A GENERATION TO FOLLOW CHRIST

Letter from Franklin Graham

Dear Friend,

In the days following the original Easter, the resurrected Jesus Christ gathered with his disciples in Jerusalem and told them to “wait for the Promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4). Instead of restoring the political kingdom of Israel, the Lord was promising to work through them to transform the world.

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth”(1:8).

In a season when farmers are planting, it’s already harvest time in the fields of the Lord. Since Christmas, Samaritan’s Purse has been delivering Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts to millions of children around the world. Our local church partners share the Gospel as they hand out these gifts, and we invite children to classes called The Greatest Journey where they can learn more about what it means to follow Jesus and become witnesses for Christ to their friends and families.

If you helped pack shoebox gifts last year, please pray for the boys and girls who are even now celebrating Christmas. Ask the Lord to work in their hearts to help them understand how much He loves them.

Over the past 33 years, 232 million children worldwide have received shoebox gifts from people like you. That’s more than the entire populations of Brazil, Russia, Bangladesh, or Ethiopia—where God recently opened doors for Samaritan’s Purse to hand out shoebox gifts for the first time in many years. Many of them have grown up to become vibrant Christians and church leaders who have the power to change the world.

In this newsletter, we’re sharing the testimonies of lives that have been changed through the power of the Gospel and the love demonstrated by friends like you. We also want to show you how God is bringing help in Myanmar as our Emergency Field Hospital, deployed from Canada, operated in the earthquake zone. Thank you for your prayers and support. May God bless you.

Sincerely,

Franklin Graham

'I GAVE MY LIFE TO JESUS'

Aminata* couldn’t sleep. The 14-year-old lay wide awake in her home in Senegal, replaying the day’s remarkable events in her mind. It was unlike any other day in her life. Her friends had invited her to an outreach at a local church. Curious, Aminata tagged along, even though she had often mocked her friends for their Christian faith.

She was given an Operation Christmas Child shoebox filled with items lovingly packed in Canada. One of our church partners also offered Aminata The Greatest Gift Gospel booklet (pictured below), translated in her language. “When I received my gift and a little booklet, I started reading it,” she said. “The story about Jesus being the greatest gift really touched me.”

That’s why it was difficult for Aminata to sleep. Though the night was quiet and dark, in her imagination, “I could hear the songs, and see the joy and love of my friends despite all I had done to them,” she said.

When morning finally came, Aminata asked her mother if she could attend The Greatest Journey—the 12-lesson discipleship course children are invited to participate in the weeks following a shoebox outreach event. Her mother said yes.

Class after class, Aminata learned from trained volunteers about Jesus’ love for her, what it means to Him, and how to share Him with others. Then she made an amazing decision. “Today, I am a Christian because I gave my life to Jesus,” she shared. She asked God to forgive her sins, including ridiculing her friends. “I am very happy and thankful to Jesus for the joy and peace in my heart,” said Aminata.

South of Senegal, the country of Guinea-Bissau is home to a people group where few have heard the Gospel. In this hard-to-reach place, God is working through shoebox gifts and The Greatest Journey to raise a new generation of believers.

“Fifty children between the ages of 10 and 14 have attended the discipleship lessons,” our partner shared. “Seventeen have decided to follow Jesus.” As the Gospel spread in the community, a few adults also committed their lives to the Lord. “Despite the struggle and persecution, they are still meeting with [the church],” our partner shared.

In El Salvador, Rosa* invited her father to attend a class of The Greatest Journey with her. He came for lesson six, which is called The Greatest Friend. The lesson from Matthew 27 and 28 is about Jesus’ death and resurrection. The children are invited to trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. That day, not only did Rosa put her hope in Christ, but her father did also.

Please keep praying for these boys and girls to grow in their newfound faith. As churches continue delivering shoebox gifts and sharing the Gospel, pray that millions more hearts will hear and respond to the Good News of Jesus Christ. “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12, ESV).

LIFE-SAVING OPERATIONS IN MYANMAR

When our Samaritan’s Purse team arrived in Myanmar after the catastrophic March 28 earthquake, they found a gymnasium full of badly injured people who desperately needed medical treatment after being rescued from the rubble.

Even while the team was setting up our field hospital, our doctors and nurses began performing emergency surgeries to save lives and limbs in a makeshift operating room set up in a converted shipping container. One of our patients was a mother named Su, who had been trapped with her two sons in the ruins of their four-story apartment building. She lay there with her arm crushed until her husband arrived from across town with a powerful jack to create an escape route.

After receiving first aid, she waited on a cot in the gym for the specialized medical care she needed. She was among our first patients and is now recovering after surgery.

The earthquake killed thousands of people, injured many more, and left families with nowhere to live. Samaritan’s Purse flew two cargo jets, including one from Canada, halfway around the world to airlift the field hospital along with emergency supplies such as tarps, water filters, solar lights, and blankets. We also deployed over 100 medical staff and other specialists that we have trained to respond to emergencies on this scale.

Our 60-bed field hospital was situated in a stadium in the capital city of Naypyidaw. We saw more than 150 patients a day, including many who need immediate surgery. Our facility included two operating rooms, an emergency room, inpatient wards, a pharmacy, and a laboratory.

Myint’s leg was broken by falling debris during the initial moments of the earthquake. Her husband acted quickly and saved her life by carrying her out of their home as it collapsed around them. “I thought we were going to die together in our living room,” she said. They went to the local hospital where they cleaned some of her minor wounds, but there weren’t enough doctors to perform surgery on her fracture. So, she was brought to our field hospital where our surgeons successfully operated on her leg. “I am very happy that I can finally get treatment, and I feel so much better knowing that my life will go back to normal soon,” she said.

Our patients and their families are grateful for the medical services and Christian care we provided. “God can turn despair to hope. And that is a big part of why we’re here,” said Dr. Doug Nottebrock, who is from British Columbia.

Just a few days after the hospital opened, appreciative local residents presented our field hospital staff with bundles of blooming yellow flowers called padauk (pictured below). They know we’ve come to help in Jesus’ Name, and many folks have asked our team to pray for them. We thank God for opening doors for us to work in this predominantly Buddhist nation!

Please pray for the people of Myanmar as they continue to recover and thank God for the opportunity our teams had to help in Jesus' Name. As the Lord has said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

*Name and photos changed for security.