Trip Log Day 11

This morning was Sunday, so we all went to Desta’s church, only he wasn’t there. He preaches every Sunday so to get a break he convinced all of us white people to give a message. He asked for 10 minutes each, with translation that is only about 5 but it is still a very long time to stand in front of people you have never met and speak. We walked in the church looked like it was about to burst from the number of people in there. Steve did some math and estimated there were 1,200 in a space that in North America would have held half that. When it became time for us to speak I was so nervous I don’t quite remember what I said but I do know I read from 1 Corinthians 3

10By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Meaning that eMi is only here in Durame for a little while and we can only start the plans, the people have to bring them to life; and if Jesus hadn’t been here even before us, then we could not even be here. Then I just prayed that what I said made even a little bit of sense to someone in that massive crowd or that at least they would know that we were there to help them build not to build for them.

Tonight was the big presentation! I can’t believe we finished it all in time. We have seven building plans, a large master plan, and a few elevations. I have no idea how that all got done in essentially a week. It’s kind of a miracle, well a miracle with a lot of work involved. All the elders of the church, some students and other concerned citizens came to the meeting and I believe the presentation went fairly well. We had time for a few questions at the end of the presentation. The way questions are phrased in this culture is really interesting. They first start out by praising God, then thanking the team, and then they ask their question finishing off with another thank you. Nothing is direct, thanking is extremely important and time is relative. I think we could learn a few things about how to be grateful and patient. The presentation was opened and closed in prayer. And these people know how to pray. It is all in Amharic and it is almost rhythmic in flow. It is beautiful to listen to.

In Him,
Cindy

P.S. Click to see images or the presentation, both on flickr.