Before the ceasefire last year, 800,000 Lebanese people were displaced to areas that are considered safer.

If attacks happen, people will be internally displaced this year, too.

Camille Melki with Heart for Lebanon says that southern Lebanon has “a very damp winter, (with) a lot of rain. Most of those families live in tent settlements or in makeshift homes, where it is very moist, and water gets into the house.”

At high elevations in the Beqaa Valley, many refugees and locals live in cold areas that will receive significant snow.

(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)

“Our team at Heart for Lebanon provides blankets, heavy coats, mittens, gloves, hats, anything that can help a family survive the harsh months,” Melki says.

Melki says, “If people flee and are living in the open air or in tents, that would significantly increase the risks (and) health hazards of being affected by the weather, as much as by the wars.”

Please join Heart for Lebanon in praying for peace as they work to fulfill needs this winter. Pray that needs will not become extreme.

“Everything we do, we give out, is given out and done unconditionally, but we also want to make sure that people who receive our aid know what drives us, what motivates us, what excites us, what takes us into the places that are hard and difficult to be in during conflicts,” Melki says. “Nothing motivates us except the compassionate heart of Jesus Christ towards those who are suffering the most.”

Please pray that this winter ministry will show the compassionate heart of Jesus Christ. Pray that it will lead to simple conversations that can turn into gospel conversations and will reach people who do not yet know God.

Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Between February 5-12, the team will be working with kids at
Little House of Refuge in Xela, Mi Especial Tesoro Girls Home in Chimaltenango
and Obras Sociales del Hermano Pedro (Children's Hospital) in Antigua.

At Little
House of Refuge, there are roughly 60 to 70 children,
ages 3 and up. In addition to providing a loving home for all of the children,
the orphanage property houses a school for all the children. Orphan Outreach also helps with funding for
additional teachers, computer,s and school supplies. Ongoing needs include food
staples, vitamins, and clothing.

"Mi Especial Tesoro" is an oasis of God's love and peace in a
barren town that is known for prostitution and alcoholism. The girls who find
refuge there find a home where they are given protection, education, health
care, clothing and the Word of God.

At Obra Sociales de hermano Pedro, the malnourished children who
are found there are given a home. Many
of the patients have physical and psychological problems. Other patients are those who couldn't find
help in private or public institutions. The hospital receives no government
support and relies solely on donations and help from partners.

With
all three of these agencies, Orphan Outreach has a longstanding tradition of
coming alongside and providing physical and spiritual help as well as
love. The idea is to offer a better future
for children in dire living conditions.

James
1:27 remains the inspiration of their mission and the motivation and passion
toward everything they do.

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is
this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself
from being polluted by the world."

Pray especially for the older children in Little Refuge who are
attending a new school in Xela. Pray that they will form new relationships with
other students and feel confident in their new school. Pray for
safety and protection for them as they travel to and from school each day.

Pray also
for team unity and for the Lord to use each
individual to show His love for the children and staff.