ethiopia journal – feb 19, 2007
Last night was one of the most real/unreal experiences I have ever had in my ministry or really in my life. It started with an idea I had the day after we played soccer with a few street kids. The thought was, “I wonder what their lives are really like.” I mean nothing in me can fathom kids really existing on the streets in ANY place let alone on the streets of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – a city of 5 million people in one of the poorest countries of the world. The thought that I had was what would it be like to just spend one night on the street with just a few of these kids – to feel what they feel, think what they think, see what they see, fear what they fear, touch what they touch, lay down on what they lay down on, smell what they smell, experience what they experience and live just for one night like they live.
At first it was just a thought, but soon it became a prayer. A prayer that asked if this was what God was leading me to do. A few days ago a spent a few days praying for some friends who were in Charlotte planning to spend the night on the streets with a few of their homeless friends. So maybe it actually began with a prayer for them. I would never claim that this is the wisest thing to do nor did I really want anyone else around the SIM compound to know I was contemplating it. So was it God’s Spirit that was leading me to do this? That was my prayer.
After some prayer, I asked Andrew what he thought about the idea. Later he told me that he thought I was just kidding. On Saturday or Sunday we met a guy named Ephraim who is a 23 year old local guy who has been around the SIM (Serving In Missions) for several years. He seems to have a ministry heart and a gladness about serving. He had just finished helping a long term missionary couple, so he came highly recommended as a guide. We spent some time with Ephraim on Sunday and I asked him about my idea. He first wanted me to ask him again because he wasn’t sure he heard me right. Then he told me that he had once been a street kid when he was about 10 years old and someone at SIM had helped him out. He said he knew many of the street kids around and knew where several of them slept for the night. He was surprised at my request because no one had ever asked him anything like that before. I told him I would pray some more and we would see. On Monday I asked him if he would take us to some street kids and spend the night with us (Andrew and I). I still wasn’t sure I was going to go through with it, but I thought that this might be God’s provision of a perfect guide for us. Someone who could speak English and Amharic, someone who had experience being on the street. I told him I would pray some more and call him later.
Monday afternoon came and I felt for sure we would give it a try. When else am I going to get a chance to displace myself to be with some of the most hidden forgotten people in this world. Why would I not do this? I decided safety was the only reason not to – something that rarely holds me back. I remembered my phrase “risk often” and called Ephraim to see if he could definitely go with us. He said yes and that he would meet us around 11:30.
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