Worldwide Activity Report -- April 1996
FAR025 - GP
April 1996, by The Family, Zurich, Switzerland

Every day, in nearly 70 countries spanning 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.

Mistake or miracle?
From Rebecca, USA:
         It was 11:30 p.m. on New Year's Eve when my husband Paul and I received an unexpected phone call from a local hospital -- a call which led to a mysterious and wonderful meeting with a man whom neither of us shall ever forget!
         "A Mr. McMullen has been admitted to this hospital," the voice on the phone informed us. "He is in extremely serious condition. His admission records list you as his next of kin."
         "Neither my wife nor I have any relatives named McMullen," Paul replied. We looked at each other in bewilderment. "In fact, neither of us can recall having ever met a man by that name," he added.
         It seemed such an obvious mistake. But then the hospital did have our names and phone number right. After we hung up, we couldn't put the call out of our minds. Finally we decided to go see Mr. McMullen.
         We arrived at the hospital at 1:30 a.m. As we entered the room, we found a very frail, graying old man whom we had never met before. The nurse asked him if he knew us, and he responded that he did not.
         "What is your name?" I asked him softly as I bent over to take his hand.
         "It's Jim," he answered, in a tone that betrayed his loneliness.
         For the next hour or two we talked with Jim, getting to know him and reading him comforting passages from the Bible. "Jesus loves you in a very personal way," we reassured him. Then Jim prayed with us to receive Jesus as his Savior. The next day we brought Jim some flowers, and our children sang for him.
         About a week later, Jim died. No longer was he lonely and alone, however, for he had found Jesus, and the Lord's Love shone in his eyes. We missed our new friend, but were happy to know that Jim had passed on to a better life.
         We made some inquiries, but never did find out who put our names on Jim's chart. Perhaps it was an angel, sent by the Lord to lead us to Jim just in time to help him find his way to his eternal Home.

A dose of happiness for disabled children
From Nina (age 13), Nepal:
         At a school for disabled children where several members from our Family community teach, we were invited to take part in a program marking the end of the school year. We decided to put on a clown show for them, so we went to work making lots of animal balloons, and a friend of ours sponsored 100 packs of cookies for us to pass out to the children.
         On the day of the performance, we clowns put on our costumes, got our faces painted up and set off for the school. After a few people gave speeches, it was our turn. We surprised the kids by jumping up and singing a lively song, and they all broke into smiles. Then we sang other songs all about being happy and smiling, which we had just learned in Nepali. Afterwards we passed out the animal balloons and cookies. The children were overjoyed, and their parents especially appreciated that we had taken the time to make the event special for the children.
         After the show we decided to stop by a nearby home for disabled orphans. We offered to perform for them also, and the people in charge said, "Oh, yes! We'd love to have you!"
         As we started singing, the children all crowded around us. They really liked the songs, and clapped along. Even though we hadn't planned for this second show, by a miracle there were exactly enough balloons to give one to each of the children, and plenty of cookies for all! When we left, the children were all beaming! We also had a special joy in our hearts -- the joy that comes from reaching out to others with God's Love!

Jesus heals addiction, when all other cures failed!
From Mary, Pakistan:
         A few months ago we met Tariq, a young drug addict from a well-to-do family. He was very depressed at the time, and barely coherent. We learned that he had been addicted to hard drugs for the past 13 years. In numerous attempts to kick the habit, Tariq had been to some of the best drug rehabilitation centers in the world, including a center in England which has successfully treated many celebrities. No one was able to help him.
         We prayed with Tariq and taught him about Jesus and His healing power. In time, we began to see a change. It's now been three months since Tariq has taken any drugs. He is truly a new man. Jesus succeeded in changing Tariq when nothing else could!

From crisis to comfort
From Franz, Kenya:
         In downtown Nairobi, I met Daniel, a 30-year-old waiter who works in one of the city's best hotels. As we talked, he told me that three days earlier, he had returned home after a late-night shift at the hotel and found his apartment totally cleared out by robbers. All of his belongings were gone, right down to the last pair of socks! The stolen goods, which he valued at about 250,000 Kenyan shillings (US$5,000), represented his entire life's savings. Daniel was downcast, of course, but struggled to thank God that at least his life had been spared. Had he come home a little earlier and confronted the thieves, he might have been assaulted or killed.
         In an attempt to relate to his situation, I told him about a recent traffic accident I had been involved in. That, too, was a very costly experience, but finally I managed to pray, "Lord, I trust that You let that happen for some good reason. Help me to accept that, learn what lessons I can from it and then get on with my life."
         Daniel thanked me repeatedly for trying to encourage him, and before we parted I gave him a two-page publication from the Family's Reflections series, entitled, "Be Content."
         A few days later we happened to meet again, and Daniel was beaming!
         "What you gave me to read is fantastic!" he exclaimed. "Those words are so powerful! Now I understand why this happened to me: God wanted to bring me closer to Him. He is using what seemed like the end to open a new door in my life."

Cancer patients find calm and peace
From James, Christina and Angelica, Russia:
         We recently put on a musical show for 50 of the residents at a hospital that treats both children and adults who have leukemia. Although our little show was not very professional, we were touched to see people's reactions afterwards. Several of the adult patients had tears in their eyes, and the hospital's director told us how thankful she was that we had come. "A wonderful calm and peace seemed to envelop everyone during your performance," she commented. We were most thankful that all of those for whom we performed were able to learn about Jesus, and accept His Love into their hearts.
         Many patients had been too sick to attend our show, so for the next two weeks we visited this hospital almost daily, going from room to room with songs and messages of God's Love and care for them. The clinic treats a total of 145 children, and we met most of them, spending time cheering them up and telling them how the Lord loves them. Many of the parents were also in need of counseling and encouragement, so we were able to spend quite a bit of time with them as well.
         "I can't tell you how much I appreciate your counseling help with the children and parents," the director said. "Your message of faith and hope has completely changed the atmosphere of our hospital."
         We gave the director a copy of Daily Might, a book of faith-building devotional readings by David Berg. "This book is written so clearly that anybody can understand it and get a knowledge of God's Word," she said. She was also very happy to receive one of our Scripture song tapes, "Fear Not!" It's now the first thing she listens to when she wakes up in the morning, and the last thing she listens to before going to sleep at night. She is under quite a bit of pressure and sees much suffering and heartbreak at the hospital, but she explained, "The songs on that tape give me faith and help relieve the stress."
         We will continue to return to this hospital often in order to share more of the love, peace and joy that Jesus has given to us.

Everywhere we go, people need our help
From Esperanza, Chile:
         As I stepped into a taxi, I noticed the driver was looking at me curiously. Then he asked, "Do you belong to some kind of religious organization?"
         "Why do you ask?" I responded.
         "Well, you have a different atmosphere about you, sort of an aura," he said.
         I explained that I belong to the Family, and told him a little about our work. Before long he began to tell me about his life. As we neared my destination, he confessed that he had a drug problem.
         I told this man about Jesus, His Love and forgiveness, and how He could help him face and overcome life's problems. The taxi driver asked me to pray with him to ask Jesus into his heart, and ask that he could be delivered from the power of drugs.
         After we prayed together I continued on my way, thanking God for all the needy people that He puts in the Family's path -- tens of thousands every day -- and praying that we can always be there for them when they most need His Love.

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


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