Hema* is a 47-year-old Rohingya woman who was forced to leave her home with her husband and her children. Her heart is broken from the hardships they have endured. They fled to another country* in their region which has become home to thousands of Rohingya refugees.
But soon after they arrived in this country in South East Asia their hopes were shattered. Many refugees cannot find jobs and they are constantly harassed by the police who treat them as illegal immigrants.
This challenging situation provides our Reach Beyond missionaries with some real opportunities for sharing the good news and for helping refugees like Hema in this country and elsewhere.
Our workers are befriending marginalised people and refugees like Hema. They visit them, teach them English, pray with them, distribute free food parcels to poor families and to the isolated and elderly. Now in Hema’s community, our workers are offering the first perinatal classes for expectant mothers who are struggling to access healthcare services.
Along with the perniatal classes and the support, those we are reaching out to in communites like Hema's will enjoy warm fellowship with our workers and many opportunities to discover who Jesus is.
They will receive encouragement and help just like Hema did!
One of our workers met Hema during the COVID-19 lockdown, while distributing emergency food to refugee families. Hema accepted our help because she was desperate. But our worker wondered how she could share God’s love story with her.
So, when the lockdown eased, she went to Hema’s place and asked for her help. She told Hema that she wanted to learn her language and become her friend.
Now our worker visits Hema every week. Hema is teaching our worker her language and how to cook traditional dishes. And our worker is teaching her English. She listens to Hema’s concerns for her family and prays quietly for her.
They laugh their way through the significant language barrier and our worker is praying that God will soften Hema’s heart to receive Jesus into her life.
To ensure that our workers can help more people like Hema, please make some time today to prayerfully consider how you would like to get involved in sharing God’s love story this Christmas. Please make a special gift today.
