ETHIOPIA/KENYA

Last week Mike and I were praying for our sweet neighbor because instead of being across the street, she was across the world in Africa on a medical mission trip.

When we first heard about the terror attack in Nairobi on Saturday, it was startling until we remembered she had gone to Ethiopia.  (Note: Ethiopia and Kenya share a border.)

Staci is a young mom and part-time nurse at a pediatric clinic with a particularly welcoming glow about her.  While she went to do medicine, her prayer request had been that she could love well and be able to present Jesus clearly.  That seemed to us a superfluous prayer since she comes by loving so easily.

We have loved her posts and delightful pictures as she found common ground
teaching "Rock, Paper, Scissors".  Some things are universally understood.

Children and a few adults are waiting patiently for treatment.   There was also
head washing (for 70) with a bucket of dirty water and lice so big...
Staci said she could swear one winked at her.

There are always favorites and this little boy named Obama fit under her arm nicely.
She shared a Luna bar with him and then broke off a bite of her tuna sandwich.
He gagged at the tuna and did not ask for more food.  

This malnourished little girl received a toy that Staci's daughter (pic on table)
 had sent.  Staci told the girl that her daughter was praying for  her. 

The children of Ethiopia are sweet-natured
and very compliant.

Now contrast that to Nairobi, Kenya.

The mayhem is horrific as we hear of terrorists lining people up and demanding they pray a Muslim prayer as a pop-test to delineate between Muslims and the others.  Then they executed non-Muslims.

Terrorists killed at will... bombed... and set fires.  They do not believe people they call infidels have a right to live.

The Bible says the enemy comes to steal and kill.  On Saturday he destroyed property and stole peace of mind from hundreds before he took 62 lives and wounded 200 more.

Why?  That's what the enemy does.

There is a growing movement in contemporary America to remove all religion from the public arena.

It is thought that Christianity should be restrained along with all other faiths and then the problem would be cured.

But when Christianity is withdrawn, the Holy Spirit (who is the restrainer of evil) is also withdrawn.  We are tasting that fruit.

When our neighbor went to Ethiopia,
she didn't go to destroy but to restore and serve.

Some might have listened to her tell of Jesus and some did not.  She surely did not have a bullet for the ones who didn't listen; the Lord told us it would be that way.

Big difference.

"I have set before you life and prosperity on the one hand, and death and disaster on the other."  Deuteronomy 30:15

Choose life!