On this journey we have eaten many weird and wonderful traditional foods, so when Emme and I went on our Ethiopian excursion we always opted for the cheap “familiar sounding food”. That is, if we could decipher the horrible spelling on the menu. We just always had ‘cheeps’ (chips), “cooed vegetable”(cooked vegetables), or “spaget” (spaghetti). Our budget did not allow for “stake” (it could be steak or the thing to kill vampires with), calculator chicken (chicken with a side serving of calculators?) or “meet with rice”(a date with a dude called Rice?) On our way back to Addis Ababa to meet up with our team again, the Japanese girl we shared a taxi with suggested we try the traditional Ethiopian dish called “Bisto”. We ordered it very hesitantly and waited anxiously, expecting something like eyeball soup or cow hooves! Much to our delight it turned out to be a very delicious spicy meat sauce served with two loaves of bread.
It reminds me of the book ‘Green eggs and ham’ by one of my favorite children’s authors, Dr Seuss. It is about this character ’Sam-I-Am’ who is constantly trying to get his fiend to try his ‘green eggs and ham’ After much resistance from the friend and persuasion from ‘Sam-I-Am’, he tries his friend’s dish. The illustration on this page is of the friend looking seriously disgusted, like a child who is forced to eat Brussels sprouts… but then his whole countenance changes and he exclaims: “I do so like green eggs and ham. I do so like them Sam-I-Am!”
So often decline new experiences because of the fear of the unknown or because it does not fit into the box we have labeled for ourselves. Sometimes bad experiences or disappointments keeps us locked in the jail cell of solitary confinement that we call our comfort zone.
When I decide to do a year of Explore Africa a good friend told me “Joy I don’t know if you should it because Africa is tough and I know you are a tea and cake kinda girl!” If I had listened to that advice I never would have discovered that I absolutely love roughing it up, sleeping in a tent, climbing mountains, riding in over crowded African buses, camels and motorbikes and to experience the richness of Africa.
The great I AM is always inviting us to step out of out and experience everything he has to offer “For I have come to give you life and life abundantly” -Jesus ( John 10 v 10)
Imagine what would happen if we took him up on his offer. What if we were brave enough to move beyond our comfort zones and extend ourselves to others or develop the dormant passions and gifts God created us with. Fear anxiousness and doubt is a ‘ball and chain’ that keeps us from abundant life. We forget that believing and trusting God is never a gamble. He is faithful, trustworthy, good and always has our best interest at heart.
“Try it and you may (like it) I say!” Sam-I-Am
Sam-I-Am just wants his friend to experience his gastronomic delight because he knows it is really good. Green eggs and ham are not life altering. The friend loved it but I am sure that his life probably stayed pretty much the same after that. When God invites us to experience His abundant life He knows that there is more to life than the mediocre and religious rituals. We were made to be in a relationship with him and to boldly follow where he leads… with reckless abandon.
He has no requirements, everyone is welcome... even a tea and cake kinda girl.