Grab a cup of coffee and relax. I need to tell you something.
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Reading time 5-7 minutes
Have you been watching the news? Frankly, there is no Western news outlet that adequately covers what takes place throughout the Middle East or anywhere for that matter. It seems that there would be no news if Ukraine and Mar-a-Lago did not exist. Yet, if it were not for the fact that we have thousands of feet on the ground, we would not know either. And because we have brothers and sisters on the ground, we can pass along information to you as it is happening, and sometimes even before it happens. This is such a case. An update: Across northern Africa, terrible humanitarian events are occurring.
Months ago, I asked you to help us raise life-saving funds for our Families in the region, and you responded beyond our hopes. You gave nearly $100,000 to care for 437 families in dire situations, stretching from Algeria to Afghanistan, a distance of nearly 4,000 miles. 
Because you cared and prayed and gave, all 437 families were saved. These families ranged from four to twelve in size. Each had lost its breadwinner. They were martyred for the Savior, whom the enemy refers to as "the Lord of the cross."
Consider that our ministry there is so vast that we could lose 437 men, and still, the work marches on. You cannot imagine how extensive the work is now and how effective the ministry of distributing Bibles is in lands where they are forbidden and the possession of only one carries a death sentence. Because you gave so much, we did not lose a single family or individual to sickness or starvation. Not one young man or lady had to sell a kidney or eye or drain the blood from their body to have funds to feed their family. Instead, you cared for them as if they were your family, and honestly, they are. Of course, our Lord's enemy curses you for what you have done, but they, and our Lord, bless you, and you will certainly see the return on your investment at the Throne of Christ and your dividends continually paid between now and then. Not yet in the news: For all the warring factors in the Levant, which are legion, it is more convenient, cheaper, and easier to kill civilians than to recruit and care for them. Such is the case in Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria regarding the Kurds. Skip the next two paragraphs to avoid a history lesson. You may recall from previous reports that the Kurds originated when Assyrian overlords from Tiglath Pileser III (742 BC) to Ashurbanipal (668 BC) invaded the region of lower Syria and Israel from their capital in Nineveh (now Mosul). They took the ten tribes of northern Israel and deported them throughout their realm so that they would be forever lost to history. Only the tribe of Judah and Benjamin survived, remained in place, and continues to today. The other tribes are "lost" to all but God. Upon relocation, as all Assyrian captives, they were forbidden to speak their own language or engage in their customs, traditions, and nationalistic clothing. They were assimilated into the Assyrian culture and later, thirteen centuries later, were conquered by the forces of Muhammad and became Muslim. They are today considered by Arabs, as the Samaritans were by the Jews, to be unwelcome and unwanted half-breeds. From time to time, they had their own land, which became known as Kurdistan, but not without difficulty. They have generally been unwanted and persecuted, except during the reign of the great Saladin Ayyubi, who fought against Richard the Lionhearted in the crusades and ruled the entire Muslim world, though he was a Kurd. Saddam Hussain tried to eradicate them with poison gas which was the impetus for the first gulf war in 1991 (aka WMDs). He drove them deeper into Turkey and Armenia, which saw them as invaders and considered them terrorists. The Turks have been warring with them since 1978 and have long classified them as terrorists. And though they were our allies in all the Middle East wars, in 2004, the USA classified their political/warring leadership, the PKK, as terrorists. This was due entirely to political pressure, but the fact remains that it was done. One day they were allies, the next, they were terrorists. This declaration gave us a more significant relationship and trading rights with Turkey, the region's powerhouse. Welcome back: Remember this summer; that Turkey was singlehandedly blocking Ukraine from membership in NATO because Ukraine had been giving sanctuary to the Kurdish PKK leadership. Suddenly, Turkey changed its stance overnight, and the NATO acceptance process began. Coincidently, immediately following this decision, Turkey announced that it would annex a stretch of land along its entire southern border with Syria and Iraq. They claimed rights to a 40 kilometer deep (25 miles) buffer zone as a place to house all the Kurds in Turkey who, if not killed, would be forced to live there. (See the map below, which demonstrates the stretch of land mentioned.) Turkey will control this area and be the law, forcefully moving all Kurds into that region. The West, in turn, will turn its back on the process and allow Turkey to have its way. It appears the destruction of the Kurds is being traded for the safety of Ukraine. Politics. 
Map by Discogs. No copyright infringement is intended.
What does that have to do with us? Well, you may remember that a few years ago, a precursor of this invasion caused us to move hundreds of Kurdish Christians from inside Turkey and Iraq to safety because Turkey was in the Kurdish territory fighting against ISIS. Interestingly, though we had classified the PKK as terrorists, we were also fighting alongside them, advising them, providing munitions, and training them. At that time, you helped us move a number of families. We first transported the women and children, telling the men they would have to walk through the desert to safety, but then you gave so much for their aid that we were able to send buses to transport the men as well. We moved them to a place outside the region of fighting, and there they reestablished themselves, reorganized their transient churches, and continued with their lives. Unfortunately, the distant region to which we relocated them is now deep within the region Turkey has announced it intends to invade. They will again be targeted and hunted. So now what? We have a choice to make. One, we can wait for the armies to invade, the bombs to be dropped, and roads to be closed, bury those who perish, and try to save whoever is left. Or two, we can act preemptively. Proverbs 22:3 says, "A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and are punished." So, shall we be foolish or prudent? It is better to be wise than foolish. Or, as Bob Jones Sr. was known to say, "Prepare for the worst and hope for the best." Consider this:
We have fifty-seven Families of Believers among the Kurds in the corner of that region and feel it prudent to relocate them far away to a safer area. Fifty-seven families equate to about six hundred people. All Believers in Jesus. All members of our churches. When? -- Yesterday. Urgency is required because the news does not report it, but the struggle has already begun. Yesterday Iranian-backed forces invaded the region to the east just inside Iraq, and Turkey and Iraq responded with missiles and ground troops. I have gone around the world to explain why I need your help to rescue and relocate these family members. In fact, the need is estimated to approach $24,000. And while a significant amount comes to a meager $40.00 per person. Our members on the ground, in safer regions, will take them into their homes and share their lack of food, clean water, and thirty minutes of electricity daily. Their conditions will be horrible, but they will be alive, praising God and winning more Muslim families to Christ. These Kurds are also sons and daughters of Abraham, they are blind to the name of their tribe and the God of their father, but we have fifty-seven families who are blind no more. Should we not help them? Going back to the beginning: The Algerian and Sudanese Families I mentioned at the beginning also ask for help so they can rebuild what has been lost. In these two counties, there are several families whose homes have been lost to fire or flood. We want to help them as a testimony to their neighbors of God's love and the Brothers' fellowship. We estimate a need of $10,000 to meet all the needs. And while it is a small price for several homes to be rebuilt, it is a price outside their means to acquire. So, to meet these needs, I am praying for a total of $34,000. You can donate onlin on this page, or mail in a check. I know you want to help, so if you can, then do, and if you cannot, then pray that our Lord will move in hearts to provide these life-changing and lifesaving needs for our Family in North Africa and the Middle East. |
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