I know your Able and I know you can JESUS!

 

 

 

Salem, everyone from Ethiopia. I have been here for a very long time. In this
post I wanted to share about how much I have felt God here and seen God here.
Being away from my family back in America has been so hard. Especially hard
since it's summer break. I have been here the entire summer. I have not seen
them swim in the pool or go to the zoo. I have missed almost all my Kuchman and
Gabe's baseball games. I have cried myself to sleep many nights . Every morning
around 5 am I get a FaceTime call from Lily. You see, Lily can't fall asleep
without her mommy. I sleep with her every night ( yes, don't Judge ha)! Lily is
my child that is an emotional child. I'm her safe zone. She has learned to be
comforted by FaceTiming me to fall asleep. She lays her head down while I watch
her sleep. She goes right to sleep knowing that her mommy is watching her. Even
if I'm a across the ocean.
You see in this time being here for so long, I have taken comfort like Lily does
with her mommy. I know Jesus is watching over me. He is by my side helping me
get through these trials. I'm honored to have Him in my corner.
You can not be in Ethiopia without seeing Jesus. He walks these streets with all
the kind hearted Ethiopian people. I have been told by many Ethiopians that I am
one of them. I am family. I miss my family back home but so many people here
filled the void. The Brooklyn Hotel owners and staff have made me feel
completely like family . They call me ETHIOPIAN ha!
They cry with me and pray with me. They are family. I will never forget how much
they have helped me get through this hard time. They even invited me to an
orthodox ceremony, where we shared bread and water together. A woman handed me a
glass of water, I drank the entire glass and handed it back to the woman because
she was waiting for the glass back. You see, I came in late to the ceremony and
she handed this glass of water to me right away. Little did I know that she
passed that same glass around to all 80 -100 people in the room and it came from
a bowl and pitcher. When I realized that, I thought to my self, OH NOOOOOOO, I
just drank an entire glass of tap water, aka parasite water. Instantly my face
got red and I started to freak out. You all remember how sick I was when I came
here in March when I brushed my teeth with the water.
So after the ceremony I told the owner of the hotel, Brook, about my worries
over the water. He said so calmly, "It's okay, it's holy water! You will be
fine!" I walked alway thinking, ya right!
He was right, it was holy water, and I'm just fine. You see with God's blessing
on things, everything good comes from it!
This is a good reminder for me as life is often filled with uncertainty. I was
so uncertain about this water and actually about staying In ETHIOPIA by myself.
I have things in my life which I fear will never change or come to an end. There
are other things which keep me up at night, wondering what will happen and when.
The unpredictability of life can keep me on edge, feeling anxious, and fearful.
With this adoption unpredictable is an understatement. I have never cried so
much in my life, but I have also never prayed so much in my life. Being here in
Ethiopia, I have become a lot closer to the Lord. I have learned to trust Him
fully. In the middle of a problem, it is easy to lose sight of God’s
faithfulness and His goodness. We often find ourselves focusing on our problems
when we are in them and we often forget everything else. But God has a purpose
in the struggle, and He is faithful, no matter what. I have seen that during my
time here.
Being here is not cheap and not working is a problem. I have stressed over
money but God has been faithful. He has laid it on my friend's heart to help us.
I'm overwhelmed and humbled by all your donations. I will be forever grateful.
Thank you from all of us!
God never said that life would be easy but we need to remember that He is
faithful, He is good and He keeps His promises: “Be strong and courageous. Do
not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you
wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
We still need lots of prayers . There are only 2 court dates left ( next Tuesday
and Thursday) because of rainy season and then court is closed until October!
Please pray that God makes a way and moves that mountain. He can break all
chains.

 

 

I walk to this church on top of the mountain everyday. It's an Orthodox Church and absolutely beautiful!

Orthodox ceremony with my good friend Anne and her adorable daughter.

The bridge I walk over everyday

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