Worldwide Family Activity Report - January 1996
FAR021- GP
January 1996 by The Family, Zurich, Switzerland

The Family
Making a Difference!

         Every day, in over 60 countries on six continents, full-time Family volunteers work to bring hope, happiness and God's Love to others. Following are some highlights of their recent activities and experiences, as reported by Family missionaries.

Motivation and encouragement for the deaf
From Mark and Faithy, Hyderabad, India:
         When our Family community undertook to plan, organize and conduct this city's International Week of the Deaf celebrations, we suddenly found ourselves in the midst of the biggest public event that most of us had ever been responsible for. Nearly 2,500 deaf people took part in the three-day affair.
         The first day consisted of the opening ceremony, a bazaar which featured articles made by the deaf, and a seminar for parents, teachers and non-government organizations (NGOs) who work with the deaf. The Minister for the Handicapped for the state of Andhra Pradesh was the chief guest at the seminar. Members from The Family shared the podium with speakers from UNICEF, government officials and university professors. Premika, our 11-year-old daughter, who is deaf, "sang" several songs in sign language, accompanied by several associate members of The Family who are also deaf. The performance touched the hearts of all.
         The second morning we conducted a painting competition, followed by a free "health camp." Various hospitals donated their services, and we offered free eye, dental, and ear, nose and throat checkups. That afternoon, we had a talent competition which included participants from many schools for the deaf throughout the state of Andhra Pradesh. Everyone who attended received a free lunch and snacks, courtesy of local businesses through donations arranged by other Family members.
         On the final day, we held the valedictory function at one of the nicest halls in this city. The Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh was the main guest. There were awards and gifts for everyone: prizes for those who won the competitions; mementos for all of the participants; tokens of appreciation to sponsors of our programs for the hearing impaired; and a Family-produced sign language booklet for the parents and friends of the deaf, to enable them to better communicate with the deaf. The singing troupe from a Family community in Bombay made the nearly 1,000-km. (600-mile) trip in order to perform at the closing ceremony.
         After the final day's program, many of the parents of the deaf thanked us for all that we had done for their children. This was the first time that they had ever seen anyone do something so concrete to encourage and motivate the deaf in this Indian state, they said.

Courage and faith for suffering children
From Tim, Claire and Sam, Hungary:
         For the past year, we have paid regular visits to a large hospital which specializes in treating children suffering from cancer-related sicknesses. During that time, we have done numerous presentations for the children, their parents and the hospital staff. Each time, we incorporate into the show faith-building stories of others who have overcome difficulties, and been courageous through adversity and pain. We also offer them reassurance that no matter what happens, Jesus is right by their side and loves them. Sometimes we read these stories, and at other times adults and children from The Family act them out, or present them by way of songs, puppet shows or clown acts.
         Our visits are having a wonderful effect on the children, as evidenced by the light and hope on their faces and their renewed enthusiasm for life. We have found great joy in seeing them happy and teaching those who may not have long to live how to make every moment count.
         At the hospital we have also met a number of teenagers recovering from cancer-related sicknesses. Recently we spent several days with them at a special camp. We talked with them one on one, lending a sympathetic ear and doing our best to answer their questions and provide encouragement.
         Many of the staff at the hospital have expressed their appreciation for our positiveness and the time we spend helping to care for and uplift the children.
         The director told us, "You do something that no one else has done. You understand what the children are going through, put it in simple terms and build their faith!"

Role models for young delinquents
From Pandita, Chile:
         For the past few months we have been assisting at a recently created educational and social training center for imprisoned minors. This particular program is the first of its kind in Chile, and it is quite an ambitious one. Psychologists, sociologists, social workers and educators all work together to rehabilitate young delinquents.
         We began by visiting the boys once a week to encourage them, offer them our friendship and show them that God loves them and wants to help them escape the vicious cycle of crime and drugs. Within a month or two, we established such a close bond with the boys that when some of them were transferred to another section of the penal center, they promised to behave like angels if only they could continue to participate in our activities.
         At present, young people from our Family community are working on a musical play in which the boys are also performing. This project gives these boys--most of whom are from extremely impoverished backgrounds and have grown up under the worst conditions imaginable--an opportunity to work side by side with our young people. It also gives our teens a chance to share their talents, experience, Christian values and positive attitude towards life.
         Our teens go to the detention center twice a week for rehearsals. Once a week a professor from the center visits us at home for a planning session. Our teens spend part of their weekends creating and practicing choreography for the musical, and the boys in prison have surprised their drama teacher by rehearsing at night on their own. When the boys rehearse in the common area, everyone goes out to watch. More and more boys want to participate.
         The others who work at the center are highly respected professionals and academics, who really admire our young people and value their unique contribution to the center. Everyone from the director on down is very interested in the theater work we are doing and the change that it is bringing to these boys' lives.

A double miracle!
From Jewel, South Central Asia:
         When we first met Maiya, she expressed interest in our work, gave us her calling card and asked us to keep in touch. A week or so later, I made an appointment to see her on another day. When we arrived for that appointment, however, we were told that Maiya had been in a motorcycle accident and was in the hospital with serious head injuries. We prayed for her immediately and went to visit her in the hospital.
         When we entered her room, Maiya was obviously disoriented.
         "The accident has affected her memory," Maiya's sister explained. "She doesn't even recognize her own family!"
         After we talked to her for only a minute or two, however, Maiya said, "Oh, I remember you!" Her sister was amazed as Maiya's memory came back while she continued to talk with us. Before long, she was relating details of the conversation we had when we first met. It was inspiring and even a little awesome to see the Lord healing her right before our eyes!
         I told her about the very delicate operation I underwent three years ago, during which doctors removed a life-threatening brain tumor. I also explained how, in answer to The Family's prayers, the Lord had not only kept me through that operation, but had helped me to heal so quickly that my doctors were astounded.
         "If the Lord could do that for me," I told her, "surely He can heal you of these injuries. We prayed for you before we came here, and the Lord is already answering! We will continue to pray for you until you have recovered completely."
         Maiya then prayed with us to receive Jesus into her heart, and was very thankful for the two miracles that had taken place in the space of our short visit; the Lord had brought back her memory, and she had found her Savior!

An instant answer!
From Eli, Bulgaria:
         One evening, Sarah and I decided to go for a walk along the beach. As we were returning, we saw a boy gazing sadly at the waves. As we passed by, I felt strongly that the Lord wanted us to stop and talk to him, which we did. As soon as our conversation turned to Jesus, the boy became enthralled and listened without saying a word for about 20 minutes.
         Then he told us to our surprise that we were the answer to his prayer! He became disillusioned with life after his girlfriend left him for somebody else, and had just finished pouring out his heart to God when we approached him. In his prayer, he had asked God to prove to him right then and there that He was real. He had also asked God to show His Love by helping him in his personal life.--And there we were! Knowing nothing of his prayer, we had told him of Jesus' great Love for him!
         He was thrilled and amazed that the Lord had answered his prayer so quickly, so literally and so completely. He wanted to know more about his new best Friend and Savior, Jesus, so we spent another hour or two talking with him.
         "At first I thought you were angels from Heaven!" he told us. "While you were talking, I didn't want to move for fear that you would disappear!"
         "We aren't angels," we assured him, "but we are God's agents. We've devoted our lives to helping others, and tonight He sent us to you!"

For more information:

         Visit The Family at our Internet Web site: http://www.thefamily.org/family
         E-mail: family@thefamily.org.


Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family