Audio Bibles can also bless kids with a variety of special needs. In early May, MegaVoice connected with parents and churches who have special needs children. The event, Make ‘m Smile, comes from the foundation Nathaniel’s Hope; it connects these families to local resources available to them. 

“They estimate that 20% of kids under 18 have dyslexia. Another 13 to 15% have other reading disabilities, which could be because of physical disabilities, [such as] they can’t turn the pages,” Darrel Templeton with MegaVoice says. 

MegaVoice STORYTELLERS stuffed animals come with durable audio players loaded with Scripture for kids to use. (Photo courtesy MegaVoice)

“So here’s [a] possible population among our young people of almost 30% that have some kind of reading disability. We give them, through audio, a chance to engage with God’s Word.”

The handheld players are easy to navigate and full of content geared toward kids. 

“This is a way that parents and grandparents can help their kids with great Bible stories, audio scriptures to help give their kids truth in a way that’s fun and engaging that doesn’t require internet, doesn’t require a screen,” Templeton says. 

If you are part of a special needs ministry, Allen Decker with MegaVoice encourages you to reach out to their ministry, or to groups like Joni and Friends or Torch Trust. Whether you’re looking for help to start a program to reach kids with special needs, or build up an already-existing ministry, they have resources that can help you bring God’s Word to kids!

Click here to reach out to MegaVoice. 

Header photo: Millions cannot read Scripture. They need to be able to hear it, and not just on Sundays. Photo courtesy of MegaVoice.

Allen Decker with MegaVoice says, “Friends of ours at Torch Trust in the UK, they’ve done a lot of significant studies that show whether you know it or not most congregations have about 10 to 20% of somebody that has some form of visual impairment.” 

To help bring God’s Word to everyone, MegaVoice creates handheld audio players loaded with many kinds of Bible resources. 

Image courtesy of MegaVoice.

“We make it simple on purpose so that that it can be used by everyone. With the tactile keypads on our devices, [a person] can, with either low vision or no vision at all, be able to feel the buttons and navigate through their Bible and Bible teachings,” Decker says.

These audio players are meeting a critical need in the U.S. and around the world. 

“A lot of people have this misunderstanding that people have access to those books in other formats like Braille. Unfortunately, with a lot of the groups that we work with, a major demographic is 65 years and older,” Decker says. “They’ve lost their sight later in life, due to medical conditions, and never had the opportunity to learn Braille, or some of the other formats that, that are available.” 

Awareness is the first step. Now that you know, what can you do to better know and serve brothers and sisters in your church? (Read what one woman, Maureen, shares about this.)

If you’re looking for more resources to grow, Decker points to ministries such as Joni and Friends and Torch Trust. 

“[Joni and Friends has] a focus of helping churches understand and welcome people with various disabilities. [Torch Trust has] a ministry designed to work with churches more closely, and understanding various disabilities and the resources that are available,” says Decker. 

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Chuttersnap/Unsplash.

Joe Willey with SAT-7 USA says, “It’s a program that helps children in the Middle East in North Africa understand that despite differences in outward appearance… the actors on this program are still children, just like the viewers. Really, the purpose is to show the biblical truth that everyone is made in God’s image and has value.”

Between 2 to 12 million people live with disabilities in Egypt alone. Very few have any access to the care and education they need to thrive.

A change of attitude

 City of Stars takes place in a toy shop. The show stars two children: Romany, who was born with no limbs, and Viva, who was born with Down syndrome.

Willey says SAT-7 interviewed children before and after watching the show. Before watching City of Stars, some children said they did not want children with disabilities to attend their schools.

But after watching the show, Willey says, “Attitudes are changing. After seeing the program, now many children are welcoming those with special needs. They want to help, they’re standing up for children that are being bullied. One young girl told the story of a young man who was deaf. He was being bullied and she stood up for him.”

Pray these children would become wise and compassionate leaders in the Middle East and North Africa.

The third season of City of Stars will focus on the love of Jesus as described in 1 Corinthians 13. It will also take to the streets to interview more kids.

Header photo courtesy of SAT-7

Star Bazaar is the gift shop for Bethlehem Bible College. It was originally started to bring in extra funds for the college. Now, the gift shop supports students attending the school and many local artists in the community.

Anne*, the gift shop manager at Star Bazaar, says, “We noticed that we had a need in the community for people to have a platform to sell their items.

“We feel that this is a wonderful way that we could actually help the people on the ground as well as get their items known and sold over the world as we also have an online gift shop,” she adds.

Star Bazaar Supports Education

(Photo courtesy of Bethlehem Bible College)

The gift shop provides many opportunities for students attending Bethlehem Bible College so they can fund their education. Some students make and sell products at the gift shop to support their schooling. Those who can’t make products have the opportunity to work at the gift shop when they need help

Anne adds, “The shop helps with generating extra income for scholarships for those who do not have skills that can actually sell their product.”

Community members working to fund their children’s education can sell products at the Star Bazaar too. One staff member at the Star Bazaar created a Christmas item this year called “Holy Land Spices—Christmas Edition.”

Anne explains that the shop also supports those with disabilities, including one man who can hardly move his leg.

“We helped him develop a very basic and simple product; it’s a coaster set that helps him because he only has a saw. So, we developed a product for him so that he can also have some funds because he would like his daughter to study at the Bible College,” she says.

Christmas Shopping Made Easy

(Photo courtesy of Bethlehem Bible College)

The Star Bazaar has many unique items for sale during the Christmas season this year. Some of their most exciting items include the Holy Land Spices set and the Olivewood spice jar. This spice jar includes a packet of Za’atar, a spice eaten with bread in the Holy Land.

They also have wooden, hand-made nativity sets and blown-glass Christmas ornaments.

Would you like to get involved with Star Bazaar and Bethlehem Bible College? Click here for more information on how to connect with Star Bazaar or click here to learn more about Bethlehem Bible College.

Anne explains that supporting the gift shop can happen through online Christmas shopping and prayer. “[It’s] a unique opportunity to have something from the Holy Land that… you cannot find anywhere else.”

She asks for prayers for wisdom and community, as well. “We would love to have your prayers and help us to always be a community that reaches out and lifts the love of Christ,” she says.

Pray for Star Bazaar this year that they may receive support and the funds they need.

*Name changed for security purposes.

Header photo courtesy of Star Bazaar and Bethlehem Bible College.

“Some crippled people in [a] community, the families actually put the child in a barn with the animals until he dies,” shares Dean Vander Mey of Set Free Ministries.

Robert faced a fate like that before he was set free.

“His whole foot was facing backwards, and the other leg was crippled, so he just dragged himself in the dust. That was Robert.”

Finding Robert

In the early 2000’s, Set Free partnered with local believers to start boarding schools for AIDS orphans and other vulnerable children in East Africa. Learn more here. Vander Mey first encountered Robert while visiting one of the newly-constructed schools.

(Photo and header photo courtesy of Set Free Ministries)

“He (Robert) would crawl in the dust, it was sad!” Vander Mey recalls. “He broke his leg when he was, maybe, three and it bent backwards….

“When you have that (a physical infirmity) in Africa, the community casts you out. They reject you.”

Throughout the continent, underdeveloped infrastructure and widespread governmental corruption results in a lack of funding and opportunity for disabled youth. Only 10 percent of disabled children attend school as a result. Conditions don’t improve with time; only about 20 percent of disabled adults find employment.

Although Robert’s condition was reversible, he was destined for a life of dust and disability because society saw him as “broken” and useless. Today, “Robert is the smartest kid in his class; he’s the valedictorian,” shares Vander Mey.

“Who would’ve known? If you would’ve let that kid have his crippled legs, he would probably be dead now because the society throws him out.”

Freeing Robert

Robert underwent several corrective surgeries.
(Photo courtesy of Set Free Ministries)

On Vander Mey’s next visit to the school, he was accompanied by Frank*, a long-time supporter of Set Free Ministries. Frank wanted to see first-hand the schools and programs he supported. Little did he know, God was about to use him to change a life forever.

“He saw Robert, one day, crawling in the dust,” recalls Vander Mey. “His heart was touched and he said, ‘Can we help that young boy? Let’s find surgeons; let’s find help for him.’”

Frank partnered with Set Free to send Robert to a surgeon who lived approximately 200 miles away. Robert lived with the surgeon while undergoing several corrective surgeries and rehabilitative therapy.

“This past trip, I’m in a school…and there’s Robert,” says Vander Mey. “He’s grinning from ear-to-ear and I said, ‘Robert, can you walk?’ He jumped to his feet and he came to me, shook my hand. Everyone was clapping.”

More important than his physical healing, Robert found hope and salvation in Christ.

Robert ran to greet Vander Mey during a recent visit.
(Photo courtesy of Set Free Ministries)

“’I will lift you out of the pit. I will lift you out of the miry clay. I will set your feet upon a rock.’ That’s the Gospel,” says Vander Mey, referencing Psalm 40.

“Robert’s picked out of the miry clay, picked out of the dust, and he gets to know who Jesus is…He’s the man of sorrow, acquainted with grief, despised and rejected.”

To Vander Mey, Robert’s story is yet another example of our Savior’s love for the outcast.

“In God’s Kingdom, everything’s ‘upside-down,’” he explains. “Look throughout Scripture at the people God chose…Gideon…David…Joseph…

“We get to watch Scripture played out in 2018. We’re watching it happen.”

By supporting Set Free’s work in East Africa, you can help more kids like Robert meet the God of all comfort. Visit Set Free’s website to learn more.

*— Name changed.

Margaret Njuguna, founder of En-Gedi, believes that it’s the Church’s responsibility to look out for the downtrodden. In Africa, there are very few resources for people with disabilities. In fact, there are a lot of cultural beliefs that stand in the way of them being accepted as valued members of society.

Many people believe that disabilities mean someone is cursed.

(Image courtesy of En-Gedi)

En-Gedi is working to change that among parents, but it’s likely that much of the superstition and stigma will remain in older generations. But recently, Njuguna came up with a plan to make sure that the future of Kenya harbors fewer people who look at disability as a curse.

“Some of those beliefs would take probably generations to change when parents and older people believe in that,” she says.

“And one of the things that I’ve started is to work with children. The churches that are around our town, including my own child, we have been having Sunday school children, who are between the ages of seven to 11 years, come to us on Sunday mornings, once in a while, for their Sunday school class, to come to En-Gedi and to have the children service with us.”

“They’re not sick.”

This aspect of the ministry started because of one young boy who kept calling En-Gedi to check on his brother. Njuguna says this boy would call in frequently, asking if his brother was well. Finally, she asked him why he was so concerned with his brother’s health.

“He told me, ‘My brother John has a very bad illness and we were told not to talk to him. And he lived out there in the bush and we could just go and quickly give him some little milk and then dash back because he has a very bad disease.’

“So, that lie is the one that a lot of parents give to the siblings so that the disabled child is isolated. And I thought I can change the attitudes of children. I cannot change the attitudes and the belief system of the adults.

“And it has worked so well. Children would come, and they would ask me all these questions. ‘When will these children be healed?’ And it’s like, they’re not sick. God made them this way. And it’s alright to work with them. They build blocks on the floor. Some of them are still afraid, but within the short visit, they are all on the floor doing things with them.”

(Photo courtesy of En-Gedi)

This occasional Sunday school meeting has helped change attitudes in a big way. In fact, Njuguna gets calls from parents telling her that their children pray every day for the children at En-Gedi.

Supporting this “Place of Refuge”

God is using this ministry to form people’s hearts to be more like His. Do you want to help? Start with prayer.

First, ask God to send more people to En-Gedi who have the same passion as its founder. Currently, along with Njuguna, En-Gedi has four full-time caregivers, two trained reserves, part-time therapists, and a nun who help out.

“God used me to start En-Gedi and be the carrier of His ministry at the beginning. But it’s not my ministry. And I am praying that God will give me other people who can come out and work with me as partners, equal partners serving God together. I’m also looking for volunteers who can come short-term, long-term.”

(Logo courtesy En-Gedi Children’s Home)

She’s also hoping that God will open the doors to start a program with Christian colleges to do interim classes at En-Gedi focusing on special education, early childhood development, and things like physical therapy.

If you feel like you could be of use in any of these ways, contact En-Gedi here.

Also, pray for hearts to continue to be impacted by this ministry:

“Keep praying with us that people will embrace disabilities as a, you know, as a way of life. It’s different. But we all belong to God.”

There are also some facility needs as well. They have a building that will be available to rent out for extra income. However, they cannot make this a commercial offer until they get a backup generator. They also need to have some facility updates that accommodate children who cannot sit in a wheelchair or fit in a bathtub.

Furthermore, their therapy room, which will be open to the public eventually, does not have any equipment.

If you would like to walk alongside En-Gedi financially, click here for more information.

Njuguna knew that God wanted someone to help these people who had been denied basic rights. As we shared previously, many children born with disabilities are hidden away or even left out to die from exposure or wild animal attacks.

When Njuguna decided to do something about it, she didn’t have to look far for children to help.

“I just went to the local government offices and I found that many people are reported for leaving their disabled children out to die and hiding them and denying them enough food,” she says.

And God brought her children who were at the greatest risk—children who were unable even to survive by begging in the cities.

“God led me to children who didn’t talk, who didn’t walk. And most of them would die before anybody knows that there’s a child like that,” she says.

Njuguna says her motivation for helping these children comes from John 10:16:

(Image capture and header photo courtesy of Calvin College via YouTube)

And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. (ESV)

“As Christians, we are called to be shepherds in this world. Jesus has given us a responsibility to care for our own. And He has others who don’t look like us, they will not be able to walk like us or to talk like us, they don’t have the opportunities. Some have very twisted bodies. They all belong to Him.”

This is the message she shares with church leaders who can also be swayed by the stigma surrounding people with disabilities. Each life on this earth belongs to God, regardless of their status or condition here on earth.

And, especially through their actions, this is what the team at En-Gedi teaches parents, too.

“Some of the family members of the children that I have would never want to be close to those children. They looked at them as something not right, like it’s a bad omen, … there’s a curse in the family, or they didn’t want to even to hold the children.”

At En-Gedi, Njuguna and her team are helping children understand that they have value, and they’re working on changing the attitudes of the parents, as well. Now, some families are even coming to help feed their children or volunteer to help at the facility for a day.

“And as much as they’re not ready to take their children back, we have seen they are building love and that is a big goal that they will see it’s God in the lives of these kids.”

There’s one community where they’ve seen a lot of attitudes change for the better. Eight children at En-Gedi come from this community.

“It’s a community that has no use for a child who will not be able to do much for themselves. I have gone back into the village with their children to visit and for the first time in that community, I have seen men hold their children. And men never [hold] children in that community. And they will hold them lovingly.”

(Image courtesy of En-Gedi)

It’s been encouraging to see this love bloom among families, and also to see that parents are no longer afraid of their children at home.

One of the girls at En-Gedi was sent there after her mother tried to kill her. She was rescued by her father and oldest sister. But slowly, God has been working in this mother’s heart.

Njuguna says, “Twice now she has gone home during school holidays when the siblings are home from school. And she has very well been accepted and she stays home for two weeks or three weeks and then comes back when the schools open and her siblings go back.

“And they are no longer afraid that the mother will do anything bad because I’ve had several sessions with the mother and she has kind of changed her attitude towards this girl.”

But despite these wins in attitude changes, there is still a long way to go. Njuguna understands that it’s likely impossible to replace the belief system of the adult generation altogether. That’s why she is also addressing the issue with younger generations, as well. Next time, we’ll take a look at how she is doing that.

If you’d like to support En-Gedi, click here for more information.

Njuguna runs a ministry called En-Gedi in Kenya where she lives. En-Gedi is a ministry partner of Set Free Ministries. The name means “place of refuge” and that’s exactly what this ministry is.

You see, in many parts of Africa, great stigma surrounds people with disabilities. So strong is the superstition that children born with disabilities are likely to be hidden away or even left for dead soon after they’re born. Many of these children end up in the cities where they live out their days begging, if they’re lucky.

(Image capture courtesy of Calvin College via YouTube)

Njuguna worked in development for many years where she had a steady job helping the poor. But one group of people they weren’t focusing on were those who had disabilities. So God began to burden her heart.

“I fell in love with people in the streets and I fell in love in a way that we are supporting so many poor people, but we don’t do anything for the disabled people who live in the streets. And I started reaching out to them on my own free time, to find out why they live in the streets. Like, why are they homeless? What happened to them that they became homeless?” She says.

“And I made friends with them and they gave me their stories.”

She learned that many of these people had been brought to the city by neighbors or siblings who wanted to release them from the isolation they were growing up in at home. But even still, Njuguna realized God wanted more for these people than having to beg on the streets. She knew someone was supposed to step in and help.

“And I decided it was me that God was calling. So that love for people who many just passed through on the roadside was God’s love and He wanted me to do that, and so I told him ‘God I… have accepted to be your channel of love to these unloved people.’”

While Njuguna’s colleagues were concerned that she was leaving her job, and possibly her only way to support herself, she stepped out in faith and God has used her obedience mightily.

“[God] has a special place in His heart for these children who are unwanted, and right now, my testimony is these children were not allowed to be members of the family, previously. They lived either behind their home or tethered in a dark corner, or even in the bush. And God has provided a beautiful, beautiful home for them.”

This beautiful home is En-Gedi, the name of the place in Israel where David hid from King Saul.

“En-Gedi is a place of refuge and a place of refuge because in many countries in Africa (I would say it’s more than in my country Kenya because I have extensively traveled within Africa) that if parents have a child with disability they refer that is a curse or is a bad omen or is something not right,” Njuguna explains.

(Image capture courtesy of Calvin College via YouTube)

But at En-Gedi, children are not only well cared for, but they learn that they are valuable, they are loved, and that they belong to God just as much as anyone else.

“I knew that I was going to rescue children from unloving parents, children who are unwanted, and that’s why I called it a place of refuge. So, my work is rescuing children who are abused, neglected, isolated, and some of these children would be left in the bush so that they either die of natural causes or they’re eaten by wild animals. Others will be tethered behind their parents houses. They don’t allow them to be part of the family.”

It’s been four years since En-Gedi opened, and Njuguna says they’ve seen God at work every step of the way.

“We got full in our little house in about a year and a half, and so many children waiting to be rescued, and my working endlessly with those parents so that I give them hope that [some time in] the future, I will help you raise your children.”

So with the need still so great, the team began praying for God to guide them, and they began planning for growth. And God answered in an affirming way.

“God opened doors and gave us resources to buy land. And then, I made a five-year plan for raising close to half a million American dollars to build a facility that would accommodate many more children. And I prayed over that and I told God to walk with me.

(Image courtesy of En-Gedi)

“And my five-year plan was shortened by God to two years. So, God gave us about half a million dollars in two years. And we got a facility that we just completed, end of last year.”

Now, En-Gedi has the capacity to house more than 30 children as well as short-term and long-term volunteers.

Njuguna says she doesn’t consider this a miracle. She says it is just how God works—in mighty ways. And for her, it’s evidence that she heard Him correctly when He called her into this ministry.

“So providing for us, even within a shorter time than expected is affirming that He owns all the resources and that He called me and He knew that He would provide for me if only I answered His call. And that’s what I did.”

To learn how to walk with En-Gedi financially, click here.

Stayed tuned to learn how En-Gedi is also challenging the local attitude towards people with disabilities.

Joanna Mangione of SOAR says that about 70% of the population is unemployed today. Even those who are employed with a pension, she says, make an equivalent of about four dollars a month. The nation is heavily dependent on Russia as the economy slowly improves.

But perhaps more shocking than the economic numbers is this:

“Thirty percent of the kids who are born in Abkhazia are disabled. This is a percentage that we’ve shared on Mission Network News, but this percentage being so high leaves a huge need out there because they don’t have government assistance.”

Answering the need

Mangione says that the sheer weight of care for people with disabilities can keep families from leaving home. They can be overwhelmed and isolated. It’s this reason that SOAR assists the local churches in running camps every October.

Mangione says, “The churches have just stepped up to reach out to these families and these kids.”

One of the goals of the camp is to bring families and those who have disabilities out of isolation into a community of people who care.

“It’s an opportunity for families to meet other families with kids who are also disabled, learn from one another, be encouraged by one another, and also be just lifted up.”

Each parent and child team is assigned a staff member who will provide individual help and service. In some situations, the lack of resources can take a huge physical and emotional toll on parents. For example, it’s not unusual for a child who cannot walk to be without a wheelchair. As they grow, the phsyical demand on their parents increases. But to know they aren’t alone is a great relief.

(Photo courtesy of SOAR International)

“It’s a blessing for the families, and it’s a blessing for the children to just receive tons and tons of love. But also, it’s an opportunity to teach them rehabilitation exercises and movements and therapy.”

Rehabilitation training is an important component of the camp. A few years back, supporters like you helped SOAR to build a rehabilitation center in Abkhazia. Here, parents are learning how to take care of their children in a healthy way, and help them reach the potential of their physical abilities.

Most of the families coming to the camps are in difficult financial straits. A resource like this is life-changing but impossible without your help. And along with the practical impact, many of these families will get to hear a message of hope.

Mangione says there are a few small churches in Abkhazia and out of about 400,000 people, there are an estimated 300 believers. “For everybody else, there’s kind of a spiritual void. So there’s very little Islam … and some orthodox influence. But then, mixed in, they have some traditional or pagan practices.”

Most of the region ascribes to a religion according to tradition, but they don’t actually practice. This camp is an opportunity for the Church to reach into people’s lives and make a physical, emotional, and spiritual impact.

The first camp, available for parents and their children, takes place next week. In the third week of October, they will be running a second camp.

(Photo courtesy of SOAR International)

“They will be doing a camp for older kids. These are young adults, they too are disabled, but they will be getting to do a tent camp near the black sea there in Abkhazia,” Mangione explains. It will be a chance for the kids to do something fun, hear the Gospel, and interact with Church leaders.

There are a couple of ways you can come alongside to help. Mangione says, “Pick a day that week to pray for the kids and for the camp and the staff members in Abkhazia. Pray for the parents who are coming– either for the first time or repeats– for their rest, for their hearts [and] that they would be open to hearing the Gospel. For the kids, that they too would just feel an onslaught of love.”

Your financial support will help pay for medical and rehabilitation assistance and for the tents and sleeping bags for the second camp. If you’d like to help in this way, click here.

“Regardless of your ability to give, I would just encourage you to pray for this country and the people in it,” Mangione says.

One last way to help

SOAR is working on connecting well-resourced churches around the world with churches in Abkhazia. The fact is that these churches desperately need the support of the global Body of Christ. But it’s not just about finances.

“I think people can be intimidated by the term ‘sister church’ and the expectation that might bring. And I think beyond the financial, it’s the relationship and the opportunity to be uplifted by each other, and for the pastors in Abkhazia to have other pastors and other church leaders that they can reach out to for prayer and encouragement.”

If you think your church might be a good candidate for the Abkhazia sister church program, take a moment to contact SOAR International for more information.

We’re referring to people with disabilities. Kim Kargbo is the CEO of Women of Hope International. She says their ministry works in two ways to address the needs of women who have a disability or a child with a disability.

In Sierra Leone, they work directly with these women to bring them empowerment and a renewed sense of self-worth. In the United States, they train ministry leaders to rethink disability and find ways to incorporate individuals affected by a disability into the Body of Christ.

Sierra Leone

(Image courtesy of Women of Hope International via Facebook)

In West Africa, people with disabilities hang out on the margins of society.

Kargbo says, “For people in Sierra Leone — and also really what we find is in most of the developing world — people with disabilities are treated as outcasts because the mentality is that they’re either cursed by God, or they are a demon, or not fully human. So out of that then springs a lot of attitudes and behaviors that affect their life in general and how well they’re integrated or not into community life.”

It’s not uncommon for them to have a low opinion of themselves and their abilities. They feel they have little potential to do something with their life. All too often, they turn to begging. They are identified by their disability and their poverty.

Kargbo has lived in Sierra Leone for many years. She’s seen ministry come and go. Their failure, she says, stems from their focus. In their well-meaning attempts to bring about economic empowerment and help these individuals overcome their disability, they end up missing some of the deeper issues.

“What we do is really start much lower than that and begin to talk to people and educate people on their value. And as the women themselves have begun to change the way they think about themselves and who they are and what their potential is, they begin to act differently.”

She says they begin to take care of themselves — doing simple things like bathing again.

They start to own their dignity and interact with individuals who are without disabilities.

The community starts to take notice, and stigmas and traditions are challenged.

With a renewed sense of value, these women start to see, not only can they do something with their lives, they realize they can help others. And that, Kargbo says, is key.

Equipping the Body

Women of Hope helps women see because they are Image-Bearers of God, they are inherently valued and valuable. They have skills and abilities that are useful and needed within the Body of Christ.

(Photo courtesy of Women of Hope International via Facebook)

After an individual has started to recognize their value, they can begin to take on other things. Women of Hope is a multi-faceted ministry. They offer education, skills training, parenting classes, literacy training, job assistance, Bible studies, and discipleship groups. In addition, they have a fair trade initiative that helps these women generate an income. They even work with agricultural projects. Another big area of this ministry is advocacy. Not only do they work with Churches in the United States, but they try to educate communities, too.

When asked why they focus on Sierra Leone, Kargbo says,“I figure if something like this can be successful in Sierra Leone where people who are in the very bottom of the economic scale can become productive and can find Christ and begin living out their purpose He has intended for them, then it should be able to work anywhere.”

Considerations

The World Health Organization says about 15 percent of the world has a disability. Because of the social stigmas that come into play in some areas of the world, Kargbo says we’re talking about the biggest unreached people group there is.

She says, “There’s a lot of talk in missions about unreached people groups and reaching people who have never heard the Gospel. Even among reached people groups, the disabled among them are still unreached because they are so marginalized, so hidden away, and not given access to the information or the resources that the community has access to.”

She encourages us to remember to look past the needs of someone with a disability and see them as God’s valued creation. While it’s important to meet what needs we can, the biggest thing we can do help equip and integrate them into the Body of Christ. Just as any of us, they have a purpose and a function to serve God. In other words, they need to know they can minister to others just as much as they need to be ministered to.

Learn more about Women of Hope here.