Nepal Covid-19 Report

Dear Friends.

Many of you are wondering how our overseas friends are coping with the pandemic crisis. Here is a beautiful report that we received from Nepal that describes how your gifts impact lives in the midst of a very difficult time.

Lance & Christie Thollander

Greetings from Nepal,

We hope and pray you all are doing well. We have been under a complete lockdown for 40 days. The lockdown has shut many businesses and daily laborers are laid off work. During this time, thanks to support we have received, we were able to distribute food rations to 200 families and 150 families in Lalitpur and Pokhara respectively.

Each family received rice, flour, lentils, masala, cooking oil, salt, sugar, beaten rice, and soap. Distributions to the families went really well and we had the full support of the local government authority. We are planning for a second phase of ration distribution and ask you to remember us in your prayers for guidance and provision. Here is a story from one person whose life has been changed through GLOW’s recent help:

Anita

My name is Anita. Let me share a little bit with you of my history. I come from a poor family, it was difficult for us to meet even the basic needs. My mother and father both did daily labor work to raise us. After grade 7 my family could no longer afford to pay for my studies so I quit school and started helping my family by also working as a day laborer.

I got married and we eventually had 2 kids. I no longer could work so my husband worked while I stayed at home. My husband’s income wasn’t enough to raise the kids and provide for their education and other needs. One day I heard from a neighbor about an organization called “GLOW,” God Loves Orphans and Widows, providing free tailoring classes to poor women like myself. I started attending these classes and getting tailoring training from GLOW. After completing my training, I found a shop to work in near my home and have been working there ever since. Due to the training I received from
Glow I have been able to provide the extra needed for my kids.

But now my tailoring shop has been closed due to the pandemic and I do not have another source of income. As my family doesn’t have savings to provide for ourselves during such a crisis we
were in serious trouble. How were we going to provide food for us and our kids?

Then I got a call from GLOW. When I saw GLOW on my phone, I had a glow in my face. They asked me how I was doing and if I needed any help? I told them that I was unable to run my business and it was hard for me and my family to provide for our daily needs. They told me that GLOW was distributing relief packages.

Tears started rolling from my eyes … GLOW had come to my rescue yet again! They helped me in the past by providing me free tailoring training and now they are providing me with relief when I need it the most. I can’t express how thankful I am towards GLOW. When I and others like me were helpless, GLOW came to wipe our tears and lend us a helping hand. When all seemed to be lost GLOW showed me the light. I am forever indebted and grateful. I pray to God to bless GLOW and its efforts to provide relief to those in need.

Our mailing address is: Hope Builders International, P O Box 91359 Austin,
TX 78709 USA. When you send gifts, please mention CFO on the memo line.

Thank you and God bless you in Christ.

Varun Finds a Home

Dear Friends,

What with the constant barrage of a 24/7 news and media cycle that presents us with less than happy or optimistic news, and our own pressures and challenges, sometimes we miss out on the good things that are happening around us. Here is a brief story we received from one of our overseas partners that will brighten your day.

Greetings in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Many times we face a lot of troubles as we are serving the Lord in our country. But we are
learning to be careful as we carry out our ministry. We thank you for your prayers as we do
that. We have given our whole lives to Christ’s service. For us to live Is to serve Christ and to bring people into the knowledge of salvation. We are very happy as the Word of Lord is being planted into the hearts of the children we serve, young ones who previously did not know how to brush their teeth or take a bath with soap. Now they know how to do these simple things and are teaching other children to do them.

After our Christmas Nativity program, we asked the children if anyone wanted to give a testimony about the change in their lives after receiving Christ. To our surprise there were more than ten children who stood up. One by one each child started to testify about Christ.

Varun, a 12-year boy, stood up and said he never would have thought that one day he would end up here in the Children’s home. His parents are alcohol addicted and spent all their money drinking while the children were left hungry.

To get food, Varun used to steal from the stores and also steal money. Many a times he was beaten when he was caught. Then one day as he was passing by the orphanage, he heard the songs of the children. As he observed us, he could see that the children received good food and care. Afraid to ask us questions, he spent more than ten days watching the children.

Then the day came that he asked me if he could join our home. After hearing his story, we took him in and gave him a place where he could go to school and where he is fed three times a day. Today Varun is not stealing or fighting anymore. Instead, he is praying to God for his parents to change and wants to be an evangelist someday.

Such testimonies are the rewards for our ministry. When I heard the boy speaking, I had no words, but tears of joy rolled from my eyes and I thanked God for giving me this opportunity to serve him.

Dear friends in Christ, it is because of your financial support and prayers that we can continue the ministry even in the hard situations. We believe that God will reward you for the big and small financial support that you are sending to our ministry.

Luke 6:38 says, “Give and it shall be given unto you: Good measure, pressed down, and shaken together and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you give, it will be measured back to you.”

We pray that the Lord supply all your needs and bless you. Here is a picture of the children at prayer this month. Please continue to uplift our ministry and family in your prayers as we work for the Lord.

Our mailing address is: Hope Builders International, P O Box 91359 Austin,
TX 78709 USA. When you send gifts, please mention CFO on the memo line.

Thank you and God bless you in Christ.

CHILD SPONSORSHIP GIVES HOPE AND PRACTICAL HELP

Native Missionary Movement: Update from the Chidren’s Home & School in Navapur

Dear NMM Friends,

Many communities in Northern India have toiled hard for generations simply to survive. Some men and women haven’t had the privilege of pursuing an education themselves, and they are helpless to give one to their children.

But God loves these children deeply, and He is working in part through NMM children’s homes to give them a chance for a better future.

NMM child sponsorship gives more than 1,000 needy children a daily meal and regular medical checkups for their physical health and development. The program also helps the children with their education so they can one day get a good job and afford enough food, decent clothing, medical supplies, and other necessities of life for themselves and their families. Beyond this, these homes provide the children with opportunities to pursue and even excel in their God- given skills and interests.

You can make an incredible difference in the lives of children and their       Sponsor a child families through NMM children’s homes.  When you sponsor a child, you for $25 a month. bring hope and encouragement to a family and help break the cycle of poverty. Your support gives a child and his family a far brighter future.

Through our children’s homes, God is enabling these children to become all they possibly can be so they can be a blessing in the future to many others throughout Northern India. Millions of children in India live life never knowing the hope that awaits them in Christ. However, through NMM children’s homes, they get to learn for the first time what it’s like to have new life and be embraced by their Heavenly Father.

Thank you for your financial support and prayers that allow many to experience incredible love!

Joy Punnoose NMM President

The past academic year was a wonderful experience for everyone at Navapur’s Home of Hope & School. We thank God for all the staff, teachers, and volunteers who worked hard and loved the kids. Without this team, we would not be able to achieve our goal of giving Jesus to the little ones before they leave Home of Hope.

Guda is a village in Alirajpur District of Madhya Pradesh. It has a population of around 4,000 people with a very poor literacy rate of 5%. Pr Edubhai Chouhan, who ministers in this village, was blind from birth. His parents took him to many places hoping to cure his blindness, but all was in vain. Deperate about these failed attempts, Edubhai decided to commit suicide; but that failed too.

Hearing of Edubhai’s plight, a pastor visited him, shared the Gospel, and prayed for him. Miraculously, Edubhai was healed and saw the light of this world for the first time! Submitting to Christ, he began spreading Good News in his village. Suddenly, Edubhai found himself in the midst of trouble and rejection. His kith and kin became his enemies, forcing him and his family to leave their home. They took shelter under a tree for eight months before moving into a small hut Edubhai made himself.

The villagers forbade them drinking water for becoming followers of Christ. So they had to travel to ten different locations to collect water for their daily use. But NMM’s drilling of a tube well by Edubhai’s hut was God’s boon to this family. It not only serves Edubhai and his family—but the villagers too! Edubhai has been truly reflecting Christ in the midst of rejection by society.