UPDATE: the city of Mosul has since been liberated from ISIS control on Sunday, July 9th, 2017. Iraqi forces and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared the city free from the grip of ISIS after three years. Above, two young boys comfort each other after seeing the collapse of their home, knowing that loved ones are still under the rubble.
Mothers. Young women. And girls have become slaves as a result of ISIS and their extreme interpretation of Islam. This is not just a label, it’s real bondage – human beings as objects to be bought and sold like property. They are forced to work, regularly beaten, and sexually abused at will – sometimes by many different men, entirely defenseless, hurt and broken.
Can you imagine what it would be like to be handed a copy of the story of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the moment you stepped foot into a new country?
There are times when our mission to reach countries hostile to the gospel leads us to be the first on the ground in cities like Khamti. A small village in the northern part of Myanmar in a country that is 90% Buddhist, Khamti is far from other areas where churches and believers are just beginning to take root. This city is where our president Jason Law and members of our team met Pastor Aung Kyaw.
In January of this year, God opened a doorway for our organization in Aleppo. Our team is partnering with churches and carrying out distributions of aid to hundreds of families both Muslim and Christian inside the city. Aid is being given out from the hands of believers and church leadership in the heart of Aleppo, a city torn apart by civil war which has been shown on television screens worldwide.
Em Mouhammad is a wife and mother of five children. While the war in Aleppo raged outside her home, a battle was happening inside of it. Her husband was ill with a painful disease that affected acid levels in his blood and affected his joints, and her oldest daughter suffered from epileptic seizures. Em struggled to stay strong for her family though she was dealing with the overwhelming fear for the health and safety of her loved ones during this extremely difficult time.
Mothers have been robbed of the daily routine of making a home for their children, and fathers have lost the opportunity to provide food and a safe environment for their family. Children lack proper clothes for the extreme weather conditions, and many work instead of attending school. Entire families are on a different and much more difficult path than they intended.
On January 27th the people of China began a week-long celebration of the Chinese New Year. It’s a time of festivals when people return to their hometowns and reconnect with family – setting off fireworks, decorating with red lanterns, exchanging gifts and attending lion and dragon dances.
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