In a dusty village sprawled over the savannah in southern Ethiopia one-hundred Christian women will gather in late fall for a day of worship, teaching and sweet fellowship. The women are recent Christ-followers. Most are illiterate. They are mothers of large families, some of them are one of several wives.
Their days consist of hauling water, searching for firewood and, if they are lucky, cultivating maize or wheat. The tribal religion they have come out of views women as little worth, good only for bearing children and cooking.
God, however, calls these new converts His precious daughters, His chosen ones. He longs to draw them close to hear the beat of His heart, to understand His ways, to feel valued and loved.
For a while now, a small group of women in the U.S. has felt God’s tugging to go to these women, telling them through words and refreshment about God’s yearning to have sweet, intimate fellowship with Him. How can they know such things unless somebody tells them? (Romans 10:14)
Theirs is a storytelling society. Books are unknown. Reading and writing are not taught to women and, in fact, the role they have in their community requires no such learning. But knowing God intimately and learning to listen for His voice is enhanced and activated through His Word. By mature Christ-followers bringing the Word to these ladies, through contextual worship and prayer ministry, we hope to lavish God’s love on these Dear Ones in a very tangible way.
Never in this society is the mother served. She is the server. But this one day, our team will serve them delicious food, a rich wat with goat meat accompanied with plenty of injera (Ethiopia’s cultural bread). Beautiful cloth bags (the uses for that item alone are endless!) filled with washable sanitary supplies, oil for their skin and hair, a beautiful scarf (what woman doesn’t want to look pretty?), a towel and washcloth and a solar powered audio Bible will be given to each attendee.
The Bible is a recording in their tribal language of the entire New Testament. It also contains the stories from Genesis to Revelation showing God’s amazing plan of salvation for all who come to Him. We want the mothers of the village to be empowered to share these stories with their children and encourage their faith.
Coffee in Ethiopia is a time of conversation with neighbors… and who wouldn’t like to hear a good story, too? The women will learn that it is not only men who can share about Jesus, but that as a woman she has a unique role in village life and sphere of influence like no other.
Our goal is to purchase 120 solar Bibles. The ripple effect of putting God’s Word in the hands of women is most likely beyond what we can imagine. God says His Word never returns empty. $28.00 buys one Bible. Not all of us can go to Ethiopia, but you can be part of the Great Commission by putting one of these Bibles in the hands of our sisters across oceans and miles.
