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By Travis Kolder: I first met Gizaw Derseh in January at a small Ethiopian coffee shop in Kansas with House of Friends founder, John
Gross, and Sean Hughley. We were exploring the idea of traveling to Ethiopia to start an orphanage. The conversation covered coffee,
Ethiopian history, and how Gizaw came to the U.S.After the discussion, Gizaw asked if we had any questions. My first question for Gizaw
was this: “What's God doing in Ethiopia?” Without missing a beat Gizaw said, “Come and find out for yourself.
We were also looking for men and women interested in taking care of widows and orphans. We had all come as part of House of Friends,
and because of that we believed God had a special purpose for Ethiopia as described in Isaiah 18:
“Listen, Ethiopia land of fluttering sail that lies at the headwaters of the Nile, that sends ambassadors in swift boats down
the river. Go, swift messengers! Take a message to a tall, smooth-skinned people who are feared far and wide for their
conquests and destruction, and whose land is divided by rivers...at [the end of the age] the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will
receive gifts from this land divided by rivers, from this...people, who are feared far and wide for their conquests and
destruction. They will bring the gifts to Jerusalem, where the Lord of Heaven’s Armies dwells.”
Shortly upon arrival, we met with leaders of several churches.In order to protect these individuals not much can be said or shown, but the
work they are doing is bringing multitudes to Christ. We learned much about the spiritual condition of the country and how these focused
individuals have both endured much opposition and seen significant progress in spreading the Good News. We also discovered that the
enemy would throw a lot of attacks our way in the form of physical set backs.
Our response to these attacks would determine our level of victory later. Probably the greatest example of God displaying His power in
the midst of setback was on our trip to Bahir Dar, a city on the coast of Lake Tana. Our intent was to stay several days and meet with
believers. To reach the city we had to travel through the Blue Nile Gorge, a place not unlike the Grand Canyon, which is divided by the
Blue Nile (Remember Isaiah 18?). We had almost crossed through the gorge when our van broke down. The van driver caught a ride to
the next city, but we were stuck as a team in “the middle of nowhere” for several hours. We did happen to break down next to a tiny
village of less than ten houses..Aroea and Kevin Knox, Sean Hughley, and Dan Zacharias took the opportunity to engage the children of
the village through games, fun, and prayer. We even had the opportunity to give Bibles and share the gospel with some of the older
children. And while the chance to minister to the children touched us deeply, it was only the beginning of the miracle behind breaking
down.
By the time our driver returned, it was clear we would no longer be able to get to Bahir Dar that night. Instead, we traveled another hour
to Debre Markos and spent the night. We experienced another night of significant spiritual warfare, but we were assured by the Lord that
the breakdown had set the stage for unseen victories the rest of the trip. When we awoke, those traveling with us had remembered they
knew of a woman in Debre Markos who owned a school and had a heart for orphans. When we arrived at the school we were met by
Fasika, the owner of the school building. There were a number of children attending and they flocked around Brenda Carr, Bethlehem
Derseh, and Kevin and Aroea Knox. While the kids were enjoying their company, several of us spoke with Fasika and shared the vision
of starting orphanages in Ethiopia. It quickly became apparent that this was a divine appointment from the Lord. She later explained that
ten years earlier she had been told the Lord would send Americans to help her start an orphanage and that our vision of Abba House
was a fulfillment of that word. Many of us sat stunned as we realized that we would not have been here had our van not broken down the
day before. We had stumbled into a plan that was much bigger than our own.
Update : Ethiopia The Blue Door Video
Watch the story click Here
Gross, and Sean Hughley. We were exploring the idea of traveling to Ethiopia to start an orphanage. The conversation covered coffee,
Ethiopian history, and how Gizaw came to the U.S.After the discussion, Gizaw asked if we had any questions. My first question for Gizaw
was this: “What's God doing in Ethiopia?” Without missing a beat Gizaw said, “Come and find out for yourself.
We were also looking for men and women interested in taking care of widows and orphans. We had all come as part of House of Friends,
and because of that we believed God had a special purpose for Ethiopia as described in Isaiah 18:
“Listen, Ethiopia land of fluttering sail that lies at the headwaters of the Nile, that sends ambassadors in swift boats down
the river. Go, swift messengers! Take a message to a tall, smooth-skinned people who are feared far and wide for their
conquests and destruction, and whose land is divided by rivers...at [the end of the age] the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will
receive gifts from this land divided by rivers, from this...people, who are feared far and wide for their conquests and
destruction. They will bring the gifts to Jerusalem, where the Lord of Heaven’s Armies dwells.”
Shortly upon arrival, we met with leaders of several churches.In order to protect these individuals not much can be said or shown, but the
work they are doing is bringing multitudes to Christ. We learned much about the spiritual condition of the country and how these focused
individuals have both endured much opposition and seen significant progress in spreading the Good News. We also discovered that the
enemy would throw a lot of attacks our way in the form of physical set backs.
Our response to these attacks would determine our level of victory later. Probably the greatest example of God displaying His power in
the midst of setback was on our trip to Bahir Dar, a city on the coast of Lake Tana. Our intent was to stay several days and meet with
believers. To reach the city we had to travel through the Blue Nile Gorge, a place not unlike the Grand Canyon, which is divided by the
Blue Nile (Remember Isaiah 18?). We had almost crossed through the gorge when our van broke down. The van driver caught a ride to
the next city, but we were stuck as a team in “the middle of nowhere” for several hours. We did happen to break down next to a tiny
village of less than ten houses..Aroea and Kevin Knox, Sean Hughley, and Dan Zacharias took the opportunity to engage the children of
the village through games, fun, and prayer. We even had the opportunity to give Bibles and share the gospel with some of the older
children. And while the chance to minister to the children touched us deeply, it was only the beginning of the miracle behind breaking
down.
By the time our driver returned, it was clear we would no longer be able to get to Bahir Dar that night. Instead, we traveled another hour
to Debre Markos and spent the night. We experienced another night of significant spiritual warfare, but we were assured by the Lord that
the breakdown had set the stage for unseen victories the rest of the trip. When we awoke, those traveling with us had remembered they
knew of a woman in Debre Markos who owned a school and had a heart for orphans. When we arrived at the school we were met by
Fasika, the owner of the school building. There were a number of children attending and they flocked around Brenda Carr, Bethlehem
Derseh, and Kevin and Aroea Knox. While the kids were enjoying their company, several of us spoke with Fasika and shared the vision
of starting orphanages in Ethiopia. It quickly became apparent that this was a divine appointment from the Lord. She later explained that
ten years earlier she had been told the Lord would send Americans to help her start an orphanage and that our vision of Abba House
was a fulfillment of that word. Many of us sat stunned as we realized that we would not have been here had our van not broken down the
day before. We had stumbled into a plan that was much bigger than our own.
Update : Ethiopia The Blue Door Video
Watch the story click Here
| Make a Donation on line: click HERE Make a note that your tax deductible gift is for the Ethiopia project |
Short term : We are providing a
small quarterly financial blessing
for a group of widows. We have
finished a school cafeteria and
school refurbishing project
small quarterly financial blessing
for a group of widows. We have
finished a school cafeteria and
school refurbishing project
Long Term: Our goal is to build
a Children's Home and a
distribution center to provide
care for widows.
a Children's Home and a
distribution center to provide
care for widows.
