Adventist Mission

Not a Moment Too Soon

It was Friday morning, and the crew riding in the back of the hospital’s ambulance was anxious to return to Gimbie. We had had an enjoyable trip to Mugi Clinic. Ayuntu and Yohannis had seen several eye patients, Shaunda had delivered the workers’ salaries, and Mark, Kristin, and I had caught butterflies for a research project. We had stopped at Gulisso Clinic along the way, and had filled the back of the vehicle with an abundance of fresh mangoes from the clinic’s surrounding trees.

The presence of farenjis (foreigners) had hopefully created enough of a stir to up the clinics’ monthly income. Hopefully. Mugi clinic is a great distance from the hospital and is always struggling to make ends meet. Had we wasted our time driving all that way? Yes, we had enjoyed ourselves. But still…. BANG! All of a sudden, we were catapulted across the back of the ambulance. Mangoes flew in all directions. This time it was worse than our previous two flat tires. A steel crossbar had come unbolted from jarring over too many potholes. While Mark and Yohannis tried to get the jack into place, the girls were sent back along the road to drag the mud puddles for the missing bolt.

It wasn’t long before a huge crowd collected. A nearby grade school delayed its starting time by a full two hours as the children joined our brigade instead of going to class. We were mobbed on every side by curious onlookers. “As if farenjis weren’t already strange enough, now we’re pawing around in mud puddles!” Kristin chuckled. “Watch this…” I said, bending over a puddle and fishing out a common place, lemon-sized rock. I adopted an awestruck demeanor and started to pontificate in Oroomiffa about how beautiful the pebble was and how we had been looking for this all along. The crowd looked puzzled for a moment, and then erupted into a roar of laughter, chattering amongst themselves about how crazy the farenjis were. While creating a moment of comic relief, the dramatic display unfortunately did nothing to disperse the crowd. It only magnified our celebrity status. We returned to the ambulance nearly suffocating in the crowd surrounding us, with nothing to show for our pains but a dirty rock.

More excitement had transpired in our absence. The jack had slipped out from its place, smashing Yohannis’ hand and cutting off the tip of a finger! Kristin immediately began administering first aid, but it quickly became apparent that Yohannis needed to return to the hospital ASAP. The only problem was, the ambulance was no where near drivable. We offered a fervent prayer and deliberated about what to do. All at once, a sparkling land cruiser pulled up beside us. A sleek Ethiopian with expensive sunglasses rolled down the window. “Do you need any help?” He asked. “Uh… yes please!” we chorused. The cruiser, it turns out, was with USAID and had been overseeing some projects in the far west. They were now on their way back to Addis. “Would you like us to drop some of you off at Gimbie along the way?” the driver offered. “Uh… yes please!” We chorused again. Kristin and I were elected to accompany Yohannis back to the hospital while the others remained behind to try to fix the ambulance. “If we’re not back by Sunday afternoon, send a search party!” Mark hollered after us. There was no cell reception for miles around; they would be completely on their own unless another vehicle drove by.

The gentlemen in the land cruiser were friendly and talkative, and we struck up an edifying conversation that lasted most of the trip. When they dropped us off at the hospital ER, I gave them a Ministry of Healing as a parting gift. They thanked me profusely and promised to read it.

Only a couple of hours later, who should come rumbling into the compound but Mark, Shaunda, and Ayantu in the ambulance! They were not alone, however. The back was packed with lightning-strike victims and their families! Shortly after we had left, the locals had begun offering various tools and materials to help fix the ambulance. By the grace of God, Mark was able to repair the vehicle just enough to drive home. As they clattered through one small town, a crowd of people swarmed onto the road waving for them to stop. A seasonal thunderstorm had just rolled through, and five men had been struck by lightning while seated together under a tree. The ambulance had arrived just in time.

As I think back over that day, I am amazed at God’s planning. Because of Yohannis’ finger, we were able to witness to a couple of USAID personnel. Because of a busted vehicle, Mark was passing through that town not a moment too soon. The trip had seemed like a waste of time. But God had other plans.“All things work together for good…” Romans 8:28.

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