On the first day of Ethiopian Christmas

It has taken me a sweet forever to put into words the special time that my team had in January celebrating Christmas in Ethiopia. It would be the longest blog post ever so I'm just going to divide what we did into several posts.

On the first day of Ethiopian Christmas...

We loaded up the vans with all the goodies and headed to the countryside. Okay, I didn't really load any of those vans. Some very strong Ethiopian men did that. I just went around looking in the windows of three different vans making sure I had all my people. I did that a lot. At some point during this time someone asked Sumer, "Will we get nauseous on the van ride to the countryside?" Sumer replied, "You will only get nauseous if you are afraid you are going to die." That one sentence sums up a van ride in Africa. :)

On our super, fast, speedy way to the countryside we stopped and took a team picture under an African tree. I thought it would make a cool pic. You can see how cool I look carrying that rainbow bright purse. You too can be that cool if you run into Marshall's the day before you leave for a mission trip.

We stopped for a quick bite on the way to the school...

Well, some had a bite to eat. Some were led to believe that there would be another opportunity to eat that day. This right here is a learning point that I would like to impress to future team members...eat when given the opportunity, you don't know when or where your next meal is gonna happen.

We arrived at the school and it was time for meetings and greetings...

This is Candace meeting Buzyeah for the first time. She sponsors her and she now attends school and no longer depends on the local dump for food. This was one of my favorite pictures from our trip.

This is me introducing my Birhane to some of the team. Several team members met their sponsored child for the first time.

After we got settled it was time to hand out the shoes that Soles for Jesus sent with us to give to all the kids.

Missy and one of our happy customers...

The team trying to find sizes and get everyone fitted...

We started in daylight and ended at dark. By the time we left the school it was too late for dinner so we checked into the resort and packed the stockings for Christmas day!

Taking Care of Business

On my recent trip to Africa I found myself in one of the most glorious places on earth...BUSINESS CLASS!

Yes, I got bumped up to business class because I had the good sense to have my friend/former teacher, Anita, who has some kind of gold/platinum/diamond member status at Lufthansa Airlines join me on this trip. She just flashed her shiny membership card, and I suddenly found myself on lifestyles of the rich and famous. For all of you little people that didn't get to sit on my side of the curtain, let me give you a little peek into my world...

Check out all that beautiful leg room footage! I could have planted a garden on that row. I'm not going to mention any names but a certain mission's pastor had to sit in coach across from a puking child during this time.

This is my slightly medicated self in the seat that reclines out to make a bed. It was during this time that we had a two hour delay that I didn't even notice. (That's just funny because I have some issues with patience. At one point during this trip, one of my friends asked me if I had read my Bible yet that day because I was being so impatient over getting a Pepsi. Just for the record, I was really tired, cranky and thirsty that day.)

The meals in business class are fancy too. Everything comes on glass plates and you get real silverware. No boxed meals for me and no plastic wrappers to open. I wasn't crazy about this fancy salad but that pat of real butter for my bread made up for it. No chemical laden margarine products for me. I like my butter, and I like it real.

This is Anita. Anita brings the funny wherever she goes. She quickly found out that I just didn't take her to Africa, I took her to secret fat camp. Thanks for going to Africa with me and thanks for taking me to the land of reclining seats and leg room!

Mission Monday, Soles for Jesus

My friend Ashley suggested that I come up with some themes to get back to blogging. She actually suggested that I do Menu Monday, but we all know that no one is going to come knocking on this blog door for recipe and weekly menu plans. But I came up with another "Monday"...

Welcome to Mission Monday!

Today I will tell you about an upcoming mission trip or an organization that is changing the world. It might be the organization down the street or it might be an organization that travels around the world.

Today's organization is Soles for Jesus, and my mission team gets to partner with them. It was just like Christmas in December when the UPS man showed up with these 6 boxes this past Wednesday. Oh, it was Christmas week and it was December, I guess that's what made it just like CHRISTMAS! I felt a little bad for the UPS man who had to carry them to my front door and then had to carry them to my garage...(Hello UPS man! My name is High, last name, Maintenance.) I wanted to say hey, this isn't your typical Pottery Barn delivery. The contents of my special boxes are for orphans and you should be excited! but I did not because I'm cool like that.

Wanna peek inside...

250 pairs of shoes from Soles for Jesus!

The founder of Soles for Jesus, Diane Studer, sent me these last week. She has helped Project 61 with shoes before and we are so thankful. My team that leaves next week will get to put these on the feet of our boarding school kids for what I'm calling Ethiopian Christmas Party Extravaganza 2011. The great thing about this year's Ethiopian Christmas Party Extravaganza is that it's not located in a dump, and we're not slaughtering any goats...I think:)

If you are reading this blog and you have no idea what I'm talking about then you need to go here.

Check out the Soles for Jesus website and watch this video to hear Diane's amazing story...

P.S. I was very impressed with the Soles for Jesus boxes and how they were organized. All the shoes have rubber bands around them and then there was a slip inside the box that said how many shoes were in the box. I think everyone knows how much I love an organization with some organization :)

Third World Woman

She is 19. She lives in Africa.

One year younger than my oldest daughter. Both are smart and beautiful but that would be all that they have in common. They're world's apart and the gap is wide.

Her hand touches mine. She wants to talk. My immediate thought is she wants to tell me about her little boy, like any other doting mother. I was wrong.

Her question for me was heavy and cut me to the core. It was not said for reaction or for drama. She just wanted help for a world wide problem...

Can you tell me how to help girls in my country not get raped by their fathers, brothers, uncles and nephews?

I'm no stranger to questions from young mothers but they usually are more simple in nature...

Can you help me with my baby? Can you tell what to do about this diaper rash? Can you tell me when I should start potty training my daughter?

Those are the questions from my world. But I had left suburbia. I was now sitting in a mud shelter in the third world. Where the questions are not simple and the answers seem impossible to find. I awkwardly searched my mind for something to say but my mind immediately went to the size of the problem and the size of the continent that I was sitting on. I knew that she was not the first woman to ask this question, but she was the first woman that asked me.

I had to tell her that I didn't have the answer, but He does and that He loved her so much. We prayed, we cried and we embraced. And now my heart holds her suffering.

She's just a typical woman that wants an answer for her suffering. Don't we all want to know why God allows the tough stuff to happen. Why babies die, why cancer strikes the good people and why children are abused?

When I left this young girl, Satan wanted me to feel discouraged and hopeless...as I have felt before while in Africa. I did not. My immediate thought was I can't change the world, but I can help one woman. One woman who wasn't asking to help herself. She wanted to know how to help other girls. She knows the Lord, she reads her Bible and she prays.

She is now my friend, and she's a third world woman...

How Big Nanny got her joy back

The days following Sumer's departure were quite sad.

Like, excuse me God, but I'm not going to get over my friend moving to Africa sad. I'm not going to forget that You did this. And I don't have to be happy about it. I can just sit in my sadness and just be a sassy miss sad pants.

You can obviously see that I have very deep theological talks with the Lord.

Anyhoo, it was time for Sunday. This would be the real test. Walking into church and not seeing my friend where I always see her. But the Lord was good to give me some distractions that day. Quite honestly, I have about 400 distractions every Sunday (all my normal distractions are under the age of 6 and I'm responsible for their safety) but these distractions were different. I was able to keep busy and go on with my day.

And then I got an email from Sumer that said that I could give her a call whenever I had a chance...

I called her on Sunday afternoon, and we talked for an hour. (I don't advise that you make a habit of talking to anyone on the phone for an hour when they live on another continent. That handy dandy international phone card is about to run out.)

And during that hour she told me all the things that they had been doing, how the boys were doing, what they had been eating, etc. And then she told me what she was going to be doing on Monday...

I'm going to see if I can find Habtamu and then we're going to find these two street kids to see if they want to come to the summer program.

And then she said this (not an exact quote but close)...

And I can't think of anything else I would rather be doing with my day than that.

And then I smiled a real smile for the first time in 5 days. The Lord quickly told me that He knew what He was doing, and it was time to stop being a Sassy Miss Sad Pants.

The Lord gave me a release from my sadness, and I've felt better ever since. I still miss my friend but there was joy in hearing her plan for Monday and knowing that she is experiencing the joy of doing exactly what God has called her to do.

10 Containers

Over the last 5 months I have walked beside my friend Sumer as the Lord called her family to leave the American dream behind and move to Africa to care for orphans. It was last fall when the Lord told them to sell their house. It was their first step and yesterday they walked into a closing to sign the papers and arrived at a destination called obedience.

I know that Sumer was fine with selling the house but when the Lord confirmed they were going long term to Ethiopia; they had to get rid of everything in it. Her house held the contents of 12 years of marriage and 3 youngins' so you know how much "everything" was in it. I watched her sell away her life 50 cents at a time, and I know that it was a little harder than expected. It's all just stuff but much of the stuff we have sitting in our house is there because it holds a memory.

And some memories just don’t fit in containers…



I’ve watched Sumer make lots of choices this week. She has had to sift through the boys things and decide things like…3 pajamas, 10 shirts, 6 pairs of shorts, a few toy cars, 3 sippy cups, etc. because they just can’t take it all. I've sat beside her as she placed the necessities for their new life in ten containers.

(Yes, of course, I labeled those containers. You don't think I'm going to let her go all the way to Africa and not label the containers. When she puts it in a container, I go behind her and take it out and reorganize it...that's how I roll.)

Many friends have asked me what they could get as a gift for Sumer. We’ve packed and rearranged these containers several times and I’m here to testify that there is no room for sweet gifts or mementos. After talking to Sumer yesterday, she told me that they are just $5000 from being able to provide one meal a day for each child that will attend Sumer’s summer school at Great Hope Church.

Teaching school in a church that has tarp walls, a dirt floor and no running water is going to be a new challenge but teaching school to a child that is weak from malnutrition and has a rumbly tummy will be the real challenge. If you want to give a gift that will warm Sumer’s heart and have lasting value, please consider donating to the Project 61 summer feeding program. And if you don't know Sumer but love orphans, we'll take your money too:)

Your tax deductible donation can be made payable to:
Thompson Station Church (Project 61 in the memo line)
Attn: Angela
PO Box 218
Thompson Station, TN 37179 or I'll take it in person too:)

Psalm 140:12 I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy.

Thinking Outside the Bun

It seems that some people seem to think that I'm a picky eater.  In fact, some people might have been a little humored by the thought of me eating who knows what for ten days on another continent. So, I thought I would share a few pictures of our outing to experience a traditional Ethiopian meal. 

Me at the all you can stand buffet.

Our Ethiopian friends would title this one...good for me, not for you.
That's not a taco buffet.  That red stuff is raw meat.

I bet Tabby wrapped that piece of bread up and stuck it in her purse to make a peanut butter sandwich later.  Thankfully, she had some peanut butter crackers to pass across the table.  Every time I walk down the peanut butter aisle in the grocery store, I think of Tabby.

Two Americans...thinking outside the bun and hoping Tabby has more crackers.

Captain D's PLEASE!

I'm not a big seafood lover but occasionally I get a hankering for a 2 piece fish dinner. I prefer to get my seafood from high quality places like Captain D's or Long John Silvers. I know some of you seafood aficionados do not consider that "real" seafood, but it's as deep in the ocean as I'm going for my fried fish and cracklins. But I don't think you can call yourself a "real" seafood lover unless you are willing to eat your seafood like this...

This is Africa fish. If you are a "real" seafood lover, you must be willing to let your fish look at you. Again, just to keep things straight here...I'm not a real seafood lover because any fish product that I consume must be battered at least 5 times, deep fried in grease and of course, call me picky, but I absolutely insist that the head be removed.

Sumer is a "real" seafood lover.

Africa Trip, Part 11: Love Stinks

If you’re a child of the eighties, I’m sure you can remember that song. And if you are not a child of the eighties then I can only hope that you’ve seen the whatever brand of trash bag commercial so you can play the tune over and over again in your head and it will always remind you of the pictures that I’m about to share.

Honestly, I can tell you that I really didn’t have any desire to go to the dump. By this point in the trip, I was ready to go home. I had already had an episode of what I'll call "mission trip meltdown" the night before and I was done. Anyhoo, what would we be the point of going in there for one day and then walking away from children that have to stay there and are dependent on the local garbage truck for “fresh” food. We would just walk away from them and they wouldn’t be any better for our visit. And I would just walk away with the memory of another hungry child in the most desperate of situations. I was wrong. Many lives were touched on this day through love, prayer, provision of food and salvation. But mostly our lives were changed on this day through His grace, His blessing, His presence and His call.

This is the dump. We thought we were going to a dump. We were wrong. It was a landfill. I would love to tell you how big it was but I never saw the starting and stopping point. It was that big and there are no words to describe the smell. You pray to God and say, really God, really? I can't do this. And He says...My Grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in your weakness.

Meet Blessing. Yes, that's his name.

From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another.

His Presence.

How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord.

All I can say about the picture above is that some of us are southern baptist which means...have flannelgraph/will travel. This is Nancy from Alabama. She knows how to tell a Bible story and reminded me of Nikki Witt. (Sidebar for TSC members: Aren't we all glad that Nikki Witt is bringing her flannelgraph back to TSC?)

Our team was able to provide them a traditional meal of "fresh" goat for their Ethiopian Christmas dinner. (When I say "fresh" I mean slaughtered on sight.)

The boy on the right can now claim: The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear.

Yes, that's me with the feed 1 shirt on. This is a very special picture that I didn't even pay any attention to until we got home. It's not special because of what we're doing, it's special because of the girl in the green shirt. That's Sumer. We've been working side by side in my ministry for the last two years. And on this day, she clearly heard God's call and now I have a picture of us serving side by side in her ministry. While some people (myself included) were ready for this day to end. She wanted to come back the next day and the day after that and the day after that...She is taking her family back to Africa this summer to work with these children. I'm sure this won't be my last post about Sumer spending her summer at the dump:) Go read Isaiah 61:1-3...that's the plan.

P.S. This is my final big installment about Africa. I have some silly stuff to share like "mission trip meltdown" and some funny pictures of me consuming foreign food that I will share in the future but this is the final big story.

Africa Trip, Part 10: Six Mondays

When I got off the bus to visit the children of the Karamajong Village, I was overwhelmed. Overwhelmed by what I had only seen on commercials until this day. You know the commercials where kids are standing in line with a dirty bowl waiting their turn to receive their portion and someone on the screen is saying...for just 30 cents a day.


Except I was no longer sitting on my couch with clicker in hand and ready to move on to another channel because really it can't be as bad as they make it out to be in those commercials...surely not.

Six Mondays ago, I was walking in the midst of real poverty...

I was holding some pure religion in my arms.

So here I was in Africa to do what I do...hold babies. And here I was with one on each hip. They were the dirtiest children that I had ever held. They were half naked and they smelled. They fell asleep within minutes. The one in the green shirt first. Then the one in the red shirt. I found a step to sit on and I just sat there. Holding them. I was quick to think they fell asleep fast because they both had snotty noses and didn't feel good. But I really think they fell asleep because they had some arms to hold them.

Pure religion is hard. Everyone makes it out (including my former before Africa self) to just going and loving on some orphans but it turned out to be so much more than that. Normally when I hold babies, I have a mommy to hand them back to. I walked to the food line and handed them to kids who in my world aren't even old enough to hold babies. And then I left.

This wasn't a commercial. It was real life and this time I can't change the channel.

Katie Davis of Amazima Ministries started feeding the Karamajongs last spring. You can read about how God led her to these people here.

Africa Trip, Part 9: Singing hymns on long bus rides

As some of you know, one of my favorite things to do is sing hymns on long car trips. Some of you know all too well:) I own a travel hymnal. Although, most of the classics are stored in my head.

Anyhoo, we lucked up on this trip because we had us a really cool worship singer songwriter girl named Mandi and she brought her ukulele. Yes, her watermelon ukulele. Mandi led us in some really great worship as we traveled along and she also sang her testimony song that she wrote and it was all kinds of awesome. She told me she didn't really know very many hymns because she had only been saved a couple years. But she knew the song Here I Am To Worship, and I will always think of Africa whenever I hear it.



Jesse led us in some hymns on the way to church. I tried to video our hymn singing but my camera was having issues. And I was thinking...I'm actually singing hymns on long bus rides in Africa.

And then Sunday afternoon, Christian music artist, Britt Nicole hopped on the bus and the singing continued. Yes, I don't just go on mission trips with regular people, I go on mission trips with music artists. I'm not down with what the cool kids are listening to these days, so Britt's music was all new to me but when I told the Lil'Nanny that I was going to Africa with someone named Britt Nicole she immediately said, "She sings: I Wanna Set the World on Fire and they play her on WAY FM." ummm okay...thanks for the 411. Britt is a genuine Christian girl from North Carolina and she knows every word to the hymn What a Day That Will Be and that just makes her good people.

You might want to go on over to iTunes and check out Britt. Here is her latest single (single is music industry talk for latest song) The Lost Get Found...

Africa Trip, Part 8: Color Your World

Thanks for the crayons!

Africa Trip, Part 7: Worship, Connect, SERVE!

We arrived at the Jinja Full Gospel Church on Sunday morning, and I have to say that I was quite excited about going to church. In fact, it was one of the things that I was looking forward to on this trip...sitting in church. I've missed a few services over the last three years and that's okay, but I thought this would not be an issue in Africa. I was wrong!

Go read Sumer's post here to hear how we "taught" Sunday School in Uganda. It was quite a hoot, and she forgot to mention the chickens that were walking around behind the children or maybe she didn't notice them, but I did. In fact, if I were a true southern baptist...I would have counted those chickens in attendance;)

I have to say that this was one of my favorite moments on the trip. It seemed so funny that God would bring us all the way to Uganda to do what we do every week. But in that moment I knew that God didn't want me anywhere else but standing on a concrete ledge with just a few children "teaching" Sunday School.

This is the song they taught us:

A few more pictures...

Africa Trip, Part 6: There Is No One Like My God

All this week, I have struggled with Africa.  I'm not sure what to make of the place.  I was expecting for God to give me a huge word and a big vision for a ministry that I would partner with there...I got nothing.  I was expecting to love every minute of my time there, and I did not. I was going to have this huge mountain top mission trip experience, and I did not.  Life in Africa is hard, and I have to keep reminding myself that God didn't send me to Africa to fix the place:)  Today I looked back to see what I wrote in my journal for January 3, 2010 and it said this....

Met Nabukeera Mary yesterday, and then I saw a double rainbow...only God.

My friend Teresa decided to sponsor a child this past November through Amazima Ministries in memory of her daughter Rebekah.  Her family does something special for someone else on Rebekah's birthday each year and they call it Rebekah's Rainbow.  You can read the background here.  Teresa received the information about her sponsored child just a few weeks before I left and sent me with a small package and letter to give to Mary just in case I met her when we went to Katie's house.

I mentioned to Katie early in the day that I was looking for Nabukeera Mary.  I actually showed her the package with her name on it because I really didn't know how to say her name.  She immediately knew who she was and started asking around for her.  She wasn't there yet.  I mentioned to her again around mid-day and still no Mary. We were nearing the end of our day at Katie's house and were getting things cleaned up.  I had layed the package on the table, and I thought that Katie could just give it to her the next time she was there.  I was a little disappointed that I didn't get to meet her because I knew that it would be a thrill for Lydia to have her picture. 

And then Katie walked in the house and said, "Who was looking for Nabukeera Mary?  She's here."

So I met Nabukeera Mary. 

I read her the letter from Teresa.  Many have said that she looks sad in this picture.  I'm not saying she's happy, but I would just like to point out that I'm a crazy excited white woman with a package and tears.

Little stuffed bears and rainbow bracelets cross all language barriers.

We brought her in the house and sized her up.

And gave her a new pair of shoes.

New shoes cross language barriers too:)

We said our good-byes and I thought that was the end of meeting Nabukeera Mary.  We left Katie's house and when we got back to the Kingfisher, our leader had reserved us a boat ride on Lake Victoria.  Lake Victoria is beautiful and we saw lots of colorful birds and creatures.  The sky was clear and sunny for most of that Saturday and about halfway through our tour of Lake Victoria, we saw this....

Rebekah's Rainbow in Africa...

 He was speaking all the time, and I just wasn't listening.

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.