just like a family. P.S Sara - Zach apparently also has several new Mom's to look after him. haha.
First, the team spent the morning with Jimmy and Rachel Gross's ministry, No Ordinary Love. Doug said the team had a great time and the compound of their ministry/community center is just incredible.
For Doug, it was fun to see the work going on as we sat with Jimmy and Rachel at the park this past February as they were working out the details of their new place. That week they were on a hunt to find the perfect house for their kids and children's home and Jimmy and Rachel shared with us on that day the vision and long term plan for the ministry. 8 months later ... God is at work in big ways! What a joy to get to see that first hand.
From there, the team had some lunch and some yummy drinks at Kaldi's. For my Ethiopia loving friends, are you as jealous as I am - Kaldi's - YUM! They then went over with Ian and Brittany Bentley to see the work of the amazing woman of FashionABLE! FashionABLE works with woman who have been exploited due to the effects of poverty. They partner with a ministry called "Woman At Risk" which rehabilitates former sex workers. Woman At Risk not only gets these woman off the streets, but also provides them with counseling and helps them find alternate means of income ... one of these is through the scarves they make and sell through FasionABLE! It literally is providing sustainable business for these woman. So today, the team got to meet the woman and see where they are working. Doug said that they were busy dying the yarn and literally making the scarves. As they visited, they learned that the woman actually don't make enough money to even own one of the very scarves they make. So get this ... our awesome team, with the help of the many of you that sent donations, bought EVERY single woman their VERY OWN scarf! Doug said that each of the scarves made is named after the woman who made it. As the woman began to choose scarves, they actually were choosing the very scarves they made themselves ... their names. He said the woman cheered and were so grateful of their gifts. From the sound of Doug's voice, I could tell that that moment was a highlight in his heart.
Indeed, the King is enthralled by their beauty and today - he adorned them well!
The team was originally supposed to leave for Warancha in the afternoon tomorrow (after church in Addis). Remember me saying that we hoped that the Lord would mess with their itinerary for his glory! Well he has! Get this ... the team has been asked by the Pastor over our Warancha community to come early. Church in Warancha begins at 10:00 and he has asked that the team would arrive in time to join them. That sounds amazing! As Doug shared this though, he then began to laugh ....
"Guess who is preaching"? He laughed.
Can you believe it! My precious husband has been asked by THE pastor of his community to preach before all of them tomorrow! My husband is now --- a pastor! I have no doubt that he will do awesome -- after all, I know the Lord doesn't just equip the able - he equips the called and the willing. But, a little extra prayer for his nerves might be nice. Warancha isn't a small community and so far, his preaching audience has been - 5!
All I know is, Sue Henderson better get great video!! Did you hear that Sue? My husband will be teaching OUR sweet KIDS that HE called us to. This is a beautiful honor -- a father to the fatherless -- a spiritual leader for sure!
Well, all in all, it sounds as though the team is off to a great start. Keep praying and pray especially for their travel mercies into Awassa. It will be some beautiful country they will soon find - including monkey's, hippos and the famous Africa Acacia trees.
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| The Pastor of the Warancha Community - as seen on the right |
Keep up those prayers!
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