Türkiye (MNN) — After a tragic hotel fire killed almost 80 people in northern Türkiye this January, building safety inspections are now underway in certain regions.
But that’s led to an urgent prayer request from FMI’s partners.
Patrick Anthony with FMI says the investigations are definitely a positive thing, but they’ve had unexpected consequences. “What that’s done, though, is it has closed some buildings that our partners were planning to use to house children for their Christian summer camps,” he says.
Summer camps (Photo courtesy of FMI)
Camps begin next month. They are life-changing moments where kids and their families hear the gospel, many for the first time.
“Local leaders tell us they think there [are] about 10,000 Christians out of [Türkiye’s] 85 million population,” Anthony says. With so few believers scattered across the country, summer camp offers a much-needed time of fellowship and discipleship for Christian children.
Another thing gives this year’s summer camps special meaning. FMI’s partner — a pastor we’ll call Izzet —and his team are celebrating 35 years of fruitful ministry.
“It has not been easy for 35 years,” Izzet writes. “We have experienced much oppression and cruelty, but every year we have seen the hand of the Lord protecting and providing. Sometimes our camp was attacked with axes, sometimes with guns. Sometimes we were interrogated by soldiers and police. Sometimes we were kicked out of the facility in the middle of the camp. But we never put out our campfire for 35 years. Our prayer is that one day our campfire will burn in every city of Türkiye.”
Over the decades, Izzet and his team have watched campers grow into pastors and ministry leaders. Some kids have aged out of the program return as camp counselors.
Please pray for safe solutions to this summer’s urgent housing needs. Anthony says the challenges are signs of spiritual opposition.
“At the same time, it shouldn’t surprise us and should really encourage us to be praying more and looking for the Lord to deliver in ways that perhaps we didn’t expect,” he says. “The director of the ministry (Izzet) is asking for people to pray.”
To support FMI summer camps financially, make a gift to the Tangible Resources fund at FMI’s website.
Header photo courtesy of FMI.
