Bundles of Love is an annual program that offers tangible assistance to children, national workers, and leprosy victims supported through AMG. The program began in the 1960s when leaders saw that while the Gospel was being spread, many practical needs were going unmet. From that realization came the idea of a Christmas gift bundle filled with items a person or family may need but be unable to purchase.

2020: A Unique Year

Ken Ivins with AMG says this year brings extra challenges for many families. “A lot of poverty we’ve seen in the past, it was hard, has now become worse. People haven’t had the jobs they needed. A lot of food wasn’t planted in a timely fashion and so now it’s not being harvested as it should. A lot of our people are being held back at home. So we’ve experienced a lot of those similar things we experience here in the States, but to a much greater degree.”

(Image courtesy of AMG International)

For people living on day-to-day incomes, the need for practical gifts has increased dramatically. Ivins says that the gift bundles not only help those who receive them, but they support the local economy. Each bundle is financed with 20 U.S. dollars. The money is given to field directors who purchase the things most needed by each family.

“They’re buying it locally, and so they have a great impact on [the economy],” Ivins says. So that’s one of the things as we as we look through this program, that’s we really appreciate. That God’s given us the vision, years ago, to do it this way, to impact not only the child, but also their community and their families.”

Sharing Hope

From Peru to Bangladesh, local leaders in thirteen countries are planning bundles with the unique challenges of COVID-19 in mind. Celebrations and distribution may be door to door or in a bigger space with face masks required. However individual teams decide to share the gifts, the Gospel will be preached and practical assistance will be provided. Learn more about different programs here.

AMG asks that Christians prayerfully consider joining the Bundles of Love program. With just a twenty-dollar gift, supporters can provide meaningful gifts to children, families, the sick, and national leaders. The program’s goal this year is $90,000. This would be enough for nearly 4,500 people in need.

Ivins asks that people pray for long-lasting influences on families. Pray the Gospel will be clearly presented with each bundle and that people would look with thanks toward the God who ultimately provides all good things.

Join AMG by sponsoring a Bundle of Love here.

Header image courtesy of AMG International.

And much like similar diseases were viewed in Bible times, leprosy is still considered a curse in South Sudan.

In the Junglei state, people with leprosy live apart from the rest of society. Along with ostracization, they face the same instabilities everyone else does—the constant violence breaking out between tribal groups, food insecurity, and sickness. And since the disease attacks the nervous system, it means they are also disabled. Making a shelter for themselves is difficult if not impossible, meaning homelessness is another common problem.

And sometimes, these people are even targets of violence themselves. Indeed, the prevalence of violence makes ministry difficult and aid distribution sometimes impossible.

Staurt Bowman of Partners in Compassionate Care (PCC) recently visited a small leper colony in the Junglei state. PCC is working alongside Set Free Ministries to share the Gospel and provide medical aid in South Sudan. This most recent trip was made possible thanks to a number of ministries who came together to help.

(Photo and header photo courtesy of Stuart Bowman)

The team met with about 35 people. Bowman says, “These people, many of them don’t even have fingers. They don’t have toes.”

He remembers one woman who didn’t have much left of her hands, but she was still able to push the buttons on the audio Bibles they passed out.

As with the prison and other villages they visited during this trip, Bowman shared the JESUS Film on the solar-powered video projector from Renew World Outreach. The people gathered in a mud hut to watch it.

Bowman says, “Just to see the reaction of Jesus healing people– I think it leaves a lot of questions, but when we talk about the healing that God brings inwardly towards people, and how he can restore them in a relationship where they can praise and worship Jesus because of their sins being forgiven, it was a real experience to sit down with them and to pray and have almost every single person there accept and just commit their life to the King.”

He says it was a hard moment to see these people facing such physical ailment, to remember the days of the Messiah walking the earth, healing. While the spiritual healing is indeed most important, the team longed to meet the physical needs as well.

They met one woman in the village who had severe pneumonia and promptly rushed her to their local clinic to get her treatment.

“Without that physical clinic being there, there’s a really good chance that she would have passed away. She wouldn’t have made it. But she was able to get treatment. So, both the spiritual and the physical are so important. And that’s why the ministry of the two organizations is just so important to bring.”

PCC has a hospital and a few satellite clinics in this area of South Sudan. For many people, it’s the only healthcare they have access to. PCC does not turn people away for the lack of funds, either. However, they understand that dignity and sustainability is fostered when people are given the opportunity to give back.

(Photo and header photo courtesy of Stuart Bowman)

“If somebody truly doesn’t have the money, they can go and work. Or they can help out or do whatever they can to … pay for the services. But, we try to encourage them to be a part of that. Obviously, like this woman who was sick who would have passed away because she had severe pneumonia, in a situation like that, we cover the cost.”

If you’d like to support PCC’s work in South Sudan as they meet the physical needs and, along with Set Free Ministries, the spiritual, click here.

Once again, ask God to guide these new believers. Pray that they would know the love and hope and healing of Christ, and that they’d be able to pass that Good News on to others. Ask God to protect them, to provide for them, and to sustain them.

Next week, we’re going to look at how several partners came together to make this trip to South Sudan possible.

Audio Scripture Ministries’ JP Sundararajan says the idea had good intentions to fight what is called “black money” — money which is illegal or unreported gains. But, it’s taken a toll.

He says, “The government decided to kind of go with a draconian measure of banning two primary denominations of Indian rupees — the 500 rupee note and the 1000 rupee note. And this may not seem like a big deal for a lot people around the world, but if you live in India, these two denominations are pretty ubiquitous. We use them all the time.”

Running out of time

Citizens have until the end of December to switch out these old notes at the bank. The announcement, made early-November, had people scrambling to the banks. In just a few short weeks, any 500 and 1000 notes left will be worth as much as the paper they’re printed on. Nothing.

But daily limits, long lines, and an abundance of other roadblocks have made changing notes unrealistic.

Sundararajan says most Indians live in villages, far away from the banks of the city. And even if they do have a banking relationship and are able to make the journey, there’s no guarantee the bank will have any money left for exchange. Along with ATMs, banks continue to run out of money.

Gridlock in the marketplace

Two factors make this such a radical decision. One, as we mentioned, is the fact that these rupee notes are the most common. According to the BBC, they make up about 86 percent of the cash in circulation. For some, it’s also the notes they’ve kept their life savings in.

The second factor is that India is a cash society. In fact, Sudarajan says only two percent of the population uses cards. Therefore, the major method of payment in India has suddenly been taken away, and very few have backup.

“What has happened is we’ve now ended up with some sort of gridlock […] — while, like I said, the intention was good, the crackdown on corruption. But the corruption they were trying to tackle were with people who were the super-rich and the hoarders of wealth. But unfortunately the effects are felt most severely by people who belong to the lower socioeconomic brackets.”

So now, simple tasks like buying food or hiring transportation have become nearly impossible. Even if they’re fortunate enough to change out their rupees, there are more problems. If their money is changed into the next biggest note, 2000 rupees, they still cannot buy things. Nobody has change for that large of a note.

Ministry hang-ups

For these same reasons, Audio Scripture Ministries is face-to-face with the consequences of this decision. The people most severely affected are also the same ones ASM ministers to: the poor, the ignored, and the needy.

(Photo courtesy of ASM)

“We have been received well, we’ve been seeing amazing stories of transformation happen, and especially in communities that have been so neglected and often times just ignored by the general population.”

When ASM goes to distribute audio Bibles, they pick out a location central to many remote villages. However, people from these villages can no longer afford to get a ride to the distribution sites. In addition, ASM cannot give people change for the audio Bibles when they come to the office to purchase them.

“The demonetization issue, while is political in nature and it does affect everybody in India at some level, it kind of throws a huge wrench into these fine moving parts,” Sudarajan says, referring to their work in India.

Rupee ban harms the destitute

Recently, ASM spoke to a group of people in south India. They come from a village comprised of people with leprosy. It is them, perhaps, who are the most destitute.

“Nobody wants to talk about the plight of people with leprosy in India.”

These individuals cannot have jobs. They are outcasts. Their main source of income is begging along with a small monthly stipend from the government. Now, nobody has money to give them.

“Their request to us was, ‘Pray for us. It has been a very long season and we’re not sure how Christmas is going to go for us this year.’”

(Photo courtesy of ASM)

ASM is looking for ways to assist them further. They are also trusting God will help them iron out this wrinkle in their ministry.

“We believe with our hearts that this is a hiccup, sure, but it is something we will figure out.”

Please pray for wisdom and clarity for ASM, and that the emotions in India would not turn people to anger. Ask God to send His peace to this country, and for Him to use ASM to spread the Gospel.

And, finally, “Pray that the people who actually don’t have a voice in all of this will actually have their needs met during this holiday season. As we gather with our family and friends, be mindful of your brothers and sisters who may not be enjoying the same privileges we so often take for granted.”

For a pair of lepers in rural India, church planting was lifesaving in more ways than one.

Church planting: saving lives literally

(Photo courtesy Far Corners Missions via Facebook)

Far Corners Missions’ Gary Bishop recently shared the story of a husband and wife in rural India, who both happened to have leprosy. Because of their disease, they were ostracized and forced to live on the village outskirts.

Lepers are social outcasts in India. As such, neither the husband nor wife could find jobs to support their daily needs.

However, the wife was a seamstress before she contracted leprosy and the disease took her fingers. One day, she figured out a way to sew garments holding an extra-large needle and the fabric between her palms, and then pulling the end of the needle with her teeth.

It was all working fine until the woman somehow swallowed the needle.

Her husband ran around frantically seeking help, but “because they were lepers and were ostracized by the village, no one would help him,” says Bishop.

“Basically, they just turned away and ignored him.”

If a church planting pastor trained by Far Corners hadn’t been there to help with the compassion of Christ, the woman likely would have died.

“The man is so overjoyed that he went around the whole village telling them, ‘No one would help me except this village pastor. And so, we’re here to tell you that you should listen to him’.”

Church planting: saving lives eternally

Today, villagers pour into the church planted by this pastor to hear the Truth of Scripture.

“The Word of God goes out in this little village because of the testimony of a Hindu leper,” Bishop shares.

(Photo courtesy Far Corners Missions via Facebook)

While powerful, this testimony is a rare one. Church planting in rural India isn’t an easy process, and it usually doesn’t happen overnight.

“It is a difficult proposition to plant a church in a Hindu village where there are no other believers,” states Bishop.

Occasionally, church planting in a rural village happens quickly with little resistance.

“It’s almost like the Holy Spirit’s gone before us there and prepared the hearts of people; there [are] responses right away,” Bishop shares.

“Sometimes, though, it takes literally years to break through the very hardened mindsets and attitudes of the people.”

With your help, the Lord can use more events like this one to bring entire villages to Himself.

Click here to sponsor a church planting pastor trained by Far Corners.

“It takes about $75 a month to support a pastor and his family in an unreached village,” explains Bishop.

Far Corners’ sponsorships are holistic in nature, “not only sending him financial support, but praying for him daily [too].

“As he goes in to that village, sometimes they’re able to integrate fairly easy, but other times they are all but thrown out.”

(Photo courtesy AMG International)

India (AMG) — [Editor’s Note: Written by AMG’s Pat Ragen, this story shares the work AMG’s leprosy ministry is doing in India and how it is creating chances to share the Gospel.]

My first visit to AMG’s Valley of Love Leprosy Colony was in November of 2005. In the midst of already experiencing culture shock just by being in India, I was more than a little apprehensive about meeting my first leprosy victim. At the same time, I recognized what a unique privilege I was being given. Showing the love of Christ by shaking hands with a leprosy victim and hugging those who receive little affection in their culture is something few people have had the opportunity to do. Of course, we read of many encounters Jesus Himself had with those suffering from leprosy.

AMG’s leprosy ministry is a key part of our holistic approach to giving the Gospel: seeking to meet both physical and spiritual needs for God’s glory. AMG national workers conduct Sunday schools, youth meetings, and church gatherings among leprosy patients; they distribute Bibles and go house-to-house to share the Gospel with victims and their families. They also provide mobile clinics to diagnose and treat new cases, perform cataract surgeries at Kadyum Eye Hospital to restore sight, and provide food, clothing and medicines to those in Valley of Love and other colonies.

In India, the curse of leprosy still hangs over many, and the effects of the disease are irreversible. Leprosy patients and their families are cut off from employment, education, healthcare, and social services. Just as Jesus showed His love and power in caring for those society rejects, Christians in India are usually the only ones willing to reach out and touch those who suffer from this disease.

For decades, AMG India has led the way in showing the love of Christ to leprosy patients in Andhra Pradesh. Arun Kumar Mohanty, AMG India’s director, shares the need and vision for this unique ministry: “Leprosy patients, who are deformed and unable to work, need Christ’s love and care. The incidence of leprosy has come down [in recent] years; however, the victims affected by this disease have to continue living. The social stigma has not reduced. Our support to them is a testimony that the living God cares for them and has not forsaken them.”

To my surprise, I found my experience with leprosy patients who receive care from our AMG co-workers in India to be the highlight of my time there! I was humbled by their faith and their love for the Lord. Coming face to face with leprosy gave me a renewed understanding of the fact that all I need is Jesus.

While it is true that leprosy is now under control and new cases are reduced, the victims who are still living with leprosy need our help. They are disowned by their own families and society, but as Arun Kumar says, “the living God… has not forsaken them.” For this reason, there is need for us to continue the ministry to the leprosy victims.

Your gift of just $12 will provide basic food and necessities for one leprosy patient for one month. Your gift of $144 will provide these items for one leprosy patient for one year! Help AMG as they are providing for 700 patients each month. Click here!

(Image courtesy of Gospel for Asia)

India (MNN) — Thanks to a Christmas gift, Christians in India now have a way to survive.

Gospel for Asia (GFA) lists items needed by vulnerable families in their annual Christmas catalog. Someone “bought’ a sewing machine this Christmas, and now a leper and her son are using it to sustain themselves through tailoring.

Best of all, both the son and his mother now believe in Jesus!

The struggles of a social pariah

(Photo courtesy of Meena Kadri via Flickr)

When her husband died, Charumati was left with an infant son and a lifelong struggle. Husbands in South Asia are typically the family “breadwinners,” while mothers stay at home to care for the children.

Charumati endured long days of backbreaking labor to provide food and shelter for Devan, her son. And, that was before the skin-eating bacteria entered her flesh and made Charumati a leper.

Leprosy is curable if caught early, but it carries a devastating stigma in South Asia. Employers usually aren’t willing to hire a leper; even if they are, lepers are paid less than healthy co-workers.

As a result of leprosy’s stigma and the isolation it brings, many people–including Charumati and Devan–wind up living in leprosy colonies.

The persistence of God’s love

(Photo courtesy of Gospel for Asia)

Near the leprosy colony Charumati and Devan called “home,” a GFA pastor gathered with a group of believers. When they finally met Charumati, they were quick to tell her of Christ’s love and peace.

As she walked with these believers, Charumati asked them to pray for her. As they did, God filled her with a peace she had never known before. Her curiosity piqued, Charumati met with the Christians on Sunday to learn more about this Jesus they spoke of.

Within a few months, Charumati accepted Christ as Savior.

The GFA-supported pastor built a deeper relationship with Charumati and Devan over the next few years, helping with simple tasks like fetching water and preparing food. The congregation also raised money to give Charumati some medicine and to purchase new clothes.

The hope of eternity

(Photo courtesy of Gospel for Asia)

Thanks to a sewing machine provided through GFA’s Christmas Catalog, Devan is starting to give back to his mother. Sticking faithfully by her side, Devan is earning income for the small family and caring for Charumati’s health needs.

Although the pastor and fellow believers told Devan about Jesus and personified His love, Devan’s heart wasn’t moved like Charumati’s was. However, through Charumati’s patient counsel and testimony, Devan has finally placed his faith in Christ.

Through GFA’s Leprosy Ministry, you can bring happy endings like this one to more families in South Asia.

(Photo by Disciple Magazine)

India (MNN) — Odds are you don’t spend a lot of time worrying about leprosy.

Thanks to antibiotics, new cases of leprosy have decreased. However, many still suffer from the disease and its devastating physical, emotional, and social effects.

In India, the curse of leprosy still hangs over many. Leprosy patients and their families are cut off from employment, education, healthcare, and social services.

Just as Jesus showed His love and power in caring for society rejects, Christians in India are usually the only ones willing to reach out and touch those who suffer from this disease.

For decades, AMG India has led the way in showing the love and healing of Christ to leprosy patients in Andhra Pradesh. Arun Kumar Mohanty, AMG India’s director, shares the need and vision for this unique ministry: “Leprosy patients, who are deformed and unable to work, need Christ’s love and care. The incidence of leprosy has come down [in recent] years; however, many of the victims affected by this disease have to continue living. The social stigma has not reduced. Our support to them is a testimony that the living God cares for them and has not forsaken them.”

AMG’s leprosy ministry seeks to meet both physical and spiritual needs for God’s glory.

AMG national workers conduct Sunday schools, youth meetings, and church gatherings among leprosy patients; they distribute Bibles and go house-to-house in the colonies to share the Gospel with victims and their families.

They also provide mobile clinics to diagnose and treat new cases, they perform cataract surgeries at Kadyum Eye Hospital to restore sight, and they provide food, clothing, and medicines to those in Valley of Love and other colonies.

Arun explains how these pieces of the ministry fit together: “All our efforts at serving the leprosy victims is the result of God’s love and grace we have received and our desire to share Christ’s love and compassion with these marginalized and neglected people.”

As long as people suffer with leprosy, AMG is committed to caring for them. The love of Christ shown through this work is transforming lives. Families and their countries may not value them, but they carry the image of God just as we all do.

Without your help, AMG could not continue this outreach of love. It costs AMG India almost $9,000 each month to provide for those leprosy patients under their care. Will you consider financially supporting this work and joining with AMG in prayer that the Gospel will continue to go forth through these crucial ministries?

Click here to see how to get involved.

(Photo courtesy Audio Scripture Ministries)

India (ASM) – If you’ve ever wondered if your donation has impact down the road, read the following from Audio Scripture Ministries:

During a recent visit to a rehabilitation home for people rejected and thrown out of their homes because of leprosy, we spotted this Audio Bible. We had distributed a few Audio Bibles to the residents at this home about two years back.

The Audio Bible still worked! It was wound up with rubber bands, and it looked like it had been dropped several times. Most residents have no fingers, and it’s quite a task to hold anything for more than a minute.

The person who owned this Bible was a leprosy patient, and this Bible was precious. In a world that rejected them for their disease, these Audio Bibles have instilled joy and hope into the lives of these beautiful people. They listen and listen and find joy in the Lord. Praise God!

(Photo courtesy Audio Scripture Ministries)

Shanthigramam — literally “village of peace,” is a haven for aged, destitute persons who once had leprosy. These people continue to suffer due to inadequate attention during the active phase of the disease and are left with permanent deformities. With their visible deformities they become a source of contempt for their own family members.

The village is located in Tamil Nadu, India. ASM partners with church leaders who have taken on the care of some of the residents.

It grew out of concern for these outcast, disfigured leprosy patients by those who understood their deeper need for love and compassion, apart from shelter and care.

Words cannot capture what God’s Word means to people, especially those marginalized by their own societies. If you want to help provide hope for them, click here.

Today marks the end
of GFA’s leprosy outreach.
(Image courtesy GFA)

India (MNN) — According to World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, 71% of the world’s new leprosy cases are in South Asian countries. In the latest available data, India alone accounted for 134,752 of the world’s 232,857 new cases of leprosy, or nearly 58%.

Today wraps up a week of Gospel for Asia leprosy outreach in India. Since World Leprosy Day on January 26, GFA teams have been cleaning leprosy colonies, giving food and medical care to over 260 leprosy patients in a dozen Indian states.

Pray that the communities find new healing and hope in Jesus.

“They have shelter and other basic facilities provided by the government, but they are not getting proper medical care,” said one GFA worker.

Following this week’s one-day outreach in each community, GFA women missionaries will serve in leprosy colonies full-time, offering medical care and sharing the love of Jesus.

According to GFA, leprosy is still a greatly-feared disease across Asia because of the disfigurement it can cause, the social stigma it carries, and because it can be transmitted through close contact with a patient.

(Image courtesy GFA)

The disease can be totally cured if medical help is sought immediately, but in remote places and among the poor, diagnosis and treatment often come too late. Among the cured, only those who have no visible deformity will be able to integrate back into society.

All others will have to live in leprosy colonies–alone or with their families–for the rest of their lives.

GFA-supported national missionaries and students are involved in sharing the love of Christ through Sunday School ministry among leprosy patients. They also do social and relief work such as food distribution, medical aid, health and hygiene awareness programs, and more.

Find details here.

It's a disease that bears nearly as much stigma around the world as HIV/AIDS, but without the education available. Associated with horrible disfigurement and contagious nature, the victims become social pariahs once a diagnosis is made.

That's partly why World Leprosy Day came into existence. For 60 years, on the last Sunday of January, thousands of people across the globe have stopped to remember those who suffer the horrendous effects of leprosy. This observance is now marked in more than 100 countries. Even in countries where the cure is well known, there is stigma. Those in First World nations believe leprosy has been eradicated. The plight of those who contract it fights for time against other diseases for which no cure has been found.

This year on January 27, World Leprosy Day will focus on the needs of some of the poorest and most marginalized people in the world: those affected by leprosy. Audio Scripture Ministries partners with a leprosy colony called Shanthi Gramam.

The literal meaning of the name is "village of peace," but for years, it was anything but. A haven for aged, destitute persons who once had leprosy, it became a place of despair where people waited to die. ASM spokesman JP Sudararajan explains, "The easiest way for you to have life go on as ‘normal' is to cut that person off. So these people who've contracted leprosy, even though they're fully treated and they're fully cured, end up coming to these places like Shanthi Gramam and spending their lives in isolation." He adds, "It's mostly the lack of education. People are afraid of what the disease is. Then because of it, they're afraid of contracting the disease from that person, and then even associating with them."

The pain in the village was palpable. Sundararajan clarifies, "I met a lot of parents who have leprosy in Shanthi Gramam and their kids don't come to visit them, because as soon as one of the parents has leprosy, it affects the weddings for the kids."

Then, four years ago, the first digital audio Bible made its way into the village. More and more requests came, and with the Scriptures, change. It's such a simple thing, but vastly underestimated. Sundararajan shared the poignant story of a man in Shanthi Gramam who was trying to follow Christ but got sidelined by leprosy. "People got scared of him, [scared] that they would catch the disease. And so he slowly was isolated and pushed away. All he wanted was to listen to God's Word, and nobody would read it to him until we were able to bring these audio Bibles."

Just last week, Sundararajan took a team of seminary students from West Michigan for a visit. It was important for these up-and-coming church leaders to witness the transformation of the village. "The kind of hope that it's injected into this community was quite unreal. I can say all I want, but I'm just scratching the surface. I really wish I could communicate better what God's Word in these communities is able to do."

Those first audio Bibles met the craving for hope. Over time, more and more deliveries were made. Residents would come out to the distribution team and recite whole chapters of the Scripture to which they listened every day.

It became clear that not only was Scripture nurturing faith, but also community. A small church body is developing. "The only hope they have right now is the hope that Jesus brings them through His Word," notes Sundararajan. He says calling the reaction "gratitude" doesn't quite cover the reaction of the village residents. "They cannot carry their Bibles with them, so they have them tied to their clothing. So they start untying it, and they take these Bibles out. You could see their tears flowing, and they were telling us how much they appreciate having God's Word available."

With Shanthi Gramam transformed into a literal "village of peace," it's getting noticed. Outreach opportunities are growing faster than anticipated, says Sundararajan. "Other colonies are kind of getting wind of what's happened. So we're getting all these requests for audio Bibles." How can you help? "An average listener could help provide a Bible for $35."

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