ACTION'S STRATEGIC RELIEF MINISTRIES Part 1

 Over the next few blogs we will be combining two things:

1) Stories of those we have met on our travels and 

2) Projects which we are praying for. 

The ACTION family is large, and Ukraine, Nepal, Colombia, Serbia, Pakistan, and Cuba are all on our heart as priority prayers ...amongst many other countries. 

We want to share some of that with you, conscious that we are part of a growing army of mission partners who are praying for the same goal with the same ambition. We long to see Christ's kingdom increase, for the unreached to be reached, and for all glory to go to Him when this happens.

We'll accompany this with more detailed emails for those who pray on a regular basis with us (please do get in touch if your would like to get this and don't). We'll also explain how our priority projects are strategically serving these needs. 

Whenever we pray we are conscious that we can't ask God to do something unless we are ready ourselves to be partly the answer to those prayers if appropriate. We give him the best of our emotions, gifts and all the resources he has given us to steward. He who gave us everything is rightful owner of all we have all we are (1 Cor 6:19-20). Lord save us from only ever being lip service disciples. 

Please pray today with us today for two things:

1) The continued aid going to those ravaged by war in Ukraine, floods in Pakistan, and displacement in Afghanistan. 

2) The training of gospel workers reaching out to unreached (especially in Nepal).

ACTION'S STRATEGIC RELIEF MINISTRIES

TRAUMATISED FRIENDS INVITE US IN TO THEIR LIBERATED HOMES IN UKRAINE. 

The vital work of ACTION RELIEF AID. 

Come with us on a road that joins many places made infamous by recent atrocities. Places like Bucha, Borodianka, and Irpin were known 12 months ago as  unique entities and situations loved by their inhabitants, but now around the world are infamous collectively as the places where evil swept in uninvited. 

As we travel on this bright September morning the sun shines gloriously. However, there remains an unnerving tension which hits all senses. The aroma is one of destruction even after so many days. Yes in places smouldering, burning and the smell of death is still apparent. The air tastes charred as home after home lies rubbled, scorched and daubed in the black paint of desiccation. 

It seems so incongruous on the eye when a place such as Borodianka, with its idyllic snapshot of nature and long established community is also the scene of major destruction,  and needs so much rebuilding. To the many older generation inhabitants who remain,  it remains a home, whereby the small maker gardeners spend their retirement years tending such fruitful smallholding spots of this richly blessed agriculture. The unnoticeable difference now is that every other house has been reduced to a pile of bricks, each gate or entrance has been peppered with bullets, and the birdsong has largely disappeared. As we go to great an inhabitant with a small bag of aid, all of the friends come out to welcome us. What a contrast to that day when those who came were not so welcome. 

a) Anatoly's Story.

"Just a few weeks before I had lost my wife. She was of Russian descent, from the same region as those who came uninvited. She was the love of my life. We lived here happily with our dog, our chestnut trees, our vines, our fruit orchard and chickens. We live simply, but the field behind the property enabled us to grow enough to keep us going each year. 

It was just after the beginning of this invasion, when the shelling came closer, there was little warning. I gathered enough to stay here underground, after all this is my home, the place of all memories for me, and I wanted to protect my elderly friends on our street and provide them with vegetables and fruit. I was grateful that all the younger people had left for safety, we knew their reputation and what would happen if either young women or men stayed. We were the guardians of this village. They bulleted and smashed in the gate (that I built well), for fear that I was a sniper... hiding behind. I am a mature man and seriously no threat to youngsters with AK-74's . They then hit my dog repeatedly over the head with the back of their weapons and he died. He was a good dog to me and great company after my wife was no longer here - I lived on my own, and loneliness is itself a unique poverty. They left him there ...just where you stand. 

Underground I kept silent, a prisoner in my own basement, but I could hear what they were doing, and for a month and two weeks  I survived on scraps as they sat in my garden chair, raided my cupboards, and helped themselves to all my stored winter produce, fuel, wood and small comforts. It was so cold and damp, remember it was February. I have never been in such an unhealthy place in my life and I am surprised that my body was able to keep going in the way it was. 

When I finally came out, they had built underground bunkers in my back garden with my best timber. They spent many hours drinking and dropping food, unaware that they had invited in also a host of rats." (This bit of the story I tried to forget but was reminded when we walked down into the dark bunker, and my size 8 Adidas stood on a fury friend who was considerably bigger than my footwear.) 

"To those who came..." said Anatoly, "it seemed normal to live like vagabonds, sewer people, they lived and behaved like animals.

They shot my best friend across the road. (the house we had just been to deliver a bag of aid to an elderly widow.) He was the best of men, a lifelong friend,  going to help someone on that day, but they shot him in front of his wife because they dared to come onto the drive out of their home. They wanted to prove a point. All the neighbours are older than me. Despite (the widows) many respectful pleas, she was not allowed to bury him. He lay in open view for many days until they needed to dig a trench there to hide ammunition. They put dug soil over his body to taunt in mock burial. When we did finally get to give him a dignified funeral it took us (me and his widow) 3 days to dig away that huge mound of earth. As they left my property they caused as much damage as possible, destroying my chestnut trees. That one (points to a broken stump) had produced great chestnuts for generations before. I'm left now with just these two little trees. 

Today I am though just grateful to be here. I am so grateful for the liberation, so grateful for friends like you from the churches that have been so kind and such a lifeline to us. It isn't so much about the things that have been brought to us (though they are so helpful and keep us going), it really is about your solidarity and company, knowing your willingness to listen to our story and as friends, to cry with us and help us try to process in our minds what has happened. This is a very precious thing, and you don't know what a treasure it is until you need it.

There are some things I still don't understand, things my mind wakes up thinking about each day...

• Why did these men (from the same place as my wife) act like animals and brutalise everything we have ? 
• Why would they fight against their own kind? We are the same, just people with the same heritage.   She was so different the Russians who came, so beautiful, so caring, so loving, so hospitable. I wish you had met her.
• Why would they delight in so much destruction ? I dare not go into my field now, I would not survive, everyone has told me they have left mines. The mines are in no pattern, they just want to catch me out with their bad game.

The contrast when the Ukrainian friends (army) came was so obvious. Seeing my sad state... and my dog, they brought to me a brand new puppy they had been caring for. He is such great company, and full of fun"

At this moment he becomes very excited, and after rolling over and jumping increasingly high to please his audience, he settles for tummy strokes before getting so excited, that he relieves himself. "Oh - you have let me down says Anatoly, can't you see we have important friends with us, where is your etiquette?" I share that my 8 old fury best friend would do exactly the same, but have not the excuse of youth. We belly laugh, there is a great unity and trust as we joke together. As we make a move to go, Anatoly then doesn't want us to leave. He extends the visit by climbing up on a rickety chair,  to cut fresh grapes for us off his vine to take home to our families with a bar of his very best chocolate. He makes us promise with assurance that we will call on him the next time we travel that way. 

Anatoly is typical of many we have connected with. A simple bag of basics has bought more than a momentary conversation,  there is a deep human connection. He trusts believers and sees our coming in context / sharp contrast to those who have visited his home before. We are not the only ones sharing the gospel in this location or dark period of Ukraine's history. At the end of Anatoly's road hangs a banner from a church we know well. Praise God for the solidarity and unified expression of Christ in this situation, it has built a great bridge over which the family of Christ are not only heard but invited in to share more. A key part of ACTION relief is working with local and pastors and churches to help the growth of local churches or establishment of new ones where there are none. 

Continue to pray for those who have been so wonderfully impacted and come to find their home in Christ. Continue to pray for friends like Anatoly, who trusting of us, and wonderfully kind and so generous, are yet to truly see the glory, eternal security, and unreserved welcome of the one who loves us and gave himself for us. 

WHY STRATEGIC RELIEF IS SO IMPORTANT: 

1) ACTION WORKERS ARE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME: 

Our relief aid continues to the hardest hit areas. By God's providence this is through longterm trusted partners and pastors with the local church (however fledgling) at the heart of all our relief efforts. These brothers and sisters know the local culture, the sensitive issues we need to tread carefully on, and they are in it for the long haul. Relief work will continue throughout a brutal winter approaches and as battles rumble on in Ukraine. This is no mean task. In other situations like Pakistan and the situation in Afghanistan things are equally challenging with, issues of security and travel, and there severe cold is exchanged for severe heat. Back in Ukraine there remains a huge mission field of friends who listen, trust and want to know more. Now is the time to increase industry and support, not lose interest. 

2) WITH GROWING, TRUSTING RELATIONSHIP COMES THE PROSPECT OF HEALING: With relief aid comes trauma help, much given through natural progression and ordinary conversation. Articulating the realities of trauma for any individual releases fresh tears and sometimes fresh anger, but always there is a healthy growing process which brings life back into some normality. Expressing these issues in a helpful way with trusted friends brings a gradual positive dynamic to recovery. 

3) PATIENT SHARING OF CHRIST ACCOMPANIED BY THE CREDIBILITY OF DEEP TRUSTING RELATIONSHIP, CONSISTENT CARE AND AUTHENTIC COMPASSION. 

After immediate trauma friends like Anatoly are not able (or want) to process the five points of Calvinism.  In fact they struggle to remember what day it is. To them a day can seem like a month and a month like a year. The mind and heart has already reached capacity. Over time however, friends are able to process and comprehend the real fact that a human being loves them, and that they seek to represent and following Christ in doing so. It becomes apparent that those who came and stayed with the situation came in the name of grace and redemption and in every way were driven by the love of GOD. This is the simple but profound foundation from which many good things grow. Anatoly's land may still be some seasons away from growing anything fresh, but our prayer is for the mustard seed of faith may be planted, take root in that heart and home, to the blessing of many and the glory of Christ. Please pray with us today for all who share Christ in these pivotal and critical situations.

HELP FOR PASTORS REACHING THE UNREACHED IN DIFFICULT SITUATIONS.

In the next blog we'll share what we are doing to encourage and help pastors stick with the task God has given them at the most strategic times in the most difficult of places. 

URGENT REQUEST:

Please pray for our Brother B who is trying to get with the team to train pastors and gospel workers in the hills of North West Nepal. Their timetabled travel was postponed due to bad weather. Pray for the door to open for travel, for the providence of God to open up treasure from his word, supernatural equipping in his people, the birth of more new believers and churches. We trust God in his providence and give him all the glory for what he is doing as the church continues to grow.