Finally, our schedule allowed us to try a service at Medhane-Alem church in Seattle.  We had known about it for a while, but never seemed to have the time to drive up there, experience a three hour service, and then the requisite Ethiopian meal.  On the 9th of January, we finally made it happen.  We had no idea what to expect as we couldn’t tell, from the church’s website, whether the service would be in English or Amharic (we assumed Amharic, which was correct). 

The website said the service would be from 10:00 to 1:00, so we arrived at about 9:50.  At that time, we basically had the sanctuary to ourselves, except for the worship band, which was rehearsing.  They finished rehearsal at about 10:05 and others started arriving shortlay after that.  We were warmly received and everyone spoke English to us.  During the service, the pastor invited all newcomers to introduce themselves (I think).  The man sitting next to me provided sufficient translation so we stood and introduced ourselves (in English).  There was one other adoptive family in attendance, with a 7th-grade girl who has been in America a little over a year.

After the service, we were invited to join the congregation for coffee, bread and fellowship.  It was so encouraging to see a large number of people stay for fellowship.  We met the pastor and other leaders in the church, who offered us love and support.  We will try to go back soon.  Daniel and David told us that it was very much like churh in Ethiopia and they followed the service quite well.

While there, we bought some new Ethiopian music – CD’s and DVD’s – for the boys.  They were temporarily out of Amharic Bibles so we’ll have to get one on our next visit.  We would encourage other families in the area to experience worship with this warm, loving, group of believers.