Bibles and aid get through to vulnerable people in Iraq

The relief and joy were visible in the woman’s face as the package with food and Scripture was placed into her hands.

‘My baby has not been drinking milk for two days, and today I didn’t have any kind of food to feed my family,’ she told our member of staff, as a cold wind shook the tent she calls home. ‘This distribution has increased my faith in God. He will not let anyone down. Thank you.’

The woman, a Christian living in a refugee camp in northern Iraq, is one of 4,000 people who benefitted from a distribution of Scripture, food and aid in October 2020. This distribution was made possible by the generosity of Bible Society supporters. The precious package contained 15 types of food, a hygiene kit and five face masks as well as Scripture material and a Bible.

In this camp, like many others in northern Iraq, Christian families are living in desperate situations. Violence and exploitation are a daily reality, children are out of school, and there is a lack of basic services. The coronavirus pandemic has only added to the misery. Many people can no longer earn a living, and they depend on the kind giving of people from other nations.

Our team, plus more than 30 volunteers, were granted permission to enter the refugee camps during Iraq’s severe lockdown. Thanks to the generosity of people just like yourself, families received vital aid and, even more importantly, the hope of God’s word.

Kind giving from Bible Society supporters is also training more leaders to run Bible-based trauma healing workshops across Iraq. Due to Covid restrictions, training has switched to Zoom, the video conference call system. More than 50 people received training towards the end of 2020, particularly in how to tackle emotional trauma in children. The new leaders will now run trauma healing sessions with families, to help children to address their pain and have hope for the future.

Meanwhile, in Baghdad, Iraq’s capital city, the generosity of Bible Society supporters means Bibles and aid are supplied to local Christians. Your support is building up their faith in Jesus and offering hope in the hardship.

Please pray for God’s peace and hope in this troubled nation, perhaps on our Middle East Prayer Tree. Pray for stable government, the restoration of proper infrastructure, and for Christians seeking to return to their homes. Pray for the mother from Mosul, that God will keep providing for her family, and that Christians like her will be a light in the darkness.

This is a new version of a story that first appeared in our Bible a Month prayer letter. Join Bible a Month and see how your regular giving, of even just £10 a month, transforms lives through the word of God in the Middle East, China, Africa and here in England and Wales.

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