The Praise of Nations

Every Sunday afternoon, we have team church. This is a time where we spend time in worship, praying, and discussing a passage from the Bible. Sometimes we have other Khawajas (Nuer/Arabic word for foreigner) join us.

This day, Jared was sick, so it was just Keisha, Laura and me. We had recently learned that fighting had spread to Nasir, so we decided that we would spend the time worshipping and in intercessory prayer for Nasir. Like most days of team church, we sat outside in our plastic chairs in a small circle.

As we were alternating between singing and praying, two of our young friends, Nyatet and Molan, wandered onto the compound and sat down with us. Neither of them speaks much English, but they soon realized what we were doing. Many of the people in Gambella have relatives in Nasir, and these girls were no different. Immediately they began to pray with us. Soon after, another one of our friends, Mary, joined us as well.

The time of prayer continued as we would sing a song and pray in English, and then they would sing and pray in Nuer. This was such a beautiful time as we praised God and warred together for Nasir in two completely different languages.

I was reminded that God’s love and worship supersedes language and culture. It was a beautiful glimpse of what heaven will be like; people from every tribe, tongue, and nation praising God together. 

"After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:"Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying:“Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”--Revelation 7:9-11 NIV

Provision

Moving to four different countries in nine months has taught me so much. Living in a town full of refugees, Aid workers, and people I don’t know, who don’t speak my language, or understand my culture has taught me even more. 

One of the lessons I have learned (which I previously thought I knew) is that whatever God intends to happen will come to fruition. There is absolutely nothing I can do but be faithful to what He is asking of me. Being here has made me realize that God doesn’t NEED me to do anything for Him. His purposes will be fulfilled with or without me. I am so extremely privileged that he has ALLOWED me to be here. If by his grace He uses me in the lives of others for His glory, praise be to Him.

Let me share a few stories of God’s provision for our team...

Every friend I have here has literally walked up to us or stumbled onto our compound. We haven’t searched out anybody. From day one when Laura and I went to buy phone SIM cards, we have met person after person who God has brought to us as an answer to our prayers, to become our friends, and to help us as we do life here.

Brooke getting her hair braided by Nyatet and Molan

Our friend Nyatet enjoying the swing Jared made

Me visiting with my friend Nyatuok

Two of my little buddies, Buay and Kir

Since the conflict began in South Sudan we haven’t been able to contact any of our workers in Nasir due to cell towers being shut off. Because of this, we have some compound workers that we hadn’t been able to pay since December. With no way of contacting them to let them know we hadn’t forgotten about them, we began to pray for a way to communicate as well as a way to get them money. We prayed for almost four months. Then one day here in Ethiopia, Jared was getting off a Bajaj (public transport motorized rickshaw), and there stood James, one of our guards from Nasir! He had come with one of our radio workers for medical care. If that isn’t a divine appointment I don’t know what is. We were able to pay our workers through people going back to Nasir, and since then we have run into more of our friends from Nasir. James is even continuing his work here with us in Ethiopia as our night guard. God is good.

Meeting with some of our friends from Nasir, John, Nyakang, and James

God has provided abundantly for all of our housing. We started out in the nightclub hotel. We prayed for a better housing solution, and soon we were able to transition to the mudhuts. As the rainy season approached, we realized that with the kids the mudhuts weren’t the best option, so we began to pray again. Shortly after we started praying, one of our friends informed us of a brand new house in the Nuer area of town. It works out perfectly for our needs.

Our new home

Rats!

I have been living in a mudhut for the past month. The roof is made of grass, but the ceiling is a plastic tarp used to keep bats out and used as extra protection from the rain. When moving into the huts, we had been warned to make sure everything was locked up in containers because of rats. These rats were said to be on the prowl.  They would crawl across the ceiling and come into the huts, chewing through bottles of shampoo, lotion, or anything they could get their teeth on.

The first few nights, we had no rat problems. But then, one night while in the storage hut, I saw a rat crawl down and back up the side of the wall like Spiderman. This gave me the heebie-jeebies. After observing this, I began to be awakened by the scurrying of feet across the tarp. Countless times, I would lie in bed listening to the scurrying, fearing that the rat would fall out of the ceiling onto me.  I reasoned that this was an irrational fear because the rat just wanted food or something to chew on. Also, it was probably more afraid of me than I was of it. 

I then realized that there was a hole in the tarp from a rope extending from the roof, which was used as a clothes hanger. The rat was crawling down the rope into the hut. I cannot even count how many times I woke up because of the rat knocking things over. I would quickly flip on my headlamp to see him scamper up the rope back into the ceiling. After a many nights of being woken multiple times, I began to sleep with earplugs.

Since it was dry season and mosquitoes were rare, I was sleeping without a mosquito net. 

Then it happened.

One night, I was awakened because I felt something on my side. I sat up rapidly, flipped on my light to see the rat jump off the bed and scurry up the rope into the ceiling. BLAH! BLEH! EW! ICK! GROSS! I immediately put up my mosquito net (to keep the rats out, not the mosquitoes). 

Let’s just say, I didn’t get much sleep that night. I did however spend a good amount of time plotting the demise of the rat, and I also named him. His name is Mr. Peebody. In my mind, I cooked up many creative plans of how to get rid of him. Luckily, it was an easy fix as I was able to patch the hole in the tarp with some screen. I'm happy to report that Mr. Peebody hasn’t ventured down since that fretful night. 

Home Sweet Home

Water Crisis

The night club hotel accommodations seemed decent from the beginning. There was a shower, a toilet, and a sink. Not too shabby. However, shortly after arriving we discovered that the toilet did not flush, and no water came out of the faucets. In broken, Amharic-English, we were told by the owner that the water would come in 2 or 3 days. So to hold us until then, they would bring us buckets of water… or at least this is what we understood from the conversation. Unfortunately, some of the message was lost in translation. We later learned that the owner really meant the town water was consistently shut off and is only switched on every few days. Although the bathrooms had the physical appearance of modern plumbing, the water lines were missing. We were used to bucket baths from living in Nasir, and manually flushing the toilet wasn’t too difficult, so no big deal.

The problem came when they hauled in our buckets of water. It was water straight from the river. At first you think, river water isn’t so bad to bathe with. But, this wasn’t just any river water. It was muddy and smelly river water. And after seeing what happens in the river you definitely don’t want to use it.

On the walk to the market, we had to cross a bridge over the river that flows through town. The view from this bridge was kind of like looking through a national geographic (and a health & hygiene nightmare). Upstream, livestock were drinking/cooling off/bathing in the water, then next came the town carwash that was in the river, and finally many men completely exposed bathing. Among all this, there were people with jerycans gathering water. Yikes!

Luckily, we were able to negotiate with the hotel owner to bring us water from a nearby well. 

After about a week and a half, we moved into some mudhuts on a church compound. Never before would I have ever imagined that I would be grateful to move from a hotel to a mudhut…but I was.

Our stay at the “night club” was very eye opening. The hotel owners’ family lived and worked there. Living alongside these Ethiopians, we were able to get a glimpse of life here. Even at 12 or 13, the children of the family were expected to work at the restaurant/bar. The water crisis was another eye opening experience. I have always seen a need for clean water and I am so happy that Every Village drills wells. However, until this experience, I was not able to relate to the gigantic need for clean water and hygiene training. 

River and bridge in town
 (at a slow time...usually the river is full of people and animals)

The Night Club

A little over 3 weeks ago, the Pierce family, Laura, and I moved to a town in western Ethiopia. The town is very near the border of South Sudan and close to Nasir, so there are many Nuer here. We will be here for a few months, as we hope for Nasir to become safe enough for us to go back in. Currently, our main aim at being here is to continue learning the Nuer language and more about the culture.

Before all seven of us packed up our things in Kampala to come to Ethiopia, Jared and Kerry (our Field Director who lives in Kampala), took an assessment trip to find housing for us. The best option they landed on was for us to live in a hotel.

Upon arrival to the small airport, the one rickety public transportation van going to town was full. There we sat, three kids, four adults, and seven pieces of luggage, outside the airport waiting and trying to figure out how to travel the 17km to town. We had come in on the only flight of the day, so there wouldn’t be another public transport van that day. After waiting a bit, a man who worked at the airport began to talk to Jared. He had a truck and offered to give us a ride into town. We took him up on the ride. The seven of us, our luggage, the driver and his friend piled into the truck. It was a squished, bumpy and sweaty ride to town.

When we reached town, we discovered that due to new refugee camps in the area, there were many NGOs in town so accommodations were limited. All of the hotels Jared and Kerry had previously scoped out were full. The men with the truck dropped Keisha, Laura, me and the kids off at a hotel/restaurant and set off with Jared to find us a hotel. After searching for a time, they found a few rooms. The place was rather run down, but it was somewhere to stay for the night. Luckily, later that day, Jared was able to hop on a Bajaj (a 3 wheeled small buggy similar to a motorized rickshaw which serves at public transportation) and found a little nicer place down the road. This place was larger and in slightly better condition (imagine a very shady motel in the states). They only had one room available that day, but said that others would open later in the week. It was decided that Keisha, Brooke, Laura and I would stay at the new place for the night, while Jared and the boys stayed at the first hotel.

Bajaj

That afternoon, the kids discovered some puppies behind hotel #1. The mother dog was very protective from the start, but the puppies were just too cute for the kids to leave alone. As we were preparing to go to dinner, suddenly there was a lot of commotion. The mother dog had bitten one of the kids! Luckily, the dog wasn’t rabid and just protecting her young. (We did monitor the dog for about a week following the bite—there were no problems, all is well now).

By the time we returned from dinner it was already dark. As we road down the road lined with tea shops, we could hear loud music coming from somewhere nearby. I panicked for a minute as I feared the music was coming from our hotel. Soon we passed a joint with loud music and flashing lights. What a relief. I thought I was safe because it was far enough from our place that we wouldn’t be bothered. Boy was I wrong. As we pulled into the gate of our hotel we were greeted by booming music and Christmas lights that blinked along with the beat. We were living in a night club! 

The party continued until sometime between 12-2am (with the same about 8 songs playing over and over—including some Britney Spears and Justin Bieber). Sleep that night was rather difficult, as 4 of us were crammed in a small, hot and stuffy room… not to mention the party that was going on outside our door. 

The next morning we learned that Jared and the boys had a similar experience at their hotel. From what I have observed, many hotels in town turn into night clubs every night. Luckily, our stay at the “night club” only lasted a week and a half.

It Makes More Sense...

       Living in Sub-Saharan Africa has increased my understanding of some of the stories, common themes, and issues faced in the Bible. Here are a few things that I can now relate to:

 1.       Washing feet. I now understand why the washing of feet was a common practice. Walking everywhere on dirt roads and dusty streets, my feet are filthy at the end of the day.

 2.       The miracle of Moses safely floating down the Nile. The Nile is a wide river, with rapids and dangerous animals. It really was an act of God for baby Moses to float in a basket all the way down the river to the safety of Pharaoh’s daughter.

 3.       Flies. In the 10 plagues I don’t think I ever quite understood how annoying and dirty a plague of flies is. There are so many flies here, and escaping their irritating buzz and tickly feet is almost impossible.

 4.       Women and water wells. Many Bible stories involve water wells and women carrying water. Obtaining water for a family is the woman’s job. She may spend hours walking, waiting in line at the well, and carrying the water. Fetching water seems to become somewhat of a social event, as the same women use the same well day to day.

 5.       Life in water. Throughout Scripture, there are many accounts of people searching for water or God providing water miraculously. Jesus even alluded to water by calling himself the living water. Along our journey, there have been a few times where clean water is very difficult to come by. Recently, we stayed in a place in Ethiopia where there was no running water and the only water we could get was muddy river water. Luckily, the water dilemma only lasted a short time. This experience really helped to enhance my passion for clean water being available for all people.

 6.       Power in blood. I have never lived in a place where I would have experienced the slaughtering of an animal for food. Watching a goat being slaughtered or even a chicken being beheaded just for us to eat really caused me to realize the power in the blood of animal sacrifices in the Old Testament. I am so grateful that we do not have to make sacrifices for sins anymore, and that Jesus’ blood was the perfect atonement for sin.

 7.       Communal living. In Acts, the early church is portrayed as a group of people who lived very communally. No one claimed anything to be his own; they shared everything. If someone had a need, those living in community with him banded together to provide. Living in Nasir, on a compound with nine other people, results in communal living. We have our own houses, but we share pretty much everything. I love it.

 8.       Frankincense or sweet aroma incense. Offerings of incense were to be made to the LORD in the Old Testament. After the birth of Jesus, the wise men brought frankincense to Jesus. In this part of the world, incense and frankincense are burned regularly. Although I am not a huge fan of the smell, people here really like the sweet fragrance. It is a good reminder that our prayers are offered up as a sweet aroma to God.

 9.       Livestock. Throughout the Bible, livestock is a main theme. It is used as payment, in parables, in measuring ones wealth, to communicate messages, etc. Before moving here, I understood that livestock was just part of the culture. After seeing disagreements over cattle, donkey carts hauling loads, the pride of the people in the number of cows they possess, or the intricate way they shape of the cows’ horns, my understanding of the impact of animals in the Bible has deepened.

10. Living one day at a time. Jesus told us not to be anxious about the days to come. He told us not to worry about what we’ll eat or drink or do. So far, in my life this has never been more real until this past year. Many mornings I wake, not really knowing what I will do that day. I have to ask God to show me what he has for me that day. Fairly often, my days look nothing like I would have ever imagined myself. God always provides and is always faithful.

End It

While living in Houston, I became involved in an organization that combats sex-trafficking. Since Houston is a major hub for human trafficking, I really had a heart for everyone involved in this trade. Whether a consumer, a pimp, or one offering services, all are in bondage. It was my desire to help raise awareness to end modern day slavery. Because involvement in this ministry was basically in my backyard, making the decision to leave such a pressing and in my face issue was difficult. I figured that moving from the physical front lines in Houston to a village in South Sudan, the best way for me to still be involved in the end it movement was to pray. However, human trafficking is an issue all across the globe, and the Lord has opened some doors for me during my stay in Uganda.

Living in Uganda for a time has enabled me to research the rates of trafficking here. My findings were that due to poverty, low employment rates, plus a few other factors, many women, men and children are being sucked into slavery. Uganda is a big hub for child slavery. Children are forced to work cattle herding, mining, begging on the streets with the money going to their oppressor, working in bars or restaurants, and not a surprise, prostitution. Women are targeted as well. Many times, Ugandan women unable to find work are lured by men whom they have learned to trust (usually a boyfriend, a good friend, or another woman who is caught up in trafficking) into going somewhere internationally in promise of a high paying job. Upon arrival, the promised job is discovered to be a lie, passports are seized, and they are forced into sex slavery. In fact, it was reported in 2012 that “over 600 Ugandan women were trapped in Malaysia’s sex industry”ᵇ. Uganda is also a destination country for trafficking victims from all across Africa. These victims, women, men and children may be sold in cattle markets and forced into both domestic and sex slavery within the country. It has also been conjectured that trafficking of children is directly linked to child sacrifice which is still practiced by witchdoctors in some parts of the country ͨᵈ. All of this breaks my heart.

Being delayed in Kampala has been very trying, but God has been faithful. He has enabled me to actually play a physical role in fighting human trafficking. It is nothing that I have gone looking for, but something that has fallen into my lap. I have a new friend, I’ll call her Jane, whom I believe is being lured in to a situation that will lead to enslavement. I cannot relay much as to maintain privacy, but all signs point to what seems to be a trafficking ploy. I can already see how gracious God has been in protecting Jane. I continue to pray for God’s wisdom on how to handle this delicate situation and for His mighty hand of protection and His intense love to envelop Jane. Will you join me?

Sources:

ᵃhttp://www.makeeverywomancount.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4657:uganda-combating-human-trafficking-of-women-and-girls-in-their-search-for-better-economic-opportunities-a-growing-epidemic-in-the-east-african-nation&catid=70:16daysactivism&Itemid=187

ᵇ http://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/Human-trafficking--The-modern-form-of-slavery-/-/689844/1974562/-/rj8l5s/-/index.html

ͨ http://gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Uganda.htm

ᵈ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8441813.stm