Unknown Nations’ Greg Kelley connected with a partner whose daughter was among the original 315 people abducted from St. Mary’s Private Catholic Secondary School in Niger state. She was also among the 50 students who escaped to safety over the weekend, praise God. 

But other news is surfacing that makes this kidnapping even more grim.

Fulani man in Nigeria. Courtesy of Pixabay.

“What we’re hearing now is it’s not so much about ransom. It’s purely about these people, and they’re Fulani bandits,” says Kelley. “It’s about them viewing this school as a soft target, them taking these girls, forcibly converting them to Islam, and then taking them on as their wives.” 

The abduction on Friday was Nigeria’s worst since the 2014 Boko Haram kidnapping of 276 Christian and Muslim schoolgirls. Dozens of those women remain missing today. 

In the aftermath of the 2014 Chibok school kidnapping, Kelley says, “I had met families who told me there were five parents — either a mother or a father — that they knew directly who died of a heart attack over the grief of it.”

Pray for God’s mercy and comfort for these families as they hope and wait. Pray for faithful endurance and miraculous deliverance of the boys, girls, and adult staff of the school. 

Gospel ministry is urgent

In the spiritual battleground of northern Nigeria, Unknown Nations’ partners continue to seek opportunities to share the good news of Christ — even today.

Nigerian children. (Photo courtesy of Victor Nnakwe/Unsplash)

“Our missionaries are working in these areas, and so it puts them in harm’s way. It puts their villages in harm’s way. A lot of times, people are scattering out of these areas. And what it does is it perpetuates the state of fear,” says Kelley. 

“There’s 100 million people who live in northern Nigeria, so it’s a massive concentration of population. Every single family now is going to be thinking twice about, ‘Do I send my child to school?’” 

Nigeria has a large Christian population in the south, but little momentum for gospel mission, says Kelley. 

“We need the church in the south to come to a place of desperation and brokenness where it’s finally mobilizing itself and sending missionaries into the north,” Kelley says. “Let’s remember, they don’t need a visa, they don’t need even a passport. They just need to get in a vehicle and drive north, and they have [an] abundance of resources to do it.” 

Ask God to stir up a greater passion for the Great Commission among believers in southern Nigeria, that they may find their place in gospel ministry to the north. 

Header photo of Nigerian church courtesy of Tosin Superson via Pexels.

Up until 1994, South Africa had a long history of institutionalized racial segregation. Last month, the nation celebrated the 30th anniversary of the end of apartheid, Freedom Day, but long-term effects of that era linger. Those effects include high rates of crime, incarceration, and fatherlessness. 

Men Molding Men camp (Photo courtesy of CWO)

That’s why several years ago, a few South African single moms began meeting to encourage one another. Today it’s a ministry of Christian World Outreach called Single Moms Raising Sons. 

Greg Yoder with CWO says, “We’re working with single moms, helping them know who they are in their faith, their identity with Christ, so that they can deal with being single moms and raising sons — because they’re not men, and there’s just a difference there with fathers relating to their sons and mothers relating to their sons.” 

Moms gather for Bible studies. Their boys attend camps twice a year, where they are mentored and discipled. They learn about their heavenly Father who won’t abandon them. 

“I think that’s the key thing for them, helping them build characteristics that they can grow to be young men that serve the Lord and know who they are,” Yoder says.

A team from the U.S. will be in South Africa from May 17 to the end of the month, participating in the ministry to moms and boys. Pray they will be a true encouragement to the staff, who are passionate about this ministry but are being stretched thin. 

“There’s a lot of people they want to reach and a lot of people who want to be reached. So it’s an exciting time as a ministry grows, but also a difficult time as we grow too,” says Yoder. 

Another way you can come alongside families in South Africa is through financial partnership. 

Single Moms Raising Sons ministry with CWO. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)

“We need support for this ministry as we create Bible studies, print the Bible studies, as we have our camps,” says Yoder. 

To give, click the Donate button on CWO’s website and choose the “SMRS – South Africa” fund. From there, you can select a sub-fund and sponsor a Bible study group, Bible study printing and translations, teams, or a boy going to a Men Molding Men camp. A gift of $90 sends one boy to camp!

Header photo is of Thembi Myeni, co-founder of the Single Moms Raising Sons ministries, who says the ministry was born out of love for her sons and a need for the Father to be in her son’s lives and her life. Photo and caption courtesy of Christian World Outreach.

Christian World Outreach’s Single Moms Raising Sons program began by supporting single mothers in South Africa with Bible studies. But quickly, the ministry realized they needed to help fatherless sons too by connecting them with a biblical community of male mentors.

From there, the Men Molding Men camps were born.

CWO’s Greg Yoder says, “We have two age groups that we do camps with. So it’s the younger boys, and then young men up to about 18-years-old. [They are] just dealing with being a young man and someone who is being raised by a single mom and needing a man around them.”

Men Molding Men camp (Photo courtesy of CWO)

CWO has six Men Molding Men camps in South Africa planned for 2024. The personal and spiritual impacts of these camps can’t be overstated.

“One of the boys just gave a testimony,” Yoder says. “He’s 18-years-old and the other young men that he came to camp with, they’ve become his family and they are encouraging him. He said, ‘I’m quitting smoking, and I know you guys will encourage me.’ So they do become a little community that can encourage each other and just keep each other focused on being Christ-centered in their lives.”

Ultimately, these camps introduce fatherless boys to their perfect and trustworthy Heavenly Father.

You can help make an eternal difference in the life of a fatherless boy in South Africa. Give to CWO’s Men Molding Men camps at their website!

Yoder also asks, “Pray for the leadership of the ministry as they make decisions [and] stay focused on what God’s given us as a ministry.”

Header photo courtesy of CWO.

Christian World Outreach (CWO) has a special ministry to single moms in South Africa, especially those who are raising sons.

It started with offering Bible studies and grew into a community of encouragement. CWO recently hosted a retreat in Johannesburg for their Single Moms Raising Sons (SMRS) ministry, with an emphasis on training them to start their own Bible studies.

Greg Yoder, President of CWO says, “They can relate because they are single moms and they can relate to the issues that they deal with – whether that be not being accepted in church or by family, the issues that they deal with their sons.

“These have helped them relate, grow in their faith, and direct them to God who is that Father who will care for them and their boys.”

Men Moulding Men junior camp with CWO. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)

You can help by praying spiritual encouragement for these mothers. Ask the Lord to give them comfort and be their daily bread through His Word.

There’s also several ways you can support this ministry financially. Visit CWO’s donation page and choose the SMRS – South Africa fund. From there, you can select a sub-fund and sponsor a Bible study group, Bible study printing and translations, teams, or a boy going to Men Moulding Men camp.

About the camp, Yoder explains, “We have a series of three camps that boys go to just so they can learn some basic things like honor and integrity.”

Finally, you can join a missions trip with CWO to South Africa. “It’s a vision ministry trip so people could firsthand see the ministry and participate a little bit in some ministry with the people there,” says Yoder.

Contact information@cwomissions.org for more information about the missions trip to South Africa or call 303-723-0333.

Header photo of Single Moms Raising Sons ministry with CWO. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)

The violence has had severe economic repercussions. Tourism is a big part of Burkina Faso’s economy, but fewer people are visiting now. The terrorist groups want to establish caliphates run by their own interpretations of Islamic law.

Schools closed

Alassane is the Administrator of Christian World Outreach (CWO) in Burkina Faso. He says, “We have about two million people displaced to different places. All of them are trying to save their lives. Many are running down to the Capitol. And we have about 4,600 schools that have been closed. Most of the victims are children and women.”

At least 700,000 children can’t go to school right now. That puts them at more risk, Alassane says.  “Even before that, we had a lot of forced marriage situations that were going on. So with the school being closed, girls are being taken by force to be married to other groups of people.”

“They also want to take the boys and force them to be fighters in the different groups.”

CWO operates a training center where young women can learn skills to support themselves. This includes sewing, cosmetology, and culinary arts. Pray for this project, called the Village of Opportunity. Extremist groups in the area have told it to close since they do not want women receiving any education.

They also operate a mobile medical clinic that brings healing and the news of Jesus to people. Recently, 14 people became Christians after receiving medical care.

Pray for peace in Burkina Faso.

(Header photo courtesy of EKokou, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

Thailand (MNN) – Rescuers are still working hard getting the remaining boys out of the flooded cave in Thailand.

On Sunday, four boys were confirmed to have been evacuated from the cave. On Monday, rescuers were able to get a head start on operations when the rain subsided a bit. They headed back into the cave around 11 am local time.

(Photo and header photo courtesy of Compassion International)

Piyamary, or Oo, of Compassion International spoke to us Monday evening from Thailand. She says people waiting near the cave watched as two helicopters took off to the hospital yesterday evening. Later it was confirmed that four more boys had been taken out of the cave on Monday.

That means four boys and their coach remain as of the early hours this morning.

During a press conference, Oo says the mayor told them they would be bringing out whichever boys were ready. Originally, it seemed that they would bring out the weakest first, but that has not been confirmed since operations began.

According to the New York Post, yesterday’s rescued boys were healthier than the first group had been upon exiting the cave.

“He only said that whoever was ready, they will bring out first. Also, they haven’t [reported] about the names of the boys brought out,” Oo said on Monday.

The mayor has been keeping a tight lid on which children have been rescued so far, out of respect for the families and those left in the cave.

(Photo courtesy of Compassion International)

Meanwhile, rescue workers have been working non-stop. When diving operations are put on hold, they are preparing for the next excursion into the cave.

After the first rescue operation, Oo says, “They had to rest and refill all the oxygen tank and re-rope it, like re-set up for the whole thing. And that will takes 20 hours, for them, for the team to set up and be ready to go in.”

This is the process they are going through now while they prepare to re-enter the cave today.

“From what I heard from the announcement at the press conference, it [sounds] like they expecting to bring the [boys] out every day that they can. But how many boys can they bring out each day? They can’t tell.”

One of the team members is a Compassion International sponsored child. His family has been waiting outside the cave since they learned that he was trapped. Despite the high-risk situation, Oo says they are doing well.

(Photo courtesy of Compassion International)

“They said that they are very happy and they’re doing fine. They are at the cave site, [staying] there to wait for the signal or a sign that they can go to the hospital.”

Compassion team members have been supporting the families in any way they can.

“We pray with them and we help them to bring them back to the church where they’re staying in town to get [changed] or to get lunch or to get rest because for the last couple weeks, they really—it’s kind of [exhausting] to be at the cave the whole time. So, we always there with them, make sure they’re doing ok, and make sure they get what they need.”

Once it’s confirmed that this boy is at the hospital, Compassion will ensure that he gets good medical help.

There’s not much else for anyone to do than pray.

Oo says, “My prayer right now, personally, I’m praying for the weather can hold up until they get everyone out from the cave. That would be my prayer. And, water would not increase.

(Photo courtesy of Compassion International)

“And the rescue team, also their strength. Because it can be really [exhausting]. Without them, I don’t think the boys can get out. So, praying for all the divers that are working really hard—90 of them volunteer. So, they have been working really hard for the last two weeks and every day now.”

Because the rescue operations are well underway and there’s not much else to do, Oo is heading back to the office today. She hopes and believes that the rescue operations will finish up today or tomorrow.

Human trafficking plagues every country. In the US, human trafficking is in every state. Human trafficking touches every demographic.

Food for the Hungry’s ministry specifically works in India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, and the Philippines where they see rampant human trafficking activity.

(Photo courtesy of Food for the Hungry)

Gary Edmonds, President and CEO of Food for the Hungry, explains, “The kind of context where we see it most often happening is where there is real extreme poverty. This may surprise us in the United States, but when you get families that are at the edge of starvation, they’re simply just trying to survive.”

Edmonds witnessed the blight of human trafficking and the impoverished scenarios that fuel it while he was in India.

“I saw a father say, ‘I’m going to place my 12-year-old daughter up for sale.’ She was going to be used in the sex trade at that point. And for him, it was simply a matter of survival. He knew of no other way.

“For 500 years, the culture of this community had said this is legitimate…to take our first female child of our family and between 12 and 13-years of age sell that girl into another profession that will allow us as a family to garner the income from the sale of this child. I say there has to be another alternative. That is evil woven into that society.”

In India, Food for the Hungry has established homes called the House of Palms in conjunction with local believers and ministries. These homes bring girls freed from the sex trade into a merciful environment where they can receive assistance, education, and healing. While Food for the Hungry is not involved in the actual rescue aspect, they empower the local Church to care for these rescued girls at the House of Palms.

“They’re introduced to a loving God. They are introduced to a God who cares for them, a God who wants their wellbeing. They are introduced then to an educational system. They are introduced to a place where there is protection and provision and ongoing nurture. And these girls then all of a sudden begin to flourish.”

Some of these girls will even go back to their families and show how their lives have changed now that they are free and living for Christ.

“What we’re seeing is that God’s truth and God’s love has the power to break this pattern of criminality, of cruelness for certain people in different parts of the globe.”

(Photo courtesy of Food for the Hungry)

Edmonds says at the same time in many of the countries FH serves, “What we’re doing is working with the community, working with the families, working with the men, the fathers of that kind of a community to say, ‘Let us teach you about alternative livelihoods. Let us teach you how to take care of the protection and provision of your family in this kind of a way so you can operate without selling your children into some kind of a trafficked position.’”

It all comes down to the comprehensive approaches needed to get ahead of, address the root of, and heal the broken impacts of human trafficking.

Food for the Hungry as an organization recently went through an exercise to review all the theological texts and documents that have guided their ministry. In the process, they embraced Colossians 1:19-20, “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

From that verse, Edmonds shares, “It’s our conviction from a biblical perspective that Jesus coming to earth was to take everything — all aspects of life that have been broken, damaged by sin, Satan, and the world — and reconcile them or restore them.”

“The consequence of that is as we would work with people, we would say (and I put it like this) that we’re human beings in flesh. We live in space, time, and history. We live in relationship with God. We live in relationship with others. Therefore, what Jesus is doing with this right now is he’s looking to touch and to influence and redeem and have a transformational impact on each and every aspect of our life. This is Jesus’ way.”

(Photo courtesy of Food for the Hungry)

As FH follows the way of Jesus as a ministry, they will continue addressing the brokenness of the world with this holistic approach — one that touches man’s physical, relational, and spiritual self.

“You want to address the beliefs, the values, [and] the behavioral systems that are inculcated into an entire society at that point so you can say, ‘We’re not simply just rescuing this child, but at the same time, we’re looking to actually change the culture and change the wellbeing of that entire society or in that entire community so that this no longer becomes an option.”

With the evil of human trafficking, Edmonds says, “There’s going to be another human being who is going to use power, who is going to use control, who is going to use monetary services in such a way as to say, ‘I’m going to control you and I’m going to treat you as less than a human being created in the image of God.’

“But God knows them. He knows them intimately. He knows them by name and he’s got a purpose for them. He wants them to flourish and he wants them to thrive.”

On Food for the Hungry’s website, you can read their reports and learn more about how their outreach is enacting holistic change around the world!

Click here to give to Food for the Hungry.

You can also sponsor a child with Food for the Hungry here.

In doing so, you can help Food for the Hungry extend the answer to a trafficked child’s question: “Does anybody see me?”

The answer is truly, joyfully, deeply: “Jesus”.

“She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘I have now seen the One who sees me.’”

Genesis 16:13 NIV

It's no secret that Russian orphans who do not have a forever family almost always struggle in adulthood. According to Buckner International, kids who go through the entire system and leave the orphanage at age 17 often end up involved in drugs, prostitution, and crime right away. Estimates show that almost 10 percent of these orphans commit suicide within the first three years after leaving an orphanage.

God makes it clear in His Word that He wants His people to take care of orphans. And Buckner believes this means orphans of all ages. Currently there is an extreme need for families to adopt older orphans, and Buckner is asking you to consider it.

Older orphan boys from Russia are the most desperate for homes right now. For whatever reason, boys are less likely to be adopted in general than girls, and this is especially the case as they get older. But it is no less imperative for these boys to find homes than it is for girls.

Tiffany Wilkins whose family adopted a 10-year-old boy from Russia four years ago puts it this way: "If I was drowning, I would hope someone would throw me a life preserver. Most of the boys that are not adopted will ‘drown.' They will drown in a sea of insecurity that leads to sins of organized crime, alcoholism, drug abuse. Why would someone let them drown?"

Wilkins and her family have made a Christ-centered sacrifice to save a boy from "drowning." Their new son will now have the chance to get to know the Lord and to live with a family who loves him as well as the Father.

If you or anyone you know is ready to make a life-changing sacrifice like this, please contact Buckner today at their Web site or via phone at 1-866-236-7823. The need is great, but God is greater. Pray for the Lord to guide you in this decision and process, and to give you the strength you need to persevere.

Previously
boys and girls lived in separate wings of the same home. With the opening of the girls' home, boys and
girls have been separated into their own homes. 

Every Child Ministries believes that every orphan and every abandoned child
should be able to experience the joys and comforts of home. God's people have a duty and the high
privilege of welcoming orphans and the outcast into their midst. 

Because God has adopted them into His family, ECM staff are able to extend their arms to bring in those who are left behind by the
world. At Haven of Hope, they seek to
provide a safe haven and a loving welcome in the name of Jesus. 

Although of course none of the children are forced to
become a Christian, they have seen many of the children freely and joyfully embrace
Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

Haven
of Hope is an outgrowth of Every Child Ministries' programs for street
children and children held in ritual servitude. The first home opened in November 2002. 

Children
are supported at Haven of Hope through sponsorships of $30 a month. Those interested can check out details or
sign up online.

Donavan Van Wyk and David Hawk discussed the need for better silage for the farm at the Escuela El Salvador (School of the Sower) near Catacamas, Honduras. 

World Gospel Mission missionaries started the school for underprivileged boys in 1954. The farm and animals are a source of income as well as food for the school. They also use it as a teaching tool for the kids. Proper forage and nutrition for the livestock is crucial, and they needed better equipment to provide it. 

Van Wyk endeavored to raise the $30,000 it would take to purchase and ship the equipment the farm needed. Through charitable donations, charity dinners, other events, and finally a quilt auction, the entire amount of the money was raised. 

With the money, they were able to purchase a tractor, bale wrapper and bale processor, which came with a discounted baler and mower conditioner. In addition, they were able to have a trailer custom-built and painted by volunteers for only the material costs. 

A Baler Project team, including Van Wyk, traveled to El Sembrador to assemble the materials and train staff to operate the equipment.

Though there is a farm at El Sembrador, the school does not teach farming. When the school first opened, students were required to work four hours on the farm in addition to their four hours in class. The idea of work and study is still an important part of how El Sembrador operates today. 

There are more than 2,000 acres of land used for the production of sorghum, corn, rice, beans produce and pasture. With 1,000 head of beef and dairy cattle, chickens, and a hog farm, the boys should certainly stay busy.