Day 1: Our Lufthansa flight left on time and we were off to Frankfurt without a hitch. Some, with a little help from sleeping pills, spent most of the 10 ¼ hour flight snoozing. Following a short layover, we boarded our flight to Khartoum, and after refueling they were off to Addis Ababa, where we arrived 15 minutes early at 8:30 pm local time. We were met by Gizauw from Andy Warren's staff, and covered in prayer we moved thru customs without problems. The coach was loaded, and we were off to our guest house on the outskirts of Addis.

Our first full day was spent with a leisurely morning and then joining Andy and a number of his staff at the International Evangelical Church. The service led by Dr. Bill Black was titled "The Politics of Prayer", and challenged us to recall Jesus overthrowing tables in the temple, knocking down the walls and letting all worship God without need for qualification, as we are all sinners. We then joined Andy and Bev Warren, and 6 of the young interns on their staff, for a long, pleasant lunch overlooking a nice view of the hills around Addis. The afternoon was spent reorganizing the team clinic bags and delivering the 3 full team bags of goodies to the intern staff. Two of the biggest smiles we saw were on the interns receiving the new laptop computers we carried with us!

After dinner, Rachel Weller stopped by to update us on the situation with the rural clinics she helps organize, and the clinic worker seminar we will help with over the next few days. The clinics continue to struggle with lack of funds and resources, as well as the tribal tensions in the western region bordering Sudan. She and her husband Michael do plan to move back to Gambella in the west to be closer to the site of need and without any of the comforts of our lives in California.

We are thankful for the prayers of all who are lifting up our team; we feel them and the smooth travel and health of all of the team are just some of the results. Tomorrow we begin our work, and despite our excitement everyone retired early for a good night's sleep.