Sharing the Love of Christ in the Middle East

We recently received an update on behalf of one of our partners on the ground responding to the crisis in Iraq: 

He visited an area where most of the Christians who fled from Qarakosh and Mousel are taking refuge. It was heart breaking seeing thousands upon thousands of displaced Iraqis. 

The churches have opened their doors and every empty building is a place of refuge. All the schools have been used to host the refugees. There is a huge problem as schools are filled with displaced families and this means that children can't go back to school. Some of these families are living in tents with a temperature hitting nearly 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). He couldn’t stay more than 10 minutes in one of the tents because of the heat. 

What touched his heart were children with smiles and laughter in the midst of pain. It's amazing how even in the midst of tragedy, joy can still be found among these children. 

The area where refugees have fled is receiving humanitarian aid for the Christians from NGOs (Non-Government Organizations) as it is still a relatively safe place to be for now. But still the need is huge. 
However, the area where the majority of Yazidis are, and the surrounding areas, are not receiving aid from humanitarian agencies as it is relatively dangerous to go to these areas. Our ministry partner went there with the protection of an army general and met with Yazidis families. They are living in horrific circumstances. Some have no tents, no water and no aid! What we gave was able to help some but there are more than 200,000 families in great need. 

Keep praying for: 

• Protection and the mercies of God on the displaced families
• The hope of the Gospel to go out and reach thousands. We were able to give out Bibles to many of the families.
• Jesus to reveal Himself in a powerful way to everyone taking refuge
• Dreams and revelations in the midst of pain and suffering 

Let us believe it, not just in words, but also in our prayers. He is above and more powerful than anyone or anything!  

The need is overwhelming and great. Thanks for your generosity, as we were able to feed 600 families for one week with basic dry food. The local supermarket was surprised that we came all the way from the West with support to help their people that he donated 70 meals on top of what we bought. 

Thank you for your support that helps us reach these families. Please continue to pray with us for this devastating situation.

Hand of Hope is the missions arm of Joyce Meyer Ministries. Our goal is simply to help as many hurting people as we possibly can, to alleviate human suffering and to help Christians grow in their faith.

Follow Hand of Hope on Facebook | Twitter