April 5, 2011
Dear Family and Friends,
Last November, I had the opportunity to go to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia as a guest of Beza International Church. Since returning to the U.S., I have felt called to return to Addis, and later this month I will head to Ethiopia as a volunteer staff member for Beza. I have committed to serving in that capacity for one year. I am drawn to Beza’s ministries because they place relationships as a top priority of how they minister to their community. I am confident my time there will bless their ongoing ministry and the people I serve, but it will also be an intensive time for personal growth. I am so thankful for this opportunity.
Please be praying as I prepare and embark on this adventure. There are many details that must fall into place in a short amount of time and I want to be surrounded by your prayers and thoughts. My central prayer is that the Lord will use me through this experience to serve the people of Ethiopia and to touch the people to whom we are ministering.
My primary role will be to research, build and utilize strategic partnerships, and work with the Ethiopian community to serve people living with HIV/AIDS on Entoto Mountain. The women there make beautiful jewelry out of coffee beans and their salary ensures that they and their families can eat for the week. I will be working with education initiatives for the women as well as their children.
Another on-going problem in Ethiopia is many children do not have a home and therefore are living on the streets for a variety of reasons. Some have fled unsafe homes while others were sent to live with relatives who have no financial means to support them. In my secondary role, I will be working with the street children that I met in November who live in the Change for Change house, another ministry supported by Beza Church. Their wonderful smiles are forever etched in my mind and I am anxious to reunite with them.
I will be working for the next year unpaid. If you feel led to support me financially, I would be grateful. Your donation would go to my day to day living expenses (rent, food, and ministry) which is around $15,000 for the year. Although it does initially sound daunting, I am faithful and confident this can be done. You can find more information on how you can make a tax-deductible contribution below. Donations will be accepted throughout my year in Ethiopia and I would be very grateful if you are able to give on a recurring basis.
I feel blessed and honored to be a part of something much greater than me. Since I came to this decision in November, I have yet to feel scared - just excited! I look forward to sharing stories from my experience. You may get in touch with me via e-mail (lsteinhoff@gmail.com), skype (lisa.steinhoff) or follow my blog (http://lifeinethiopia.
Thank you in advance for your support and I look forward to sharing my time in Ethiopia with you.
Much love,
Lisa Steinhoff
“Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.” Isaiah 1:17
Lisa Steinhoff Donation Instructions
How to make a tax-deductible donation - either online or by mailing a check.
1. Online Donations:
You can also go on the Beza web site,www.bezainternational.org
-or-
2. Mail a Check:
You can make checks payable to The Beza Fund with “Lisa Steinhoff” in the memo line and send to:
Beza Fund Inc.
2801 Wade Hampton Blvd. #170
Taylors, SC 29687
1-864-609-1991
Lisa Steinhoff Contact Information
E-mail: lsteinhoff@gmail.com
Skype: lisa.steinhoff
Blog: http://lifeinethiopia.
“Is [fasting] not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame.”
Isaiah 58: 7-11
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