[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"\u002Farticles\u002Ffar-from-home":3,"\u002Farticles\u002Ffar-from-home-surround":59},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"bibleBooks":8,"body":10,"columnName":41,"date":42,"description":16,"extension":43,"image":44,"meta":45,"minRead":46,"navigation":47,"path":48,"postType":49,"publication":50,"publicationUrl":44,"seo":51,"stem":52,"topics":53,"__hash__":58},"blog\u002Farticles\u002Ffar-from-home.md","Far from Home",{"name":7},"Dave Faust",[9],"",{"type":11,"value":12,"toc":38},"minimark",[13,17,20,23,26,29,32,35],[14,15,16],"p",{},"I knew I was a long way from home—and not only because I'd been on an airplane for the last 24 hours. A few weeks ago my missionary friend Dan Burner met me at the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and immediately introduced me to a fascinating culture quite different from my own. New sights, sounds, and smells surrounded me as we bounced across rut-filled roads in a small truck, dodging donkeys, goats, and people carrying water jars or wood on their backs.",[14,18,19],{},"During my stay in Ethiopia, I saw indescribable human suffering. In the capital city and in tiny villages, multitudes face extreme poverty, poor sanitation, malnutrition, and health problems ranging from leprosy to elephantiasis—with few physicians or hospitals to ease the pain.",[14,21,22],{},"But I also saw people serving God in Ethiopia, and I'll remember them for a lifetime. A woman who'd lost both hands to leprosy but somehow managed to weave a tablecloth. A church leader who still owns the same Bible he received when he became a Christian in 1965, even though he had to hide it during 17 years of Communist persecution. A shy, pretty teenage girl crippled by polio whose brothers and sisters carried her to school for years.",[14,24,25],{},"Christians welcomed me into their homes and churches as an honored guest. When I sat on wooden benches in grass houses and dined on injera and wat laced with a peppery spice the Ethiopians call berbere, I knew I was a long way from home. But I also knew I was surrounded by God's love.",[14,27,28],{},"Most of the time, Christian missionaries who labor in Third World nations realize they're only scratching the surface of the overwhelming needs they encounter daily; but they do what they can, faithfully providing medical care and Bible teaching. It was humbling to observe the faith, wisdom, and good humor of veteran missionaries like Ray and Effie Giles who have served God in Africa for decades and currently work among the Gumuz people in the Ethiopian lowlands.",[14,30,31],{},"During my visit, I thought a lot about the Ethiopian described in Acts 8. He wasn't poverty-stricken. On the contrary, he was an important official in charge of the queen's treasury. But wealth and social status couldn't satisfy the spiritual curiosity that prompted him to read his Bible during the long chariot ride from Jerusalem where he'd gone to worship.",[14,33,34],{},"And what about Philip? Following the Spirit's direction, he approached the Ethiopian's chariot, made himself available to help, and started a fruitful conversation by asking a good question: \"Do you understand what you are reading?\" He soon found a natural point of contact, for the Ethiopian had pondered Isaiah 53 deeply enough to ask, \"Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?\" Using that Scripture as a starting point, Philip focused the conversation on Jesus. Gladly hearing and believing the good news, the Ethiopian immediately requested baptism, then went away rejoicing while Philip went away to preach in other places.",[14,36,37],{},"And the story goes on. Every day you and I encounter people much like the Ethiopian. In the crowded streets of Addis Ababa, the needs are obvious. But some people are more lost than they look. Nice clothes and busy lifestyles can mask spiritual poverty. Even if they don't look like sheep without a shepherd, lost people in every culture have wandered far from God. How far are we willing to go to bring them back home?",{"title":9,"searchDepth":39,"depth":39,"links":40},2,[],"From the Editor's Desk","1998-05-03","md",null,{},3,true,"\u002Farticles\u002Ffar-from-home","column","The Lookout",{"title":5,"description":16},"articles\u002Ffar-from-home",[54,55,56,57],"Biblical Theology","Church Leadership","Perseverance in Suffering","Spiritual Formation","EXK2T3pleDV6vwj8mmwp2rUpfg5LbHNo21pP46qGRAI",[60,65],{"title":61,"path":62,"stem":63,"description":64,"children":-1},"Faith During the Dry Times","\u002Farticles\u002Ffaith-during-the-dry-times","articles\u002Ffaith-during-the-dry-times","In case you hadn't noticed, real life isn't like \"home on the range,\" where \"never is heard a discouraging word.\" Discouraging words? They seem to be everywhere. Just turn on your TV or read the newspaper. Listen to the whines of your pessimistic coworker who can find the downside of any situation, or the irritating radio talk-show host who thrives on controversy.",{"title":66,"path":67,"stem":68,"description":69,"children":-1},"Favorite Verses (Part One)","\u002Farticles\u002Ffavorite-verses-part-one","articles\u002Ffavorite-verses-part-one","Ask Christians to name their favorite Bible verses, and you’ll get predictable responses. John 3:16, the 23rd Psalm, and Romans 8:28 often come to mind. Someone might mention John 11:35 because it’s easy to memorize “Jesus wept.”"]