In The Middle East

Dear All.

A short report on how my time in the Middle East has been with RescueNet.

After a long time of preparation with 2 other ladies, we have now been to the Middle East with a small team of RescueNet Europe .

Kris did not go to the Middle East, but went to Australia to help his brother with the preparations for the harvest.

Our team was welcomed in a completely new, beautifully decorated place. Not really what you would expect when you travel: hot showers, sturdy bunk beds, refrigerators, air conditioning and working toilets, not to mention the great food we had every day.

Our goal of the journey was to support and encourage those who for a long time have been bringing hope to the Middle East. Also to equip the them with new tools and help local people in different areas.

As far as our team is concerned, we wanted to strengthen our mutual ties by working together and also to see if our established security measures work, in case we need to work in a conflict zone in the future.

We look back on a very successful journey where we have seen God at work and from which we have learned a lot.

While enjoying the great facilities, we were able to do many different things. Thanks to the flexibility of the team, we were able to  divide into different smaller teams and do many types of service.

We have:

- trained teachers in how to make traumatized refugee children more resilient and we guided them while they worked with the children

- trained colleagues and other people who work in refugee camps. We taught basic hygiene, health care and first aid,

- held a seminar on security and safety for volunteers in the country

- provided counselling tips and advised those working with refugees. Many of the refugees experience flashbacks, nightmares and suffer from stress and insomnia. 

- jobs done in the house where we stayed (painting by 32C!)

- assisted an employee with moving

- painted a school for refugee children (many refugee children cannot go to a regular school and depend on volunteers who teach a few days a week).

- performed maintenance at another school for refugee children

- gave advice to a school for children with disabilities

- visited families who have only recently have changed their faith

- attended a small bible study group

- given some medical consultation hours in various churches and refugee camps. Most refugees cannot afford the medical services in the country, which is why many were happy to be seen by one of our team doctors.

- organised a pleasant evening for all (mostly foreign) women who always serve and help others. For them, working in a country where women are not important is difficult and sometimes quite challenging

- met a number of Yazidi girls who had all been imprisoned by IS fighters. A special meeting! The women, who visit these girls every week, asked us if we wanted to go with them to do some "fun" with the girls. When we got there, one of the girls recognized me from a previous trip. Great to hear from her how she is doing now and that she experiences God's peace every time people pray for her. Will you pray with me for her as well.

All in all, I was impressed with all the ministries we could help. So much love that we experienced from the teachers for the children, teachers who give their free time and money to teach the children and bring them security and hope. The warmth and love we experienced from the team that welcomed us, the pastors and church members we met, those who risk the safety of their and their families. It was very special to meet all these wonderful and brave people.

One of the challenges we had as a team was our budget. We had no money available for medicines that we wanted to prescribe to our patients. Yet we were asked to simply write out and give the recipe. The church and the people we worked for believed it would be all right. And they were right! After we got back from the trip, we received an email that 'someone' had already made a donation last year that the organization had not yet used. When they looked at how much it was, it turned out that it exactly covered the shortfall we had with the medicines. Great to see and experience how God provides!

In some places we were unable to openly talk about God, but whenever possible we prayed and encouraged people. Once we were working with a certain group of people, to our surprise, the people who worked there openly, prayed with passion, and the group that was being served told us that prayers to Jesus was the only thing that would help them gain peace in their hearts and minds.

Things we learned as a team:

- always handy to fill some buckets of water in case the water runs out

- keep your goal in mind, which means that you can be flexible.

- the often hopeless situation of so many refugees, Lord help!

- having many different personalities in the team makes the "soup" very interesting and tasty

- don't forget to take a team photo ... oops sorry!