Monday, April 28, 2014

Life After Ethiopia

Roughly three years ago, we stepped out in faith to prepared for a short term mission trip to Ethiopia-Stephen preparing to man the fort & take care of our kids & myself to travel to the beautiful land.  Never would we have expected nor planned what God would do in our life & through us to reach others. God used our experiences while I was in Ethiopia to ROCK OUR WORLD! Simple things, like cool rainstorms or corn in the produce section of the grocery store, take me back to a beautiful country & land that I long to return to someday. To a people that I grew to love & some of which taught me more than I taught them. While I can never express everything I experienced & just how much God used that trip, to further His kingdom & to change me & my family, I can share some of what has happened in the aftermath. 

When I left for Ethiopia, Stephen & I had already begun serving at our church with the Regenesis Ministry. Per Pantego Bible Church, a little about Regenesis: In 2009, Africa came to our doorstep through a special partnership with refugees from Burundi and other central Africa countries. Resettled in the United States, these immigrants demonstrate great need and a great desire to preserve their African identity. A growing community of about 150 refugees now meet at Pantego Bible Church for weekly worship and a strong partnership has been formed between two congregations.-  

Stephen & I were able to lead a  Sunday morning Bible study with Regenesis  junior high & high school students over the summer. Stephen befriended a particular junior high student named Ahadi. Over the past couple of years, our whole family has grown close to his family. We've gotten to love on them & serve them in so many ways: celebrating birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, shopping for school supplies & back to school clothes- Stephen even got to take Ahadi to driving school. Through it all, we have been so blessed by this family. 

THANK YOU-THANK YOU-THANK YOU! THANK YOU again for your support & prayers! My trip in 2011 to Ethiopia was amazing! We were able to share Jesus with so many people & many professed their faith in Christ! Stephen & I both grew & were stretched by this mission trip. When I returned home from Ethiopia, I wrote the following:

God has been working in our hearts for the past year with the ideas of simplifying, dying to self and focusing on His ways not our own. While in Ethiopia, I was confronted with materialism in my life and how it causes me to turn my back on the Lord. Upon returning from Ethiopia, I was no longer comfortable with my old, everyday living. I felt a stirring to align my thinking & decisions to His plan & purpose & to live even more radical than before. I felt led to downsize our home and land, and use our resources for God's purposes. After much discussion with my husband and prayerful consideration, we're stepping out in faith & in obedience to put our house on the market and are patiently awaiting the Lord's direction for the next step.
SO- After almost 9 months of our house being on the market, we downsized to a house with almost 50% less mortgage, 2/3 less land, & 800 sq. ft smaller. When we moved in to our new house, we just felt at home!  Through our simplifying, we were able to sponsor a little girl named Meti from one of the towns that I visited in Ethiopia, and we were giving the chance to give big! 

My trip to Ethiopia was just the first step in many steps of faith...literally!  A month after returning, I began training for my first half marathon! After months of training, I completed my first half and while running, raised money for a water well in Africa. Since then, I was blessed to have been able to complete my 2nd half marathon & raise even more money for another water well in Ethiopia. Through all those steps-the Lord drew me closer to Him & He carried me through my runs & races. It was uncomfortable at times but amazing! It was wonderful time with the Lord during my countless early morning runs. 

God has been stirring up other changes in our hearts-big life changes! We're excited, a little scared, but honored to be able to play a part in God's story & plans. I long to one day return to the beautiful land & beautiful people of Ethiopia, God willing. Thank you again for what you've done to support, encourage, love & pray for us. It's hard to even put into words how we have been forever changed. I pray that we will continue to follow hard after Jesus & that He will continue to change us so that we will continue to change His world. 

To God be the Glory-
Stephen & Tasha