Did God really create TOO MANY people and NOT ENOUGH resources?

This question was raised tonight at the dinner we attending, celebrating the one millionth micro-finance loan given this year through Hope International to people in poverty stricken countries.

Does the picture to the right make you feel uncomfortable? I hope so. Why are there so many people here in America and other wealthy nations that have so much, while there are people in some countries that have so very little? Did God really create too many people and not enough resources to take care of them?

You and I both know that is not the case. I see this as an opportunity for us to take care of God's people as we would take care of our own children. We can wipe extreme poverty from face of the earth once and for all if there were enough people committed to helping out their fellow man.

I want you to imagine for a minute that this little boy on the left was your child. Could you bear the thought of knowing that he may not live to see tomorrow because you simply do not have the means to put food on the table?

There are days in my house that we throw out more food that this child will probably eat in a week or two. We have been so incredibly blessed. Who are we to shrug our shoulders at this obvious need around the world?

There is hope! Hope International helps provide people in poverty-stricken countries with micro-economic loans with means to start a business to support their families and sometimes their communities. Rather than simply buy them food, Hope International uses the "teach a man to fish" mentality to help eradicate poverty one small loan at a time. They have thousands of success stories and I encourage you to read about them on their website by clicking here. Not only does Hope International provide loans for their physical needs, but they help with spiritual needs as well. Many people have come to the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ through the love extended by this program all around the world.

What are you going to do about poverty?

This previously unreleased footage was shot and edited by Clifton Kern.

(see his website here)

Please keep your heart open while watching it.

God bless Sendafa.

Life Without Grandparents

Imagine your life without your grandparents. They may have passed on by now, but chances are you were able to spend time with them at some point. They held you on their laps, hugged you, and spoiled you.

Many kids in Ethiopia never even get to meet their grandparents. Why? Because the average life expectancy for a man in Ethiopia is only 52 years and for a woman it is 55 years. The main reason for this is sickness and HIV AIDS.

This is why the Adopt a Village program is so important. Our church is helping raise the standard of living in Sendafa, Ethiopia one person at a time. The clinic that is made possible through this funding helps dozens of people every day with a wide range of illnesses. We now have 500 women on our drug program who are receiving Anti-retroviral at no cost. In many cases, not only do these drugs extend their lives, but it allows them to become productive members of the town again.

 My hope and prayer is that through our support and love for the people of Sendafa, we will begin to see children with grandparents in the years to come.

God bless Ethiopia, and God bless Sendafa!

Defeating a pandemic one child at a time

-TWO MILLION PEOPLE die each year from AIDS.

-TWO MILLION children under age 15 are HIV-positive.

-ONE THOUSAND children become infected each day.

-NINE OUT OF TEN children who are affected by AIDS live in Africa.

(statistics from UNICEF)

Compassion's AIDS Initiative provides the following:

1. Prevention
-health and prevention education
-mother-to-child transmission prevention
-initial testing

2. Treatment
-transportation to and from clinics
aniretroviral therapy (ART) and other medicinal support
-combating opportunistic infections and diseases (TB, malaria, etc.)
-nutritional supplements to aid treatment.

3. Rehabilitative care
-direct, ongoing health monitoring
-housing/shelter assistance
-income-generation assistance

Visit Comppasion's AIDS Inititive website here and help create hope one child at a time today.

Even $5 per month can make a difference. I support this cause and I challenge you to do the same.
God Bless,
-Micah

The Children of Sendafa

 Another day in Nigeria the children beg for bread
The crops failed, the well ran dry
When they lost the watershed
A baby dies, its mother cries the children gather 'round

They're wondering what the day will bring
Will they be the next one found
Do you dare to look into their hollow eyes
In the crowded sheds the children lay their heads
To escape the Haitian heat

The hunger pains drive them to the street
Wondering if today they'll eat
Some found food in the refuse heap
Others find disease

Some find it harder just to live
When they can die with ease
Do you dare to look into their hollow eyes

The least of these is hungry
The least of these is sick
The least of these needs clothing
The least of these needs drink

The least of these knows sorrow
The least of these knows grief
The least of these suffers pain

Lyrics from "Hollow Eyes" by Petra - describing the life of children in third world countries and challenging us to do something about it.



Click here to hear the song on Youtube.

Day 5- Completing Projects and Sharing a Bond

Ethiopian Praise

This morning Mike Parthree invited a group of young people from Ethiopian Outreach Ministries (EOM) to lead worship for us at our morning devotions. They sang two traditional Ethiopian praise songs, and then we all joined in on the last song in English. It was so powerful to be on the 7th floor of the hotel, viewing the entire city, and the sun came up, and praising God with these brothers and sisters from halfway around the world. I could almost imagine God looking down and smiling and nodding His head. (I bet He was tapping His foot too)

I felt privileged to work with these men.

Back in the village, we headed back to the water tank to wrap up the structure. The concrete was cured, and the mason had cemented in the main support poles for each corner. A few minutes after we arrived, the mason arrived with a crew of two men and a woman (the same woman who helped him with the cement a couple days ago)

No girlie-men here!

We got right to work putting up the rest of the frame and cutting everything to length. None of the workers spoke English, but it was fun communicating with them non-verbally. We all had a common purpose in mind, and by the time the project was complete, we had a sort of bond between us.

The completed structure atop the water tank.

We finished putting the last piece of steel up just after noon or so. It felt so good to have completed the project. Even though we would not be installing the actual chlorinating system on this trip, we were so much closer to accomplishing that goal than we were five days ago. As I looked around at the Ethiopian workers, I knew that they had the same sense of pride and accomplishment in a job well done as we did. I didn't need to speak their language to see that. We said our goodbyes to the construction crew after giving them all of the snacks and water that we had with us, and headed back to the Sendafa Hotel to meet the rest of the team for lunch.

Dr. Frew had left in his truck to bring out team leader to a meeting, so we walked back. It was about a half mile walk, and we really enjoyed it. Walking down a dusty road under the bright sun, sharing smiles and waves with kids as we pass by... there's nothing like it.

Dr. Frew Tangene and I

Later that night at dinner with Dr. Frew and his staff, I had to opportunity to learn a lot more about his program that ministers to prostitutes in the red light district of Addis Ababa. He helps them with vocational training so that they can get new jobs, and helps with tuition so that their children can get a good education and not have to resort back to that way of living. I will tell you more about the ministry in another blog. Dr. Frew is a good man, and I enjoyed getting to know him this week.

Packing Day

Today we had our final team meeting before D-day. (departure day) It's hard to believe that next Sunday morning we will be leaving on our 7,000 mile trip to Ethiopia!

The main purpose of the meeting was to get all of our supplies packed into bags. Since each of us is allowed two checked suitcases and a carry-on, we take only one personal bag and pack the other one with supplies we will need for the trip. Most of what we packed was vinyl for the floors of the homes we will be visiting and fabric for the walls. We also had to pack the tools we will need, food for our bag lunches, and vitamins for the kids. With a fifty pound limit, we made good use of each bag and packed each to the max. We utilized a digital scale and got most of them in the 45+ pound range. I saw several that were 49.5 and 49.7 pounds.

Out of the 17 team members from our church and 5 from another local church, at least 8 were trip veterans who have been Sendafa 4 or 5 times already, so they had a lot of good advice.

Next Sunday we will meet at 10am and load up for our trip down to Dulles International Airport in Washington D.C. Everyone is welcome to join us for a send-off prayer just prior to 11am. If you cannot attend, please be in prayer for us at that time or anytime that day.

We should arrive in Sendafa Monday evening where we will settle into our hotel and get for our week in the village. I think I can speak for all of us, when I say that we are honored and humbled to be afforded this opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus. My prayer is that the people of Ethiopia see Jesus through us and we are able to share about our Relationship with Him.

Vitamins!

Anther bit of news that we just learned about our rapidly approaching trip is that we will have the opportunity to visit some of the kids that are on our vitamin program and help distribute some of the vitamins.

Bianca is very excited about this opportunity. She cannot wait to see those smiling little faces and share some love and hugs. Can you blame her?

Chlorination!

We just heard the exciting news! After months of trying, we finally were able to get the chlorine into Sendafa for the new chlorination system.

Last year we completed drilling a fresh water well that adequately supplies the village with water, only to find out that the water contains over eight times the acceptable level of bacteria. The clinic doctors say that 80% of the illness that they treat is due to ingesting contaminated water. To solve this problem, we purchased a chlorination system, but we unable to install it due to the unavailability of chlorine in the area. In fact, we could not get any in the entire country!

A few weeks ago, we were asked to have a couple of the more mechanically-inclined members of the team on standby in case the chlorine arrived in time for us to set up the equipment. I was excited, because from what I've been told, this is the first system of it's kind in the entire country! Well, I am sure that God shared our enthusiasm, because He opened doors in customs and allowed the proper chemicals to be cleared after months of trying. I am very excited to have the privilege of helping out on a project of this magnitude.