(Photo courtesy Kids Alive Peru)

Peru (MNN/KAI) — Ever have a story that just haunts you? Sometimes that motivates action.

That’s what happened to John and Janette Hocking. Kids Alive Peru says John and his daughter, Cristina, walked some land in 1997 and asked God to speak to them about a special place to start a children’s home.

Why? In the region surrounding Pucallpa, Peru, there is one government-run children’s home serving a population of more than half a million people. 90 children currently crowd into an institution designed to house no more than 80.

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive)

Overcrowded, the institution is chaotic. Many children suffer from severe mental and physical disabilities–needs that are difficult to address in that environment. The children who live there have all experienced some form of abuse, neglect, homelessness, or poverty. They are orphans, or otherwise do not have anyone currently willing to provide for their needs. Their young lives have been nightmarish.

The Hockings wanted to make a difference. In 2005, John and Janette decided to donate a piece of property that would eventually be “The Orchard” Children’s Home. It was a blank slate.

The Kids Alive team started dreaming and planning in 2008. The reality was grinding hard work, building, fundraising, and praying, but it paid off. On April 8, 2015, after 7 years of preparation, meetings with government officials, and property inspections, Kids Alive Peru finally got their license to operate. Unlike many child-sponsorship programs, they provide not just food and a loving, learning environment, but a home and an introduction to the Gospel as well.

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive)

This month, they got permission to open, and the overjoyed team dedicated the project to the Lord. In a way, the end of this building project is actually the beginning of the project of a lifetime. The walls are painted, the cupboards stocked, and the beds are made. Now they’re ready to start receiving kids! Over time, this ministry will grow to four homes for 40 sponsored children.

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive Lebanon via Facebook)

Lebanon (MNN/Kids Alive Lebanon) — About half of the 1.5 million refugees in Lebanon are children, most of which are struggling with the recent memories of violence and conflict that haunts them.

“It’s hard for me to forget. I saw so many bad things in Syria,” refugee Fatima al-Lawoz, who witnessed the death of her best friend, told CBC News. Millions of children like al-Lawoz have similar stories of loss and have been stretched thin.

Now drained by grief and fear, refugee kids are looking for a break from the surrounding conflict. And with Christmas drawing near, what better way to encourage and show the love of Christ than to make miracles happen?

Kids Alive Lebanon’s Special Christmas for Special Children project is raising $1,775 to make it a memorable Christmas for the 90 vulnerable and at-risk kids in the Kids Alive Lebanon program.

All year round, the children are given life-saving care and taught the truth about Jesus. But seeing as it’s a “special” time of year, Kids Alive wants to do more than provide: they want to celebrate.

With the $1,775 come specific mini goals, including:

1. An exciting, off-campus field trip for Kids Alive’s school children. At $10 per child, the total will add up to $900.
2. A TV and DVD player to replace old and failing equipment in a Residential unit which, including all the accessories, will add up to $375.
3. Child-enrichment funds to be used for the purchase of books, games, and art supplies to keep children stimulated and encouraged while outside of the classroom, amounting to $500.

With these gifts, Kids Alive is demonstrating the love and nature of what it means to be a follower of Christ. It’s a chance to raise up a new generation of children to be influential leaders inside and outside of Lebanon.

Kids Alive is seeking your help to deliver small miracles to make it a memorable Christmas for refugee children. Your donation will show care and willingness to provide for kids who have lost so much. Click here to enrich young lives and give hope to the hopeless.

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive)

International (MNN) — The Next Generation is entering a “rough” world.

Around 1.2 million children are trafficked every year, UNICEF estimates. Approximately 150 million are classified as child laborers. Furthermore, about 250 million women alive today were married before their 15th birthday.

And yet, God is at work.

Matt Parker of Kids Alive International says they’re holding a Global Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer tomorrow.

“We’re wanting firstly just to thank God for His provision and His blessing to us, but then also to pray for some of the needs and challenges that we as an organization face daily around the world,” Parker explains.

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive)

“We have seen many prayers answered in incredible ways throughout almost a century of service to the world’s suffering children.”

Kids Alive helps vulnerable children in 15 countries spread across five of the world’s seven continents. As Kids Alive workers meet children’s physical needs and share the hope of Christ, young lives are forever changed

“It is God alone who transforms lives,” clarifies Parker.

“Kids that’ve been exposed to witchcraft, kids who come from the streets, and they’ve been exposed to all kinds of terrors: we’ve really seen their lives turn around.”

Global Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer

There are a few ways the Global Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer will be taking place tomorrow.

“There are going to be prayer meetings happening all around the world, people praying as individuals, some people will be fasting for Kids Alive on that day,” Parker explains.

“We’re [also] going to have a lot of information coming up on social media; we’ll have a prayer blog that will be up with prayer requests from all around the world.”

(Photo courtesy Kids Alive)

In addition, children under Kids Alive care will be praying for one another.

“Kids in Lebanon, for example, [will be] praying for children in the Dominican Republic,” says Parker. “Kids in Peru [will be] praying for Kenya, and so on.”

Check out the Global Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer on Kids Alive’s prayer blog.

Through the various ministry efforts of Kids Alive, orphans and abandoned children around the world are being given education, clothing, healthy food, medical care, and – most importantly – the love of Christ. Their work is only possible with your help; get involved here.

(Image courtesy Kids Alive)

Guatemala (MNN) — Child brides in Guatemala are learning how to be kids again. It’s all part of the “saving souls” effort underway at the Kids Alive International Oasis Center.

“This type of trauma…it’s ‘soul murder,'” says Corbey Dukes with Kids Alive.

“Jesus said that the devil comes to ‘steal and destroy,’ and that’s what this is all about: it’s the devil trying to kill and destroy the soul and hope and future of this child.”

Child brides in Guatemala

The problem of child marriage is a global one, but it’s especially rampant in Guatemala.

World Bank defines “maternal mortality ratio” as the number of women ages 15-49 who die from pregnancy-related causes while pregnant, or within 42 days of pregnancy termination, per 100,000 live births. Guatemala is pegged at 140 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births.

But, that’s the ratio for a wide spectrum of ages. For every 1,000 girls aged 15-19 years old, the ratio jumps to 92. According to Guatemala’s Population Council, 13% of girls were married before the age of 15, and more than half of women ages 20-24, were married before they turned 18 years old.

Guatemala is located in Central America.

“When we say child brides,” Dukes clarifies, “we’re talking [about] girls who were ‘married’ at 10, 11, 12 years old.

“We’re not talking about a 16-year-old boy and 14-year-old girl, like some ‘Romeo and Juliet’ thing. It’s pedophilia. It’s men in their 30s preying on girls 11 and 12 years old.”

One of the former child brides at Kids Alive’s Oasis Center was “married” before her 12th birthday, and then had a baby. Another was pressured to marry an older man by her mother, the man, and the man’s mother.

“A lot of times [that’s] to cover up a crime, because the authorities are far less likely to prosecute a pedophile who says he’s married to this girl, than somebody who just sexually abused an 11 year old,” Dukes explains.

“A family will make an economic decision to allow this to happen, oftentimes because it happened to the mother of the family and her grandmother. You have generations of abuse.”

The shadow of this evil is dark, but it serves to prove the Light of Christ.

Discovering new life at the Oasis

At the Oasis center, Kids Alive staff doesn’t just restore the safety and future of exploited girls: they introduce them to the love of Christ.

“We see resurrection,” Dukes shares. “Seeing a 12-year-old, 13-year-old girl holding her baby and worshipping God is one of my favorite experiences.”

(Photo courtesy of Kids Alive International)

As stated on Kids Alive Web site, “Kids Alive’s Guatemalan staff works with government authorities to provide a safe haven for girls who have been forced into child labor, experienced physical and sexual abuse (often all three), and have either been abandoned or have fled for their safety and lives.”

Along with introducing girls at the Oasis to Jesus and helping them grow in their faith, Kids Alive staff members teach the ‘tweens how to balance motherhood, their education, and similar responsibilities.

The girls also have an opportunity to receive trauma-focused therapy, and access legal support and protection.

Learn more about the Oasis Center, and find ways you can come alongside it.

“We just see incredible spiritual fruit in the lives of the staff, the lives of these girls,” reports Dukes. “We’re not good enough to produce the fruit that we’re seeing, so it has to be [from] God.”

(Photo credit Kids Alive)

International (KAI/MNN) — The United Nations estimates that, every year, 14 million girls are married as children. Roughly one girl is trafficked every thirty seconds. Since human trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal activity in the world, it won’t take long before those numbers rise exponentially.

Kids Alive International shares how you can help them protect the innocent in a recent post on their prayer blog.

For many young girls, this world is a very dangerous place.

It is estimated that, every year, 14 million girls are married as children. UNICEF recently released some sobering statistics on the prevalence of child marriage in different countries: Niger, Chad, and Central African Republic are some of the worst places in this regard. Young, teenage Syrian refugee girls in Jordan are being married off to far older men because, given their circumstances, this is viewed by their families as the best option for them. And in South Sudan, a 15-year-old girl is more likely to die in childbirth than to finish school. That is shocking.

1.2 million children, many of them young girls, are trafficked each year. That’s one every thirty seconds. And, according to estimates, that number is set to rise since trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal activity in the world. Such exploitation includes forced labor, slavery, and prostitution.

Kids Alive is committed to making this world a better place for children. Many of their ministry sites provide protection for girls (and boys) at risk of abuse, early marriage, and trafficking.

Kids Alive’s ministry in Guatemala rescues abused girls from the most terrible of situations, helping to restore them and seeking justice for their abusers through the court system. In south Lebanon, Kids Alive provides an education and a safe place for young children who would otherwise end up begging in the streets and vulnerable to the worst kinds of abuse. Their homes in Kenya provide a haven for girls who might otherwise face being ‘married off’ at a young age.

Yet many other young girls remain trapped in an evil cycle of abuse and terror. And we need to respond–to speak up for those that are suffering and do all we can to help kids like these. As Proverbs 31:8 says: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all that are destitute”.

And we need to pray. Please join with us in praying for Kids Alive’s ministries as they rescue, protect, and seek justice for the victims of horrific abuse. And pray for the many other children that are at risk of abuse, trafficking, or early marriage around the world.

You may want to use the following prayer to help you:

Father God,

Our hearts are breaking at the stories of innocent children that experience horrific abuse around the world. These kids are so weak, and the grip of evil upon them so strong. Their voices are so seldom heard.

Help us not to look away and hide our faces from their fear and despair. Give us compassion. Enable us to listen. Help us to speak up. Give us the resources to respond and make a difference. And shine Your light so that those that are broken may be rescued, healed, and restored.

Amen.

(South Sudan flag courtesy Wikipedia)

South Sudan (MNN) — South Sudan’s violence has pretty much been overruled by slightly larger crises: Ukraine, Iraq, Gaza, to name a few. But Kids Alive International says the world community can’t forget about their newest nation.

South Sudan’s current turmoil began in December 2013, when a coup attempt failed and fighting erupted between rebel groups. Exact figures are hard to come by, but approximately 1.5 million people have been displaced by out-of-control fighting, and around 10,000 have been killed.

Matt Parker with Kids Alive recently spoke with AwakeAfrica about how South Sudan’s crisis is impacting one of its most vulnerable populations: women and children.

“Many children have been killed or injured in the violence, and others [have been] displaced from their homes. It is estimated that around 9,000 children have actively been participating in the fighting as child soldiers,” Parker informed AwakeAfrica reporter Ann Kaguma.

(Photo by Food for the Hungry)

In addition, at least 50,000 children are now facing starvation because of the ongoing conflict. That means more families will be relying on Kids Alive for literal and spiritual food.

You can read the full report on Parker’s blog.

Kids Alive operates a Children’s Home in Wau, taking in street children and other vulnerable youngsters. Christian caregivers nurture and encourage children to become faithful followers of Jesus while caring for their basic needs.

Kids Alive also cares for refugee families in and around Wau by providing food, soap, sandals, medicines, clothing, and plastic sheets. Meeting these basic needs often opens doors for Kids Alive workers to share the hope of Christ with refugees.

As fighting continues in South Sudan with no end in sight, your prayers and financial help are becoming even more important. If you’d like to help Kids Alive give South Sudan’s children and refugees a safe haven and hope for the future, click here.

Most importantly, please remember to include South Sudan in your prayers. Pray for violence to cease, and pray for South Sudan’s leaders to make their people a priority. Pray that children and refugees cared for by Kids Alive will come to know Christ as they hear His Words.

More Africa stories here.

(Image courtesy Open Doors)

MENA (KAI/MNN) — Children in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) need your prayers. Kids Alive International says those trapped in war zones are fearful and helpless; they often face starvation as conflict prevents food deliveries.

Originally posted on their prayer blog, Kids Alive shares specific ways you can be praying for children trapped in five of region’s battle zones: Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Gaza.

IRAQ: Over the past few weeks, hundreds of thousands of Christians and other religious minority groups in northern Iraq have been forced to flee from intense persecution by militant Islamic group, IS (“Islamic State”). Many children and their families have already been brutally murdered. Thousands of displaced people now face starvation in horrific conditions.

Pray for peace to be restored in this area, that Christians would remain strong in their faith, and for the protection of young children that are caught up in this conflict. Pray also for safety, guidance, and strength for Christian relief agencies as they bring God’s hope to these broken Christian families and many others who have fled their homes.

ISRAEL / GAZA: An upsurge in hostilities in this region has left more than 1,800 people dead, including hundreds of children. Many communities now face urgent shortages of food and water.

Pray for an end to this conflict, and that Christian believers would keep their eyes on Christ. Pray especially for children and young people caught up in terror and violence that is beyond their understanding.

SYRIA / LEBANON: The conflict in Syria continues. More than 150,000 people have died, and as many as nine million are refugees or displaced within Syria. In Lebanon, where Kids Alive works, there are now more than one million refugees.

(Image courtesy Kids Alive)

Pray for peace in this region, for Christians that are now facing persecution for their faith in Syria, and for the refugees–many of them children–who currently have little hope for the future.

Pray also for Kids Alive’s ministry in Lebanon, Dar El Awlad, and for ministry partners, particularly “Heart for Lebanon,” that they would be able to reach out with Christ’s love to more of those who are suffering.

In Lebanon, Kids Alive is helping Syrian refugees in two ways. They are providing an education, food, and daily care to nearly 50 children in their school and care center programs. They are also working with ministry partners to support refugee families that urgently need help.

You can help Kids Alive meet financial needs as they share Christ’s love in the midst of crisis.

A 27-year-old Christian woman has been sentenced to death and 100 lashes for following Christ and marrying a Christian man.
(Image courtesy Open Doors USA)

Sudan (MNN) — This tale of persecution is so unjust that even the secular news outlets are picking it up.

Meriam Yehya Ibrahim, a 27-year-old woman in Sudan who is 8-months pregnant, has been sentenced to death for being a Christian. On top of that, Sudan’s Islamic courts sentenced Ibrahim to 100 lashings for “adultery” because she’s married to a Christian man: a union considered illegitimate under Sharia law.

This case quickly drew negative attention last week from human rights organizations and foreign embassies. Ibrahim is being denied hospitalization for her difficult pregnancy, and her 20-month-old son is “always getting sick due to lack of hygiene and bugs” in the prison, Ibrahim’s attorney told CNN.

Though shocking, the court’s ruling is part of a larger trend, says Matt Parker, Executive Vice President of Kids Alive International.

“Over the past 18 months in particular, we’ve seen a real surge in the level of persecution against Christians,” Parker notes. “It’s really an ongoing campaign that the government in Sudan has to establish an Islamic state and rid the country of Christians, Christian influence.”

The Kids Alive leader recalls meeting with a Christian pastor in Khartoum last year.

“During our conversation, he leaned across the table and said to me, ‘Dark, difficult days are coming for Christians in Sudan,’ and he was absolutely right.”

Kids Alive has a home in Sudan where they provide shelter, food, education, and the Gospel to vulnerable children. Parker explains, “These are kids who have absolutely nothing. They come from the streets; they have nowhere else to go.”

An estimated 10% of Sudan’s children are orphans. Many live on the streets or in refugee camps; sometimes they are taken into “camps” and forcefully converted to Islam.

(Image courtesy Kids Alive)

Sudanese officials have been targeting Kids Alive staff because they tell the children under their care about Jesus. Organizations doing similar work have been forced to shut down.

“Our staff have been intimidated by the authorities, and it’s been a very difficult few months for them,” shares Parker.

“But we’re committed to continuing with these kids; we want to see these kids reach their full potential.”

See how you can help believers and the vulnerable children they care for here.

Pray about the new precedence Ibrahim’s case sets for believers in Sudan. Ask the Lord to intervene and protect His followers. Pray that the rising tide of persecution would be stemmed.

“This is a very serious situation that is facing Christians in Sudan,” says Parker. “I don’t see any end at this point to the persecution that is taking place.

“The reality is: the government in Sudan is just determined to create an Islamic state.”

Kids Alive work in Sudan.

South Sudan (MNN) — Gun fights reportedly broke out over the last couple of days in a previously quiet area of South Sudan, the city of Wau. Casualties are still not being reported. Authorities believe the gunfire was a result of a defection within the army in the region. Whatever the case, Christians are anxious.

Matt Parker with Kids Alive International says they have work in Wau. “There has been very little conflict in the town of Wau. We have a children’s home there. We have a community program there. There has been tension between different tribes, but up until the last few days, there has not been any actual violence.”

That all changed over the weekend, Parker says. “The rebels attacked a military base on the outskirts of town. The fighting spread toward the airport.” While it was contained, there’s concern there will be an upsurge in violence in the days ahead.

Parker says this violence has a lot of people scared. “A lot of people now are trying to get into the UN compound that is in Wau, fearing that there will be an escalation.”

Kids Alive is doing what they can. “We’re monitoring the situation very carefully,and the leadership team there is assessing different options. If the fighting should spread, our priority is the kids.”

Kids Alive has a couple of compounds. Parker says, “At the moment, all of our residential children are at one of those. There’s a possibility we might be able to move those to another compound if that’s in a safer area.”

While the situation is difficult, Parker says they’re using it to teach children life lessons. “We’re taking this opportunity to share with them that we can trust in the Lord and to encourage them to keep their eyes on Him at all times and in every circumstance.”

Parker is asking you pray for safety and for all Christian organizations working in South Sudan trying to meet the needs of refugees and showing the love of Christ to hurting communities.

If you’d like to support their work in South Sudan, click here.

A Zambian witch doctor.
(Photo credit: Guy William Volk)

Zambia (MNN) — Witchcraft is still very much alive in this world. Two children in Zambia were recently rescued from the grip of witchcraft just in time.

Kids Alive International staff members in Zambia rescued Ngonde and Mutungo from their grandfather, who was heavily involved with practices of witchcraft. The children were living in squalor after being abandoned by their father. They were selling charcoal on the streets to support themselves.

Witchcraft is something often glorified in media in Western countries. People watch horror movies about witches and magic, believing that it is only entertainment and unrealistic. But it is very real and part of the indigenous religion in Zambia.

Just ten years ago, BBC estimated that there were 40,000 witchdoctors active in the country. These practices of magic are often meant for healing or protection from evil spirits. Yet people don’t realize that witchdoctors actually utilize evil spirits, and the effects are harmful.

For Ngonde and Mutango, witchcraft meant living in constant fear and torment. It meant leaving the only family they had. It meant pain when hearing the truth of the Gospel and of the one true Spirit that can heal and comfort.

Top picture: Ngonde & Mutango’s home before KidsAlive
Bottom picture: Ngonde & Mutango are now happy and hopeful.
(Image courtesy Kids Alive)

The children were brought to the Children’s Village of Kids Alive. For the first few weeks, the staff prayed heavily for the children. Ngonde was badly scarred by her grandfather’s practices and would cry out during worship time.

But God has healed them, and the outbursts have stopped. The children are enjoying school and loving church. Instead of crying out, the children’s faces shine with joy as they sing to their Savior.

Please praise God for guiding Kids Alive to these children. Continue to pray that God would eradicate witchcraft and other religions from Zambia and Africa. If you would like to support the Children’s Villages, click here.