Victims of War2017 Initiative Update

VICTIMS OF WAR - 2017 INITIATIVE UPDATE

Millions of Syrian and Iraqi refugees have experienced extreme cruelty, loss and pain. Six years into the conflicts of Syrian and Iraq, it would be nearly impossible not to have heard news stories or personal accounts of the atrocities committed by various governments, factions and terrorist groups.

The quote below, shared by a Pioneers worker now serving refugees in Europe, reminds us that God is redeeming tragedy and undoing death. By the grace of God, Syrian and Iraqi refugees are finding hope. Thanks to partners like you, many refugee families have experienced the love of Jesus through a ministry led by a Pioneers missionary.

Since 2013, Pioneers’ Victims of War project has supported more than 10 field-led initiatives spread across the Middle East, Europe and the United States.

Ministries and services to refugees include material aid distribution, fruit and vegetable programs, trauma counseling for women and children, sports programs for children, art therapy, children’s education, pre-natal care and new mother assistance, women’s employment, dental care, evangelistic media outreach, discipleship, church-planting training and more.

As of May 2017, more than 25,000 refugees have been cared for by our dedicated workers on the frontlines. Once again,

the quote below highlights that these critical ministries have led to thousands hearing the gospel message for the first time, and hundreds of Bible studies with spiritually-open Muslims have been established.

The needs of refugees continue to evolve as they move around the world. As such, Pioneers missionaries who serve refugees have morphed their ministries in order to meet the most pressing and strategic needs. The following pages highlight several key ministries that are meeting the ever-changing needs of Syrian and Iraqi refugees.

“When refugees share their testimonies of how they came to faith, they regularly mention the churches and workers in the Middle East who shared God’s Word with them for the first time.”

Pioneers’ missionary-led refugee ministries span 10 locations on three continents, serving over 25,000 people!

Ministry Highlight: Holistic Ministry in Major Middle East City

Since 2013, a Pioneers team has been operating in the middle of a large Syrian and Iraqi refugee community in a major Middle Eastern city. This multi-ethnic team is comprised of people from five countries and partners with two local, Arab churches to provide material aid, counseling and much more.

This ministry also acts as a hub for Christians (both expat and local) to receive training in discipleship and church planting. To date, 122 people have been trained to seek out spiritually-open people with influence over their families and communities and start Bible studies with them. Many of those trained now serve among refugees and Muslims in other parts of the world. And more than 55 Bible studies with Muslim refugees have been catalyzed in just this Middle Eastern city!

In past reports, Pioneers highlighted certain aspects of this ministry such as trauma counseling, sports programs and the distribution of food vouchers. But as the needs of the refugee community continue to evolve, the team is committed to constant evaluation to ensure that they are providing the most effective and appropriate forms of care and service.

For example, leaders realized that fresh, healthy foods were particularly hard to come by for most refugee families. As a result, the team has partnered with several local shopkeepers to establish a fruit and vegetable program that helps refugee families feed themselves with the best food possible.

In the final nine months of last year, 1,440 individuals benefitted from this fruit and vegetable

project. Abu Bilal, a father of four children, shared, “God bless you and increase your good deeds. Thank you for the project. Before, we never gave our children fruit, but now they can eat bananas or apples and they feel happy!” As a result of this project, local churches and Christians have become known as people who care for and pray for people.

Ministry Highlight: Children’s Learning Center

A major consequence of the refugee crisis is that education for many children has been interrupted. When refugee children are finally able to integrate into schools, they are often ridiculed, attacked and humiliated. A Pioneers missionary in a country that has received nearly a million refugees realized this great need and established a learning center specifically to serve Syrian and Iraqi refugee children and their families.

The refugee children at this learning center are noticing a difference in the way they are treated. One boy, Amed, explained that in his previous school, “they used to treat us like animals and there was no discipline whatsoever. . . I love how here everyone is asked to respect one another and no one is allowed to hit another or use swear words.”

Thanks to our many partners supporting the Victims of War project, this school was able to nearly double its number of students to 57!

One little girl shared, “Before coming to this center I did not have friends to play with; now I have many. I also did not know if God existed or not, but I learned here that he does exist. I learned that we can pray and talk to Him and that he

loves us so much. This makes me feel very good inside.”

Ministry Highlight: Movement in Turkey

Philip, a Pioneers leader on the forefront of refugee ministry in the Middle East, has partnered with Pioneers’ Arab World Media ministry to meet spiritually-open Muslim refugees in Turkey. Arab World Media advertises their media content directly to Arab-speaking Muslims in Turkey with the goal of Syrian and Iraqi refugees reaching out to them asking for more information about Jesus. After conversations have taken place, Arab World Media works to connect these Muslims with Christians on the ground in their country.

On his first trip into Turkey with two Jordanian believers, Philip was given a list of contacts to try to connect with. The group of three believers was able to meet up with seven refugees living in Turkey. Each had a unique and

equally-distressing story—all leading to the point of feeling empty and searching for the Truth. Philip shares one story:

“We arranged to meet at a nearby coffee shop with a young man named Fadi. He arrived early and brought his cousin. The two left their home country six years prior and had been involved with Islamic militant organizations. They were actively being recruited to become jihadists. Fadi shared how they only saw hate and violence within Islam, so they began searching for the Truth.

One of the Jordanian Christians shared the gospel with the two men, and they listened very intently. Fadi responded, ‘This is a very beautiful message. Why didn’t someone come to our country and share this with our people a long time ago?’ The two men both surrendered their lives to Christ in that moment. They have kept in touch and say they study their new Bibles with great interest and intensity.”

Philip, the Pioneers worker, has decided to move his family to Turkey to start a new team that will serve the population of over a million Arabic-speaking refugees. Their team will begin ministry to Arab refugees in

Turkey later this year. Please pray that Philip and his fellow laborers can build new relationships that will lead many Muslims to hope and faith in Jesus.

Looking Forward

Pioneers is grateful for the countless prayer and financial partners who have enabled our field missionaries to serve over 25,000 Syrian and Iraqi refugees with the love of Jesus. God is using us to transform lives and draw people into His kingdom.

For the remainder of 2017 and into 2018, Pioneers wants to continue serving Syrian and Iraqi refugees in order that they may experience the life-changing power of God’s love.

Please join us in reaching even more victims of war with the gospel message. You can give online at Pioneers.org/Victims.

Image Credits

Cover photos (clockwise 1, 3, 4 & 6) ©Trócaire. Photos found at flickr.com/photos/trocaire.

Cover photo 2 ©MaximilianV. Photo found at www.flickr.com/photos/66179965@N02/8660040329/

Page 3 & 4 photos ©Russel WatkinsDFID. Photos found at www.flickr.com/photos/dfid/sets/72157632293500177/

All photos used under CC Attribution 2.0 Generic License.

“I learned that we can pray and talk to Him and that He loves us so much. This makes me feel very

good inside.”