Worldwide Activity Report -- March 1997
FAR039 - GP

Copyright 1997 by The Family

         "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to everyone, everywhere," Jesus told His followers. Every day, in nearly 80 countries, Family missionaries share Jesus' message of hope and love with many thousands. Following are some highlights of their recent activities and experiences, as reported by the Family members involved.

Chernobyl children find Jesus
From James, Germany
         Not far from our home, in what was formerly East Germany, there is a children's sanitarium that treats young victims of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant accident. Eight- to 16-year-olds come by the busload and usually stay for a month of recreational therapy and special medical attention not available at home. We have visited these children once a month for the past three years.
         Most of the children don't know much about the Bible, so we tell them that God is love, that He loves each of them in a special way, and that Jesus wants to be their best friend. We also explain that in Heaven they will be healthy and whole and experience God's love for all eternity. We show them our videos for children and teens in their own language, which they always love and are fascinated by. We also give each of them Family posters and "Somebody Loves You" tracts to take home and pass on to relatives and friends, so they can come to know Jesus too. About 700 of these children received Jesus into their hearts last year, bringing the three-year total to more than 2,000.
         We pray for the children and have witnessed some wonderful answers to those prayers, such as the case of ten-year-old Sergei. Most of the children don't show outward signs of their sickness, but when we met Sergei he had to walk with a crutch and had no hair due to all the chemotherapy he had undergone. He looked gaunt and pale -- more dead than alive. His mother had come along as one of the children's caretakers, and she came to me in tears after our show, asking us to please pray for Sergei. She explained that she belonged to a small Christian church in Belorussia, and that they were also praying for him. I assured her that God would answer in whatever way He knew was best for her son, and we prayed for him.
         When we visited the next month, Sergei was still there, but beginning to look better. Another month later he was again still there, but happy and smiling. Color had returned to his face and he was able to run and play like the other kids, with no need of a crutch. He returned home later that month -- a living testimony to the power of prayer!
         We are not able to go as missionaries to the former Soviet Union ourselves, so the Lord made a way for these children to come to us! We're so thankful that we can give them hope and the key to heavenly happiness forever!

Where angels fear to tread
From Danny and Joy, Philippines
         We began our prison ministry nine months ago in the maximum security compound of Muntinlupa. This prison is notorious in the Philippines as the home of 5,000 hardened criminals. It's one of those places where "angels fear to tread." Armed with only a belief in God's universal love and saving grace, we set out to see what He would do.
         Before long, a regular following was established and our weekly fellowship meetings attracted more and more inmates. When the group grew to 50, we extended our visits to twice a week. In addition to these meetings, we have also ministered to 210 men on death row, 80 men in the prison's mental facility, and 50 political prisoners currently on a hunger strike. Through donations, we have supplied over 3,500 meals and 500 packages of toiletries, and secured donations of medicines, valued at $2,400, for the prison hospital.
         In a bid to foster unity amongst the Christian inmates, we organized an interfaith basketball tournament, and recruited two professional basketball players to perform the opening ceremony.
         During the national Prisoner Awareness Week, we arranged for two professional clowns to spend the day at the prison, entertaining the prisoners and their families. We also gave a gift to each of the 60 children of inmates present -- a gesture which meant as much to their imprisoned fathers as it did to the children.
         In just a few months we've held about 80 religious services and spent hundreds of hours in individual counseling. Many of the inmates have now received the Lord.

Teenager delivered from drug addiction
From Eva, South Africa
         One day while out, I came upon a teen couple who seemed to be upset, and asked if I could help. Gillian explained that her boyfriend, Dorian, was trying to give up drugs. He had been clean for four weeks, but the night before had taken some again. He seemed to still be high.
         I explained salvation, and told Dorian how Jesus had delivered me from drug addiction when I first came to Him many years ago. Dorian was very happy to pray with me to receive Jesus as his Savior, and had a dramatic salvation experience right then and there. As it turned out, Gillian already knew Jesus, but hadn't known how to explain Him or salvation to her boyfriend. After Dorian prayed with me, Gillian literally jumped up and down for joy.
         A day or two later I wrote them, and sent them some of our literature. Following is Gillian's reply:

Dear Eva,
         I can't thank you enough for the pamphlets you sent Dorian and me. I wanted to let you know that since that day we met you, the Lord has been doing wonderful things in our lives. Dorian is finding strength in Jesus to resist the temptation to return to drugs. By the way, he has gotten into the habit of calling you his "angel." Dorian and I would like to thank you with all our hearts for being there when we really needed you. Keep on taking those big steps you've taken to do the Lord's work. Hopefully Dorian and I will be able to do the same. God bless. -- Gillian and Dorian

"Be of good courage, and He shall &&&strengthen your heart" (Psalm 31:24).
From Mary, Pakistan
         A friend whom we have known for several years phoned one evening and asked us to pray for him. He had long suffered from a serious heart condition, and was being admitted to the hospital the next day for tests to determine if he needed bypass surgery.
         "I believe the Lord can heal me," he said. "Please pray that these tests will show that the operation isn't necessary."
         The Lord honored his faith. The test results were so positive that his astonished doctor declared, "With a heart like that, you could climb K2" -- the world's second highest peak -- "without any problems!"

Bright spots in the darkness
From Stefan and Phebe, USA
         As we share the Gospel door to door, many people tell us they feel God sent us to them when they needed Him most. One man we met recently explained that his work takes him all over the city. That day, in the course of his work, he had happened upon three murder scenes in different parts of town. In each case the body still lay on the street. Later he heard that only half a mile from his home a gas station had been held up and someone was shot. We all know Miami is a violent city and we tend to get numb to it, but these events were extremely unsettling. As he got to this point in his story he said, "And then I opened the door and there you were " He began to cry and couldn't finish.
         "It must have been the Lord who brought you to us tonight," his wife added. "You and your children have given us hope and helped our day to end on a bright note."

Small beginnings, greater ends
From Dave, Ana, Abi and Hannah, Brazil
         Here it is quite common for the poor to come begging at the gates of their more affluent neighbors -- a "neighbor" being anyone within walking distance of their shanty. It is usually the women who do the begging, and they often have small children in tow. Each has a sad story to tell, and many have genuine, urgent needs. We have taken time to get to know those who have come to our gate, and now help 12 families twice a week with donations of food, clothing and cleaning supplies.
         Amazing and wonderful changes have taken place in many of their lives. When they first started coming, they were sick, sad, listless and dirty. We prayed with each of these women and their children to receive Jesus, and in the weeks that followed we prayed for their sick parents, husbands and children. Soon they began showing up at our door just beaming and bubbling over with testimonies of answered prayer.
         One woman's husband had been in bed for two weeks with a high fever, vomiting and diarrhea. She truly thought he was going to die. We prayed for him with her, and he was completely healed and working again three days later!
         We give the women Family posters each time they come, and to those who show more interest and can read we also give copies of some of our other faith-building literature. Some have said our time together -- usually just 10 or 15 minutes per visit -- is the best part of their week and gives them hope to go on.
         The Lord reminded us when we began to help these families that every work of God begins with little deeds of love and kindness. We feel this is the beginning of a larger ministry, but right now our reward is seeing these destitute ones brighten up as they come to understand the Lord's love for them.

         The Family is a non-profit, volunteer organization. Each of the activities you have just read about was made possible through donations from businesses, associations and concerned individuals. If you would like more information about The Family, or if you would like to help sponsor Family volunteers or projects, please contact us at one of the addresses below:

Web: http://www.thefamily.org/family
E-mail: family@thefamily.org


Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family