Disabled Children Find Transforming Love in North Africa
Posted Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:00:04 +0000
Harvest of Hope by Amber Holloway, Communications Manager
Many North African families believe that disabilities are a curse from Allah or a punishment for sin. Thus, when they finally hear about the love of Christ for all people, it is often a powerful revelation. Our partner PM International (PMI) has taken up the challenge to serve North Africa’s disabled since 1994. After years of ministry, they are starting to see a dramatic change in how families view their disabled children. Before, they kept their disabled children a secret, now they are showing them love and affection. Before, disabled children never had an opportunity to attend school or engage in social activities. Now, they are receiving life-restoring therapy that is changing their lives and futures.
PMI is working in five regions of North Africa and has helped more than 15,000 people to date. With your gifts, PMI provides sports training, therapy, and medical care for the disabled, as well as emotional support and education for their families. Following is an update from the project leaders:
In City R, we have a center of rehabilitation and sports outreach for the disabled, allowing youth of both genders to have an active lifestyle which improves their quality of life. All of these youth come from broken families, and before they were without any aims in life. Adaptive sports provide an opportunity to develop goals and gives them a desire to live. It is impactful for them that they are receiving help from Christians. Some of them show interest in knowing what we believe and why we follow Jesus.
In City F, we have a computer skills training program for the disabled. We have seen the change in the quality of life of the 76 youth with whom we work. We attend to the students in a very professional and loving manner. In the past, these families have received visits from others who are unwilling to even touch the children.
Jazmin is a North African woman and sister in the faith. She was recently invited to a meeting of mothers from the local hospital to talk about her experience as a mother of a special needs child. Her story caused tears to flow and was a lesson about the true nature of forgiveness. She shared her experience of being abandoned and rejected by the father of her child. The other women were listening carefully. Afterward, one woman told Jazmin, “He doesn’t deserve to see his child ever again and neither does he deserve your forgiveness.” Jazmin had the opportunity to declare that her God forgave her and gave her freedom to forgive and love. “That man will always be my son’s father,” she told the group. “How can I deny my son the right to see his father if God has fully forgiven me?” This simple statement really touched the hearts of the mothers and gave them much to think about. Afterward, the pediatrician of the hospital, a Muslim, said, “This has been the best meeting we’ve ever had.”
We believe that a fundamental value we have shown the community is to love our neighbor with a selfless love, accept those who are rejected, and go far and beyond to serve others. During the last few months we have seen how mothers are showing more love to their children. Several parents have said, “You have taught us how to love our children.” Another couple expressed, “Only you Christians can teach us this way of living.” Hallelujah!
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Indian Believers Joyfully Receive Gift of Bibles
Indian Believers Joyfully Receive Gift of Bibles
Harvest of Hope by Amber Holloway, Communications Manager
Thank you so much for giving toward our Bibles project. Our partner, South India Gospel Outreach (SIGO) was recently able to distribute Bibles in three districts of Karnataka State. The majority of the Bibles were given to villagers who are living in remote villages where there are no churches. The Bibles were received with great joy and excitement. Here are responses from two recipients:
Manjunath said, “Thanks for this Bible book. When I accepted Jesus as my God and left idols, I started praying. Always I had a small booklet about Jesus, but I never knew that such a big book was written in my mother tongue which explains the details of Jesus.”
Vinutha said, “Thanks for this Bible given today when I took baptism. I knew not how God created this world. I didn’t even know how man was created. Being Hindus, my parents told me many stories of creation without any evidence, but praise God today after reading the first page in the Bible God opened my mind to know the truth of creation. It is so crystal clear. Thanks for this! Many of the women come to my house to see this book as this is the only Bible in the whole village. It has become a blessing. Many old men and women who have not heard about these truths are now coming to my house veranda after dinner since there is a public street light overhead. They come to me and ask me to read this holy book. When I got married and entered this village, my mother-in-law neglected me because I never brought much dowry to their house. But now, this Bible has made me lift my head. The same people who mocked me now respect me. In this village I am the only literate woman. My husband is illiterate. Since I started reading the Bible, this book has lifted me up in my mother-in-law’s village. Thanks for this Bible.”
North African Children Say Thank You for Clean Water
North African Children Say Thank You for Clean Water
Harvest of Hope by Amber Holloway, Communications Manager
Our partner PM International recently shared this wonderful story of how your Harvest of Hope gifts blessed the children in one mountain village.
Through the Clean Water for a Family in North Africa project, villagers in arid, mountainous areas of North Africa are supplied with clean water systems, manual pumps for wells, latrines for schools, and public health education. All of these projects show God’s love to the people and better their lives in a meaningful way.
In one village, our partners built a well and latrine for a local school. “We wanted to help these schools and bless the lives of the children,” said the project leader. “Furthermore, we wanted to give girls the opportunity to attend school and get a basic education. Because of the lack of latrines, children had to go to the bathroom outside where there were neither trees nor bushes to take cover. For this reason parents preferred not to send their daughters to school.”
Now the children are healthier and more girls are attending school! This is a letter that the children of the school wrote to our partners and the donors who gave to the project. We know this will touch your heart. It is translated from Arabic and written as a poem.
This is a greeting and an appreciation from the children of the mountains
For whom no one showed interest because they lived like animals
Until God opened the doors to people who took interest in their wellbeing
People who did not care about money or time
But their objective was the happiness of the people from every place
With their help, all hard work becomes light
Their happiness is to see a happy child and they do before they talk
These people are our heroes
They don’t care if our religion is different and they don’t say “this is impossible”
May the Almighty bless them
Praise God! Thanks for your prayers and support for Harvest of Hope!
Make a Joyful Noise to the Lord!
Make a Joyful Noise to the Lord!
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
Imagine a church service with no music. It’s possible, sure, but there’s something about music that moves the heart to praise God. Many of our partner churches in Asia have no musical instruments with which to worship. But with the generosity of Harvest of Hope donors like you, churches through our partner ministry Indonesian Church Growth Network are being provided with instruments for worship!
Not only do our partners use these instruments in worship to benefit the people of God, but they also present the Gospel message to non-believers through performances using traditional bamboo instruments. Read this report from our partner:
“We have already had several opportunities to make use of these instruments at various events, some for public audiences and some for church audiences. This past June we performed at a wedding for a Christian family. Among the wedding guests were numerous non-believing relatives and neighbors. [We were] able to present the Gospel message clearly through the worship songs accompanied by the instruments. Everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy listening to the Christian songs as well as watching the processional wedding parade we performed. It is our prayer that those who heard these songs will continue to meditate upon the salvation truth they were exposed to. We believe the Holy Spirit will perform this work in many of their hearts.
"At the end of June, [we] participated in the opening ceremonies of an annual retreat for the Sundanese. For this festive event we had the opportunity to work together with the planning committee, various Christian performers as well as a local Christian junior high and high school. The adults and teenagers performed this opening ceremony by playing various traditional Sundanese instruments including “calung” (the bamboo instruments), “reog” (the drum set), and “gamelan” (the full traditional set). We also performed a traditional peacock dance as well as “rampak kendang,” another unique drum performance. This opening ceremony provided a truly Sundanese atmosphere which set the tone for the whole retreat and created a sense of pride in the hearts of the audience as they saw how their traditional performing arts could be so beautifully used to glorify the Lord.
Thank you so much for being such a blessing by your gift for these instruments!
"Praise the Lord with the tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flutes!
Praise him with a clash of cymbals...let everything that has breath sing praises to the Lord!"
Psalm 150:4-6
Bikes, Goats, Plows and Accused Witches in Ghana
Bikes, Goats, Plows and Accused Witches in Ghana
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
Your gifts through Harvest of Hope for projects in Ghana are making a difference! Be encouraged as you read the following updates from Emmanuel Anukun-Dabson, Ddrector of our partner, Christian Outreach Fellowship in Ghana:
Bulls and Plow
Thirty missionary families were beneficiaries of this project last year, and they are reaping the benefits of it. At the end of the year all the beneficiaries testified to the bumper harvest they reaped, assuring them of food security until the next harvest season. One objective of this project is that they will, in turn, donate part of their harvest income to support a ministry in Niger so that their blessing will spill over across the borders of Ghana.
Bicycle for a Church Planter
Twenty bicycles were bought for the workers and their assistants to increase their effectiveness on the field. Church planter Abraham Bozie shared, "The bicycle has helped me in so many ways in my ministry. With the bicycle it is now easier to visit the three churches that I oversee."
Church planter Caleb Nasala wrote, "I thank God for giving us these bicycles. The bicycles have been useful to us in the ministry."
Goat Project
The goat project is similar to the micro-credit program except that goats are given to the most vulnerable families to raise. When their goats give birth, they pay back a female kid to be given to another family. According to the reports, this project is yielding the desired results. The early beneficiaries have not only paid back the kid, they have also sold some goats to buy school kits for their children to go to school.
Care for Falsely Accused Witches
The women continue to show appreciation for the efforts made to mitigate their suffering. During my last visit to theirwitch camp in Nabuli on May 10, they were full of joy and received me warmly. They voiced their gratitude to what is being done for them. We are cultivating a farm for them to ensure their food security.
Thank you for your generosity, which is changing lives through Christ's love in Ghana!
Home Sweet Home in Bangladesh
Home Sweet Home in Bangladesh
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
An amazing number of houses for families in Bangladesh were given by people like you through Harvest of Hope this past season--20! What a blessing these new homes will be to families facing otherwise desperate futures.
Because Bangladesh is located where several of South Asia's major rivers come together, it experiences flooding every year. Poor infrastructure and lack of natural resources mean that most of the population lives in poverty, doing labor for low wages. When floods sweep away a family's home, they usually have no hope of restoring their lives to normalcy. Through Koinonia, the relief arm of ministry partner National Christian Fellowship of Bangladesh, we are able to provide sturdy homes to families who need them, giving hope into an otherwise bleak future.
The homes are 12 feet by 16 feet, with woven bamboo mats for walls and corrugated iron sheeting for roofs.
Here's one story of a family that was impacted by your gifts:
Zahura Khatun lives in Gabura village in Bangladesh. She is 45 years old and lives with her husband Shafi and their three children. The only earning member of the family is Zahura’s husband who is a day laborer. Before Cyclone Aila, Shafi worked on a shrimp farm where he earned enough money to care for his family and small house. But when Cyclone Aila hit the coastal areas of Bangladesh, Gabura was badly affected. Like many other families, Zahura and Shafi lost everything. Their house was destroyed and washed away, and they lost all of their household items. After this, the family struggled to survive, especially for shelter and food. They were forced to live in a very small hut made of leaves and plastic sheeting (right). Because of your gifts, our partners were able to provide a new house (below) for Zahura and Shafi and their family. “We didn’t know if we would be able to make our home again,” said Zahura, “as we were still struggling to get food two times per day. We are very happy that now we are living in a good house, our children have shelter now, and they are safe. We are very thankful for your support to build our house. May God give you more strength and capability to help the helpless and homeless people affected by the cyclone."
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Mother, May I Honor You?
Mother, May I Honor You?
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
Less than a month until Mother’s Day! We invite you to honor the women who have made an impact in your life with a gift that will impact the life of a woman or child in need through Harvest of Hope.
Do you appreciate how your mom always provided meals for you growing up? How about giving milk and cereal for a child in Senegal to help another mom provide food for her child? To honor your mother’s care for you at times when you were sick, give a gift of care for a child with HIV in Mali. If your mom was a career woman, give another woman a chance at a career by providing vocational training in Africa or India. Is your mom involved in ministry? How about sending a woman in another part of the world to a leadership training seminar? Check out www.harvestofhope.org/mom to see a variety of gifts focused on women and children.
What better way to honor your mom (or grandma or aunt or daughter who is herself a mother!) than by extending the same opportunities she had to women in the least Christian regions of the world?
Special Mother’s Day honor cards are available that we can either send to you to personalize and give or we can send them directly to your mom. And for gifts of $25 or more, we will include a beautiful embroidered bookmark created by a woman in a vocational training program in North Africa. Order by May 3 to ensure that your mom receives her card in time for Mother’s Day, May 8!
Bibles for India
Bibles for India
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
It's amazing the impact a gift of $5 can have! Check out this update from our partner working with the Banjara people group in India.
“With your recent gift of Bibles, we were able to purchase 250 Bibles to give to the new believers and some of our house church leaders,” said Rev. Lazarus Lalsingh, director of Badavao Banjara Phozear Trust. “This was a great blessing for those who hunger to read the Word of God and know Him better. For those who cannot read or write, we are producing an audio Banjara New Testament to give to the village leaders to play every morning and evening. It will be a very effective way of sharing the Word of God.
"One of our recipients of a new Bible is 12-year-old S. Anand Babu. He says, 'Throughout my childhood our family regularly attended church. This year, at the age of 12, I accepted the Lord. My parents help me know the Lord. I am helping in my church by playing a musical instrument. I want to grow more spiritually and I want to serve the Lord. I am grateful for my new Bible.'"
Children with HIV Receive Care in Mali
Children with HIV Receive Care in Mali
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
If you participated in Harvest of Hope this past season, you should have received a Harvest of Hope Update in the mail. The following is a story we shared in the update about the impact your gifts have had for the project "Care for a Child with HIV in Mali." Ministry partner Gao Evangelical Church noticed a need to care for children from poor families and orphans who are infected with HIV. This new outreach is even receiving recognition from local authorities!
Maimouna is a 13 year-old-girl that is being helped by your Harvest of Hope gifts. Her father and mother died of HIV when she was just seven years old. She was also very sick, and tests revealed that she was HIV-positive. She was rejected by children at school at the time, but today she is in the third grade and is doing better. She takes her medicine and is learning how to take care of herself.
Because of your gifts, 50 children like Maimouna are being cared for with medicine, food, and school supplies. They have also heard many stories from the Bible. “Most of these children come from very poor families, and some are orphans,” said Pastor Ibrahim, Director of our partner Gao Evangelical Church. “Meals are cooked in the center where the children come every day. Because of our involvement in helping these children, the church was awarded a certificate of gratitude from the mayor of the city.”
Thank you for making this project such a success! Please pray that this ministry would reach many children and their families with God's love, and be a beacon of hope in the community.
Training Scholarships Bring Church Growth
Training Scholarships Bring Church Growth
Harvest of Hope by Elizabeth Brink, Harvest of Hope Coordinator
Nepal's population is 75% Hindu. There are an estimated 850,000 Christians in Nepal, or about 2.9% of the population, thanks in part to a growth trend over the past few years. However, the explosive growth of the church has led to a leadership vacuum and well-trained pastors are in high demand to help young churches mature. Our partner National Churches Fellowship of Nepal offers training to men and women from across the country in theology and practical ministry. The following testimony is from a man who took part in the Tikapur Training Institute in Far West Nepal in 2010.
“I was born and brought up in a Hindu family. My aunty heard about Christ’s miracles in church and told me to go to church if I wanted to be healed. I was sick at the time. I went to the church and asked them to pray for me. I was healed. After that, I regularly attended the church. I accepted the Lord in 2007. After being baptized, I received God’s call for ministry. I thought that I should not only concern myself with my own soul, but also with the souls of others who did not know Him. I shared my interest to go to Bible school and in 2010, my pastor sent me to the Tikapur Training Institute. I studied the Bible there and learned about the ministry. Now, I am preaching the Gospel, running house fellowships, and leading and preaching in worship services. The church has grown from 24 members to nearly 50 members in less than two years.” – Kaluram Chaudhary, Kailali, Far West Nepal
How successful is a charity car wash on a rainy day? For children from First Baptist Church in Ellensburg, Washington, very successful! The group of ten elementary students prayed and determined to give a well for Cambodian villagers who had no clean water. Children's Pastor Jean Lembeck shares about their experience...
"I told my four children to humor me this Christmas. I don't need another slip or nightgown in a box to store in a drawer! I asked them to give me a check made out to Partners International for the amount they would otherwise spend on me. They were thrilled to do it! They all responded, plus several more friends who heard about this. I collected enough money to buy a well for Bangladesh."
-Fran Fitz-Stephens, Walnut Creek, CA
Kids Give "Well and a Half" from Rainy Day Carwash
How successful is a charity car wash on a rainy day? For children from First Baptist Church in Ellensburg, Washington, very successful! The group of ten elementary students prayed and determined to give a well for Cambodian villagers who had no clean water. Children's Pastor Jean Lembeck shares about their experience:
"The kids who decided to do the car wash were 3rd-5th graders from a mid-week discipleship group we call "Going Deeper." About once a month we get in the church van and go do something for somebody--pray for someone, do yard work, etc.--and they love this. So this spring I challenged them to do something bigger, something that involved our church or community.
"We brainstormed, and they came up with advertising to do yard work for people, getting food for the homeless, or raising money for clean water for those who have none. One of the junior high leaders was really fired up about the clean water, and she was a big influence in everyone deciding on that project. I tried to stay out of the process, but I did show them a video about clean water that I found on YouTube after they had decided. And (after much discussion) they chose to do a car wash and a lemonade and goodies stand. I showed them the Harvest of Hope catalog with the "Well for a Village in Cambodia" because it was the least expensive option I found for purchasing a whole well, and they latched right on to that. I also tried to show them Cambodia on a globe, but to most of them I'm sure it's just a place where they drink mud instead of water.
"My goals in bringing this project together were to have the kids think of others, and to realize it costs them something to give to someone else. They prayed so sincerely that they would collect money for at least one well, so the people in Cambodia wouldn't have to drink mud. I was proud of them. And they were so pleased with themselves about how much they collected. "Almost a well and a half!" they said. I saw God giving the kids his heart, and I saw him moving people to generosity. It was God's doing that we made so much on a cloudy, rainy day, in a small town where two or three other car washes were going."
The gift of a well for a village provides an entire Cambodian village with a close source of clean water to use for drinking, washing, and cooking. Wells are built through our local Cambodian ministry partners, and are a wonderful Gospel witness. Each well's wet cement is inscribed with "Jesus Loves Me Well." Every time a villager pumps water, they read in their own language of God's love for them.
Allow your loved ones to choose their own gift of hope! Gift certificates come in denominations of $10, $25, $50, and $100.
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Kay Strom asked the question that many of us have asked - what actually happens to the money you give to charity? She began to wonder: Did my hard-earned cash actually make it to that little schoolgirl? Did the farmer get his full allotment of seedlings? And what about the family and its budding goat business? Did my gifts really impact the people for whom they were intended? If I had such questions, I was certain others were also asking. So, for all of us, I determined to find out "the rest of the story."
K-6 students at a Gilbert, Arizona school have raised funds with their "Goats for Ghana" campaign to give goats through Harvest of Hope. The project, which included pet goats as a tangible example, was a huge success, raising enough money to give 47 goats for poor families in Ghana.