A Region Office…Orphanage…and a Widows Home = the Church at Work

The original Meserete Kristos Church, built in Nazret by North American mission workers, stands as

a silent reminder of when an Acts-like expansion of the church began.

When the plans were discussed for the original building many wondered who would fill this place…today the original building is used for children’s ministry while extensions have been added on all sides to accommodate the nearly 2,500 members that call this church home…

But the real story of the church is told beyond these walls…

Out of this mother church, 61 local churches (Nazret region) have been planted in the last 50 years (with another 27 regional conferences with 550 congregations spread throughout Ethiopia).

This is a church that plants churches that plant churches!

 

The original vision of the church continues today – when 12 couples are identified in a neighbourhood, village, or city, a new church is planted with the full financial and resource support of their mother church. 

The Nazret regional office also houses a daughter college of Meserete Kristos College. Supported by faculty and graduating students from MK College, the regional campus has nearly as many students and is able to offer diploma level instruction in Oromifaa (the local language). They call a rented 4 story building home for now, with aggressive plans to build a new facility on land recently acquired. Fanosie and I have received their invitation to return to offer a leadership training time when the new facility opens!

Following 2 cups of coffee and multiple handfuls of kolo, we were chauffeured through the streets of Nazret on the backs of motorbikes – it was a refreshing change from the bajaj we had bounced about in the previous days.

We arrived at the gate of Joseph Yelijoch Bet Orphanage and were greeted by the beauty of the compound that boasted numerous papaya trees and even a few coffee plants. I met Tewodros as Fanosie attended to some business. Tewodros arrived at the orphanage at the age of 4. At 11 years old today, he reminded me of my boys at home that I miss very much. He may have felt it strange that this foreigner wanted to give him a hug…

From the orphanage, a winding motorcycle ride brought us to the Widows Home next to Tsega Adama Meserete Kristos Church. I met Tezera on Sunday and it was a blessing to see at least part of the work she engages with tremendous passion. The Widows Home seeks out widows who have no other support network to care for them. Often they are non-believers or Muslims, since as Tezera insists the church needs to take care of its own – her ministry takes care of those who have no church (at least when they arrive as many eventually join the local congregation). The home is undergoing major expansion with another 3 floors being added to house even more widows in need of care.

This is simply the church at work…a movement experiencing incredible expansion…trusting that God will continue to provide…living the servant model of Jesus Christ! 

(written March 20, 2015)