Stories From The (Mission) Field
Scroll down to read our Partner Updates, Trips Blog, and our Outreach Stories
Under the shade of a beautiful spreading tree in Gambella, Ethiopia, Mrs. Areit Philip gathered a group of Anywaa women from the presbyteries that make up the East Gambella Bethel Synod of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane (meh-kah-nee) Yesus (EECMY). She led the women through exercises and conversations that led to identifying many of the strengths they found in the community as well as many of the challenges and needs. That was day one of the workshop. By the end of the week, they would begin to build a plan to use their strengths to work towards managing their challenges.
As the war in Ukraine lingers, many of our donors have asked a very good question. What is motivating the Ukrainians’ endurance for so long? The answer has many facets, but one measure of their resolve is captured in a story of a typical believing family under Russian occupation. We are grateful to Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary for this compelling story!
Walls divide, but bridges connect; and sometimes the people who are building those bridges might surprise you.
In Israel, where walls divide the land, it’s the young people who are choosing to build bridges. In early July, the Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour, just outside of Bethlehem, opened its doors once again to host Musalaha's Summer Camp, with 110 children, ages 6 to 12, Muslim and Christian alike, gathered under the theme "We Are Building the Future."
While in Türkiye, Doug Stewart, trip leader and an Associate Director for Mission at The Outreach Foundation, took a few moments with Caroline Krause, Missions Director at Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas, TX to discuss her experience at the conferences with our Persian Diaspora partners. She tells us her favorite part of leading one of the conference workshops for the group.
The Outreach Foundation is traveling in Türkiye this week! It's a region steeped in Biblical history. Our travelers have been busy on this trip making connections with believers on the other side of the world. Team members spent several days at a gathering with several of our Persian Diaspora partners and learning about their experiences being faithful even in the face of persecution.
UN experts* today condemned the confiscation of the compound of St Peter’s Evangelical Church in Tehran and the eviction of the 27 members of the country’s recognised Armenian and Assyrian Christian minorities who lived within it.
“Twenty families, most of whom are low income, long-standing residents of the compound, were reportedly given just two weeks to leave their homes. The church’s leaders were threatened with arrest if they failed to comply. The final resident left on 12 July, prompting fears that the complex may be demolished,” the experts said.
After conversations with a few of our Iranian mission partners during the recent ceasefire, we are humbled to share a few key messages from our brothers and sisters in Christ. The examples shared here are a small sampling of the ways the light of the Lord is shining in the dark and challenging circumstances that arise during times of global conflict.
Nowruz is a much-anticipated holiday, marking the New Year on the Iranian calendar. It is celebrated annually in the spring, coinciding with a time of rebirth. This past weekend, March 20-22, Iranians inside an anxious and war-torn country expressed the common greetings, "Nowruz Mubarak!" (Happy Nowruz) and "Nowruzetoon Pirooz" (May your New Year be victorious), with an array of mixed emotions.
North Carolina pastor Nick Nielson reflects on how the two week journey through Türkiye with The Outreach Foundation impacted him, and how he will bring what he learned back to his congregation.