“Gratitude reorients us from self-sufficiency to God-dependence,” Dr. Murff says. “We go through really hard things, but gratitude reorients us towards the things of God.”

Photo courtesy of Navid Sohrabi via Unsplash

Yet for people carrying heavy responsibilities, it can be tempting to rush past gratitude.

“One of the things that we struggle with as leaders is becoming results-driven. We have this mindset of always thinking about what’s next, and we’re not pausing to acknowledge what God has done,” says Dr. Murff. “It’s kind of ironic, if I can be honest. We know that God is the God who gives and takes away. He is the God who gives us the desire to follow His mission, yet we kind of want control of everything. I think it’s a pitfall.” 

Giving thanks is a spiritual discipline, she says. Not taking the time to practice it will blind us to God’s provision.

(Photo courtesy of MENA Leadership Center)

“When I think about what we’ve accomplished at the MENA Leadership Center, where we started and where we’re going, I’m completely blown away, because God is a God of multiplication,” says Dr. Murff. “We have completed 19 courses this year. We have reached 2,247 leaders across 41 nations over the past few years. This gratitude comes so deep that even if I was told that God was going to do these things, I wouldn’t believe it. Truly, I would not believe it.”

In 2025, the ministry built new partnerships and is now positioned to train leaders in a new country — Pakistan.

“I believe that the Lord is going to do great things. Their history is complex. The challenges that they face are so complex, and the needs that they have are completely different than in the Middle East,” says Dr. Murff of Pakistan. 

Join the MENA Leadership Center in thanking God for what He has done. Pray with them for continued open doors, provision, and stamina for ministry in 2026. Learn more about the MENA Leadership Center’s mission here.

Then, remember to thank God for what He has done in your own life and ministry this year. 

“Our prayer is that [people who hear this story] would draw close to God, that as they step into this new year, they would know God and make Him known, whether it’s in their local community or how they’re impacting the world,” says Dr. Murff. 

Header photo of field in Pakistan courtesy of Abdul Rehman via Unsplash.

FARMS identifies needy communities around the world and, through the local Church, sets up a microloan program. A committee distributes microloans to Christians according to their need in order that they can establish or improve a sustainable income-generating project. When these Christians pay back the interest-free loans, they agree to tithe back to their local church from the profits they make. This, in turn, strengthens the outreach ability of the church into the local community.

In time, these microloan programs address both physical and spiritual poverty.

Strength of Faith

Over the years, Joe Richter of FARMS International has been challenged by the attitude and response of Christians involved in their program who have faced such destitute circumstances.

“I think it’s so general, what I see with FARMS, that people in very difficult situations, because they know somebody cares about them and someone has provided for this loan for their family, there’s a real thankfulness and a real joy in the life they have in Jesus. And it radiates… from them and has really impacted my life personally.”

He reminds us how the Scripture speaks to the situation of the poor. The Bible says that the poor are rich in faith (James 2:5), and that they are heirs of the Kingdom (Matthew 5:3). In other words, God has designed our earthly circumstances to teach us more about our need for Him.

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International)

Richter says, “Sometimes I think in the West, we have everything we need. And we’re not looking for something to help us, and we can take care of ourselves.

“And we sometimes lack that miraculous element in someone’s life that lives in a little village in a remote area, and all of the sudden they hear about a program that’s Christian-based that can help Christians come out of poverty and give them a chance to come out of the cycle of poverty.”

And typically, these people know exactly who is behind the aid they’re receiving.

“They always are giving thanks back to God—not to FARMS International, not to myself personally. They always recognize it as the hand of God and that God sees them even though they live in a remote area of the world and that’s how this miracle came into their place, and to their village, and to their church.”

But Richter says their response is something the rest of the Body of Christ needs to pay attention to.

“We face difficult situations in a different way, but we can learn from people in the Body of Christ that are poor and we can learn a lot that they can radiate with real joy because they know where they came from and they know where they’re going and they’re very thankful—even in the face of great persecution and sometimes life-threatening persecution. They respond with an amazing faith and joy that I sometimes don’t see in our own culture.”

Why Should We Care?

One of the ways we can deepen our understanding of our dependence on God and adopt that same attitude of faith and joy is to get involved with helping those in need. And this is something God has already called the Body of Christ to do.

“There are so many Scriptures in the Bible relating to the poor and what should be our response to the poor. And we think of different ones in Deuteronomy and other places where it says, ‘Don’t harden your heart when a poor man comes to you.’ And that’s something that we always need to keep up in front of us as Christians here.”

He explains that in the West, Christians have the incredible ability to make a real impact on the global Church.

“We need to think that way– that we really are the rich man. We really are the one that has the means to help the poor.”

As Paul says in 1 Corinthians, if one part of the Body suffers, we all suffer. He calls believers to be conscious of what’s happening with the Church, globally. And Richter believes when we have the means to help out, we should be convicted to do something.

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International).

“It will produce tremendous results in our own spiritual lives and in the lives of the Church around the world,” he says.

Consider walking alongside a ministry like FARMS who is already on the ground doing tremendous work by God’s calling. You can start just by letting others know about this ministry:

“I would always appreciate that people share about the ministry of FARMS. You know, we’re not a large organization but we do impact a lot of people with the gifts that are given. And we do need more and more supporters in the days ahead and we have new opportunities like in Mizoram and Ecuador and we’re looking at starting two other programs in the Philippines.

“But we need to have a larger family of supporters and prayer warriors for the ministry of FARMS. And we’re looking forward to that happening in the years ahead and we keep going and doing what God has called this ministry to do.”

For other ways to partner, click here.

FARMS has been present in Cambodia for years and has long been formulating a program that will steer Cambodians away from dependence. After a great deal of planning and preparation, a program providing aid such as micro-financing and lessons in technical skills will launch through local churches.

"We have seen really a real glimmer of hope in the eyes especially of the Christian community," says FARMS Executive Director, Joseph Richter. "I believe Cambodians are looking for a much better future and have hope for that."

Christians are especially excited about the program and will be the ones to really get the program going. As other Cambodians see the progress Christians are making toward self-sufficiency, they will hopefully come to the church for help as well. In a previous interview, Richter explained, "FARMS really accomplishes evangelism through the changed lives of the people involved in the churches."

This program will undoubtedly spur on the already-growing church. "The church is growing very quickly, especially among the younger segment of the population (which is the majority of Cambodians anyway)," says Richter. More leadership will soon be needed in the church. In the meantime, FARMS is working with the current leadership to guide churches to financial stability as well.

The program should officially launch within the next month, provided all goes according to plan. Richter assures us "the need is very urgent" in Cambodia. "To effectively provide enough to make a real impact is our prayer. We're hoping people will come behind this project because it's an open door."

Pray for the leadership to catch a vision for the self-supported church. Pray also that FARMS would successfully be able to launch the program and that it would transform many lives for the glory of God.

If you would like to be a part of the project, click here.