Lectures weren’t on that day. But no-one had told Elias. He got to his college and it was empty – that was when he heard the winds blowing. Jumping into a car and getting a lift home, the car was slightly lifting, momentarily floating in the air on the way. He felt his feet pulling away from the floor as he ran into the house to find his brother. Parts of the roof had already been ripped off, and rain cascaded in through holes in the ceiling. He immediately thought the worst. He thought his brother was dead. Thank God, he wasn’t. He found his brother hiding. They ran to find shelter, but Elias had lost all his official documents; all the books he needed for his studies. He lost everything he had.

This storm became what we know as Cyclone Idai, the natural disaster which hit Mozambique, and global news headlines in March. Shortly after, Cyclone Kenneth struck, leaving further damage in its wake. For Elias, BMS World Mission’s immediate relief response of food, shelter and clothes got him back on his feet. But what next? Before the cyclone, Elias was a theology student. He was also a preschool education programme (PEPE) teacher, in one of the 60 preschools in Mozambique funded by your support. But now he had lost all his coursework, and the preschool where he worked was in ruins. His future, as he had planned it, had been derailed.

Back in the shelter with his brother, Elias saw children start to pour in, taking refuge from the raging 120mph winds. Some of them had lost their homes, some their siblings, others their parents. They were all traumatised. During their seven weeks in the shelter, Elias prayed and played with them. “Everyone around me started to call me ‘pastor’ because I was praying,” Elias says. “I was so happy because the children learnt a lot.” They were children without an education, and children who’d had no other chance of learning about God’s love.

Like Elias’, these children’s futures had been derailed. So many schools were now just heaped rubble on the ground. “Without school, children wander and waste time on the streets, learning from older kids who also aren’t in school,” explains Elias. “But at PEPE, children learn a lot. One of the mothers was so taken by her children’s transformation she wanted to come to church. That’s why I’m captivated by this work.”

And that’s why the immediate relief you provided is just the beginning of Mozambique’s recovery story. Long-term relief means ensuring children have a future – and for that they need an education. Your generosity has enabled BMS to dedicate over £17,000 to rebuilding PEPE schools destroyed by Cyclone Idai. The team is led by BMS mission worker, Sergio Vilela. He’s using his previous experience in construction as a firm foundation for restoration. “I’d like to thank the UK Church. People were so generous after the cyclone,” he says. “We are able to help here only because the Church gave so generously.”

You’re also providing fullness of life. Alongside reconstructing PEPE schools, you’ve supported a play therapy project for children suffering from trauma. For children just like the ones Elias described staying in the shelter. “When I heard that UK churches had started to support us, I thought – wow! I could see we were united in the body of Christ,” says Elias. “We thank God and UK churches for the love you’ve shown us.” And everyone here at BMS thanks you too for your faithful generosity. Thank you for giving hope to those in need.