FOREST, Va. — Christian humanitarian organization World Help has activated its crisis response program to provide relief to victims of Indonesia’s deadly earthquake and tsunami. This past weekend, the Southeast Asian island nation was rocked by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake, which triggered a massive tsunami that swept over the city of Palu. The twin disaster has left at…
NEW YORK – Recep Erdogan is the President of Turkey, one of the most complex nations in the world at the moment. His economy is crumbling, he is responsible for holding a North Carolina pastor in jail on bogus charges of attempting to overthrow the Turkish government, and he has made it clear that he…
ISLAMABAD – The Interior Ministry of Pakistan has given 18 international foreign aid groups 60 days to shut down their operations and leave the country. All 18 agencies had filed appeals in response to an earlier notice from the IM. The first agency to report the news was ActionAid, a Johannesburg-based, international that aims to…
Supplies, encouragement and relief-camp-wedding meal remind flood victims that ‘God has not forgotten you’ WILLS POINT, Texas — With thousands still reeling from the impact of historic flooding, a second major crisis drying up wells and killing helpful earthworms has heightened the need for GFA’s (Gospel for Asia) ongoing relief help in India’s Kerala state….
WILLS POINT – The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was ratified in 1948, seventy years ago. Article 4 of the Declaration says, “No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.” A large number of people in the United States – perhaps most…
MANIPUR – Manipur native, Binalakshmi Nepram is the 2018 recipient of the prestigious Anna Politkovskaya Award. The award is presented annually by the organization, Reach All Women in WAR (RAW in WAR) to a woman who has stood up to victims in areas of conflict and who have demonstrated “courage and truth-telling in the face…
INDIA – September 8th was International Literacy Day. With so many days set aside to draw attention to causes, we rarely take a look back to recognize what we have done to meet the needs of the cause beyond memorializing the day. Illiteracy is a significant issue in South Asia and other areas of the…
SUDAN – Good news is getting hard to find. It just doesn’t seem to be sensational enough to make compelling headlines. Missions Box News is seeking to change that by reporting the good news that Christians should know. Some exceptionally good news has come out of Sudan over the last several days. Sudan is currently…
SIKSA, Pakistan – The World Health Organization estimates that more than a third of the people in Pakistan lack access to safe drinking water. It is a problem all too common for countries in South Asia and the 10/40 window. The village of Siksa is an example of how things change when clean water becomes…
YANGON – Myanmar, formerly Burma, may best be described a line from Rogers and Hammerstein’s “The King and I” in which the king exclaims, “It’s a puzzlement.” In a recent article, we related the story of a Christian pastor in a small village in the Chin state in northwest Myanmar. The gist of the story…
LONDON – The independent think tank, Overseas Development Institute (ODI) has released a shocking report that indicates that 25% of the world population – 40% of all urban dwellers – will live in slums by 2030. This is only one of the failures to achieve adequate progress on the UN’s list of 17 Sustainable Development…
RANGOON – Most Western people still know Myanmar as Burma – a country somewhere in South Asia. Situated east of the Bay of Bengal, Myanmar borders Bangladesh, India, China, and Thailand. Myanmar, then Burma, was evangelized in the early 1800s by Adoniram Judson who also completed the first Burmese language Bible. In 1950, there were…
ALLAHABAD – The monsoon and post-monsoon seasons are hard on the poor in India, particularly those who work in the fields. A consortium of over 400 humanitarian aid agencies has come together to help during these difficult times this year. The consortium has established grain banks in over 100 villages across northern India in expectation…
Gospel for Asia founder KP Yohannan’s “Revolution in World Missions” has helped spark growth of indigenous-Christian-worker movement. WILLS POINT, Texas—A book first met with controversy but now widely credited with helping change the face of modern missions is marking a major milestone—more than four million copies in print. Since it was published in 1986, Dr….
KIEV – Ukraine (fka “the Ukraine) presents many conundrums. Because of the Russian annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, many measurements and statistics must be listed and compared as “including Crimea” or “not including Crimea” – an issue that remains a point of contention for Ukraine. Although Ukraine is the largest nation located entirely…
NEW DELHI – Asia Times may have best summarized recent reports about the continuing population growth in India. “Top demographers feel that within three to five years, India will overtake China as the world’s most populous country.” While the population growth rate has been on the decline in China, India’s population continues to advance at…
GFA (Gospel for Asia) shares example of reconciliation to mark International Day of Peace and inspire more peacemakers to prayer and action WILLS POINT, Texas—As political and religious divisions widen and deepen around the world, GFA (Gospel for Asia) hopes that a simple story of reconciliation and forgiveness will inspire more people to pray and…
SANA, Yemen – “More than 25 percent of children (1.8 million) are malnourished; 900,000 people in the governorate are desperate for food and 90,000 pregnant women are at enormous risk. Families need everything–food, cash, health care, water, sanitation, emergency supplies, specialized support, and many need shelter. It’s heart-breaking to see so many people who need…
LOS ANGELES – Last week, more than 3,000 evangelical Christians and churches became signatories along with Dr. John MacArthur to The Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel. The statement grew out of a series of messages by Dr. MacArthur in which he named the growth of “social justice” as a leading threat to the…
NEW YORK – From 2005 through 2013, it appeared that we were making progress on the global war against hunger. Today, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) released its 202-page report on The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World. The results indicate that, since 2014, “the war against hunger…
KOCHI – When floods are raging like the recent deluge in Kerala, survival is foremost on the minds of those trapped in their torrents. Flood survivors are often unaware they will continue to face post-inundation threats. In the case of Kerala, as we forecasted in an article on August 25th, Water and Vector-Borne Diseases [Have…
BRUSSELS – Asylum is an existential goal of every refugee. A refugee is a displaced person who has left his home country in hopes of obtaining asylum in another country. The numbers of people displaced by wars in the Middle East and Africa have created a refugee crisis of unparalleled proportions. So much so that…
They fled their flooded homes but the rains could not stop their love. The rains came down incessantly causing severe flooding in southern Indian state of Kerala. Whole villages and towns were destroyed in a matter of days. Partnered with the Indian government, Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported relief camps provided food, shelter, and basic supplies…
KERALA – Merku Thodarchi Malai is a made-in-India Tamil language film that chronicles the daily lives and the continuing plight of tea estate workers in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The English title of the film is The Western Ghats. The Western Ghats is 62,000 square miles of the mountain range that runs parallel to the…
Desperate need inspires sacrificial giving, as GFA-supported teams work through night to assist relief efforts of government officials ready emergency supplies WILLS POINT, Texas — Gospel for Asia (GFA) has issued a “loaves and fishes” appeal for support in bringing help and hope to some of the tens of thousands devastated by historic flooding in…
CHENNAI – Vijay Jayaraj holds a Master of Science degree in Environmental Science from the University of East Anglia in Great Britain. He is a native of India and a resident of Chennai. In a recent op-ed to published by the Christian Post, he lauded the immediate and substantial aid by Christians following the Kerala…
KERALA – There is one emotion common to anyone caught in a major flood. Fear. It is a fear that comes, like the water, in waves. The first wave of fear begins with the initial awareness that a flood is possible. This fear is allayed by the hope that “Maybe it won’t affect me.” The…
PHOENIX – Gary Edmonds, President of Food for the Hungry (FH) has responded to a recent study sponsored by Grey Matter Research and Opinions4Good (Op4G). The Donor Mindset Study provided many interesting insights, one of which is that 54% of child sponsorship donors think it is “mostly a gimmick to get donations” and that donations…
KERALA, INDIA – No one can comprehend the terror of a major flood until they have been personally affected by one. This is especially true of those who lose their homes, their possessions, and their loved ones to raging waters that cannot be contained. This writer has been at the sites of four floods over…
KERALA, INDIA – The southern state of Kerala on India’s west coast has been inundated by monsoon-generated floodwaters that have destroyed 40,000 crore hectares of crops, destroyed countless homes, commercial buildings, and displaced more than a million people. Although the flood waters are receding, much of Kerala is still under water. State Agriculture Minister Sunil…
GFA-supported workers rescue stranded, provide emergency supplies for India Flood victims. WILLS POINT, TEXAS —Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported workers are stepping up efforts to help with rescue and relief efforts in India’s flood-stricken Kerala state, as the death toll and number of displaced people in the worst flooding in nearly a century continue to climb. Though…
After hearing about the monsoon flooding in Kerala, India, the Mission Support Team serving at GFA’s headquarters in Wills Point, Texas, sprang to action to help spread awareness of the timely need. Many shifted their schedules to work long hours through the weekend to bring awareness to the devastation many are currently facing. After receiving…
KERALA, INDIA – India is experiencing monumental meteorological and geophysical problems that constantly threaten the potential of the country’s efforts to raise itself to a position of global leadership. As governmental agencies, private companies, and NGOs work consistently to improve education, healthcare, and alleviating poverty and disease, circumstances beyond the control of mankind take one…
Along with many heroic efforts from the armed forces, various rescue teams, fishermen and locals serving as guides to the more remote areas in Kerala, India, Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported Bridge of Hope staff members have stepped in to help families and children after the terrible monsoon flooding. Approximately 191 enrolled students in Bridge of…
The heavy rains have mostly subsided in Kerala, India, and now, the red alert has been lifted in all 14 districts. Even though the rains have stopped in most parts of Kerala, ongoing rescue operations continue, saving those who are stranded. Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported relief teams have been hard at work, caring for the…
WILLS POINT, Texas — GFA (Gospel for Asia) has issued an urgent appeal for help in responding to some of the worst flooding in almost a century that has claimed several hundred lives and displaced nearly a quarter of a million people in southern India. Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported workers have already begun distributing emergency…
More than 300 deaths have now been reported from the monsoon rains and flooding that have devastated Kerala, India. Many rescue teams had to stop after dusk yesterday because the currents were too risky for teams to venture out successfully. According to the chief minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, a total of 82,442 rescues were…
ATHENS – The Greek coastal cities of Mati and Rafina in the southeastern region of Attica have been devastated by the worst wildfires in decades that have spread into the small urban areas. As of August 12th, the death toll has reached 94, including men, women, and children. Many were trapped in the flames in…
NEW DELHI – India is among the most inefficient agriculture producers in the world – and all major crops – wheat, sugarcane, cotton – consume large quantities of water. Agriculture consumes 83 percent of India’s water resources, leaving only 17 percent for domestic and industrial use, according to a recent report in The Hindu Business…
WASHINGTON, DC – Sam Brownback, the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom open the first meeting of a three-day Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom conference in Washington DC sponsored by the U.S. State Department. In his opening speech on 24 July, he said, ‘ The lack of religious freedom anywhere is a threat everywhere.” His…
I travel at least once a month between where I live and where my parents live. Every once in a while, as I wait in airports, I see people who are foreigners and do not know the God who loves them. It really breaks my heart, because according to God’s Word, they’re heading to hell…
INDIA – South Asia and the Indian subcontinent seem to be facing a perennial water crisis that may be getting worse rather than better. The problem is complex. It is not simply that there is too much or too little. While there is flooding in some regions there is a drought in others. Where there…
HARRISON, AR – Ron Hutchcraft Ministries (RHM) bears a strong similarity to that of Gospel for Asia (GFA) and many other faith-based NGOs in the 21st century. The ministry is a peer-to-peer outreach in which Indian people share the Gospel with other Indian people. By and large, both minister to the poorest of the poor…
KATMANDU – The 14th graduating class of the Believers Eastern Church vocational training class in the Diocese of Pokhara, Nepal, completed their work on 14 July 2018. A total of 24 women received their tailoring certificates at the end of the six-month course. A century ago, sewing and tailoring was a necessity for women in…
SEWICKLEY HEIGHTS, PA – Christians in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia have been struggling to keep churches open and maintain home Bible studies in the face of opposition. Not all of the opposition they face comes in the forms of physical abuse, assault, and terror attacks. Much of the opposition is coming now in…
NEDLANDS, WESTERN AUSTRALIA – Slavery is not a thing of the past. Despite the efforts of William Wilberforce, Abraham Lincoln, and others, slavery did not end in the 19th century. In fact, according to the 2018 Global Slavery Index, over 70 million people are caught in the throes of 21st century slavery. More than 70…
TMS Global outlines program to help move congregations from ‘vaguely spiritual Rotary Club’ to strategic outreach NORCROSS, Ga.—A wake-up call to sleepy churches has gone out from missions agency TMS Global, which wants to help revive inward-focused congregations through revitalized faith. The interdenominational organization offers a roadmap to renewal in the latest issue of its…
HO CHI MINH CITY – Hospitals and churches something in common. They are places where many people do not want to go. Unless they are hurting. People suffering from pain will often eagerly seek a place that can bring relief. Hospitals and churches are recognized as places for healing. Some of Christian Aid Mission’s (CAM)…
DAMASCUS – Hundreds of thousands of innocent people have been killed in the seven-year-long Syrian Civil War. An estimated 11 million people have been displaced from their homes, creating one of the greatest refugee crises in history. Over 270,000 people have fled to southern Syria during the month of July. The single largest displacement of…
JAIPUR – According to a report by IndiaSpend, “Anemia . . . impacts half of Indian women of reproductive age, increases the risk of maternal mortality, infection, preterm delivery, poor fetal and infant health, and puts children at lifelong risk of issues involving cognitive development and physical growth.” The report summarized the results of a…
