Eternal Impact :: Ethiopia

Such as we have...

This paralyzed man was able to walk during HCM's outreach in Ethiopia.

The town of Mekele in the northern Tigray region of Ethiopia had no Assemblies of God missionaries.  The capital city of Addis Ababa was the base for missionaries Bob and Rhonda Thomas as well as Dr. John Balikowski.  They had partnered with HCM to bring a medical evangelism team to Mekele as a way of opening doors of evangelism to the unreached area.  A medical team had already been to Addis Ababa the year before and saw many people added to the church, so the Thomas’s and Dr. Balikowski hoped to see the same impact in Mekele, an area dominated by the Orthodox Church.

The team set up clinic in the town’s library and prepared to treat medical, dental, and optical needs.  The gate was daily surrounded by massive crowds—a testament to the desperation of the community.  The team worked long hours each day, meeting the needs of as many as they could.  Each patient encounter brought an opportunity to share the Gospel.  Despite some resistance because of the Orthodox oppression, a total of 103 people prayed the sinner’s prayer.  Considering the local church had only 20 members, the amount of salvations multiplied the church over five fold.  It’s members were given the names of each of the 1,418 people the team came in contact with for follow up.

The team members witnessed many miracles and divine appointments.  There were moments when certain faces stood out and time was taken to make a special connection, whether it was believing for a special pair of glasses to clear away the cloudy vision or asking more questions to discover the real hurt.  Only eternity will tell of all the hearts changed.

One man in particular experienced a miraculous touch that also impacted his family.  He had been paralyzed months before due to an accident and hadn’t been able to walk.  He came into the clinic in a wheeled chair, accompanied by his wife and son.  Jill Monroe, a physician assistant from Pennsylvania, was the next provider to see a patient, so they wheeled this man into her cubicle.  There was little that man could do other than simple exercises to strengthen his atrophied legs.  As Jill talked with him and his wife, she felt the Lord impress on her the story of Peter and John in Acts 3 when they encounter a crippled man.

“Then Peter said, ‘Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.’  Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong.” 
Acts 3:6, 7 NIV

Just as Peter did, Jill asked the man to walk.  She took his hand, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, he was able to walk!  His wife began to weep, saying he hadn’t been able to do that since the accident.  Before leaving, Jill led him and his family in the sinner’s prayer.

Click here to see the full Eternal Impact Report over Ethiopia.