(Image capture courtesy International Needs)

At the same time, Turkey crossed into Syria.  Officially, the incursion was aimed against ISIS, which was in control of the invaded area.  Unofficially, it looked more like an ambitious leader trying to curtail the advance of the Syrian Kurdish soldiers and strengthen his grip on the capital, while simultaneously silencing his detractors following a failed attempt to remove him from office.

Essentially, the sense that normal law and order are breaking down in the country of Turkey has dramatically intensified.

International Needs’ President and CEO Rody Rodeheaver says, “The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is not something new. It’s always been in the background for many, many years and has played a major role in Turkish history.”

The PKK, a separatist insurgency, began in 1984 and has since remained a thorn in President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s side.

He adds, “It seems as if the issues between the PKK and the Turkish government were getting close to being solved and, at the last moment, Erdogan veered off from the course that they were taking with the PKK and [violence] erupted again.”

In 2013, the PKK and the Turkish Government agreed to a ceasefire, but it didn’t take long for that deal to fizzle out.

Fighting in Van, the northeast section of the country, means trouble.  Rodeheaver explains the area is “…more rural and rugged country. This is an area where the terrorist groups find a refuge and hide in the mountainous areas.”

The country now faces a toxic combination of political polarization, government instability, economic slowdown, and threats of violence from an unruly neighbor (Syria) in crisis.   The most recent U.S.-Russia brokered peace deal crumbled over the weekend.  Then there’s always ISIS.

From within, political opposition stirred, leading to a coup.  Put down quickly, the fallout has encompassed thousands of teachers, lawyers, judges, law enforcement, and military leaders.  Not surprisingly, even after a couple months, Turkey is being managed under a state of emergency, he adds.  “This is a time when Erdogan can do basically whatever he wants to do with impunity because of the imposition of martial law.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Image Courtesy: World Economic Forum, Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic | Wikimedia Commons)

Meanwhile, Erdogan addressed the United Nations World Humanitarian Summit Monday to discuss the large-scale forced displacement of nearly 65.3 million people, focusing on the ongoing war in Syria, with hopes of coming to an agreement that could tackle the crisis.

“There are refugees in several camps who are Kurdish. There are many thousands, hundreds of thousands of Syrians, and also thousands of Kurdish refugees in the camps all over Turkey.”

The camps are in dreadful shape.  A future for the young people has few possibilities.

“This is a way to try to head off the radicalization of young people that happens when they’re detained and kept in these deplorable situations.”

In what was once a bastion of Christianity, Turkey has become a strong force spreading the cause of Islam. IN says believers have declined from 22 percent to only .32 percent between 1900 and 2000, with most of the Christians being non-Turkish.

The existing Church has been responding to the needs, not only in obvious ways, but also in building relationship with the most vulnerable.  “One of the important things for ministry in these days is to be able to reach out to the children who are part of these camps because of the evangelical’s ability to share the Gospel in unique ways with children in these camps.”

(Photo courtesy of International Needs)

The desolation of the camps means many are open to hearing about the God who wants a personal relationship with them. Within this relationship of trust between International Needs workers and refugee families, there is blessed space for sharing stories of hope.

One tool International Needs is using is the Action Bible. The beautiful drawings and simple text share the Gospel message in a kid-friendly way.

International Needs is working to provide one of these special Bibles to every child who asks. “Getting the Church, the Turkish Evangelical Church, involved in building relationships in those places is a step towards helping to grow the Church, and it is taking its opportunity. We need to applaud that, but we also need to pray.”

Please pray for the refugee children in Turkey who can’t go home again.  Remember, too, that many of the believers International Needs supports are in a similar predicament.  “Pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in Turkey, that they would have wisdom and creativity and innovation as they work to share the Gospel in this very difficult period.”

Photo of a car bomb. (Image courtesy of Sean MacEntee via Flickr)

The explosion in the Beyazit neighborhood ripped through a bus of riot police and area civilians at 8:40 am local time during the morning rush hour. Authorities believe the police were the target of this attack.

No groups have claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack, but Turkish authorities have four individuals in custody.

Rody Rodeheaver, President and CEO of International Needs USA was recently in Turkey. He shares, “I think there is a great unease in the country of Turkey amongst the citizens. There is the feeling that the country is being seen through the crosshairs of more than one terrorist organization. Obviously they haven’t named anyone in this particular situation yet, but they have several choices: the PKK [which is] the Kurdish terrorist organization; of course ISIS is another one.”

The PKK has been clashing with Turkish authorities since July 2015. Rodeheaver explains, “There is very serious problem in the east with the Kurdish PKK terrorist group and the Turkish security forces fighting many battles very frequently now. The Turkish security forces are trying to gain control over the terrorists as well as some of the real estate they have laid claim to in various locations in the east.”

The fact that this terror attack occurred on the second day of Ramadan, Islam’s holy month, raises concerns over what this means for citizens of Turkey and for the local Christians as well.

Istanbul, Turkey (Image courtesy of SurrealNameGiven via Flickr)

“This particular incident comes during Ramadan–it comes at a very holy time in the life of the majority of the citizens of Turkey. So there are lots of questions being asked about security, about the future direction of the country, about leadership. This is a country that is best described from an emotional word as fragile.”

Already since the clashes in Turkey began last year, the country has seen a 28-percent drop in tourism. This is the fourth major terrorist attack in Turkey this year.

“With these types of terrorist events taking place, there is a great threat to the Christian church because often the evangelical churches are targets for these types of attacks. So far, that has been mostly avoided, but there is certainly a lot of concern on the part of the police agencies in Turkey about the danger and the threat to the Christian community,” says Rodeheaver.

Rodeheaver stresses that as Christians, we should not be controlled by a spirit of fear but rather of spirit of hope.

Map of Turkey.

“Remember that Turkey is a big country. It’s a country of about 76 million people. So these incidents, though they loom large on our television screens, they are still only affecting a very small part of the population. But they do have the ability to create fear and havoc, and that is the goal of the terrorists–to create terror. And our role as believers is to bring people back to the hope and confidence we find in Jesus.”

There is an estimated 100 thousand Protestant and Catholic Christians in Turkey, with five to six thousand Evangelicals. Christians only make up less than one percent of the Turkish population. Over 99 percent of Turkish citizens are Sunni Muslim.

The streets of Turkey.

One of the simplest ways you can help is to lift up the nation of Turkey in prayer.

Rodeheaver says, “This is a time when we need to be praying for Turkey as a whole. We need to be praying for our Christian brothers and sisters as they continue to stand for Christ at a time when many of them will have targets on their back. The security at many churches is being increased and at the same time, there is a desire on the part of the Church in Turkey to be faithful to its call, be faithful to the opportunity to share the Gospel and the Good News in a place where hope and concern are not equal.”

International Needs currently operates in Turkey under a different name. They minister to Christian children, carry out translation ministries, plant churches, and work with the refugee crisis.

You can learn more about International Needs and how you can support their ministry here.

(Photo: Spyros Papaspyropoulos via Flickr)

The idea was to help alleviate the pressure building on Greece, as the ‘gateway’ country to Europe.  At that time, notes the UNHCR, Syrian refugees in Turkey were at around 3.5 million.

International Needs USA President and CEO Rody Rodeheaver says it remains a fluid issue.  “The refugee problem is an enormous problem from the perspective of numbers, and also from a perspective of the disintegration of life, because of all of the hurt, the destruction, (and) the chaos that many of these people have had to live through, and escape from.”

The majority of refugees live in urban areas, including cities without refugee camps, such as Istanbul, Izmir and Bursa. ”We are working in camps both in Istanbul as well as all across the country, some of them in the East.”

Plus, in an area close to Antioch, he says, they hit upon a new idea.  First, the context: “There is a camp there that is made up of several hundred families that have escaped from Syria. Many children.”

(Map courtesy International Needs)

Although somewhat protected, refugees and migrants face particular challenges regarding basic rights and livelihood support in Turkey. Unregistered refugees and irregular migrants are not entitled to access any public services in Turkey except emergency health services provided by public hospitals.  That also means that “Children who are part of the refugee contingent cannot go to school because they do not speak Turkish.”

Rodeheaver says they also discovered Arabic-speaking Syrian teachers among the refugee population.  “We have hired these teachers (who are part of the refugee community there) to teach the children.”  International Needs provided a makeshift school. “We bring in supplies and these teachers are continuing to educate the children there.”

Thousands of children live in this “between” world in Turkey.  Faced with the reality of not being able to return home in the next few years, “What we’re doing is saving children from living for years and years with no education and being very susceptible to indoctrination into some of the causes like ISIS that are radical.”

The International Needs team in Turkey is working to bring encouragement and relief to these refugee children and their families. A tent. A warm blanket. A jacket for cold days. Food. Shoes for growing feet. A cuddly stuffed animal for those lonely times when tears come. But now, says Rodeheaver, the reality is that these millions are stranded in a new land.

“That’s the reason I was just in Turkey: to lay long-term plans where our staff will continue to develop relationships and next-step scenarios with people that we know that, probably for ten years or more, are going to be locked in this situation.”

(Photo courtesy International Needs)

Ministering to refugees is a Gospel Outreach endeavor for International Needs. First, these people are hurting and need comfort. Meeting those immediate needs builds a relationship of trust, he says. ”The Gospel in one hand, and compassion in the other. There is more and more of a receptivity on the part of the people in the camp to us, as people. Relationships are being built.”

“I can’t tell you how many times our staff has heard, ‘it has been the Christians who have come to our aid. We are so grateful.’”  That is what the Gospel is all about, explains Rodeheaver.

International Needs’ goal is to develop the evangelical churches who exist in those areas and “…work alongside of them to provide ongoing programs that not just handle the tertiary kinds of needs, but also would develop the kinds of relationships with these people that we can help with in situations, long-term.”

Please pray for the refugee children in Turkey who can’t go home again. The Lord knows each heart. May this be an opportunity for His comfort and hope for each young life.

(Photo: Ben White/ CAFOD, October 2015 via Flickr)

So far, the International Organization for Migration notes more than 181,000 migrants and refugees have arrived in Europe this year via the Mediterranean Sea. By comparison, 22,408 migrants and refugees arrived in Europe by sea during the first four months of 2015.

Cash-strapped, and fearing terrorists disguised as refugees, several European countries refused admission. Some went as far as abandoning refugees at transit stations, or building walls to keep them out.

Last month, the European Union and Turkey struck a deal: people arriving illegally on Greek islands from Turkey are being returned, unless they successfully apply for asylum in Greece. On paper, it looks okay.  In practice, International Needs US President and CEO, Rody Rodeheaver says, “All of that is a process being worked out. There were agreements made, but I think the agreements now have to be taken down to their lowest common denominator, and they have to figure out how they’re really going to do this.”

Some European countries are providing Turkey with a financial incentive for their willingness to take some of these refugees. But again, theory and reality are two different things.

“You need to realize that Turkey is providing a holding area, (and) some provisions for food.”  People aren’t getting enough food or medicine. International Needs Turkey is working to bring encouragement and relief to these refugee children and their families, explains Rodeheaver.

(Photo courtesy International Needs Turkey)

In their haste to leave the war-zones, many of the refugees fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Survival was more important than education, while there was a faint hope of returning home. Now that that’s been dashed, the reality sets in.

”These children do not speak Turkish”, says Rodeheaver.  Not being able to communicate in their host country makes it “…almost impossible for them to get an education in Turkey unless there are special (measures) being taken.”

Connections with the right government officials helped pave the way for long-term services. For example, “In one of the camps where we’re working, we’ve been able to utilize some teachers who escaped; (we) worked with them, paid them for their services to teach the Syrian children so that they are not missing out on their education.”

International Needs Turkey’s other areas of service include:

• Evangelism and Spiritual Development
• Relief for Refugees
• Education Curriculum Development
• Youth Programs

Ministering to refugees is a Gospel outreach endeavor for International Needs, but meeting immediate needs builds a relationship of trust. Even little things, like a cuddly stuffed animal for those lonely times when tears come, matter.

When the International Needs teams showed they were around for the long haul, “The families were really open to talk about how we could help them in the future, but also they were open to us praying with them and sharing some hope with them.” One tool for sharing this message of hope is the newly published Action Bible. The beautiful drawings and simple text share the Gospel message in a kid-friendly way. International Needs is working to provide one of these special Bibles to every child who asks.

(Photo courtesy International Needs Turkey)

Rodeheaver says for those who want to send stuffed animals, shoes, jackets or other goods, they appreciate the thought, but money simply works better in this scenario.

“Huge containers sit at the docks, waiting for thousands of dollars’ worth of taxes to be paid for those containers to be released, so they can help the refugees,” he explains.

In an effort to avoid that trap, it’s better for churches to raise funds, for individuals to give funds to International Needs. “Then our people, on the ground, can buy the materials, the clothing, and the pharmaceuticals in-country.”

Pray for opportunities for Christians in Turkey to share the Truth of who Jesus is with those around them.  Click here to come alongside International Needs Turkey.

(Photo courtesy of International Needs)

Given the external forces of ISIS terrorist events and the internal rising tensions of the ongoing power struggle between the Kurdish PKK extremists, and the ever more dictatorial Turkish government, this has engendered a level of unrest and apprehension among the average Turkish citizen that has been absent for a long period of time.

As a minority population within the country at large, the Christian community is even more emotionally brittle and concerned as the political arena becomes more unstable and unpredictable.

It is in this challenging environment that Behnan Konutgan and the International Needs team must bring hope, comfort, courage, and focus to the Evangelical Church within Turkey. They are standing strong and faithful to their calling in the midst of an often chaotic milieu. All of this should come to us as a call to prayer as we support and encourage our team in Turkey.

In addition to the already mentioned circumstances is the ever-enlarging and geo-politically charged presence of the 2.5 million refugees who cry out for menial assistance and understanding that translates into hope for a future free of persecution, fear, and death. Behnan has visited, often at the request of local political officials or church congregations, most of the refugee camps providing critical resources like food, clothing, blankets, firewood, etc.

The International Needs team is developing an engagement with some of the camps where the circumstances will allow for longer term solutions and relationship building. This high priority ministry is being accomplished with limited resources; certainly, more is needed as the refugee quagmire deepens.

Thank you for your prayers and generosity toward the International Needs Turkey staff and families.

More than 3.2 million people in Uganda have no toilets.
(Photo credit: Susana Secretariat via Flickr)

Tom Farley, International Needs Senior VP of Development, shares details in a recent field report:

International Needs Uganda staff members Ivan Muzanganda and Sarah Lwanga were telling me that the family I was about to meet had invited us to visit with them at their home outside of Kiyindi near Lake Victoria in Uganda. The poignant encounter I was about to have was eight days into a survey of the water and sanitation needs of the villages sponsored children call home.

“Oli otya,” said Ivan, as we approached the clay brick home, greeting the mother and son who were sitting outside the door.

The pair greeted me with the warm welcome I had come to expect from the friendly and hospitable people of Uganda.

Ivan then guided me toward the family’s toilet and began to explain the soil conditions and other environmental factors that would have to be considered when building latrines in that area. As were most of the outdoor latrines I had surveyed, this one consisted of a crudely dug hole several feet deep and partially camouflaged with leaves.

Just as we approached the latrine, the head of the house emerged. Even though we clearly walked upon the site at the wrong time, Ivan greeted the man and told him that I was the visitor they were expecting. The man smiled broadly and began walking toward me.

I quickly turned to see what the Ugandan staff of International Needs were doing as the man approached, and noticed that they both had their arms tightly crossed. But the man wasn’t heading toward them: he was walking straight toward me.

When he was 10 feet in front of me he stretched his arms and hands toward me!

(Photo courtesy International Needs USA)

The World Health Organization describes an “unimproved latrine” as something that does “not ensure a hygienic separation of human excreta from human contact [including] pit latrines without slabs or platforms or open pit,” which is exactly what the man just walked out of.

Seeing the man’s hands stretched out to greet me, I shoved my hands into my pants pockets.

Our host recognized my fear and stopped, his arms still extended. Then with a good natured grin, he clasped his hands together and touched them to his heart. Deeply embarrassed, I mimicked his gracious gesture, then thanked him.

Thirty million people in Uganda and 22 million people in Ghana do not have access to a sanitation facility. International Needs Uganda, like its partners elsewhere in Africa, assists families in the construction of latrines if a family requests their assistance and will join in the work. The family’s contribution may be digging a pit and/or providing some materials for the covered latrine. In doing so, self-reliance and choice of the family are respected.

In May 2016, International Needs US will invite people to give toward the water and sanitation needs our partners across the world are working to resolve. Look for more information about “It Takes a Child to Raise a Village” in a few months.

(Photo courtesy International Needs)

Over 20% of Ugandan families spend at least 10% of their total income on healthcare, largely due to diseases that result from poor sanitation. “Open defecation contaminates drinking water sources and can spread cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, and typhoid,” reports The Guardian.

By contributing to the International Needs Health fund, you can help install sanitation facilities and safe latrines.

(Wikipedia)

Turkey (MNN) — As if believers in Turkey didn’t have enough to deal with, evangelical leaders are now receiving death threats from ISIS.

“These threats are against Islamic converts to Christianity,” Rody Rodeheaver of International Needs explains.

“ISIS wants to make an example of them, and are threatening to do just that.”

This news, along with increased fighting between PKK terrorists and the Turkish military, has set the Church in Turkey on edge.

Turkish turmoil

Though they’ve escalated at an alarming rate recently, the troubles in Turkey’s east are nothing new.

“For years and years and years, the Kurds and the Turks have been struggling,” Rodeheaver says.

A Kurdish presence in Turkey threatens the native Turkish population, he explains, especially because the Kurds are growing in number. If the Kurds get political power, Rodheaver adds, the Turks fear they will lose control of the country.

(Twitter)

As a result, Turkish forces have been battling to subdue Kurdish militants in eastern Turkey since the summer began. According to Bloomberg News, over 100 police officers and soldiers have been killed in Kurdish attacks.

The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is spearheading the recent unrest.

“Up until the last month or so, things had been fairly settled; not a lot of overt military action against the PKK by the government,” explains Rodeheaver.

“Now, that is changing, and it is sending a shockwave through the government and also the general population.”

Against this backdrop of chaos, International Needs is fighting to make the peril faced by Turkish Christians known.

Speaking up

(Photo courtesy International Needs)

Last week, International Needs’ ministry leader in Turkey flew to the capital at the request of several governmental leaders.

While there, he spoke to the serious danger posed to Turkish Christians by the recent ISIS death threats.

It was also an important opportunity to remind the Turkish Parliament that– under Turkey’s Constitution–Christianity is a legitimate member and deserves protection.

Will you stand with International Needs in prayer?

“What we’re praying is that one: these pastors will be protected,” shares Rodeheaver.

“Two: we’re praying that this will be an opportunity for the Christian Church to speak out and share with the rest of Turkey that they, along with the Muslim population–in a Republic–have freedom of religion.”

You can also help by giving to support the work of International Needs in Turkey.

“We have the ministries going on, but [we need help],” Rodeheaver says.

(Twitter)

Turkey (MNN) — In case you haven’t noticed, Turkey is reaching critical mass.

At last count, more than 2 million Syrian and Iraqi refugees are taking shelter from ISIS within Turkey’s borders. More are coming every day.

Fighting between Turkey’s government and rebel forces is inching the country toward civil war, which leaves these refugees with dwindling options for a safe haven. An election coming up in November holds the potential for even more unrest.

Furthermore, ISIS hasn’t relented in its pursuit of a global Caliphate. Last week, the Islamic State intensified its efforts to take a key border town on Turkey’s doorstep.

Yet amid a darkening atmosphere, evangelical Christians are holding out hope.

Hope amid chaos

Standing firm on the words of Isaiah 54:17 — “No weapon formed against thee shall prosper,” Turkish believers aren’t letting circumstances stop them from helping people in need.

Tear gas on streets of Turkey (Twitter)

“One of the things we’re attempting to do is build coalitions of Protestant and Catholic churches who are working together to help meet some of the needs of the refugees that are in Turkey,” says Rody Rodeheaver of International Needs.

“There are two million of them there, so there’s plenty of need.”

Learn about their program for refugee children here.

Along with Action Bibles for kids, International Needs is providing for the needs of entire families. Through local churches, International Needs is giving food, small refrigeration units, and mattresses to refugee families.

International Needs is providing plenty of help and hope, but they can’t do it without you.

Why it matters

International Needs is supporting Syrian refugees in Turkey.
(Photo courtesy of International Needs)

Because of Turkey’s growing challenges, International Needs has fallen approximately 32% behind budget.

“We are seeing some deficits just because of the unrest. People are not sure what to do, so people become tentative in their support of the ministry,” Rodeheaver shares.

When a gracious friend learned about International Needs’ shortfall, he took action.

“His response was to cover 10% of the shortfall and ask me to use his gift as a challenge to others to step up and erase the shortfall,” shares Rodeheaver in a recent e-mail.

You can help now through an online donation here, or send a check to International Needs and specify “INTR Ministry Support.”

“It is a very complex situation,” Rodeheaver admits, in reference to the refugee crisis.

“But, it is a situation that– as believers–we need to address.”

What do you think? Should Christians respond differently to the refugee crisis than non-Christians?

Let us know your thoughts in the Comments Section below.

(Screen capture of the Nile courtesy International Needs)

Egypt (MNN) — Today is the fifth anniversary of Egypt’s Jan. 25 revolution. And for the most part, it seems to be passing by relatively quietly, but not for the reasons you might think.

International Needs USA President and CEO Rody Rodeheaver says, “Anniversaries mean something. They mean something in our personal lives, and they certainly have great significance in the lives of a country. For a country like Egypt that has undergone incredible change in the last few years, this anniversary is very sensitive.”

Indeed, Egyptian authorities have beefed up security and simultaneously intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of today’s anniversary of the country’s 2011 Arab Spring. Rodeheaver explains, ”There remains in the country, terrorist influences. The Muslim Brotherhood is there and would love to use the January 25 date as an opportunity to make a statement, to embarrass the government.”

Surveillance has focused on social media users, who are primarily young, pro-democracy activists inside and outside the country, including foreigners. State and private media have been urging the public not to demonstrate on Jan. 25, which is also National Police Day, arguing that protests would bring only chaos.

On top of that, enforcement has been strict on the anti-protest law, decreed in 2013 by interim President Adly Mansour. The law bans demonstrations at government buildings, and prohibits all gatherings of more than 10 people without the consent of the Interior Ministry.

Anti-terrorism legislation decreed last year by President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi was reaffirmed by the new Parliament shortly before the anniversary. The risk is that terrorism is so broadly defined as to what it means to “disrupt general order” or “harm national unity.” In the past, that has been challenging for Christians, as has been noted by groups like Open Doors USA or the Voice of the Martyrs USA. Rodeheaver adds, “Unfortunately, the way that these things are done is that often the Christians in these countries are singled out, are targeted. It is a time when believers around the world really need to be praying for Egypt.”

The anniversary comes at a time when the economy is not recovering as quickly as hoped, an issue that highlights el-Sissi’s promises to get the country back on track. Meanwhile, a wave of suicide bombings and militant attacks has intensified since 2013, when Muslim Brotherhood member and former president, Mohammed Morsi, was ousted. Since then, the Islamic State has claimed a majority of the suicide bombings, with restive areas like Giza, el Arish,and the Sinai Peninsula bearing the brunt.

(Screen capture courtesy International Needs)

Economically, many workers who lost their jobs during the beginning of turmoil five years ago couldn’t find new jobs, leaving many families desperate. Says Rodeheaver, “What’s happened is that people have completed university, but their skills that are needed are not the kind of skills that they learned in college.” Christians often face discrimination and are often only given the lowest paying jobs or menial labor. International Needs Egypt has come alongside them and serves the local Church in Spiritual Development, Humanitarian Aid for Refugee relief, and Community and Economic Development.

As a result, explains Rodeheaver, “There are some wonderful things that have happened within the Christian Church because the persecution has galvanized the Christian Church and brought it closer together. But because of that, they also remain a target.” To that end, “We’re praying that God will restrain the forces of evil and allow this anniversary to stand as a memorial to positive future as opposed to a time of disruption.”

A vocational training center opened last year to its first group of students. Christian and Muslim students alike are now able to learn valuable skills such as English, computers, hairdressing, air conditioner repair, computer repair, and mobile phone repair. Upon completion of the other five courses, students receive starter kids that allow them to open a business in their area of focus.

The first group of students recently completed their training and have brought their new skills into their communities. The training center has opened its doors to everyone, regardless of religion, and is delivering the message of God in a practical and tangible way.

(Screen capture courtesy International Needs)

As far as the Church itself, many pastors have little formal training. International Needs reaches out to Egyptian pastors with teaching seminars and educational materials for use in their churches. The encouragement the training provides goes a long way in a hostile environment. What’s more, the seminars are needed now, more than ever, confirms Rodeheaver. ”There seems to be a movement among the young people in Egypt, in terms of Christianity, in terms of sharing their faith, in terms of working for the cause of Christ.”

Pray for the safety of the International Needs staff and for all of the peace-loving people of Egypt. Pray that the Lord would bring His peace and protection at this very vulnerable moment. Ask God to strengthen and embolden Christians in this time of political uncertainty and give them new opportunities to share the Gospel.

(Image capture courtesy International Needs)

Turkey (MNN) — Ceasefire? What ceasefire?

A series of attacks began Monday in Turkey amid rising tension between the government and Kurdish militants. The calm has been restive since the accord went into effect in 2013. So who’s to blame for the collapse?

Turkey had been bracing itself for violence since it started moving against the Islamic State and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants last month. Tit-for-tat violence goes back nearly a year, and thousands have fled; but the issue isn’t so cut and dry.

It seems like the day Turkey began its fight against the Islamic State, Turkish forces also began an airstrike campaign against one of the very groups that has been crucial to stopping the ISIS advance. Why? It’s a grudge match. Ankara continues to regard the PKK as an enemy of the state, and the Kurds want their own state. For more than three decades, they’ve been engaged in an intermittent cycle of violence.

Who’s winning? In this case, no one.

(Photo courtesy International Needs)

A year ago, International Needs’ partner Behnan Konutgan took a call from the Mayor of Sirnak and some local pastors to see if there was any way to help the Yazidis who were fleeing the unspeakable horrors of ISIS in northern Iraq. “We have been working in mercy ministries for the refugees for the last two years. There are more than 2 million, officially, maybe 3 million refugees from Syria, North Iraq; and [they are] all here,” says Behnan.

He’s been back to that area several times distributing food, mattresses, blankets, clothing, and firewood for cooking and heating. This time, he was trying to answer this question: ”How can we reach those people more? We have been working with local officers, like mayors and mayors’ assistants.”

Attempting to broaden the response network, Behnan met with church leaders in Diyarbakir to see what they could organize for Sirnak, a hostile and fragile area where life is cheap and tempers are short. He explains, “Sirnak is a city in the Kurdish area at the border of North Iraq. There was infighting between the PKK (that is the Kurdish Party) and the police and the gendarme.” Unless the fighting got really bad, the plans were a “go.” Then, says Behnan, “The mayor from Sirnak called us and said, ‘Please don’t come. It’s very unsafe in this area. The Kurdish people bombed the cars and burned cars and killed people.’” That was Monday; Tuesday didn’t seem much better.

(Image courtesy video capture via International Needs)

Behnan and other leadership of the Evangelical Church are still trying to figure out a 3-5 year strategy to meet the physical needs of the thousands of refugees in that area as well as deepen relationships that will lead to opportunities to share Christ’s transforming love. As it is, when the International Needs teams arrive at the refugee camps, “We love them, we touch them, and we give them hope and pray and tell them that we are coming from the Churches–the protestant churches. When they hear that, they are happy and welcome us more.”

The sad news: many displaced Kurdish families are migrating as refugees into Turkey. This will place immense pressure on the Turkish government who is still struggling with the influx of close to a million Syrian refugees brought on by the civil war in Syria. Plus, the PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union. The pressure placed on the refugees and all who try to help them can be tremendous.

”Pray for Turkey and the Middle East. There is fire going on, and nobody knows what is happening. Every day, people are killing each other. Pray that God would send His peace and bring new peace to this country, and that people may know God.” Please pray for Behnan’s safety as he ministers to the refugees and meets with leadership of the Evangelical Church.