March 2000

Dear Friends,

Today is a red-letter day on the Ethiopian calendar called Adowa, when Emperor Menelik's victory over the Italian army in 1896 is commemorated. It provides a welcome slot for me to write this letter. Second semester began two and a half weeks ago with the usual stir of activities: tuition, dorm and dining room fees must be collected, text books collected at the end of the first semester must be reissued, services for the 106 boarding students must resume and lesson plans must be handed in to the school director. The return of boarders at the beginning of the new semester is always a happy experience. The tears seen on the day of departure are replaced by smiles of gladness. Then staff committees gear into motion. We on the chapel committee must meet quickly to plan the month's program. My counterpart Solomon and I must meet with the student food committee to discuss any problems and to get their ideas on how to improve the daily meals. The entertainment committee must come together to make the monthly line-up of Friday night programs for the boarding students. And the three of us teachers responsible for the seventh-grade drug abuse club must plan for our second semester sessions. First on this docket is a program to be presented to the student body after several weeks. In the midst of all this busyness, God provides the cohesiveness that enables the twenty staff members from Ethiopia, Finland, and America to work together harmoniously toward the goals of this institution.

The semester break, February 4-13, turned out to be an opportunity of a lifetime, as 12 Presbyterians working here in Ethiopia met with some 80 others working in different African countries for a five-day retreat in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. We had been invited by our employer, the Worldwide Ministries Division of the Presbyterian Church (USA), to participate in this gathering for a time of renewal and revisioning for the future. For me, those objectives were met. Days began with worship followed by Bible study. Pertinent topics were presented and then discussed within small groups. There was an openness for sharing ideas, time for getting reacquainted with friends of the past and making new ones. One afternoon, we walked along the 1.7-mile rim of the great chasm into which the Zambesi River drops. What a magnificent sight that is. On the one free day, I joined a group of forty headed to the Chobi Game Park in neighboring Botswana. For two and a half hours, our young pilot cruised us down the Chobi River, pointing out the tip of a crocodile's head over there to the right and the eye of the hippo over there to the left. But what we did see were a lot of elephants! At a certain point, we drew up on the river bank, got into four Toyota vehicles and set off for another two hours of criss-crossing the park in search of wild game. We saw hundreds of elephants, bush bucks and lesser numbers of a wide variety of animals and beautiful birds. God uses many avenues for renewal. I returned to Ethiopia full of such opportunities.

On this coming Sunday, the Danka congregation, one of the two Bethel Mekane Yesus churches here in Dembi Dollo, will initiate its building campaign for a new sanctuary. The present building has served well for at least four decades. Back in the sixties, before the new plant for the Bethel Secondary School was built, this church served as a classroom site for several secondary classes. Now, the building that holds a crowded 700 worshipers every Sunday morning can no longer handle the overflow. Members have been encouraged to bring their tithes and offerings from their harvests recently collected to church on this Sunday. I'm sure it will be a joyous celebration. Please continue to pray for the Bethel Mekane Yesus Synod with its 240 churches. Nurturing this fast growing flock is a major need and concern. And pray for all those who make up this school community. The Spirit of God has been at work changing lives in a wonderful way. Still the needs around us are great.

Cordially,

Jo Ann Griffith