In terrible circumstances, making an eternal difference, one child at a time.
I spent a week in Colorado Springs recently for meetings with the Board of Indigenous Ministries, International (John and Dee Cook’s agency, and the ministry through which we support Grace Bible College in India, provided them with a van through the Harvest Offering, and provided Iraqi refugee families and children with trauma kits containing food, clothes, and stuffed animals). Actually I spent more of my week than I planned as a “worst in memory” blizzard hit the eastern slope of the Rockies socked. Freeways were closed, vehicles unable to move, and flights canceled—God made his will clear that I stay longer, and learn more.
Anyway, I serve on this Board (it’s a small one right now, with four of us in the meetings), and what I have been learning about two of our ministries is both incredibly disturbing and extremely encouraging.
From northern Iraq: What is disturbing is the continuing deterioration of conditions for millions of refugees in and around the Kurdish region of northern Iraq. While there are many NGOs (non-governmental organizations) in the region, and a few large Christian relief organizations, they are not visible to the people IMI is serving in the camps, cities and towns that were once in ISIS-controlled lands. It is in these regions and these people that this small mission is focused.
The stories of these refugees are horrific, and the suffering they have experienced has left entire populations with physical and emotional scars—everyone seems to have some form of PTSD. The horrors of ISIS and the utter destruction of every bit of infrastructure breeds hopelessness. In the midst of these overwhelming needs, IMI has the privilege of bringing the light of gospel message and presence.
IMI has helped plant the Baptist Church in Irbil, and that church’s pastor, Sabre, oversees care for a fast-growing congregation of converts from Christian and Muslim backgrounds. In one evening last summer, 125 people trusted Christ. This church is overwhelmed with trying to help these new converts and other refugees to be able to find stable living. When John and Dee come, they bring more resources, encouragement, and Dee’s ministry to the women is having a large impact. Members of the church become the ministry team to others.
One young couple, Fadi and Myrana, lead our efforts among refugees. Fadi handles the logistics of getting food supplies, while Myrana works with children, helping provide basic needs and building a unique child sponsorship program. IMI’s program doesn’t just provide for a child, although that becomes the entry point. Each child receives enough food for their family for a month, a monthly kids club similar to a Sunday school, the families are visited by team members from the church, and each child is linked to another program IMI has initiated that provides backpacks with school uniforms, shoes, and supplies. And right now nearly 300 hundred children are being sponsored. But we have almost 200 profiles of children still waiting.
What is encouraging is that we can do something in the name of Jesus that changes the circumstances of a child, and in many cases is introducing them to the gospel that can change their lives for eternity. All for $39 a month. [Pictured: John Cook holding one of the refugee boys outside of Mosul on the last trip].
From Egypt: Following tremendous persecution, Christians in Egypt are experiencing a moment when the government is friendly toward them even as Muslim extremists still attack churches. In recent weeks, churches have been surrounded by militants with automatic rifles, firing at them as the people huddled inside. And still, they continue to worship and witness.
IMI has hosted pastor’s conferences (Don Callan has actually spoken at one) and helped plant 10 churches in Egypt. Here the great pressing need has been to help widows in the churches who cannot work because they have children to care for. IMI has launched child sponsorship here as well, providing these “half-orphans” food for their families, clothing, and all that is necessary for school. Because they are all connected to IMI’s church plants, both mothers and children find spiritual support, and a number of the teenage children have decided they want to serve the Lord Jesus with their lives. IMI is helping them go to Bible college. Again, the amount of support works out to $39 a month.
I don’t mean for this to be just a commercial for IMI, but I do want to ask you to consider whether being a part of changing a child’s world by helping their family, linking them to a church, and exposing to the gospel is something you could do. IMI's program provides a profile, picture, and description of the child and family, as well as the strong encouragement for you to write to your child (these letters are so prized, John and Dee asked if we have people who might write letters to give to kids whose sponsors don't write, and also to the other children in a sponsored child family--these children often feel terribly sad when someone writes to a sibling but not to them). Iraqi refugees are often staying for the long haul. Syrian refugees in the region often hope to emigrate and so may have months rather than years to be reached in this way. Like other sponsorship programs, this one feeds and clothes children. But what excites me is the close connection of these precious children to Christians who are present in their lives and able to bear continuing witness. Pastor Sabre is doing amazing follow up work with teams from his church.
If you’d like to help a child in Iraq or Egypt, you can do so by going to IMI’s website—http://
More than this, though, I want you to know that the Gospel is having great impact in some of the darkest corners of the earth. Men, women, and children who have experienced horrors that we cannot begin to imagine have been met in their deep pain and loss with the greatest love ever known—the love of Jesus. There is so much to be done, and it does feel overwhelming even as we anticipate adding 600 more refugee children to our program. That is a huge leap for such a small organization, and it seems so little, knowing that the need is so much larger. But while we can’t solve it all, we can be agents of gospel change, one child, one family, one refugee camp at a time. And it is happening!
Anyway, I serve on this Board (it’s a small one right now, with four of us in the meetings), and what I have been learning about two of our ministries is both incredibly disturbing and extremely encouraging.
From northern Iraq: What is disturbing is the continuing deterioration of conditions for millions of refugees in and around the Kurdish region of northern Iraq. While there are many NGOs (non-governmental organizations) in the region, and a few large Christian relief organizations, they are not visible to the people IMI is serving in the camps, cities and towns that were once in ISIS-controlled lands. It is in these regions and these people that this small mission is focused.
The stories of these refugees are horrific, and the suffering they have experienced has left entire populations with physical and emotional scars—everyone seems to have some form of PTSD. The horrors of ISIS and the utter destruction of every bit of infrastructure breeds hopelessness. In the midst of these overwhelming needs, IMI has the privilege of bringing the light of gospel message and presence.
IMI has helped plant the Baptist Church in Irbil, and that church’s pastor, Sabre, oversees care for a fast-growing congregation of converts from Christian and Muslim backgrounds. In one evening last summer, 125 people trusted Christ. This church is overwhelmed with trying to help these new converts and other refugees to be able to find stable living. When John and Dee come, they bring more resources, encouragement, and Dee’s ministry to the women is having a large impact. Members of the church become the ministry team to others.
One young couple, Fadi and Myrana, lead our efforts among refugees. Fadi handles the logistics of getting food supplies, while Myrana works with children, helping provide basic needs and building a unique child sponsorship program. IMI’s program doesn’t just provide for a child, although that becomes the entry point. Each child receives enough food for their family for a month, a monthly kids club similar to a Sunday school, the families are visited by team members from the church, and each child is linked to another program IMI has initiated that provides backpacks with school uniforms, shoes, and supplies. And right now nearly 300 hundred children are being sponsored. But we have almost 200 profiles of children still waiting.
What is encouraging is that we can do something in the name of Jesus that changes the circumstances of a child, and in many cases is introducing them to the gospel that can change their lives for eternity. All for $39 a month. [Pictured: John Cook holding one of the refugee boys outside of Mosul on the last trip].
From Egypt: Following tremendous persecution, Christians in Egypt are experiencing a moment when the government is friendly toward them even as Muslim extremists still attack churches. In recent weeks, churches have been surrounded by militants with automatic rifles, firing at them as the people huddled inside. And still, they continue to worship and witness.
IMI has hosted pastor’s conferences (Don Callan has actually spoken at one) and helped plant 10 churches in Egypt. Here the great pressing need has been to help widows in the churches who cannot work because they have children to care for. IMI has launched child sponsorship here as well, providing these “half-orphans” food for their families, clothing, and all that is necessary for school. Because they are all connected to IMI’s church plants, both mothers and children find spiritual support, and a number of the teenage children have decided they want to serve the Lord Jesus with their lives. IMI is helping them go to Bible college. Again, the amount of support works out to $39 a month.
I don’t mean for this to be just a commercial for IMI, but I do want to ask you to consider whether being a part of changing a child’s world by helping their family, linking them to a church, and exposing to the gospel is something you could do. IMI's program provides a profile, picture, and description of the child and family, as well as the strong encouragement for you to write to your child (these letters are so prized, John and Dee asked if we have people who might write letters to give to kids whose sponsors don't write, and also to the other children in a sponsored child family--these children often feel terribly sad when someone writes to a sibling but not to them). Iraqi refugees are often staying for the long haul. Syrian refugees in the region often hope to emigrate and so may have months rather than years to be reached in this way. Like other sponsorship programs, this one feeds and clothes children. But what excites me is the close connection of these precious children to Christians who are present in their lives and able to bear continuing witness. Pastor Sabre is doing amazing follow up work with teams from his church.
If you’d like to help a child in Iraq or Egypt, you can do so by going to IMI’s website—http://
More than this, though, I want you to know that the Gospel is having great impact in some of the darkest corners of the earth. Men, women, and children who have experienced horrors that we cannot begin to imagine have been met in their deep pain and loss with the greatest love ever known—the love of Jesus. There is so much to be done, and it does feel overwhelming even as we anticipate adding 600 more refugee children to our program. That is a huge leap for such a small organization, and it seems so little, knowing that the need is so much larger. But while we can’t solve it all, we can be agents of gospel change, one child, one family, one refugee camp at a time. And it is happening!
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