I was excited to go to Ethiopia to spend time with my IM colleagues and to be introduced to the wonderful Baptist family there, to witness God at work through their ministries. But I was thrilled to also be able to spend time visiting my good friend Cherry Teketel Friedmeyer, a visionary Ethiopian woman, who in the early 90’s, founded “Ellilita—Women at Risk”. Being with Cherry, her staff, and the women who have come out of prostitution and are finding healing and hope for new lives was inspirational!

On the final day of our visit in Addis Ababa, our IM team participated in a conference for 90 leaders of the Baptist churches. Each of us was to share with the group something of our area of expertise. I had decided that, as my presentation, the best I could do was to introduce the group to Cherry, and let her take the time I was allotted to tell about her ministry, and the need for the church to be involved in reaching out to those in prostitution.

Cherry and her staff had been praying about ways that during this year, they could work more with churches and thereby further their outreach to women in prostitution. It was a “God Moment”: after Cherry introduced her ministry, the pastors and lay leaders who were present were full of questions about how they could begin ministries, and she received invitations to go to several areas to lead seminars and help them begin the process of shining the light of God’s Love into dark corners.

Cherry was thrilled to have contact, now, with this young, enthusiastic group of Baptist church leaders! Pray with me that they will move forward together, that those trapped in the hopelessness of prostitution will come to know Hope in Jesus Christ!

-- Lauran Bethell