Who Will Stand Up For the Poor?

In the Scripture, God often stands up for the poor. He hears their cries and saves them from their lives of misery.

He who oppresses the needy shows contempt for his Maker, but he who is kind to the poor honors Him.   Proverbs 14:31

Dear Friends of Nexus,

Afghani (Apricot City’s) refugees in Friendship City — children are finally able to eat a full meal.

According to UNHCR data updated to mid-2021, Friendship City hosts the fourth-greatest number of refugees in the world, with 1.4 million officially registered and as many as another 3.5 million unregistered Afghani refugees.

Aida’s two children were born in 2001 and 2005 in southern Friendship City. Having no documents to prove their identity, the children cannot get into public schools.

At present, about 80% of Afghani school-age refugee children in Friendship City are not able to attend school, so the literacy rate among Afghani refugees is extremely low.

Friendship City’s Christians have been reduced to the lowest social status. They do the dirtiest work, receive the poorest education, and constantly face harassment, even danger from Muslims. Being a Christian means that you and your parents all suffer together. Today, please pray for Friendship City Christians facing abuse and harassment, and for the seven-member Chinese family of Brother Giles serving in that land, that they will be protected from the enemy’s attacks.

Education is a basic human right — it lays the foundation for personal advancement and a sustainable, full life. The United Nations has called education a “core human right.” 

Dozens of Afghani refugee families keep arriving in Q City, Friendship Country. Refugees complain that until now, neither the government nor NGO’s have come to their area to help — “We need blankets, food, and daily living supplies.” But these are the kind of people we are training to be the best!

Brother Giles’ Partner Daniel says that because the nights are so cold, children can’t sleep all night long, and “the cold weather is the cause of many sicknesses here.” As far as refugees are concerned, the most important thing is to be able to get two meals a day and medical help for their sick children. Barefoot children roam the streets, looking for something to fill their stomach with.

Brick kiln owners in Friendship Country exploit the poor, often paying them less than US $5 a day. But beyond that they also turn them into slaves by providing loans. Poor families who borrow money are already hard pressed to be able to pay it back, but the owners charge them high interest, making it impossible for them ever to repay.

Grace Center is located near the border of Lychee City and Coconut City. 

What we need is not pity, but to see our ‘extravagant, distant’ dream of going to school come true! 

As wanderers in a foreign country, children who’ve fled across the border from Lychee City to Coconut City illegally can’t go to school. Many are reduced to child labor. Poor parents, having no way to provide education for their children or even to feed them enough, sometimes abort their babies.

Aye, a 12-year-old boy who’d fled from Lychee City to Coconut City, remembered the air raid on his village: “I had never seen an airplane before. One afternoon my father told me there were some airplanes very close to our village, and then I heard huge explosions. We were all very scared — we all ran into the nearby forest looking for a cave to take cover in, even though there are big snakes in those places. To survive, we just had to be patient and stay in the cave. We didn’t have any clothes, blankets, or food; and every day we were very hungry. It felt so hard to keep going! I wish peace for all the villages, and no more war.”

Grace Center is located near the border of Lychee City. They don’t just help children get an education; they help them become self-sufficient, able to take care of themselves and family members after they’ve grown up. They often receive donations of money and food from former residents as well as visits to the new young generation. They’re a big family!

Two sisters, Bang and Deela, lost their father when they were small. Their mother remarried when they were 5 and 7 years old, abandoning them at Sister Ahn’s kindergarten in Lychee City. Now they are 21 and 23 years old. Their mother was never heard from again after she left.

Sister Ahn in Lychee City treated them as her own daughters and brought them up. After Bang, the younger, turned 7, she began suffering from an eye disease that couldn’t be treated locally, nor could they discover the reason for it. Later they brought her to Coconut City to a hospital for treatment, but still she didn’t get better. There in Coconut City, Chaw Chaw took Bang in as her foster child and also took her to get her eyes checked at a hospital founded by an American, where her eyes finally healed. At 7, Bang had never been to school, and for this reason was 19 when she started her 5^th year of middle school. All these years, her elder sister Deela had stayed with Sister Ahn while Bang completed a discipleship and Bible training course and studied Chinese in Coconut City. But after she graduated, she returned to Lychee City and is serving in the kindergarten where she was originally abandoned.

Tree City — I am the Resurrected Lord Who Breaks Chains

Three Siblings Studying and Serving in Nexus Center

They are Muslim-background believers who have been educated, completed skills training, and studied the Bible and discipleship training in Nexus Center. This year, they decided not to fast during the month of Ramadan, and not only that — they also shared with their parents the Bible’s truth about the meaning of true fasting. So their parents also decided not to fast.

They shared with us, “Because of this decision, our family is facing persecution from our family and friends. They call us pagans and hypocrites and say that the true God will throw us into hell. But our faith is firm because we know the truth and the Gospel. We are determined that this kind of persecution will only bring us joy and blessing. We will not give up but will diligently share the Gospel with them; and we believe that one day they will be freed by God from their chains, just as our whole family has been set free by believing the Gospel.”

Our Testimonies,

Training for local young people, giving them opportunity for schooling so they can fully develop their potential, continual training and caring for the next generation … fruit will grow slowly and steadily, young lives will become disciples pleasing to the Lord, and become, together with us, the kind of people who help others to do their best — preparing a new generation!

He who is kind to the poor honors the Lord.  Proverbs 14:31

Sincerely,

Your servant, Nexus Mission  

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