We're Created for Community

I don’t mean to get entirely sentimental or preachy in this blog, but I’ve just been reflecting on the importance of friendship. No matter where we are at, we have seen how having a community of trusted friends makes such a difference in our overall happiness. I don’t mean to say that God is not sufficient in meeting our needs, but rather that He meets our needs through the provision of friends.

 

One of our major prayer requests during our first 4-5 months was for God to provide at least one couple with whom we could really connect. We believe that that prayer was answered in October when we joined Grant and Melissa in the house we are currently living in. Like us, they are in their late twenties, have enjoyed a few years of childless marriage, and share with us the odd combination of introverted personalities yet the enjoyment of showing hospitality toward others. Unlike us, they are not with our organization. Rather, Grant is doing research for his PhD on one of the Ethiopian languages, with the hope of possibly coming back one day to do Scripture translation among that people group. Housemates, like roommates, have the tendency to become either really close friends or worst enemies…in this case, they have become the former. We give each other space, yet really enjoy each other’s company. We praise God for providing Grant and Melissa in answer to our prayers (and yours). Yet, when they finish their research and go back to the States in mid-April, we pray that they will not leave behind the social gap in us that we felt earlier in our time here. For now, we praise God for their fellowship.

 

Friendship is also on our mind today because we just returned from Tatek’s house. Tatek was the guard at the guesthouse that we used to live in. He is also the one we wrote about in our Ethiopian Christmas blog (we had brought food to him while he was working and then he delivered a nice card to us the next day). Well, he invited us to his house, which turns out to be only one room (maybe 10 feet by 8 feet) where both he and his sister live. Surely cooking all morning, his sister had prepared Ethiopia’s finest celebration dish – Doro Wot, along with many other types of food. In their culture, this was a great honor for us. Having genuine friendships with Ethiopians can be difficult because of the vast economic differences. It’s hard to really feel blessed by a friendship when there is the possibility of ulterior motives or requests for help. Tatek, thus far, has been a true friend, never once asking us for anything but time and conversation. As I sat on his bed eating a nice, spicy Doro Wot, I praised God for his friendship, which makes us feel a little bit more at home in this very different culture. Although, I could never measure it, I know that it is things like this that God is using to help us transition well and succeed in what we are doing (thus far, learning the Amharic language and Ethiopian culture(s)). Without a healthy social network (even for us introverts), it is hard to feel the inner joy that we should have as Christians. Why? Because I believe God created us for community.