Saturday, July 10, 2010
Recap: The End
Recap: Review of Ethiopian Airlines
Recap: Back in Addis
Recap: Random Adventures
Recap: The Construction Team
Recap: The Medical Team
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
This is Africa
so many things come to mind….
a large continent on the other side of the world
the old-school commercials encouraging others to help feed the hungry children who live there
genocide
AIDS
a people in need
God’s people
beauty
stillness
hope.
My idea of Africa has changed as I explored the land there. I left home to an unknown place with little to no expectations. You see, I didn’t want to get my hopes up as I had on another missions trip I went on in the past. So I left without a clue of what I would see, how God would move and speak, and how I would be forever changed.
While there, the Lord really gave me a tunnel-visioned mindset of the “here and now”…the sentence “you are IN Africa” crossed my mind multiple times a day and I was grateful to God that He allowed me to come to this place and help serve these people. He also allowed me to not get so caught up with the questions of “what are You teaching me here? what am I supposed to take away from this trip?” but rather to live each day to the full for His glory and to serve the Oromo people whole-heartedly. Whether I was in the clinic performing malaria tests or checking expectant mother’s bellies to tell them how far along in their pregnancy’s they were …hanging out with the Smith’s girls…walking around the Langano compound…slaughtering cows or blowing up termite mounds…visiting patients in their homes and being served a meal…going to a funeral and attending a wedding, or simply fellowshipping with the team, I recognized a heart of thanksgiving and a heart of repentance within me. On one hand, I was thankful that God had allowed me to be born in America and to have the education and skills that I have in order to come to this poverty-stricken land to bring hope and help to a people in need. But somehow, at the same time, I was keenly aware of my own selfishness, of my own overindulgence in American culture, and my own idleness in the states of how I spend my time.
Returning home, I have found many emotions surfacing as they come in like tides of the ocean, with their highs and lows, never knowing when they may hit me. I awoke the morning after we returned and while I laid there, I was struck with the idea that I had just slept in MY bed that I own, in my air-conditioned Dallas apartment that I spend too much rent on…but that there were these images and smells that I couldn’t get out of my mind of the land I had just seen, the living conditions of the people there, the people and their hospitality, and of the medical help we were able to provide. As I thought upon these things, I felt the Lord speak His truth over me, that the God we serve is so much bigger than we can imagine, that He is so holy, and just, and righteous, and worthy of our praise. Even though my heart is torn and confused during this time of re-entry, I rest knowing that I will always have a heart for the nations now and I am so thankful for how the Lord has changed my perspective. He is worthy of our time and efforts. He is worthy to be served. He is beautiful.
Recap: I fail...
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Recap: The Wedding
Friday, May 14, 2010
Recap: The Work Begins
Thursday, May 13, 2010
back to the life we left ...
We landed in Addis, the capital on Thursday night after 25 hours of travel. Over the next 3 days, we were go-go-go ... going to a lixo (funeral), eating dinner in an Ethiopian hut, going to African church, preparing for a wedding, unpacking a TON of medications and supplies for the clinic, GOING to an African wedding ... all the while trying to sleep in a bed about 2 inches too short for me, and showers about 10 degrees too cold for me.
There are so many stories to tell from each of the above ... but the wedding was the coolest! Seriously ... imagine the following. Before the bridal party arrived by caravan, several guests show up in eager anticipation. And then ... the first car comes into sight. Franish, a tall, slender, meek (remember this ... meek, I tell you) African woman grabs a drum about 2 feet in length and about 1 foot in diameter, slings the strap around her neck, and begins to beat both ends of the drum. As she is beating, she starts singing ... then she starts screaming ... after each line, the remaining guests begin to gather around Franish, repeating back to her the lines she just sang. As they gather, they begin to sway ... hunching down just a bit at the waist, and moving their hips, and swinging their hands from side to side. As the cars pull up, the bridal party pours out and begin to join the crowd ... the bride and groom stay in the car for just a moment longer. Now, the pastor in the community, Mulatu, begins to sing with Franish. The crowd gets more and more into their celebration, stomping their feet, jumping up and down, screaming as loud as they can.
Now ... imagine us white people ... standing behind this crowd ... awestruck from the awesomeness that is happening before our very eyes. Get this, though ... the more and more they get into it ... I begin to feel the earth beneath me shake!!! It was crazy ... and I loved every second of it! The next 6 to 7 hours was part ceremony/part PARTY!!! We ended the night dancing around a bonfire until there was nothing left except for orange ambers.
The next day was Monday ... the first day at clinic. I have to confess, I was worried. Allyson had been emailing us for months to brush up on our infectious disease and tropical medicine. Short story even shorter ... I didn't do any kind of brushing of medical books. We took a tour of the clinic on Sunday morning. Allyson tried to explain how the work would flow ... and I was getting that gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach, knowing this was going to be bad. So Monday comes, we meet the staff of Ethiopian nurses, translators, and the like ... and we are broken up into groups. I am paired with Allyson, Victoria, and Nwagwo (pronounced Na-gow). Allyson says she will see the first patient so we can see how it's run ... and as the first patient walks in, Nwagwo asks them what is going on ... as the story unfolds ... I know what is going on. The gnawing feeling goes away, and I slip right into medicine mode ... un ... be ... lievable. I take the next patient ... and then on the next ... Allyson looks at me and says, "Josh ... are you interested in doing missions?"
Do you ever have one of those moments, where you don't know whether to cry or vomit or laugh or lose control of all bodily functions ... picture me ... in that dilemma.
"I have thought about missions ..." I replied.
"You know ... we have an opening here in Langano ..." Allyson retorted.
I still don't know what to do with that ... mostly because it was so honoring, and humbling ... and maybe because I felt like my desire for missions had always been just that ... my desire ... never something that was a possibility or in the will of the Lord for me ... but here it was ... sweet, simple, but huge ... an invite into the mission field.
Over the week I would see malaria, malnutrition, mastitis, anthrax (possibly?!?!) conjunctivitis, leprosy and then things I am used to ... allergies, arthritis, coughs, etc. It was so natural though ... frustrating at times as well. In Langano, there are 3 different languages spoken - Am-haric, Oromo, and English ... and so there is the patient who speaks Oromo, the translator that speaks all the, but primarily Am-haric (I think), and then me ... speaking only English me.
It was one of the greatest weeks of my life ...
As a whole, the trip did not radically change my view of God or my relationship with Him. Instead, it was very reaffirming. I felt like the whole time I was there, He would reaffirm certain desires of my heart and reaffirm much of the work He has done in recent months in my own heart. But He also gave me words ... in recent months and years, even, I have had this angst inside of me ... desires I could not express, or a discontentment , or unsettledness ... whatever it was, I believe I have words now to express those desires ... ready for them???
I love medicine ... I love that the Lord has blessed me with an amazing education, and a profession that can be used to change and help so many lives. And now, He has given me a direction ... NOT Africa, necessarily ... but a direction as a whole. This gift has been given to me not to terminate on myself, but to help those who need it ... and those who can't get it. I don't know what that looks like ... but it is going to be an amazing ride figuring it out!!!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Recap: Hello, Langano.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Recap: Arrival in Addis
So we got into the Addis Airport Friday evening, local time. Nothing too exciting happened, which is a good thing in Africa. When we finally got our luggage and started heading out, we were warmly greeted by Shane, Moses (his 5 yr old Zambian son), Austin Mann (amazing photographer/friend that was stranded in Ethiopia b/c of the Volcano), and Amanda Goble friend/former neighbor that was hanging with the Smiths for a month while the Mendonsas in Kenya were home in America). It took a few minutes for Moses to finally warm up, and the first thing he says to me: "Paul Golangco?" I, being shocked that he knew my first and last name, replied, "Yes, Moses?".
Recap: Travelling out of Country
Recap: Pre-Trip Preparations
Friday, May 7, 2010
the trip of a lifetime!
Psalm 67
1GOD BE merciful and gracious to us and bless us and cause His face to shine upon us and among us--Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!—
3Let the peoples praise You [turn away from their idols] and give thanks to You, O God; let all the peoples praise and give thanks to You.
4O let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for You will judge the peoples fairly and guide, lead, or drive the nations upon earth. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
5Let the peoples praise You and give thanks to You, O God; let all the peoples praise and give thanks to You!
6The earth has yielded its harvest [in evidence of God's approval]; God, even our own God, will bless us.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Last Night in Langano
Another quick update...We are finishing up our time in Langano. Tomorrow we will head back to Addis for some much needed R&R. Everyone is safe and fairly healthy (just a little sickness from me due to an Ethiopian wedding and Jessica was having some stomach queezies). Our time here has been amazing, and we are all sad to leave this beautiful country. Moreso than that, the relationships we've made here have been so life giving. I'll try to give a day to day, but it will have to wait until we're stateside. For now, I'm off to pack (and let the Smith's get to bed).
Love you all.
Paul Golangco
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Ethiopia...Our new Home
We made it to Addis Ababa just fine. Spent the night in the SIM Guest House and made it safely to Lake Langano. We haven't had internet access, so sorry this is a little late. But we're all fine and healthy and working hard. The Smith's are great and we've had such an amazing experience so far. I don't have much time, so I'll just leave you with a few experiences so far:
- Ethiopian Funeral
- Baptisms of former sheiks
- Riding around the jungle on the back of a Land Rover
- Baboons
- Calabas monkeys
- Slaughtering a cow
- Eating some funky & sketchy (but good) Ethiopian dishes
- Moses
- I Bless The Rains Down In Africa! (thunderstorms)
Paul G
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
We've Landed!!!!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Last Minute Thoughts...
- Please pray for peace in the country. The elections are going on in Ethiopia, and there is a slight potential for peaceful gatherings and protests to turn violent. Speaking with some friends on the ground there, they said there's nothing of note to report about. So I'm hopeful that nothing should arise during our time there. However, our missionaries on the ground get to be there when the election results are announced in May and June, so keep them in your prayers.
- Please pray for our travel to and from Ethiopia. Currently, we have a stop in Rome on the way there and on the way back. As of right now, Italian airspace is open, and I'm praying that it will remain that way.
- Please pray for the Smiths, specifically for their youngest son, Moses. He has had several swollen lymph nodes all over his body that doctors aren't sure what they are. They will be removing one for biopsy. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and comfort for Mo.
- Please pray that God blows us up! Not just the team, but the Smiths, the villagers, the people we interact with...EVERYONE. I have faith that God will move mightily in ways we don't know. Pray with me in this.
- I watched Bizzarre Foods b/c there was an Ethiopian episode. I now intend on feeding hyenas while I'm over there.
- Phone and Internet connectivity out in Langano is pretty close to non-existant. So I'll try to update this while we are in Addis when we arrive. Then again before we depart. For emergencies, we have a sat phone.
That's it for now. I'm sure another post will come out later today...
Monday, April 19, 2010
Things I will miss ...
1. Starbucks
2. 3G Network
3. my bed
4. Jeremiah Red from BJ's
5. Drinking said beer with @Justin Williams and @Lance Colwill
6. my family ... and hearing updates about how they are doing
7. LOST
8. Electricty
9. Internet
10. Hot Showers
Things I will not miss ... in a VERY particular order ...
1. Driving
2. I 35
3. the bible belt, i.e. religion
Today is the first day that it actually set in ... I'm leaving for Africa in less than 48 hours. And today was the first day I realized that I would not be in my ordinary routine for the next two weeks. Today is my last day at work, the last guy's night for a couple of weeks, my last time at Panda Express ... It's weird ... I'm only leaving for 2 weeks, but I think there is something inside me that knows that it will stay in Africa ... or even die there.
This is the part of me that I can only describe as that last little "pulling" feeling inside of me that keeps me more in the visible reality than the unseen. It's the thing inside of me that chooses doubt over joy, or ultimately, chooses unbelief over belief. I want this part of me to die. I need this part of me to die. We are told that there are, essentially, two realities. The first reality is simple, it is what you and I see everyday. It is what we touch, taste, smell, and understand. But scripture speaks of a second reality ... a superior reality ... an unseen reality. This is the reality where the "impossible" is the norm ... this is the reality of counterintuition ... the last shall be first, the one who seeks to lose his life shall find it.
This second reality is where our faith is meant to be anchored. When our hearts are anchored in the spiritual reality ... nothing of this world can sway us away from the Father. In fact, when our hearts are anchored in the heavenly places, the Father delights in trusting us with His kingdom and we set ourselves up for increase!
So, what does that have to do with me? I think, hope, pray, believe and expect that in the coming weeks, my heart will no longer be anchored in this inferior reality ... that there has been a fragment of my heart that has been resistant to being plunged into the heavenly realm where it WILL BE CRUCIFIED ... but it must be ... and it will be. So this is me ... seeking to lose my life so that I may find it ... and live it to the fullest!
WE'RE GOING TO AFRICA!!!!!!!!!!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Unplugging
Acts 17:26, 27 says, "...26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us..." According to this passage of scripture, penned by Luke almost 2000 years ago, God chose for me to be born where I was and when I was. Why? So that I would seek Him, hoping to find Him. What has happened to me? What has happened to His plan? How is it that He ordained for me to live in 21st century America in order to seek Him and that I allow the wiles of 21st century America to help me avoid seeking Him? I would argue that we live in a time where distraction is an opiate like at no other time in history. I would also argue that it is the intention of the enemy, Satan, that this is so. Nonetheless, I praise God for that last little phrase from Acts 17:27, "Yet he is actually not far from each of us..." God put me here to seek Him, and the enemy, no doubt, works diligently to cultivate the affections of my heart for anything and everything else, but God, in His infinite grace, will not allow His plan to be thwarted. Just as the apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:10 (perhaps my favorite scripture), "But by the grace of God I am what I am..." He called me to this life knowing my evil inclination to deny Him, and He stands near to me, cultivating my heart toward love, stirring my affections to Himself, the only one really worthy of any affection at all. I pray that one day, I can declare with Paul, as 1 Corinthians 15:10 continues, "...and his grace toward me was not in vain."
This long introduction brings me to my thoughts about this trip. I have always believed that any short-term mission trip is- in a vacuum - much more beneficial to the missionary than those being served. To that point, I think I see some of God's design in having me on this trip, at this time, working itself out. We are going to an area of the world where internet and telephony are sparse, and we are going at a time when all communication will be cut off flatly. We will be in a remote part of Africa, cut off from the world and all the distractions I have learned to use (other people have certainly mastered other distractions at other times and in other places) to keep me from dealing with the One that really knows all the evils that still need to be confronted in my heart.
I am looking forward to this trip, well, as much as I can while I am consumed with school work, projects that I am managing for my company, and the myriad other things that feel more like loose ends that need tying up every day. I am looking forward to serving these sweet people that have committed the last year and a half of their lives to serving the Oromo people in Ethiopia. I am looking forward to serving the Oromo people themselves. I am looking forward to being a part of a long string of rich Americans that give up their lush lifestyles in the United States for just a little while to eat food that makes them sick and work in conditions that they never have to tolerate to serve people with illnesses we never see in the U.S. I am looking forward to doing all these things with joy, but this is not a selfless mission for me. I am hoping that God will use the inability to use being "plugged in" to the world to unplug from everything that matters, the physical ailments that may come and the discomfort of not being able to control the climate around me to break something loose in my heart. There are parts of my heart that I know are encrusted, but they have been that way for so long that I have no recollection of what was there. May God use this time to pluck us all from our comfort zones so that we can see the world from a different perspective.
Here are a couple of scenes from Dead Poets Society:
The impact Mr. Keating had on these boys lives had everything to do with changing their perspective. He got them out of their boxes and away from their conventions long enough that they were able to see things a little more clearly. For this, they transfer the admiration Walt Whitman had for Abraham Lincoln onto this school teacher, defiantly calling out to him, "O Captain My Captain!" If this ordinary man could inspire such admiration with just a token shift in perspective, then how much more can we all expect to be turned inside out by our Savior on this trip? This is my prayer for Ethiopia I. This is my prayer for myself, my wife, and our brothers and sisters that are going with us. May our great and glorious King be glorified in our hearts and through our lives.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Coin for Coffee Update...
Friday, April 9, 2010
Coin for Coffee...
What: Coin for Coffee
Why: Help send us to Ethiopia
When: Tonight 8pm-11pm
Where: Maple Terrace Apartments 3009 Maple Ave Dallas, TX 75201 US Map
Friday, March 12, 2010
The countdown has begun ...
Today, we are 39 days away from boarding a United flight to D.C. where we then will connect with a flight straight to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The team seems to be meshing and growing well together. I think we are all excited/eager/nervous/nauseous that we are just over a month away from leaving … for different reasons, financial support, spiritual angst, fearful anticipation, unwant of discomfort, etc. Whatever the reason, regardless of each one's specific circumstances, there is still a very constant theme of hope and excitement in our meetings , which continues to spur us on to the next meeting, and then again to the next … and this is not of ourselves, but a gift from the Father!
Paul, our team leader, asked me this week to write an entry for the team blog. I haven't written many blogs in my time, and not exactly sure what to communicate, so I will just write about what the Lord is doing in my own heart as it relates to the trip.
This trip is actually something I feel the Lord has been pointing me towards for quite some time. I remember several years ago, when I first started going to the Village Church, we had our partner from China come and tell us of the work we were doing there. At the end, he said, "So I'm sure that many of you are asking yourself 'what now?' 'Should I go?' And I can answer that question for you right now. As I have been talking about this, all the work we are doing, the hope of Christ in the nation of China, and telling you about how He has moved … have you been moved? Have you had something inside of you stir and ache to see these things? If you have … the answer is … go …" Cut to Josh, sitting in the rows, looking like a deer caught in the headlights, because this guys has just straight up called me out from the stage. So begins my search to quench this seeming thirst I now had acquired.
I just recently graduated from PA school and as soon as I finished I was looking at short-term missions. There wasn't one specific trip that stood out to me, but there were so many options. I was actually quite hesitant about going on a Medical trip … a lot of it had to do with feeling inadequate about my medical knowledge … I mean, I was just a punk kid, recently graduated from PA school … what could I offer? What could I bring? But as I prayed and talked about it with my friends, the choice became clearer … Ethiopia I …
It's funny how the Lord works sometimes. In the past year I have felt bombarded by Jesus and His Spirit. At first, I thought it was about a billion things in my life that were unsatisfying to Him. I saw no clarity in the direction of my spiritual walk … in fact, I felt torn in so many different directions. I felt like I had to get this in shape over here, and then go over there and tidy up, and then run over there and keep something from falling apart … I seriously felt like the guy who spins all the plates at once … always focused on the individual problems at hand with no end in sight. Little did I know that as I was juggling all of my actions and circumstances … He was about to blow them all up, and let the plates come crashing down. See, I have this thing inside of me that thinks that I have to perform for God … that I have to clean myself up for God to accept me … and that if I don't, He will become disinterested in me … not really angry with me … just doesn't want anything to do with me and having no affections for me.
Through a few "random" divine encounters … my paradigm began to shift. Romans 8:5 says, "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set the minds on the things of the Spirit." It has been through this verse, and the surrounding chapter and dear, dear friends that the Lord has shaken the belief system I once had. See … I have been a believer for most of my life. Specifically, in the past 4 years, I had my life radically changed by the love of Jesus Christ, but I began to fall into a life of 'should' rather than the life that His word tells me that I have. I was shocked by grace in the face of the revelation of my total depravity 4 years ago… and in the subsequent years, I began to see my shortcomings and still tried to perform to gain and keep God's acceptance. I should be doing this … I shouldn't be doing this … Why am I still doing this? … Why am I not doing that … These thoughts filled my mind … and as I set my mind on these things, these things of the FLESH, I began to live according to them … meaning that THEY, these things, became my focus … not Jesus Christ. Did you know that as believers of Jesus Christ that we are considered holy … blameless … children of God? We … are … His … beloved! Set your mind on these things … meditating on the TRUTH that you are holy, blameless, righteous, and a child of the Living God … and you will live with this truth, that Jesus has given you these qualities by His death, as your focus, rather than how you stack up to a religious moral code.
So … a year ago I felt like Christ was taking sucker punches at me from every direction … but … because of the great love with which He has loved me … I can see now that all of that has been pointing to something greater the entire time. I now see clarity where I once did not see before. Right now, that clarity is pointing to Africa. I can't say that I know why. I can say though that He is stirring up a holy expectancy that if I seek Him, I will find Him … not just in Africa … but in the process of getting there, the trip itself, and everyday after. I am His beloved, and He is my God. He longs for me to see His face … and I long to see Him.
Be blessed today … and rest in His love for you today!
jp
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
First Real Post
- Schedules - It seems that we might not have a full team at every meeting because of having differing schedules. Please pray that God works it out for us.
- Finances - We are just over 2 months away from the trip, and we each have $2500 to raise. If you feel led to support us financially, please talk to one of us to find out the best way to donate.
- The Smiths - We will always keep Shane, Allyson, Hannah, Mia, and Moses in our prayers. Please pray for Shane's health, for Allyson's training in Kenya, and for a teacher for the kids (their teacher had to leave for family reasons).