The Red Light District

She was not even 8 years old when they came for her. Mom left and dad was always out drowning his cares with drinks. She was helpless. They abused her and left. Then they came again, so she ran away. Out on the street she was held at knife point. They said, "sleep with me or I'll kill you." After one man had used her he told her she should end her life. He gave her a knife and sent her off. She almost killed herself, but someone saw and stopped her. One girl said, "you are already doing this for free, so let me show you how to make some money at it." With no place to stay, she tried to sell herself out on the street. Still, she was so young that many took advantage of her.

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The stench of urine and waste filled my nostrils and I knew we were getting close. My heart beat with anticipation. With tears and intensity we had prayed for a spirit of freedom for this night. Now all of our prayers had come to fruition and we were in the Red Light District. "Oh God, love through me tonight! Love through me tonight!" was my soul's desperate plea. At last the small white van pulled to the side of the road.

It was time. 

It is well known that this place is dangerous. To many our presence is not a welcome thing. The people know why we are there and that our goal is freedom for the girls. A fight even broke out at one point, but I felt no fear. My focus was on the girls. They were not what I expected...they seemed...normal. They were far from what you would think. We smiled and shook their hands. Some were friendly and smiled back. Others adverted their eyes when we looked at them. Some even followed us around and asked questions. Earlier the girls in the safe homes had passed out fliers for a party a few days later. There they'd have the opportunity to hear about Christ and about freedom. I prayed they would come. I wanted to tell them how much Jesus loved them! The language barrier weighed heavy on me, but I prayed that the love of Christ might know no bounds in us. I pray that our weakness was His strength in that dark place.

I was struck by the vastness of the Red Light District. We walked several streets, but only saw only a small portion. So many girls can stay in business because of the amount of traffic that comes through. It costs next to nothing to get a girl for a while, so lots of men do. I noticed men walking by with a smirks of satisfaction on their faces as they pulled their girl for the night close. The girls wore shame around them like a cloak. It broke my heart. Children roamed the streets, even so late at night. They have no choice. It's either the streets or getting shoved under the bed of the tiny little room they call home. Loud, pounding music blared from the rooms of some. Most of them had posters up of other women, as if the girls are merely the object and the attention is elsewhere. 

Tears filled my eyes as we pulled away. I saw it. I walked through it. I cannot forget it now. These girls will forever have a piece of my heart. I have seen those who are under oppression. I touched them and they touched me. I wish I could take you with me to see it. I wish I could adequately describe their faces, their eyes. You would cry. You would hurt for them. You wouldn't be able to pretend they don't exist anymore. You would have to do something to help.

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She was 11 years old when they rescued her. Trauma and abuse was all she had know for 4 years...4 years of her childhood. She had been through so much that she didn't speak to anyone for almost 2 years. To cope her mind completely shut off parts of her memory. Finally, she started interacting with the house mother and the other girls at the safe home. Then she started to remember. Coping was hard, but she finally started to develop and bloom. Now she stood telling us her story with tears. Betty, the translator had to take over mid-way through because she couldn't finnish. Still, the message was clear...

There is freedom.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.

Ethiopia 2011 | part one

Well friends, here are a few photos about my trip. I think I am finally ready to share more about what I saw. There is so much to share that I'm going to split it up in several posts. I experienced everything from an earthquake to walking through The Red Light District...

It never hits me that I'm going overseas until I'm actually on the plane. I love to journal while we are flying through the clouds. Things seem so peaceful and worries feel irrelevant. It was a long journey, but we finally reached Addis Abeba. 

After a good night's sleep and a shower, we started our trek to Angacha...

Of course there was a little silliness on the way. :)

The land was not what I expected. The land may look beautiful, but the soil is dry from lack of rain. I can't see how anything grows there when all the ground looks like rock. The people are not unlike the soil. Telltale signs of years of hardship were as evident as the dry land in the eyes of some. 

We had hardly been in in Ethiopia 2 days when we were all awoken in the middle of the night. I woke up to my roommate screaming my name and the room trembling. It seemed like a dream to me. An earthquake? In Ethiopia? In the panic we didn't even think to grab anything but shoes. For several hours we shivered in the cold, waiting for the aftershock. It never came, so we went back to our rooms. As you can imagine, sleep was not possible after that.

When light came we decided to explore a bit. Needless to say we drew a lot of attention. The children steal my heart every time. It makes me want to adopt one day.

Such contrast - a shack next to a hotel...well, by third world country standards that is.

With the earthquake behind us, we headed out to the medical clinic to help with their feeding program.

There were so many families in the program. I was so wonderful to see how successful this ministry is in the community. The parents are so proud that their children are doing well. If it wasn't for ICA hundreds of these children would have died. A few of them looked a little pudgy (not much though), which is very, very rare. I didn't see one over weight Ethiopian there. Everyone was extremely thin. 

Beautiful people.

These are the families waiting to get into the program. There over 30 families that came to the clinic just because the foreigners were visiting and were accepted into the program. Their babies were incredibly malnourished and would have died otherwise.

These babies may look like newborns, but they are not. Some of them were up to 6 months old or older.

After finishing up at the clinic we visited the new hospital grounds - they were breathtaking. They made sure to plant flowers at the clinic and the hospital grounds. It's such a simple thing, but to the community it represents hope. Many families have started planting flowers of their own as well. Because of ICA this place has been transformed. The people have future. The flowers are just a symbol of the hope they have that things will get better. That is indeed a beautiful thing. 

This is the crop of potatoes they harvested from the land. God has really blessed these grounds. I thought it was amazing that the money for these things came from a local church in Ethiopia, not from America.

I was able to use a Nikon for the day! It's strange how foreign my point-and-shoot feels after so short a time. I made a good choice in not bringing it though. My mind was much more focused on what I came there to do, instead of photos.

There is so much work yet to be done. ICA has made a huge difference in this community and we got to be a very small part of that. Still, I can hardly describe what it is like to walk among them and feel their need. The burden still weighs heavy on my heart.

More coming soon...

Transitions

Were we live the weather is so unpredictable. It can go from cold to hot in what seems like minutes, especially during the fall. It makes it hard to transition into the autumn season. It feels like life is doing the same thing to me. These past few days back in the states have been really hard for me. I've been thrown from one setting to another and I feel rather lost. There is so much I still have to process, but life must go on.

I love the life God has given me. I'm thankful for where I am. Still, I know things in me are changing...things that need to change. I just got back from a quick trip home for an engagement shoot. I usually take the chance to take some photos of my family while I'm there. (Thus, these impromptu photos! I love the one above! It is my siblings in a nutshell!) They wanted to know all about the trip, but I found it hard to talk about. It was so good to spend time with them, but I have a huge heaviness that is weighing on my heart.

However, I hope to share more about what I experienced in Africa. This trip has help transition me into a new phase. I am changed. My leaves are falling and it is a beautiful, but hard thing. I pray God shows me where to go from here.

My heart is full. My mind is filled with beautiful and intense memories. I hardly know how to put them into words, but I hope to soon.


How have you all dealt with life's abrupt transitions?

Back from Africa

Hello all! I just got back from Ethiopia last night! Man, it was quite a trip. I have been overseas many times, but I have never experienced anything like this past week. I have seen so much. I knew it would be hard to process all of what I saw, so I put together a few video blogs from the trip along with a few photos. I just brought my little point-and-shoot, but I was able to use several other nicer cameras as well. I hope to be posting more soon!

Until then, I hope you watch this video. I hope it gives you a small glimpse into what it was like. Oh, and sorry for the shaky camera...apparently I didn't know I was doing it!

Untitled from Jennifer Blair on Vimeo.

Day 8

The least of these

"'For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'" - Matthew 25:35-40

Day 6

To live is Christ

"As it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with fullcourage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." - Philippians 1:20-21

Day 4

Spiritual Strength

"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." - Ephesians 3:14-21

Day 3

Worship

"Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire." - Hebrews 12:28-29

Kingdoms on this earth can be shaken. Things are not certain here. God's kingdom cannot be shaken and it is secure. No matter what may happen in this life we are guaranteed a future in Christ. That is the hope that we have to offer the people of Ethiopia. This is why we worship our God.

Day 2

Giving and Provision:

"Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully...And God is able to make all grace abound to you so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times you may abound in every good work." - 2 Corinthians 9:6,8

While I'm gone...

Right now I am probably driving to the airport getting ready to board my flight to Ethiopia. I probably couldn't sleep last night because I was so giddy with anticipation. I probably woke up early just to watch my husband sleep for a while, knowing that I am going to miss him so much while I'm gone. Right now I am probably praying that God uses me in spite of myself on this trip.

I really hope you pray for me to. I can do nothing without the power of God in my life.

I have a few verses I wrote down to meditate on while we are gone. I have scheduled them throughout this next week. I hope you'll take a moment as you read them to remember us.


"Your abundance at the present time should supply their need." - 2 Corinthians 8:14

Truly, they have so many needs. I pray that God uses us, and his abundance in our lives to help them.


See you all when I get back!

Love,

Jennifer