What a difference a few days makes... ETHIOPIA... here I come!

Well, it has been quite a roller coaster ride this summer... Oh boy, even this weekend! The end result is... as of late last night, I have tickets to fly to Ethiopia and see our boys next Monday morning. Yeah, you read that right... 7 days from now.

A few questions you might have....

Whoa, what happened?
Only answer I can give... God happened.  My heart beats with awe and thankfulness for this huge blessing!  The boys read me a passage from their Bibles today about God answering prayers when we ask.  Yeah... HE did in a BIG way!

Who am I traveling with?

Traveling with a friend who lives in Oregon, and after getting to Amsterdam, her 21 year old daughter will fly with us. This is a sweet Christian gal I met as the result of both of us sponsoring kids at the village of Korah in Addis Ababa. She has spent much of the summer there, and after a few weeks at home, is going back for another 2 weeks.

Why so soon?

Well the boys start school in a few weeks on September 12th, and our sponsor child will be headed off to boarding school soon as well. When I heard that Cherrie was going, it was too good to pass up. That and, the ticket prices went WAY down over the weekend!

How long will you be gone?

Monday, August 30th until Wednesday Septemeber 8th.  (Although, I had the opportunity to stay until the 11th with Cherrie... too bad... the 11th is the Ethiopian New Year.  How cool that would have been to see them ring in 2003... maybe next year..)

Where will you stay?

Still working on that one. Maybe with the same missionaries that Cherri and her daughter are staying with, or if not, a Guest House close by.  There are pros and cons to each choice, the biggest is that the boys could probably stay in another room at the Guest House, allowing for some extra attention apart from all of the other boys I will visit during the day.  Hmmm... going to have to pray on that one.

What about Kyle and Kristelle?

For the moment, it looks like they will have visitors... Great Aunt, Grandpas and Grandma's, John will have a day off, and they will spend some time with a fellow homeschooling family...

What will you do?

Love on God's people... most of my time will be spent at Kolfe the boys, but I of course want to visit my sponsor girl at Korah too. A lot of that will be determined once I get there.

As many of you know, I sent off enough school supply packs for the all of the boys at Kolfe.... well, it now looks like I may be there to help Leslie hand those out. I will arrive a few days before she returns to the states. I am pretty excited about that possibility.

Are you nervous?

Um... yeah. It's a chance of a lifetime to love on some really great kids, but it is a crazy thing as well. A friend (who lives there) is hoping to clear his schedule as much as possible to help me with the translation, so I am thankful for the people God has put in my path to help me feel more comfortable.

It's funny... one second I think I must be crazy... the next second, I see this photo, and these smiles, and know...  it will be worth the adventure into the unknown of see these faces (and the other boys) up close.  When I asked today if there was anything they wanted me to bring the three of them (Emnatu's friend as well), like raisins or M&Ms, they said, "only you"...Aw... thank you LORD!!!

Do the boys know?

Yes, I got the opportunity to talk with several of them by Skype this afternoon and tell them. They are excited, and have asked me to show John this message, to put him at ease...



The person and "m" means Mezgebu is doing a happy dance. 
Same thing for "e" Emnatu.  I am supposed to tell John,
 "Don't worry because my two boys will be with me,
so everything is good."



As a side note...

A few months ago I said to someone that my idea situation would be to have a photographer with me when I finally get to meet the boys in person. Funny, God's sense of humor... Cherrie is a professional photographer who takes the most beautiful photos of the Korah kids. She is excited to meet the boys... and... I am hoping that camera will be in her hands when she does.

What can you do?
I would love your prayers for John and the kids, Cherrie, her daughter Emily, and the boys and I... I will try to update our blog when possible if things come up this week, and if I can send some emails home and have Kristelle to post them on the blog.