Your prayers answered: disasters and people with disabilities

Your prayers answered:

disasters and people with disabilities

When an earthquake struck Nepal last November, Dilli Prasad Regmi’s family house collapsed in ruins. Their home was one of 27,000 destroyed by the 6.4 magnitude quake, leaving tens and tens of thousands homeless with winter approaching. Over 150 people lost their lives. Many of the buildings were made of mud and stone and could not withstand the violent shocks.

26-year-old Dilli and his family were left living under a tarpaulin throughout the bitterly cold winter. The shattering of his familiar surroundings was especially cruel for Dilli, who is completely blind and is entirely dependent on his family for all his daily activities. Often disabled people are overlooked in the immediate aftermath of a disaster and cannot reach relief distribution centres.

Dilli finds living with his disability challenging and struggles to make new friends and find acceptance within his community. BMS World Mission’s partners in Nepal, Human Development and Community Services (HDCS), prioritised reaching people like Dilli after the earthquake. Thanks to your dedicated prayers and generosity, HDCS were able to provide much-needed blankets and warm clothes for Dilli’s family.

Our partners also saw how Dilli needed mobility support to help him live with his disability. They gave him a white stick and five days of training on how to use it to feel for obstacles. Now Dilli finds it much easier to walk around the village and is growing in confidence and independence. He is very grateful for the support provided by HDCS and for the generosity of people like you who want to offer hope in the face of disaster and injustice.

Man with one arm standing in front of a truck with a food package in front of him. — BMS' partners prioritised helping people with disabilities in the aftermath of the earthquake.

Rebuilding brick by brick

The path to recovery doesn’t end with providing emergency relief. One field worker told BMS mission workers Alan and Megan Barker about a man they were helping in West Rukum District – one of the areas worst affected by the earthquake. The man was deeply grateful for the food package and shelter materials he received but turning to the pile of rubble that used to be his home, he said, “but what do I do about this?” Six months on, our partners are responding by building earthquake resilient homes and training local builders in their design and construction. Brick by brick, your generosity is rebuilding homes and livelihoods.

An earthquake resistant home being built in Nepal. — Six months on from the earthquake, survivors in Western Nepal are rebuilding homes and livelihoods.

Scars we can’t see

Disasters also leave scars that are not just physical. Many people, especially children, were traumatised by the loss of homes and family members in the earthquake. Our partners are now providing emotional and mental rehabilitation for schoolchildren and teachers at a local school. They are also training community mobilisers to offer mental health support to survivors and to walk alongside people on their journey of healing.

Woman holding a bag of clothes in front of other and two houses in Nepal. — BMS' partners not only provided warm clothes and food but also offered mental health support for survivors.

God is faithful and has so answered so many of your prayers for Nepal. Thanks to your support, Nepalese churches are putting God’s love into action by strengthening communities, so that they are better prepared to face challenges in the future. You are partnering with your Nepalese brothers and sisters in Christ as they rebuild homes and livelihoods and offer hope for the world.

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Pictures from HDCS, words by Chris Manktelow

A passion for passionfruit: ending poverty in Uganda

A passion for passionfruit:

ending poverty in Uganda

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When it comes to passionfruit, Siwako Muhindo knows exactly what he’s looking for. Ripe fruits are heavy and firm, with smooth purple skin. If you cut one of them open, you can see the orange flesh inside – sweet, fragrant and perfect for lifting your family out of poverty.

Siwako Muhindo and his wife Jane Biira earn 60,000 Ugandan shillings a month from selling passionfruit – more than enough to buy food for their seven children and pay for their school fees. But back in 2021, life looked very different for Siwako and Jane.

“I always looked down on myself, and the community around me could not value me because of my poor financial situation,” says Siwako. “Most of the time my children would not attend school because I could not afford to provide them with enough materials, and I failed to pay the fees. I used to wake up early in the morning to find work in other people’s gardens to be given food to feed my family. Sometimes when I failed to find work my family would starve or have one meal a day – a bad situation that troubled me for many years.”

A group of people standing in front of a Baptist church in Kasese district with blue sky in the background. — Village savings groups that meet in churches are empowering people across Kasese District.

One day, Yofeli Muhindo, who works for a partner of BMS World Mission in Uganda, told Siwako and Jane about a local village savings group. People living in poverty often can’t afford the interest rates on loans from a bank, and banks aren’t prepared to risk lending to them. Village savings groups bring people together every week to save up small amounts of money so that villagers can take out affordable loans. The total money saved is then shared between group members at the end of the year. Siwako was so inspired by Yofeli’s message and he knew that a village savings group was the way to raise himself and his family out of poverty.

After only five months, Siwako could take out loans. Each group member also received 130,000 Ugandan shillings at the end of the year, which Siwako and Jane used to start a food stall. In 2022, the group shared 160,000 Ugandan shillings, which helped Siwako start his passionfruit business.

Now, Siwako and Jane have enough food to eat and can afford to send their children to school. Last year, the group even shared enough money for Siwako to buy a goat!

“The village savings group has really changed our life from a helpless situation where we could fail to provide food and other needs for our family,” says Siwako. “We are now respected in our community, and people have seen a big change in our lives. We are greatly encouraged to save more as we see a bright future ahead.”

A green passionfruit being held in someone's hand. — Not all passionfruit are purple – some are green!

Joshua addressing church-based trainers and village savings group leaders inside Bwera Baptist Church. — Our partners are training people to run village savings groups in churches like Bwera Baptist Church.

But Siwako knows that none of this would have been possible without God working through the local church. “We praise God for the wonders he does in our lives through his people. God bless the Kasese Association of Baptist Churches Development Committee, Justice Livelihoods Health, and BMS for the good work and support they have offered to transform my life and my entire family.”

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Your generous giving and faithful prayers have made such a difference to the lives of people like Siwako and Jane. They are so grateful for your support, and for the love shown to them by our partners. If you would like to keep giving to the work of BMS’ partners in Uganda, then why not consider becoming one of our 24:7 Partners.

Words by Chris Manktelow

Osinachi’s cry

Osinachi's cry

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Friday 25 November begins the annual 16 Days of Activism campaign, now in its 31st year, to end violence against women and girls. As the Gender Justice Co-ordinator at BMS World Mission, these are 16 days I cannot ignore.

Through my role, I work with our partners across the continents to combat the scourge of gender-based violence. It is work that this year has been haunted by song lyrics, sung in northern Nigeria’s Igbo dialect. It is a resounding battle song – a war cry, an outcry calling for the world’s attention – ”Can you hear my voice this time?”

Ala di Mara nma, obu ebe di anya (There is a beautiful home far, far away)
Ebe ndi-nso bi ona enwu ka ihe (Where the saints are living it is like a shining light)

The voice behind this popular song of ‘The Cry’ is Osinachi Nwachukwu, a 42-year-old Nigerian gospel singer and a mother of four children. Her story was reported on BBC news in April. Osinachi had been in an abusive marriage for years and was allegedly beaten to death on April 8 2022 by her husband, Peter Nwachukwu.

Women in Mozambique walking along a dusty path. — Almost one in three women have experienced some kind of gender-based violence.

In the wake of Osinachi’s death, her family members and colleagues accused Nwachukwu of domestic violence, and it came to light that pastors and members of Osinachi’s church knew about the situation but did not speak out Osinachi’s mother revealed that her daughter had left her marriage for over a year but returned when her husband came with pastors to beg her to come back. She advised her daughter to leave her husband, but Osinachi insisted on returning to him, claiming that the Bible doesn’t allow divorce.

The news of Osinachi’s murder jolted me out of any sense of complacency regarding gender-based violence. Before I joined BMS, I worked as a lawyer for one of BMS’ partners, the Uganda Christian Lawyers Fraternity (UCLF). Recently, my former colleagues told me about a case that they pursued all the way to the Ugandan High Court. Without their persistence and Christ-inspired determination, there is no way in a patriarchal society like Uganda the case would ordinarily have made it so far.

A woman smiling — Annet Ttendo-Miller is passionate about bringing liberating justice to women across the world.

The victims, a young a girl called Alice and her friend Sifa, were poisoned, and strangled to death by Alice’s boyfriend. On a visit to his house, he served Alice and Sifa fizzy drinks and pork that contained rat poison. Once they were incapacitated, he strangled both Alice and Sifa to death.

Once the matter came to court, UCLF lawyers followed the trial to its conclusion, traced witnesses and provided the family with legal assistance in making statements and testifying. Counselling was also offered to family members of the deceased. Following evidence provided at trial by the witnesses, the accused was convicted of the murders of Alice and Sifa. As Christian lawyers, UCLF were able to play an important part in responding to the outcry following the violent murder of these two young women.

Before working for UCLF, I worked in a similar role in Mozambique with the Mozambican Association of Christian Lawyers (AMAC), another BMS partner with a strong history of tackling gender justice issues. In the last year alone, AMAC has handled 12 domestic violence cases and 500 beneficiaries in the community have received trainings on topics related to domestic violence, child marriages, Children’s rights and protection, land rights and marriage laws.

Education is such a powerful tool in the fight against gender-based violence and AMAC’s legal education officer António Chico Gouca Manuel has been a key figure behind a revolutionary new app used by hundreds of Mozambicans in the last 12 months. The app, called Juris, offers access to up-to-date information on subjects such as the legal age of marriage and marital rights and duties to a section of society long denied such knowledge.

I hear examples of this gender distortion in so many of my conversations with BMS partners, including recently with Dil Bahadur Karki, the head of KISC EQUIP in Nepal. He told me that, “parents invest more on the boys’ education than the girls’ because they think girls get married and go away… Parents even have the tendency to send their sons to private schools and daughters to public schools because they think private schools provide better education.”

Dil’s solution aims to improve girls’ attendance and long-term commitment to school by ensuring 60 per cent of their scholarships are awarded to girls. All the school’s activities are co-educational, a rarity in Nepal, and they seek to address the gender gap through education seminars for parents of all their children.

A banner stand advertising an app called Juris — BMS' partner AMAC hope their app, Juris, will teach women about their rights.

Sometimes, like in Nepal, awareness raising and awakening needs to be of the educational variety. Other times we need to be hit between the eyes. And that is exactly what Valérie Duval-Poujol did in 2018.

Valérie works with BMS’ partner the French Baptist Federation. Four years ago, she launched ‘Une Place pour Elle (A Place for Her)’, an activist movement built around symbolic acts. As Valérie explains, “the acts are so that we never forget these hundreds of murdered women and all the victims of psychological, physical and sexual violence… We cover a chair with red fabric to make visible the place that should have been occupied by this woman, this neighbour, this friend who is no longer there. Through this strong symbolic gesture, speech is freed; passers-by, of all generations, all those who see the ’place for them’ are made aware of this tragedy, encouraged to help the victims of this violence, the taboo is broken.”

School girls run down a dirt path in Nepal. — Your support is helping make sure girls in Nepal get the cherished education they deserve.

As a Christian, I believe the right to life is God-given and no one has the right to take away a life. When the story revealing the circumstances around Osinachi’s death broke out, the public were shocked and queried how such a gifted and well-known singer could suffer domestic violence for so long without respite or redress. Sadly, Osinachi, Alice and Sifa join a catalogue of cases of women across Nigeria, Uganda, and the world, whose untimely death and injuries were because of domestic violence.

Osinachi, Alice, and Sifa’s blood and the blood of millions of women cry out demanding justice. The words of Psalm 10 come to mind:

“Why are you far away, Lord?
Why do you hide yourself
When I am in trouble?
Brutal people
Hunt down the poor
Strike and murder some innocent victim.
They say, “God can’t see!”
He’s got a blindfold on.”
“God won’t punish us!”
Do something, Lord God,
And use your powerful arm to help those in need.
But you see the trouble and the distress, and you will do something.
The poor can count on you and so can orphans.
Now break the arms of all merciless people
Punish them for doing wrong and make them stop.”
(Poverty and Justice Bible, CEV)

Together, we can change this. You are your sisters’ keeper. Will you come forward and stand with those who are in this fight and not allow the women who have been killed to be forgotten?

Rest in peace our sisters, a prayer and demand for justice and dignity for all.

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Words by Annet Ttendo-Miller, Gender Justice Co-ordinator, BMS World Mission

Persistence pays

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Annet Ttendo-Miller is passionate about God’s calling for justice and empowering people to speak up for their rights and liberties.

You might have met Annet before – she has served overseas with BMS World Mission as a lawyer in both Uganda and Mozambique and we’re excited to welcome her back as our Gender Justice Co-ordinator, taking on a crucial part of our new strategy: facilitating gender justice in all the work we do. Read on for Annet’s reflections on the parable of the persistent widow and how God calls us to cry out for justice, which is an edited extract from the upcoming issue of Mission Catalyst, BMS’ magazine for delving deeper into issues of faith.

Uganda and Mozambique both have laws that allow widows to own land. However, an illiterate woman who lives in a village, and has no resources to fight for her rights is at a distinct disadvantage. In such patriarchal societies, it is commonly believed that women should not own property. Women are not allowed to inherit land – not even the house that they live in. If her husband dies, a woman is often left having to fight against family to reclaim her land. Many women simply lose hope and give up. Most people in the community are not aware of laws and do not know their legal rights.

In the parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18: 1-8), a poor, powerless widow comes before a judge who did not fear God and did not care what people thought of him.

As he did not acknowledge God or other men, this judge was clearly a law unto himself, and acted without accountability. He dismissed the widow and her pleas for justice multiple times without concern. Yet somehow, poor and powerless as she was, the widow found the patience to tolerate this situation without losing hope. More than that, she acted boldly in approaching the powerful judge after already having been dismissed. And she even persisted the more, coming back again and again to put her request before him.

A woman sat at a desk — Annet is passionate about helping women across the world understand their rights.

The widow did not remain silent when there was no man to defend her. She found her voice in the court room and advocated for her rights. This widow was bold and unwavering, though she understood the oppressive structures that determined her place in society. With persistence, strength, resistance, at last her voice was heard! Judgement was given in her favour; here we have a story of an unnamed widow being celebrated. This passage has a great lesson for us to learn, what it means to keep faith and never give up. The parable ends with Jesus accrediting her faith and asking whether he would find (such) faith on earth when he returns (Luke 18: 8).

Jesus focuses the parable on the point that we are “to pray always and to not lose heart” (Luke 18: 1). The purpose of the parable is to encourage Christians to persevere in their faith against all odds. At the heart of that persistence lies the truth that God is faithful. Because God is faithful, we can endure suffering and frustrating situations with an expectant hope that God will see us through. Because God is faithful, we can boldly come before him to ask for help. We can even boldly approach those who do not know God, those who are powerful, who are cruel, or corrupt, knowing that God is for us. Because God is faithful, we can persist through rejection after rejection, knowing that our faith in him will pay off.

A group of people sitting down. — The team at AMAC help people in Mozambique to know what rights they have.

BMS partners Uganda Christian Lawyers’ Fraternity (UCLF) and the Association of Christian Lawyers in Mozambique (AMAC) are providing legal aid services to the poor and marginalised. Christian lawyers play a vital role in helping widows to enforce their right and training communities about the laws that protect women and representing vulnerable clients. These Christian lawyers fellowships are responding to the biblical call to do justice, with compassion, for the poor.

A woman in front of a building — Annet's work as a lawyer in Uganda and Mozambique has shown her how important God's calling for justice is.

With God, persistence pays. Because of this, the parable of the persistent widow has been a comfort and an inspiration as I took part in God’s justice mission in Mozambique and Uganda. The parable shows that God’s will is at work even in a corrupt world. We see that as Christians our role is to work toward that hope at all times. We cannot right every wrong in the world in our lifetimes. But we must never give up hope, and never stop working for the greater good in the midst of the imperfect systems where our work occurs.

As I look back on the work of Christian lawyers, I am assured that we must pray and never give up in our God-given mission. With God, persistence pays. Please persist in your prayer and support of the justice ministry that BMS, the Christian lawyers and indeed each of you, are involved in. Do not just speak up for yourself. Speak up for those who are heard the least. And let justice and fairness flow like a river that never runs dry (Amos 5:24).

You can find even more from Annet and from other challenging contributors in the upcoming issue of Mission Catalyst magazine, BMS’ magazine for delving deeper into issues of faith. This issue is focused on decolonising Christianity, and contains contributions from Nana Natalia Lester-Bush, Dr Renie Chow Choy and Rev Wale Hudson-Roberts. If you haven’t already, why not subscribe today?

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Words by Annet Ttendo Miller, BMS’ Gender Justice Co-ordinator,
for the upcoming issue of Mission Catalyst magazine.

Are you willing?

What God has in store when you say yes to his call

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Countless cakes, two BMS World Mission workers and one journey: Paul and Sarah Brown look back on ten years serving in Thailand, and share how they’ve learnt to always say ‘yes’ to God’s plans.

Sarah Brown never imagined baking would help her reach the women of Bangkok’s infamous red-light district. And women like Mam* trapped in their work there never imagined that baking would be able to bring them out of it. “It still seems very bizarre to me,” Sarah says laughing. “Using cake decorating to win people to Jesus. But you know, nothing is bizarre to Jesus, and he can use whatever skills you have.” As strange as it seems, when Sarah traces God’s hand in her call to overseas mission all the way back, it did begin with baking a cake. Unbeknownst to Sarah and her husband Paul, that was the first step on a journey that took them all the way to Thailand. Though initially sceptical about how God could use their skills, the past decade of serving him has taught Paul and Sarah to keep saying yes to the plans he has in store.

A mission worker couple pictured against a leafy green background. — Paul and Sarah Brown have served in Thailand since 2012.

After Sarah agreed to bake a celebration cake for a colleague going on maternity leave, the requests kept rolling in. “I just couldn’t see the beauty of it,” she explains. “I thought everybody’s mum taught them baking on a Saturday!” Soon she was working part-time, running a cake decorating business and being asked by organisations working with homeless people, vulnerable women and children with learning disabilities whether she could share her baking skills with them. Sarah feels very strongly that God was preparing her heart for what he had in store for her next: using these skills to help vulnerable women even further afield, in the red-light district in Bangkok. And having said yes to God’s call to serve overseas, she soon found herself saying another yes – after she met Paul during her training year with BMS and they decided to get married!

The lights and sounds of Bangkok, Thailand. — God's plan for Sarah and Paul brought them to Bangkok.

Sarah and Paul began serving with BMS in Thailand in 2012. Both felt amazed that God had work in their skillsets prepared for them there – Sarah, working with the vulnerable women supported through BMS’ partner at that time in Bangkok, and Paul strengthening the skills of the accounting department and teaching the women IT skills. It was a far cry from what Sarah had envisioned as mission work, but, really, it made perfect sense. “I didn’t realise I could use my creative skills on the mission field, so I thought I would have to teach English,” she says. Instead, she was supporting vulnerable women every day, just as she had been in the UK. She met women who had been trafficked from Africa, Eastern Europe or South America, believing they would be working in hotels, and women from Thailand who saw no other choice but to work in the sex industry. Paul and Sarah’s roles were designed around giving those women another choice. “As a team, we used to go into bars to meet with the women. To befriend them, really,” Sarah says. For the women that did want to come out of their situation, the team was on hand to help them into alternative employment and training, such as baking, jewellery making or IT classes. “I could honestly say there was spiritual warfare in those places,” Sarah explains. “It was very, very dark.” But for women like Mam, meeting the volunteers changed everything.

Mam is just one of the people Paul and Sarah supported over the years, first through the centre in Bangkok and later working with vulnerable young boys and girls through BMS’ partner in Chiang Mai. After leaving her old life behind, the mother-of-one became a Christian through the daily Bible studies and witness of the Christian workers. “She had a really beautiful heart,” says Paul. “And she came to love God. Her wish really was to become a missionary.” Mam was desperate to share how her life had changed, and she began to accompany the team on outreach visits to the red-light district, sharing her story of salvation with women still trapped in it. Mam now works for an NGO in Thailand and is still engaged in evangelism. After Paul taught her bass guitar, she also leads in a worship band.

Decorating a cake — Baking, jewellery making and IT classes provided alternative employment for vulnerable women.

Seeing such incredible fruit from your work can make it hard to say goodbye, but after serving in Bangkok and Chiang Mai for ten years, Paul and Sarah know that God is preparing new roles for them in Thailand. They move in January to being working with the Thai Karen Baptist Convention, strengthening BMS’ support of the Karen people and using their skills to equip and serve the vulnerable. But, after ten years in Thailand, they’ve learned it’s pointless to pretend they’re the ones deciding how best they can be used. It’s God who opens all the doors. “Keeping God in the picture and following his leading as to what he wants us to do next is paramount, really,” says Paul. “God equips the people he calls, rather than calling the equipped.” His advice for anyone wondering about mission work? “I would say don’t worry about what gifts you’ve got. It’s about being willing. Are you willing to answer the call? And then God will do the rest.”

As Paul and Sarah prepare for their new roles in January, they’ve asked BMS supporters to pray with them:

Please pray for the Covid-19 situation in Thailand, where so many are still waiting to be vaccinated. Pray for comfort for people who are struggling to support their families due to lost work. Ask God to protect people in a nation where suicide rates are sadly rising.
Please pray for our transition to the new organisation – that our relationships with the Thai Karen people would develop and flourish. Please pray too for good health.
In Thailand, only one per cent of people would call themselves Christians. Please pray for creativity in our outreach as God uses us to witness to those we serve. Pray also for Christian groups living amongst the hilltribes where we’ll be working to have the confidence and courage to share the gospel powerfully with others in their own mother tongue.

Illustration of J - one of the Christians in hard places who shares her story

Will you stand?

If you’d like to stand with courageous Christians like those Paul and Sarah will be supporting in their new role, take a look at our Harvest appeal for 2021, I Will Stand. This year, we’re raising money for Christians living the gospel in hard places, no matter the cost. Find out more here.

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*Name changed
Words by Hannah Watson, Editor of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine.

From the corners of the world

From the corners of the world:

The incredible workers you support

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The pastor who embraced a town in mourning. The passionate teacher carving a brighter future. The man holding the doors of justice open for the oppressed. This is BMS World Mission. These are the workers your support.

A pastor who embraced a town in mourning

Pastor Amilcar is one of the kindest people you could meet. He can’t walk ten paces through the streets of Pisac, Peru without locals stopping to kiss him on both cheeks. He’s got a kind word for everybody, asking after relatives and how business is going. He’s not from this town, but Pastor Amilcar’s gentle reflection of Jesus’ love for this place has meant that, one by one, people here have come to know Christ. Taking Amilcar almost by surprise, a fledgling church has formed in Pisac, borne out of his witness. This village in the Andes is a long, meandering drive from the city of Cusco, where Pastor Amilcar faithfully leads his congregation. So why would a busy pastor embrace such an unassuming place, over an hour away?

Pisac may be a small town, but it’s got a heavy history. In 2010, a flood broke the banks of the Vilcanota river, which splices its way through the Sacred Valley of the Incas in which the town is nestled. You can feel the water’s power each time you cross the bridge connecting the two sides of the town. The flood killed 12 people, many of them parents to young children. This is why Pastor Amilcar is drawn back to Pisac. He’s committed to mourning with families who are still recovering.

“After the tragedy, people needed help. They needed clothes and food, but all these things were temporary. People really needed help that would last,” says Pastor Amilcar. That help has come in the form of sharing Jesus’ love with people in Pisac, but Pastor Amilcar knows he couldn’t do anything he does without BMS supporters. “Thank you for your love for people you don’t know. God bless you. Because of your support, families here will have their lives transformed.”

A Peruvian man. — Pastor Amilcar has spent the last ten years spreading Jesus' love in the Peruvian town of Pisac.

This is what your support of BMS’ church planting ministry looks like. It looks like life springing from the shadow of death. It looks like supporting Pastor Amilcar. It looks like embracing a town in mourning.

The passionate teacher carving a brighter future

Esther Sarker’s Facebook feed is a riot of colour. She’s always posting craft ideas, visual aids and activities for children – a kind of digital mood board for her job. Some people are born to teach, and Esther is one of them. It’s clear from the way she convulses into giggles at some of the funny things her pupils say. From the student workbooks she’s meticulously illustrated by hand. And from the compassion she radiates when she finds out that one of her pupils from a poor, rural area in Bangladesh only owns one outfit to wear to school.

A Bangladeshi woman with a Bangladeshi child. — Your support means that Esther is able to bring children in Bangladesh a brighter future.

Esther is a recent recruit to the Social Health and Education board of the Bangladeshi Baptist Church Sangha. It’s a project transforming futures for Bangladesh’s children, starting at the very youngest age, by equipping local teachers to provide preschool education to marginalised areas.

For Louise Proctor, BMS’ Educational Consultant heading up the project, Esther’s input has been indispensable. She understands the local context that Louise has had to adapt to over four years. “Esther can get more of a real picture of what’s happening,” says Louise. “She’s starting to build up relationships with the teachers, and we’re hoping that they’ll begin to open up more to her, and share their stories and difficulties.”

Esther’s faith infuses everything she does. It’s important to her that Hindu and Muslim children, as well as Christian kids, are getting to know who Jesus is through the witness of the preschools. “We can spread that light,” says Esther. “Our society has needs. And rural areas have little chance to access education. If our country wants to develop, then children are our future.” Jesus taught that space should be made for little children to come to him. And by supporting BMS education projects, you enable teachers like Esther who take that teaching seriously – teachers who love their jobs, who love Jesus, and who want to share his love with the children they teach.

The man holding the doors of justice open for the oppressed

Luis Alfredo Manjate is a man with a plan. As the Executive Director of BMS partner the Mozambican Association of Christian Lawyers, he wants nothing more (and nothing less) than to turn the Mozambican justice system around, and ensure people’s rights are upheld. Excited to have found a calling where he can marry his profession as a lawyer with his faith, Luis is passionate about working for a Christian organisation which holds the doors to justice open for widows, for orphans, for the vulnerable. And with an arresting gaze, and a smile that creeps in at the corners of his mouth when he wants to check he’s being understood, Luis is a lawyer you’d want on your side faced with any kind of trouble. “It’s a great privilege to be here in an environment where you can talk about God,” Luis says. There are cases he’s received, where, instead of turning reflexively to litigation and courthouse disputes, he’s been able to resolve the conflict by giving advice, praying for the parties involved and sharing the Word of God. For Luis, bringing justice means bringing peace.

“The support that has been given to us has meant we can make justice real to people,” Luis says, as he thanks all BMS supporters who have helped make his work possible. “The privilege we have of providing justice for people is being fulfilled.” By supporting BMS justice ministries, you’re binding up the broken-hearted and bringing peace to the oppressed. You’re sharing God’s love with people when they need it most. And you’re fuelling workers like Luis who have their hearts set on serving God and the people made in his image.

A Mozambican man — “The support that has been given to us has meant we can make justice real to people,” says Luis Manjate.

Your support is going even further…

If you’ve donated to the BMS Coronavirus appeal, then you’ve helped provide food parcels, hygiene products and other necessities to vulnerable families in Peru, Bangladesh and Mozambique. Thank you so much for your incredible generosity. If you haven’t donated yet, then give today and be part of the global Coronavirus response.

Originally published in Issue 47 of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine.
Words by Hannah Watson.

Black Lives Matter

Statement

Black Lives Matter

The movement fighting against racism in all its forms deserves support, solidarity and Christlike witness within it from all followers of Jesus. BMS World Mission believes that Black Lives Matter.

Black Lives Matter. BMS affirms this statement without reservation or caveat. We affirm that black lives matter in the name of Jesus Christ who taught and embodied justice and who died a violent death at the hands of authorities acting with the support of unjust government and religious institutions. We affirm that black lives matter to the God who created all human beings in the likeness of God and through whose prophets and apostles the message of justice has been spoken. We affirm that black lives matter in the name of the Holy Spirit who has inspired prophets such as Dr Martin Luther King Jr to fight for equality, respect and meaningful change, and whose messages have too often been co-opted and watered down for the sake of comfort.

We affirm that black lives matter because black lives are still being taken violently, decades after Dr King himself was martyred. Because black lives are still marginalised by systemic racism, covert racism and oppressive policing all over the world, including the UK. Because too often we hear of ‘a few bad apples’ and other excuses for murder, discrimination and dehumanising racism that black people made in the image of the living God encounter every single day. We affirm that black lives matter because, to our shame, it seems that our society and our world do not yet understand this. And as long as black lives continue to be silenced, marginalised and oppressed, it is the duty of all who serve the justice-loving God to speak out on behalf of those who are suffering.

We affirm that black lives matter because we are black as well as white and many other races in our staff and body of workers. We affirm that black lives matter because we recognise the greater challenges that people of colour have faced just to be part of such a staff and body and because we recognise that white privilege, without and within our organisation, has often caused pain. We affirm black lives matter because we recognise that white people have a road to travel and that sisters and brothers of colour have been gracious and patient in the waiting – and should be able to expect better and quicker progress.

BMS affirms that black lives matter because we serve globally, alongside partners of all races and ethnicities, through whom God is at work in mighty ways, and we seek to express God’s love to those who have been marginalised and held down by a history of racism that has benefited our organisation by benefiting the country from which we have historically operated. We repent of the sins of racism we have committed and we seek, as we move into a time of new strategy, to redress the imbalances of power and race that have been our legacy, through listening to and partnering more equally with the World Church, through networks, through investing in emerging leaders, and through seeking to serve in solidarity that empowers those through whom God is already working.

BMS affirms that black lives matter, knowing that it may cost us something. We know that some do not agree. We know that some prefer a greater degree of equivocation and softening, or a focus on the imperfections within the movement. We know that there are Christians who still somehow deny that racism is a systemic problem. To those people, we would say:

Please listen to your black sisters and brothers. Please open your ears to what the Spirit is saying. Please do not miss out on what God is doing. We hope that even as you disagree you would still support and pray for the work we do in the name of Jesus around the world – but if you don’t, we believe that is a price worth paying. And we believe that God will honour our commitment to truth and justice with provision.

We do not say these things lightly. We know we have work of our own to do in terms of diversity, particularly in our leadership, as well as historic amends and inclusion. We are already working on these things and we will increase our commitment to them. This is not merely a statement, but a promise.

And to all the churches and individuals who are fighting for justice, to all those taking similar steps, to all those affirming a movement of justice that is long overdue support and success, we want to encourage you. Do not grow weary of doing good. This is right. This is of God. This is love and justice made manifest. We pray God’s guidance and God’s blessing on this movement of justice. Breath of God come, and fill the lungs of all who have been silenced. Give them voice and give the world ears to hear. Black Lives Matter.

BMS World Mission

A life transformed

A life transformed:

Lídia’s story

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Your support for BMS World Mission transforms lives every day. We wanted to share Lídia’s story with you, so you can see how important your giving really is.

Lídia wanted to help people. She dreamt of becoming a lawyer, to help the men and women she saw suffering around in her in Mozambique. But as she grew up her worldview changed. She saw deprivation and experienced her own struggles, raised by a single mum in a house that flooded every time it rained. She saw lawyers as liars. While the rich got richer, she seemed to have no opportunities and little hope. She gave up on her dream.

And on 4 May 2017, life as she knew it changed forever. That was the day Lídia’s mother was killed in a car accident. It could have meant the end of any hope for Lídia and her three sisters. Initially, it looked like it was. But for Lídia’s perseverance, it might have been.

Lídia lost all sense of direction in her life. Her mother was dead. The collision had been the fault of the other driver but Lídia’s family didn’t know that they could get compensation. They didn’t understand the law that was there to protect them from situations just like this.

A woman in front of a white wall. — Lídia dreamt of being a lawyer from a young age.

Stories like Lídia’s have been heard hundreds of times by the BMS-supported Association of Mozambican Christian Lawyers (AMAC). This is not just a case of lack of education: the law is written in Portuguese, a language that half of the population don’t even speak.

Which is why AMAC’s work to provide legal education, advice and representation is so vital. And why, thanks to your support, BMS stands alongside AMAC with funding, expertise and justice mission workers. “While injustice continues to rob people of the opportunity for dignity, hope and a future, we must continue to take the imperative of Proverbs 31: 8-9 seriously,” says Steve Sanderson, Deputy Director for Mission. Speaking up for those who cannot speak for themselves is an imperative that AMAC take seriously too. So when Lídia met Fernando, a member of AMAC at church, she soon realised that she had found someone who could really help her.

A man sits at a table outside — AMAC holds events at churches to provide legal education to local people who need it most.

Lídia explained her situation to Fernando, and he told her about AMAC. About how they work to help people like her get the access to justice they need. He told her that if she went to AMAC, they would be able to advise her. With AMAC’s help, Lídia’s family won the case against the driver and were given 180,000 meticais (£2,300) in compensation. They put the money towards a house, one that didn’t flood when it rained. Where their family could start rebuilding their lives.

AMAC showed Lídia that her opinion of lawyers was wrong. The lawyers she met at AMAC were people of compassion, people who wanted to serve those who needed them most. And Lídia knew that this was where God had been leading her. When she heard of a vacancy for an Admin Assistant at AMAC, she applied and got the job. And working for an organisation dedicated to giving a voice to the voiceless was enough to reawaken the dream she’d had as a girl. Lídia is now in her second year of studying Law with Criminal Investigation at university. Ever since she was young, she had wanted to help people. By working with AMAC, she’s been given a chance to do just that.

Have you been inspired to support BMS' justice ministry?

If you want to help more people like Lídia, sign up to be a BMS Justice Partner today, and support our mission workers fighting injustice across the world.

Become a 24:7 Justice Partner

A woman sits behind a desk. — Your support for BMS has given Lídia the opportunity to help people just like her.

Lídia knows that AMAC is so much more than just its amazing and inspiring staff and lawyers. AMAC is also you. Your support through BMS provides funding, legal experience and capacity building to AMAC. Your prayers for, and giving to, our justice ministries around the world make stories like Lídia’s possible. You and your Mozambican brothers and sisters gave Lídia a lawyer when her family needed one. Gave her an opportunity to serve. Thank you for your support. Thank you for a life transformed.

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Cyclone Idai update

Thank you for your continued prayers for the city of Beira after it was struck by Cyclone Idai. We have been touch with our personnel and partners in the area and can confirm that Lídia is safe.

Find more updates on the continued relief efforts here.

Words by Laura Durrant.

From the frontline: stories to inspire you

From the frontline:

stories to inspire you

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From giving critical medical aid at night, to helping a rural community grow crops, our mission workers have had a very busy, challenging and blessed start to the year. We thought it was time to share some of their news with you.

The surgeons in Chad who came to the rescue after dark

Andrea and Mark Hotchkin in traditional Chadian dress in front of a sand coloured wall — Andrea and Mark Hotchkin dedicate every day to helping others in Chad, no matter where they are in the country.

We’ll paint a picture for you. One day you’re in a fancy hotel in Chad’s capital city, N’Djamena attending a Ministry of Health meeting. Then just a few days later you’re hours from the nearest town, it’s late and you’ve spent the day driving from village to village assessing healthcare provision. Word reaches you that two local people are seriously unwell and no-one has made any effort to get help.
This is what happened recently in the lives of BMS World Mission surgeons, Andrea and Mark Hotchkin. If you didn’t already know how amazing they are, you certainly will when you read their latest blog.

Read the Hotchkins' blog

Giving hope for a better future

A woman dressed in black stands behind a table covered in neatly arranged clothing — You’ll probably never meet Shama, but thanks to your support for BMS you’ve helped her and her family.

Consider this: you have five children, your husband is unable to find work and one of your children has tuberculosis. You have to spend every day not knowing how long you have to make the small amount of income you do have last. This is the life that Shama has known in Delhi. But thanks to your support for BMS workers James and Ruth Neve, Shama and others have been given hope of a new life-changing income. To find out how, read the Neves’ latest blog by hitting the button below.

Read the Neves' blog

A night of praying with women in pain

Evening street scene in Bangkok with neon lights — The light of Christ is being received in Bangkok’s red-light district, helped by BMS worker Ashleigh Gibb.

In the red-light district of Bangkok, women are learning they are children of God and that he loves them. BMS worker Ashleigh Gibb writes in her latest blog about a special event at a hotel where women who work in some of Bangkok’s bars gathered for a meal and prayer. Please read Ashleigh’s blog, and please continue to pray for her and the people she meets in one of the world’s darkest places.

Read Ashleigh's blog

‘The seeds we received are a gift from God’

Carlos Tique stands in front of a house and some green foliage — By supporting BMS worker Carlos Jone, you’re helping people in Chassimba, Mozambique not only fight hunger, but also earn their own money.

There’s a rural village in Mozambique called Chassimba, where your faithful support for BMS work is transforming lives. Men and women are not only being given seeds to grow crops, they’re learning how to take care of them better. And with increased production comes an income. BMS worker Carlos Jone visited Chassimba recently, and shares in his latest prayer letter the beautiful response he received from villagers.

Read Carlos' update

News in brief from around the world

In Guinea, BMS worker Ben*, along with a professional football coach, visited football training sessions to strengthen links with non-Christians. Ben has also started to meet with a prison group as he continues to show God’s love among the marginalised.
In France, the BMS Action Team has been helping at a refugee centre for women, supporting youth work, forging friendships and developing their language skills. Check out all their news on their blogs page.
In Peru, BMS worker Laura-Lee Lovering has been kept busy through attending the Peruvian Baptist Assembly (her seventh!), catching up with BMS short-term volunteer Becky Richards, and meeting Action Teamers.
In Mozambique, BMS worker Sergio Vilela has put in a lot of miles (around 3,000 in two weeks) meeting people through our partnership with the Mozambican Baptist Convention. Meanwhile, fellow BMS worker, and Sergio’s wife, Liz Vilela has been doing great work with child protection training, which she touches on in her latest prayer letter. Please check it out and pray for the Vilelas!

Want your church to support life-changing mission work?

Your church can get behind our mission work by becoming a Church Partner. It’s ever so easy to join and gives your church the chance to focus on a region or ministry, or on specific people.

We’d love to talk to you, so please don’t hesitate to contact Jo in the Church Partners team with any questions. Call her today on 01235 517600 or email her at churchrelations@bmsworldmission.org

If your church isn’t in Church Partners, talk to your minister today. Get involved, be inspired, express your heart for mission!

These stories are just a snapshot of what our mission workers and partners have been up to. In countries like Uganda, Kosovo, Bangladesh, Nepal, Ukraine, Albania, Lebanon and India, your support is being felt through training, nourishment, heating, education and much more. We thank you today for all that you do for BMS, for your giving and prayer, and your encouragement. Thanks to you, God is meeting the needs of people like you and me around the world. We praise God today for your support and give thanks for our incredible mission workers.

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*Names changed for security reasons.

Fighting domestic abuse in Mozambique

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You are helping bring access to justice in one of the poorest nations in the world, by supporting BMS World Mission and giving poor people the empowerment of knowledge.

You can’t report a crime if you don’t know you’re a victim. And that’s often the case for people in Mozambique. In a country with a tumultuous past, it’s not unusual for many people not to understand the law. Not to know your rights. But BMS workers and partners in Mozambique are changing that.

BMS lawyer Mark Barrell is working with the Association of Mozambican Christian Lawyers (AMAC). “The aim of AMAC is to provide access to justice to the most poor and vulnerable people,” says Mark. And in a country with only around 2,000 lawyers in a population of 30 million, AMAC’s work couldn’t be more necessary. The lawyers from AMAC work hard to provide advice, education and sometimes legal representation to those who need it.

A group of Mozambican lawyers. — The staff at the Association of Mozambican Christian Lawyers are committed to bringing justice to people who need it most.

“We support many different people in different circumstances,” says Mark. “But often the people we help will be women, whose status in Mozambican society can be very low.” AMAC regularly works with women who have been left by their husbands or partners and who don’t have the means to support their children. Women whose husbands have passed away and whose families are trying to take their homes. Women who are regularly subjected to domestic abuse. Women like Isabel*.

Isabel was abused by her husband. But she didn’t understand what domestic abuse was, or that it is illegal. Fortunately, AMAC was there to help.

AMAC regularly partners with local churches to hold education sessions where local people can learn about issues ranging from domestic abuse and inheritance to employment law. Isabel attended a session on domestic violence and was taught about what is defined as abuse, and why it’s wrong. Isabel spoke to a lawyer on the AMAC team, who quickly realised that she was a victim of domestic abuse. She was taken to the police station that same day to report the crime.

“Often it can be difficult to get the police to take any action,” says Mark. “But on this particular occasion the person they saw launched an investigation very quickly, and it was soon referred to the local court.”

Just a few months later, Isabel’s husband was brought before a judge. The court placed a restriction on him, and he was told that he could face imprisonment if Isabel reported any further abuse.

With the help of the AMAC lawyers, many vulnerable people have been helped out of difficult situations.

There are so many more people just like Isabel in Mozambique who need AMAC’s support. Please pray for this vital work, so that more people can live without fear. Pray for:

1. Mark and Susanna Barrell, as they continue serving with BMS in Mozambique.

2. The work of AMAC, that it will continue to bring support to the most vulnerable people in Mozambique, and the wonderful Mozambican Christians who are partnering with BMS to make a difference.

3. Victims of abuse like Isabel in Mozambique and across the world, that they might know hope, justice and fullness of life.

4. For Mozambique as a country, that its people will be able to learn more about correct legal practices and learn their rights.

*Name changed

Download the prayer points

If AMAC hadn’t been there, there’s no telling how long Isabel would have continued to suffer. But now Isabel can live without fear, and also in the encouragement of knowing that AMAC will keep helping other people like her. And that they are determined to keep bringing access to justice to those who need it.

Please pray that AMAC is able to carry out their vision, and bring help to the people who need it.

If you're praying for this Click here

You can help end modern slavery in the UK

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Thousands of people are enslaved in our country. By learning to spot the signs, you can help to set them free.

You’ve probably met someone trapped in slavery. They might have washed your car, paved your driveway, or painted your nails. You might have passed them begging on the street, or avoided their gaze as you drove by them late at night. They couldn’t tell you they were being exploited and you would never have thought to ask. But they were there, and so were you.

The National Crime Agency previously estimated that there were 13,000 people being kept in modern slavery in the UK. It now says that number is the tip of the iceberg. Modern slavery and human trafficking are so widespread, ordinary people like you and I could unknowingly be crossing paths with victims every day.

Modern slavery is endemic in the UK. Those words should be shocking. Horrifying even. And they’re true. In our cities, towns and villages, vulnerable people are being exploited for the financial gain of others. They’re being forced to live in inhumane conditions and work extreme hours for little or no pay. They’re too afraid to speak to the police. And the rest of us don’t even know what to look for.

We sat down with former BMS World Mission worker Dan Pratt, who is tackling modern slavery in the UK head-on:

There’s so much we can do as churches and community centres

Christians should hate slavery – Jesus declared his mandate “to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and… to set the oppressed free” in Luke 4: 18, and he calls us to do the same. By supporting BMS, you’re already helping in the fight against modern day slavery in the UK and overseas. And the good news is, you can do even more.

Richard* is 56. He’s been homeless for 40 years. He lives on the streets of Southend and a few years ago he was picked up by a travelling family who offered him work. “I was walking down the street and a 4×4 pulled up and they said, ‘do you want a bit of work?’ So I went with them,” Richard says.

That’s how easy it is for someone to inadvertently walk into slavery. People are desperate. They’ll say yes to a job.

Thankfully, Richard’s exploitation only lasted for a few weeks, but other homeless men in Southend have spent years doing forced labour. “They were given accommodation, and spent 16 or 18 hours tarmacking people’s driveways,” says Rev Dan Pratt, minister at 57 West, a church and community centre in Southend. “Often if they weren’t paid then they would want to leave, but through physical abuse, mental abuse, or even threats to their families, they didn’t feel able to.

“Some of the people we’ve met worked for those families for 12, 15 or even 20 years.”

Dan, a former BMS mission worker, has come alongside many people who have escaped slavery in Southend. His passion to set the prisoners free developed when he was working with BMS in South Africa. Now, we’re helping to support his work in the UK. In partnership with the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the Eastern Baptist Association, BMS is helping to fund Dan as he heads up Together Free, a network aiming to raise awareness of modern slavery and to help churches across the country fight it. That means, as a BMS supporter, you’re helping to fight slavery in the UK. And in order to fight it more effectively, all of us need to understand what modern slavery is.

We read reports of children carrying hard drugs, and of pop-up brothels – where trafficked women are made to work with little or no pay. People have been kept in slavery at car washes, construction sites, and in people’s homes. It’s happening everywhere.

Since attending a workshop run by Dan and Together Free, Baptist minister Emma Hunnable has been spurred to act against modern slavery. She’s started speaking with her local council and police officers to find ways the church and community can work together.

People who are being kept in slavery have a fundamental right to life in fullness

“If it’s happening in Southend, then it must be happening everywhere,” says Emma. “It’s happening right
on our doorsteps. And as churches, we need to know. We need to be contacting our local councillors and MPs and asking ‘what is going to be the policy on this? What are we going to do about it?’”

Uncovering modern slavery is like trying to piece together a jigsaw puzzle. No-one has all the information. But vulnerable people who are being exploited need to be helped and, while they are unlikely to talk to the police, they might speak to you. The traffickers and slave masters are smart, that’s why they can enslave so many people, and so we need to be smart too.

“There’s so much we can do as churches and community centres,” says Dan. “We’re often working with food banks, with homeless shelters, with crèches – we’re at the grassroots level in our community. We are the eyes and the ears, and we have the possibility of breaking the disconnection that lets modern slavery thrive.”

It’s a huge challenge. And it’s one that we, as Christians called to care for the least and the lost, need to seize. In the resource below you’ll find helpful advice for how to spot the signs of modern slavery and what to do if you suspect someone is being exploited. Your church doesn’t need to start a new initiative or raise loads of money to fight this – you’re already in the places where the people most at risk will be. We just need to be more aware. To be smart. To see.

“People who are being kept in slavery have a fundamental right to life in fullness, and this is what BMS is all about – going to the darkest places, to the hardest places, to the least evangelised, to the people who need to know God’s love the most,” says Dan.

We can break the disconnection that lets modern slavery thrive

That is what we’re about – everywhere we work. That’s why we’re working with people like Dan to raise awareness of modern slavery in the UK. And that’s why we’re asking you to help us. The Church is an army ready to be mobilised to fight slavery. We’re made up of doctors and rubbish collectors, teachers and food bank volunteers. If we all learn to spot the signs of slavery, together we can proclaim freedom for the prisoners.

*Names changed

This article appears in the new issue of Engage, the BMS magazine. Subscribe today by hitting the button on the right to read more about how your gifts are transforming lives around the world.

Annet couldn’t get a visa to enter Britain – please help her

Our mission worker couldn’t get a visa to enter Britain – please help her today

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Annet Ttendo Miller should be in the UK right now, telling people about the brilliant work God is doing in Mozambique through BMS World Mission. She’s not here because her visa application was turned down, which is why we need you and your entire church to pray for her.

It was meant to be so special. BMS lawyer Annet would finally meet her father-in-law, and he would get to hold his granddaughter for the first time. All that Annet needed was a visa to enter Britain.

She didn’t want to move here, or stay a long time, she just wanted to come with her British husband – BMS worker Damien – and their daughter, Patience. She wanted to visit in-laws, her friends and colleagues at BMS, and to tell people about God’s work in Mozambique. And then she’d go back home and continue fighting for the oppressed; for women who have been abused, for the vulnerable without a voice.

A man in a multicoloured shirt stands next to a woman in a blouse, holding a baby — Annet and Damien Miller were all set to visit Britain with their daughter, Patience, when they were told Annet’s visa application had been turned down.

But the Millers’ visit hasn’t happened as Annet’s visa application was turned down. A new application will be submitted, so today we’re asking you to pray for Annet, Damien, and Patience, because we believe in a God that listens.

• Pray that God will make a way for the Millers to visit the UK. Pray that Annet and Patience will get to meet Damien’s father, and that churches will hear about the vital legal work being done in Mozambique.

• Pray that Annet and Damien would have a strong sense of God’s presence during this stressful time. Please pray for the Holy Spirit to be with them at work and at home.

• Pray thanks for what God is doing through Annet and Damien at the Association of Mozambican Christian Lawyers (AMAC). Please pray for more people to hear about the association, and that they ask for help.

The time when Annet was pregnant and told to leave Britain

Annet moved from her native Uganda to Mozambique in 2012 to lead the launch of the BMS-supported legal ministry, AMAC. She married Damien in 2015 and they had hoped for Patience to have been born in Britain.

When they arrived in June 2016 for a visit, Annet was pregnant and had a five-year visitor visa to the UK. She was allowed into the country, but only after being detained for hours, and having had her visa cancelled because it was suspected she would misuse NHS funds.

Allowed to stay in UK for just a few weeks, Annet and Damien had to fly to Uganda, seeking the care every expectant mother deserves. Patience Michelle Miller arrived early in Kampala, premature, but healthy, a blessing from God during a difficult time.

A woman with a grey jacket and black top stands in a garden smiling and with her hands crossed — Annet Ttendo Miller is working to help the oppressed in Mozambique. Please join us in praying for her today.

Hear more about the life-transforming work Annet and Damien are involved in

You may have already watched the video above. What we were all anticipating was for more stories about AMAC’s work to be shared by Annet and Damien in the UK.

“It is a huge disappointment for them, and us, that their visit has been postponed,” says BMS Regional Leader Mark Greenwood.
“They are doing priceless work in Mozambique. Our prayer is that you will hear them tell you all about it in the UK, in your church.”

God called Annet and Damien to Mozambique because he has a heart for justice. They stand alongside person after person who is alone and needs support. Now it’s our turn to support them with prayer.

Please share this article with your friends. We want the Millers to feel lifted up in prayer from churches across the world, not just for their visa and family situation, but for God to use their lives for his kingdom.

If you’re praying for the Millers Click here

Justice in Africa: God’s heart for the poor

Justice in Africa:

God's heart for the poor

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Mob justice. Corruption. Exorbitant court fees. These are just some of the problems that people in Mozambique and Uganda face when trying to access justice. But thanks to you, BMS World Mission is doing something about it.

Christian lawyers in Africa are standing up for the poor and marginalised. They’re helping people like Sarah in Uganda, a widow who fell into legal trouble after her husband died. Whether it’s through legal representation, mediation or legal education, BMS-supported lawyers are helping the oppressed find justice.

Watch the video above to find out how your support is helping Christian lawyers in Mozambique and Uganda stand up for those who need it.

10 reasons why you should serve with BMS

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Choosing to serve with BMS World Mission could be the most incredible, life-changing step you ever take, and it might just be around the corner. If you’re wondering if God can use you overseas, here are ten reasons why you should push that door open right now and find out more.

1. You'll help transform lives around the world in the name of Jesus

A woman uses a sewing machine at skills centre in Uganda. — When you serve with BMS, you’ll witness the incredible joy that a transformed life brings.

When you serve with BMS, you get the chance to show people what Christ’s love feels like, and looks like, and it will be one of the most beautiful things you’ll ever do.

From accountants and doctors to development specialists, our workers are helping bring life in all its fullness to some of the world’s least evangelised and most marginalised people – and you can join them. You can confront injustice. Teach children robbed of an education. Alleviate poverty. Free women from trafficking. Introduce people to Jesus. This is what we do at BMS, and we’ll be with you every step of the way.

2. You won't be going alone

People stand and worship at the Baptist Assembly in 2017 — During your challenges overseas, remember that Christians back home are praying for you.

BMS has been supported by Baptist churches across the UK for hundreds of years, and we still are today.

Christians you may never meet will pray for you every day, lifting you up to God, because when you serve with BMS, you’re part of a big, beautiful family.

The training is second to none and is of vital importance for preparing you for long-term overseas service

3. You don't have to be rich

Money is not everything. But it’s not nothing, either. Being able to take care of your family and think about your future are not things you need to sacrifice to serve with BMS.

That’s why we cover housing costs, living expenses and even pension contributions for our workers.

4. You’ll get to work in some amazing places

Afghanistan is beautiful. Seriously, seriously beautiful. Just take a look at the photo below, at those magnificent colours, and remind yourself how stunning God’s creation is.

An aerial view of mountains in Afghanistan

Well, you could be in Afghanistan, making a very real difference to people’s lives.

“Hearing first-hand how the work you have been involved in has helped change lives is both humbling and rewarding,” says BMS development worker in Afghanistan, Tim*. “You also experience amazing hospitality, and share in the joy and the heartache that your local friends, colleagues and neighbours are going through.”

And if you don’t find yourself in Afghanistan, you could be in Chad, where BMS is making a huge impact on the health of local people, and where the sunset over the River Chari is stunning:

The sun sets over the River Chari in Chad.

Or, you might be in Guinea, working on projects to empower women and children, and you’ll get to see scenery like this:

Mission isn’t tourism. But it is an opportunity to see parts of God’s creation most of us never encounter. We should also mention that your annual travel costs to and from the UK are covered, you receive a generous leave allowance, and when you return home we will help you travel round UK churches telling people about what God has done in and through you.

5. You’ll join an amazing, global team

Members of the BMS-supported legal team in Mozambique stand in front of their office entrance — The BMS-supported legal team in Mozambique speaks up for the poor and needy, and is made up of BMS workers from the UK, Uganda and Mozambique.

This is one of the very best parts of serving overseas with BMS. The people you work alongside are some of the most passionate, wonderful Christians you could ever hope to meet. They are our fellow workers and partners overseas. They’re the World Church. They’re our brothers and sisters, and you will learn so much from them.

Want to find out more?

Just click here to get in touch and find out more about serving overseas with BMS.

6. You'll be well prepared

Language studies. Living in community. Biblical and mission training. We will help you with it all, in the field and at our mission training and hospitality centre. You’ll learn about God, you’ll learn about yourself, you’ll be discipled for service in another culture. Tempted yet? Let pharmacist Claire Bedford tell you more.

“The training is second to none and is of vital importance for preparing you for long-term overseas service,” says Claire, who is serving at a BMS-supported hospital in Chad. “Many months of UK training gives time to adjust to the fact that you’re going to be leaving the UK for quite a while, as well as learning how to live in community.”

Unconvinced? Let our very own Mission Bros address your concerns

7. You'll make history

Albania was a closed communist state until 1991. Nepal, a Hindu kingdom hostile to the gospel. When they opened to mission, BMS was there. And you’ll be serving in countries where we have faith that God has more exciting plans in store.

8. We take security and your welfare very seriously

We have someone on hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week, ready to answer your call in an emergency.

We have protocols for evacuation and kidnapping should either situation ever arise, and measures to protect your identity in sensitive countries.

Mission can be dangerous, but we’re risk-aware, not risk averse.

You’re looked after so well, with all aspects of your life cared for

9. Worried about your children? We care about them too

We pay for your children’s education overseas, help them learn the local language, and take care of any medical needs they have, just as we take care of yours.

And some of the happiest kids we know grew up with mission families, learning first-hand what it means to serve the least of these. Take Graeme in the video (above), he grew up as a mission kid – and just look how much good work he is doing now!

10. We've always got your back

You’ll always have someone to turn to at BMS. We pride ourselves on our pastoral and professional support, no matter where our workers are. And we want you to thrive.

“BMS is great to work for,” says Sophie*, who is helping to run the communications of a BMS partner organisation in Tunisia.
“You’re looked after so well, with all aspects of your life cared for, not just the job you signed up to do.”

Click here If you're praying for people to serve with BMS

Do you feel God could be calling you?

We are urgently looking for people to serve in Afghanistan, Chad and Guinea. We also have other exciting mission vacancies all over the world. If you would like to find out more, email opportunities@bmsworldmission.org or call 01235 517651 and speak to Tom, our Mission Personnel Organiser.

Don’t put off the new adventure God has waiting for you. If you feel God is calling you, and if you have the skills we’re asking for, get in touch today!

* Names changed

Justice League

Christian Lawyers are speaking up for the poor and oppressed in Mozambique.

Supporting this 1135

In a small church, with an orange sand floor and iron-sheeted walls, the attention of 25 people is focused unwaveringly on a tall woman in her mid-fifties. An experienced Mozambican lawyer, speaking to them in their own language about their rights. One minute everyone is roaring with laughter, the next they’re silent. Lidia commands respect. She’s teaching them about gender based violence. About what Scripture says. What the law says. Giving them biblical keys to unlock answers. Is it okay to beat your partner? No. Is it okay to force a teenager to marry? No. People are answering. Nodding. Understanding. Some of them are visibly moved.

After the session, which lasts all morning, nine people come forward to ask Lidia questions. That’s Saturday, and on Tuesday morning two people arrive at the Christian lawyers’ office in Maputo to get advice about the family issues and domestic violence they’re experiencing. They’ve discovered that help exists.

This is what the Association of Mozambican Christian Lawyers (AMAC) is all about. Teaching people the law. Speaking up for the poor and needy. Defending the abused and oppressed. Christian lawyers coming together, in one of the least developed countries in the world, to share God’s heart for justice and see the vulnerable realise their rights.

Through your gifts, prayers and support, BMS World Mission has been walking with AMAC every step of the way. The association was born, in part, out of our legal work in Uganda with the Ugandan Christian Lawyers’ Fraternity; and over the last six years, we’ve seen AMAC grow from a dream into an established organisation educating churches, schools and communities on their rights and providing legal aid for some of the country’s most marginalised people. A small number of Christian lawyers – from Mozambique, Uganda and the UK – are demonstrating that the law is good, that much of it comes from the Bible, and that it’s for everyone. They’re gathering members and momentum. And they’re just getting started.

People with no money believe that there is no justice in the world

The challenges facing many Mozambicans are huge and varied, so the BMS-supported justice league has a lot of work to do.

For the poor and vulnerable here, the law is literally a foreign language. It is written in Portuguese and almost 50 per cent of the population, like many in the church Lidia was visiting, don’t speak it fluently. An added problem is that the laws, although good, are relatively new (with Mozambique only obtaining independence in 1975, and then suffering through civil war from 1977 to 1992) so they have not had long to become established.

Widespread poverty and a lack of opportunity mean that countless people are suffering injustices without even knowing there are laws in place to protect them. The justice system is simply inaccessible.

“People with no money believe that there is no justice in the world,” says Gervasio, a BMS-supported lawyer in Beira. Our team is working to show them that’s not true.

Legal education saved Aida* from a loveless, forced marriage. She was 16 when her parents demanded she marry a 40-year-old man or face a severe beating. Her sister, a preschool teacher, attended an AMAC legal education session and had one of her friends ask about child marriage. AMAC explained that it is illegal in Mozambique for anyone under the age of 18 to get married, and it is also illegal to beat a child.

Equipped with this knowledge, a group from the training went with Aida’s sister to her parents’ house and confronted them, explaining what they had learnt about the law. The parents confessed they hadn’t known it was wrong.

They were sorry and relented. That was a year ago. Now, Aida is living with her sister and is part of a church. She is free from fear of violence and forced marriage, and is thankful to the Christians who helped her.

Education is helping people trapped in abusive marriages too, by changing the minds of their pastors. In Mozambique, pastors are often called upon to mediate cases between church members, but many believe that when it comes to marriage, reunion is always the answer – even in the case of extreme domestic violence. This is changing. One pastor who was strongly against ever condoning separation when he first met with AMAC, stood up at the end of the legal education in his church and told his congregation: ‘if your partner hits you once, come to me. If it happens again, go to the police and I will support you.’

“A lot of change can be made through education,” says Kathy, a lawyer who has just finished four years of service with BMS in Mozambique.

“We’re empowering the Church to take justice seriously and to act.”

Not all injustice is obvious. Working in churches and communities, the BMS-supported legal teams based in Beira and Maputo regularly meet people who are unregistered citizens or who believe they are married when legally they are not. These legal misunderstanding can have big ramifications. By explaining simply how to register a baby (or in many cases an adult) or get married legally, AMAC is helping people learn when they are outside of the law and what to do about it.

On the outskirts of Beira, eight couples recently got married. Through AMAC training, these men and women discovered they weren’t legally husbands and wives. Now they have the protection marriage can bring – the women will no longer lose their homes and security as well as their partners if their husbands die. It’s all very biblical. Disputes over land. Widows and orphans.

All our legal education is focused on empowering the most vulnerable in society. AMAC runs sessions with rural, untrained pastors and with city street boys; with teenagers in schools and with preschool teachers working with disadvantaged children. Our lawyers have even started working with a deaf church, where the congregation struggles to understand or be understood by the community and is very vulnerable to abuse and injustice.

As well as teaching people about their rights, BMS-supported legal workers are advocating for the voiceless. We’re representing imprisoned street children to see that they get a fair trial and don’t remain in custody indefinitely. We’re helping single mothers to receive the child maintenance they’re entitled to. And we’re supporting survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

We’re empowering the Church to take justice seriously and to act

Tiago* sits on a pew in First Baptist Church in Beira and quietly tells a story. A grown man raped his 12-year-old niece. It took nearly four years to get the culprit convicted. The man got two years for his crime – impersonating a police officer to scare a child into following him to an isolated place, sexually assaulting her and then running away. He is appealing his sentence.

The injustice is brutal. While Tiago’s niece still suffers, her attacker has never been imprisoned and despite being convicted, he will remain free until his appeal is heard and denied. “Here in Mozambique, rape is a crime. Yet the accused person was never arrested,” says Tiago. “It’s very difficult for [my niece] to forget what happened. It’s never left her mind.”

The AMAC team has been walking alongside Tiago’s niece since he brought the case to them. No-one is happy with the outcome, but Tiago has hope that some justice will be done. “Without doubt, AMAC should continue,” he says.

“They assist people without charge. They walk with the client step by step. They gave us good treatment, provided psychological assistance and accompanied us in court.”

Annet, our legal team leader in Mozambique, has been helping to support Tiago’s niece. She has more reason than most to empathise, having herself survived sexual violence as a child – an experience that motivated her to become a lawyer in the first place. “Justice is at the heart of God. It’s a mission from God himself,” she says. “If Mozambican lawyers can understand why it’s important for them as Christians to do justice for the poor, they will transform many lives.”

And Mozambican lawyers are doing just that.

But they need your support. There aren’t many lawyers here, let alone Christian lawyers willing to give up the lucrative career they’ve studied hard for to pursue justice for the vulnerable.

And yet those who have captured the vision are holding fast to AMAC’s mandate: “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow” (Isaiah 1: 17).

Your gifts, your prayers and your partnership are vital. “Without BMS support, maybe we can’t survive,” says Luis Generoso, AMAC’s Executive Director and one of its founding members.

And it’s so important that AMAC survives, and thrives.

“If you don’t have justice, you feel like you are not valuable,” says Marie Josee, a BMS-supported lawyer in Maputo. “We exist and manage to do this work because of BMS. I want you to know that the money and the efforts you are giving are not in vain.”

In a small church, with an orange sand floor and iron-sheeted walls, the attention of 25 people is focused unwaveringly on a tall woman in her mid-fifties. She’s telling them about their rights. Telling them that the Bible and the law say that they have value. She’s handing them a set of keys. Giving them a way to unlock some of the doors they’ve been trapped behind.

She’s opening their minds. And the knowledge she is giving them is setting captives free.

*Names changed

This article appears in the new issue of Engage, the BMS magazine. Subscribe today by hitting the button on the right to read more about how your gifts are transforming lives around the world.

Learn to do right; seek justice.

Real people are suffering injustices and abuse every day in Mozambique. We want to stop this, and you really can help us.

Invest in our justice mission in Africa. Commit to regularly praying for and giving to the work you have just read about by becoming a BMS 24:7 Justice Partner. For more information click here or phone 01235 517628.

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Thank you

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We sat down with former BMS World Mission worker Dan Pratt, who is tackling modern slavery in the UK head-on:

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Hear more about the life-transforming work Annet and Damien are involved in

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God's heart for the poor

10 reasons why you should serve with BMS

1. You'll help transform lives around the world in the name of Jesus

2. You won't be going alone

3. You don't have to be rich

4. You’ll get to work in some amazing places

5. You’ll join an amazing, global team

6. You'll be well prepared

Unconvinced? Let our very own Mission Bros address your concerns

7. You'll make history

8. We take security and your welfare very seriously

9. Worried about your children? We care about them too

10. We've always got your back