Come And See

You might think I’m joking, but seriously. The gathering of Aschalew Abebe from Ethiopia and Pastor Edward Magumba of Uganda was packed to the brim with inspiring words, hard questions we all struggle to answer, tough personal realities, big vision and so, so much laughter. Magic.

In the few days Aschalew was in Uganda, Pastor Edward invited him to do life together. Aschalew met and loved on his family, his co-laborers, and the children he serves. He observed the inner workings of the projects that Pastor Edward has started in response to the needs in his country. In return, Aschalew shared photos of his own family, talked about life and culture in Ethiopia, shared knowledge, and revealed both unique and common challenges of his own. Conversations were full with attempts at new languages, laughter over cultural idiosyncrasies, and moments of deep emotional connection. Pastor Edward even enjoyed his very first ever cappuccino in honor of the common tradition of Ethiopians, who build relationships while drinking some of the best coffee this world has to offer. I think he may be hooked!

 

As humans, one of our greatest relational needs is to spend time with people who challenge us, understand our struggles, and inspire us to see things from a newer, more broad perspective. Meeting this need was the main focus of this gathering, and we believe it was a success. We at Help One Now were inspired by the magic that happened in these few days and are now dreaming of a day that all of our local leaders gather together and share in each other’s lives. On that day, the great strides that will be made in the struggle to end poverty just might end up in the history books.