Day 15: When Tim was in residency, I listened to a lot of podcasts and sermons when I was at home alone at night. One particular night, I listened to an interview with Melissa Fay Greene (author of There is No Me Without You). She had adopted children from Ethiopia, and one passing comment that she made was that they had found an Ethiopian babysitter for their children so that they could have an ongoing relationship with an Ethiopian person once they were back here in the U.S.

I thought that sounded like a good idea for us too since we hoped to return to Ethiopia in the future. I mention it to Tim, he agrees, and then I do nothing to act on it (you know, mom of small children life 😜😴). A couple weeks later, a friend calls and explains that she knows of an Ethiopian woman who came here as a refugee and is now in great need of a temporary place to live. She asks if we might consider renting the room in our basement to her.

I ask a few questions and find out that she’s in her late twenties and WORKS AS A PRESCHOOL TEACHER. *I’m not making this up*. We present ourselves as friends of friends and invite her over to dinner. We find out she is warm, kind, and loves Jesus. Tim extends the offer for her to stay in our basement, and four year-old Sam adds, “God has given us everything we need, so we can share what we have with you. You can stay here as long as you possibly want.” ❤️😭

I could keep writing about this relationship for days. She truly became a part of our family, and she helped us, encouraged us in our faith, and taught us so many things. We are all better for having known her, and God used that line in a podcast to open our hearts up to this huge gift He had waiting for us. #31daysofcalling #lovesinethiopia