Ethiopia Part 1: Compassion Family International

I recently returned from my trip to Ethiopia, and this is my first of several blog posts to come about about the trip. I traveled with the group Hope for His Children, and it was such an incredible week to share the love of Jesus with the people of Ethiopia. I am so thankful to have served with the amazing people on our team. God knit together a perfect team for the week. Everyone was willing to step in and do whatever was needed, we had a lot of fun together, and I am thankful for the people that God crossed in my path. 

It has taken me some time to process what I saw and experienced throughout the week. I can still see the faces, hear the songs we sang, feel their hugs and touches. I felt so many emotions during the week and had lots of 'highs and lows', which we would debrief as a team each evening. We all went to share the love of Jesus, and I left feeling like I received and learned so much from the people we came to serve. So for the first post, I will talk about our week at Compassion Family International (CFI), which is where we spent the first half of our days on Monday - Thursday.

CFI is Hope for His Children's main mission partner in Ethiopia. It was started by Peter Abera, who has such a passion for children, their families, and community. God gave Peter the vision to care for these people, which has has been doing through CFI since 2008. The CFI mission is to seek to “meet the children’s physical needs through nutrition, give them education, and teach them Biblical truths in hopes that they will one day choose a life of service to God.”

Peter, his wife, Elizabeth, and staff serve 75 children by providing preschool education, serving 2 meals per day, providing for medical needs, teaching hygiene and healthy habits, distributing clothing and shoes, providing a safe/trusted place, offering training and counseling to the families, visiting homes to encourage and build relationships, praying for the children and families, sharing the love of God through daily interactions, teaching Biblical Truths and Moral Character Development classes. It is an amazing ministry and it was such an honor to serve with them this week! 

The week we visited was unique because it was the children's school break, so even the older kids that are now in the government schools were at CFI, and many of the kids came with their guardians. During the week, our team taught the story of Joseph to the kids and the moms, did crafts, and played lots of games. On Thursday we had family day with everyone, and on Saturday we spent the morning with the staff.

The first day we walked into CFI, we were welcomed with smiles and opened arms. There were many happy reunions with the kids, guardians, and team members that have been here in the past. It was a time of sweetness each day to be welcomed in this way, and spend the first bit of the day playing and loving on the kids. 

Throughout the week we distributed new shoes to all of the kids. The roads are very rocky and unfinished, and going around town, you do not see many people in sturdy shoes. To see the joy on their faces when they received the shoes, and understand the blessing these shoes are, was quite humbling.

The kids loved having their picture taken. I wish I could remember all of their names. So many of their faces are ingrained in my head, and each night I would read home studies of the kids I met during the day.

Eskadar is one of the guard's daughters, and a sweet little girl.

The women were very sweet. They loved the Bible story, crafts, and the women on our team. Stephanie leads the women's ministry, and the women were so overjoyed when they saw her walk in the door each day

Such sweet faces.

On the first day, I went on a home visit with Peter and two of our teammates, Kathy and Victoria, to  Daniel's home.  His family was so grateful that we came to their home, and we had a very sweet visit. They lived in maybe a 10'x10' corrugated metal structure. They took a lot of pride in their home and covered the walls and floor with tapestry and paper, and hung pictures. Daniel has a mom and dad (which is not common), from different parts of the countryside, and they met in Addis. Daniel is 5 years old, and he also has a 13 year old sister, 14 year old brother, and one month old baby sister. Daniel's mom is a trash collector for the city. She picks up trash on the streets and is paid by the weight she collects. Daniel's dad, Soofa, is a day worker, and he finds day construction jobs when he can. He was with Daniel at CFI during the week, while his mom was home with their family. His family is so grateful for CFI, especially for the 2 meals that Daniel receives each day that helps him grow strong, and enables his family to have more food for their other kids.

What a beautiful woman.

Daniel and his dad Soofa, outside of CFI.

It was such an honor to visit their home and talk this family. Their circumstances are tough and far beyond anything I could ever comprehend tough. But despite the poverty, the circumstances, they have joy and love in their hearts that cannot be mistaken by just spending a few minutes with them. My prayer for Daniel's family, and for all the people we interacted with throughout the week is that they know that they are loved by God, and that He has a special plan for each and every one of His children. He loved us before He even created us, isn't that amazing!

We got back to CFI in time to play some games before the kids lined up to wash their hands for lunch. The kids were fed large plates of food each day. This has been such a blessing to the families, since it allows the food at home, which is little, to be given to other kids or family members. Others teammates that have been back each year noted how much physically stronger and bigger the kids look compared to when they started this trip 5 years ago.

Driving around during the week, it was very hard for me to witness the wide stricken poverty, everywhere you went. I have traveled to a lot of places and seen a lot of poverty, but never on the scale I saw here. And this is the first time that I have been truly amongst the people and experienced it on this level, instead of seeing it as I drive by and go back to my hotel that has a bed, readily available food, and running water. It was an experience I needed to have and never want to forget.

And despite the poverty, people smiled everywhere you went, it truly was contagious.

On day 2, we were met with the same hugs and smiles!

The kids loved the stickers and thought it was funny to put them all over their faces :).

This is Anatolee, who went missing in 2013, one day when his mom came home from work. During Nathan and Mark's trip in 2013, when the team was visiting the city orphanage, he recognized Peter by his CFI shirt. It was a very emotional experience for everyone and just a couple of days later, he was reunited with his mom. The circumstances behind the timing of this event can only be attributed to God's perfect timing, and He is given all the glory for this reunion! Now, she has changed her work schedule so she is always home when he is done with school for the day, and she does not let him out of her sight. They were both so sweet and and I loved getting to interact with them both throughout the week.

The boys loved to pose for pictures.

We played a lot of fun games with the kids and they taught us quite a few too. This was a game they taught us, it was like a combination of red rover and tug-of-war.

We played some fun balloon games with the older kids. They enjoyed tying the balloon around their ankles, and running around trying to pop everyone else's balloon.

And they are really good with the soccer ball!

Halfway through the morning, the kids would be served a snack. I don't remember the name, but this is a grain that is commonly found in Ethiopia. They roast it and it is delicious.

We taught the younger kids how to play Simon Says. They got the hang of it fast and had fun playing.

The ladies did lots of nice crafts during the week. They made oil pastels, beaded bracelets that say 'beloved' in Amharic, and decorated a vase with tissue paper and receiving it with a flower to show they are God's beloved and that God has a special plan for every one of them. Stephanie did a great job planning the women's activities for the week. 

On the third day, Erica taught the Bible lesson to the kids, and Victoria and I did the crafts. The kids drew and colored Joseph and his coat of many colors with oil pastels. They were really good artists and had fun with the activity.

This was balloon day too! Colin and Andrew did an awesome job making the balloons, and they made a lot the night before at the guesthouse. The balloons were a huge hit, and the kids proudly wore their ballon hats all day long. Dad P, everyone remembers you as the balloon guy in years past, and were missed!

It was a fun day with the kids!

You can tell that there is a great sense of community and that the friendship bonds are strong.

The cooks are amazing to make this much food everyday, and I was so thankful for how God continues to provide for these children and their families. Once everyone is served their plates, they pray, and then eat.

The final day was family day, which was a lot of fun!  The morning was very lively with lots of singing, dancing, and playing.

By the middle of the morning, almost everyone was up dancing...

Even I was caught on video :).

The kids were all given new CFI shirts on that day, and at the end of the day families were given a large bag of flour and burberry, a common spice for cooking, and a scripture card.

The women on the team kept noting how the sense of community and friendship has continues to blossom each year. They seemed so happy to be together throughout the week.

This is Yimer, one of the guards. He always greet us with smiles, and the Ethiopian 'shoulder bump' which I got really familiar with after day one!

After a while, we moved inside for a presentation. We all got up and shared words about our time with everyone at CFI, and many of the kids and guardians did the same for us. There were definitely a lot of tears shed all around. Tears of joy, love, thankfulness, and sadness that our time with them was coming to an end.

And this kids sang the song that were taught during the week for their guardians.

We were each presented with a really nice thank you card signed by the kids and a train, plane, or truck. It was such a sweet gift and one I will cherish forever.

And then came the big surprise of the week - an ice cream party! Everyone was so excited for this treat, and many of the kids and guardians have never had ice cream before.

Everyone had ice cream, babies included!

Afterwards, the women went to pick up their vases with fresh flowers. They turned out so nice and after the flowers are gone, the women will be able to use the vase to hold coins or other objects.

There were only a couple of men guardians at CFI during the week. This is the grandfather of one of the kids.

I really fell in love with these kids during the week. They have such tough lives, but I find comfort knowing that God has a plan for these children. I am so thankful that these children have CFI. It is changing and saving the lives of many kids. I love the end of the story of Joseph when he tells his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being down, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 5:20) It was so fitting and I pray that through their tough circumstances, the people who heard this message do not forget it. It was sad to say goodbye when we left that day, and our team and kids and guardians were crying. During our time at CFI, most of the tears were tears of joy for the good that God has done, but on this day, I was sad not knowing when I would be back, and sad for the kids not being able to see the team for another year. 

On Saturday, we spent the morning with the staff at CFI for a time of fellowship, encouragement, crafts, and ice cream round 2! These are the two guards, Yimer and Abeebee.

Doing some crafts making bracelets and vases.

We took a walk down the street to take pictures of their staff. Peter and Elizabeth.

With sons Joshua (3 1/2) and Jonathan (18 months)

What an amazing team. These people love Jesus and they love the people of their community. From guard, cook, teacher, and administrators, these people tireless serve our God, the children, and their families everyday!

I am so incredibly thankful for the week at CFI and will always remember this time. 

Stay tuned sometime over the next week for another blog post about the trip.