Blessings in Ethiopia

“You know this is all your fault, don’t you?”

Two weeks ago, that is what my son, Colby was telling me as I was facing him, trying unsuccessfully to fight back tears.

“You are the one that started all this, so it’s really your fault! You know that don’t you?”

I laughed and gladly accepted the blame. Guilty as charged, with no denial.

We were sitting in a place I thought I would never be; somewhere 100 miles or so south of Addis Ababa, the only city I had ever heard of in Ethiopia. It felt like we were in an oasis in the middle of nowhere when we first arrived, but God showed me that this is somewhere. This place was somewhere that mattered. Now that I am home, I realize that everywhere there are people and God’s creation, there is a place and a people that matters. There is no such thing as nowhere, because nowhere implies there is nothing of significance. On this earth, nowhere doesn’t exist.

The founders of HOPEthiopia understand this far better, far deeper than I do. On the edge of Harbu Chulule, they have made a statement that this place matters. They have boldly made a statement with their faith, with their hands and feet, with their intense love, that God cares about this place and because God cares, so do they. The work they are doing is incredible. Their hearts for the people of Ethiopia (and Rwanda) are inspiring. Actually, inspiring seems like a weak description – it is mind blowing, heart tugging, and gut-wrenchingly challenging. I had never wanted to go to Ethiopia, but by the time I left, I couldn’t imagine anywhere else that could have been better.

I was there for the Parent Vision Trip for the World Race. Colby left in January on the World Race, making stops in a different country every month to work with mission agencies and churches already on the ground spreading the gospel with their lives in word and in deed. Ethiopia was month nine and it was the location for the one-week window where parents could meet with their “racers,” an event called the Parent Vision Trip. We were the first group to do the PVT at HOPEthiopia and the blessings were all ours.

Our hosts allowed us considerable time to spend with our kids, but the last evening was set aside for parents and racers to share “blessings” with one another. I had just finished choking and sobbing my way through my two pages I had written for Colby, when he said, “You know this is all your fault, don’t you?” His reference was to one of the best decisions we ever made as parents.

Somewhere around 2007, Sandy and I made a decision that we wanted to go on a short-term mission trip to Niños de Mexico, an orphanage outside of Mexico City that our church was supporting. We were inspired by friends who had gone, and after listening to their report, we decided that we would sign up as soon as the church put together a group to go. The only problem was, no one was putting together a group. After a while of waiting we realized that a short-term mission trip wasn’t going to happen unless we just did it ourselves. So, we did. We had no idea what we were doing, but by God’s grace we managed to put together a group to go in 2009 for a one-week trip. For this trip, Sandy and I led the group and left our kids with family and friends. We had no idea at the time what we had started.

The experience surpassed all expectations. Our eyes and hearts were opened wide and before we had time to process everything, we knew that we had to go back. Once we made the decision to return, we also knew that we needed to take our kids. And we did, multiple times. Niños de Mexico became a family destination. We took turns going in various combinations and both Colby and Calli spent a summer there as interns.

So, when Colby said “this is all your fault” I knew what he was saying. His first trip to Niños was 2012, and it was the start of something that none of saw coming. The first time he went we did some pushing, but there was no holding him back after that. Not only did he go back to Niños, but he began looking for other opportunities and his heart soon became set on finding a way to work with a mission agency. His freshman year he learned about the World Race. From the moment he heard about the World Race, he knew it was a must in his master plan and he set his sights on going. We were not overly supportive at first, but we soon realized we were not going to stop him, so we might as well support him. As I sat on the couch in Ethiopia, seeing the light in his eyes as he talked, I realized it would have been wrong to discourage him and, after all, this was all my fault to begin with. I had no one to blame, but myself, and I was beyond happy to accept the full responsibility.

Most people back home see the pictures and the blog posts and likely do not realize how trying the race really is. I know I didn’t fully understand or appreciate the difficulties Colby had to face until I had to opportunity to sit face to face with him. I shared a taste of his experience while at HOPEthiopia, but my experience was resort living compared to what the racers have had to endure through the last several months. There have been physical challenges, emotional struggles and unbelievable spiritual battles. I have watched my son from afar through this process and realized that he has changed. Through the trouble, his faith has grown in incredible ways. His faith has become his own – no longer just an extension of his parents’ faith, but genuinely his own. He has become a man, but not just a man; a man after God’s own heart. That is what I was trying to tell him through all my two pages of blubbering – that I was proud of the man he has become. It was a blessing I was pronouncing on him, but I felt like I was the one who was more blessed. And then the blessing multiplied.

“You are the one that started all this, so it’s really your fault! You know that don’t you?”