The Healing Power of Hope

Naomi Duff • Mar 17, 2015

Naomi Duff and TEAM missionary Anne Hoyt are reaching out to women in Chad’s sex industry and helping them realize their true worth as daughters of God. Today, Naomi shares some insight into what they do and how the Vulnerable Women Initiative in Chad is helping these women find hope, healing and purpose through Christ.

It’s the third day that Rita is in labor. I rush her from the hospital to a specialized mother and child unit. N’Djamena traffic is at its worst at 7:30 a.m., so we crawl along, but every bump in the road produces a gasp of pain from the exhausted mother-to-be lying on the back seat.

At the next hospital we rush to get an ultrasound. In that tiny room Rita’s dark eyes lock with mine: they are heavy with panic as the technician says slowly, “I… can’t hear a heartbeat.” In that moment, it’s as if our own hearts have stopped. Rita has had an arduous pregnancy and has endured harsh medicines to treat HIV and other STDs in order to protect her child. I shoot up a silent, desperate prayer and then hear, “No, hold on…” The slow but rhythmic beating of the baby’s heart rings out and we all let out deep sighs of relief and thankfulness. The baby is alive; she is in distress and needs to be delivered by C-section immediately, but she is alive!

By God’s grace baby Nao is born, healthy and weighing around six pounds. However, Rita is distant, vacant and refuses to hold her daughter. This is no ‘normal’ postnatal depression. Long before the baby was born, Rita made it clear that she intended to give the baby to her estranged mother in the south of the country. The baby’s father has had no contact with Rita since discovering that the baby was a girl, and it is a mercy that the grandmother is willing to take her.

Many women we work with have complicated deliveries which relate to their own life traumas. Rita ran away from home at age 13, hopeful of marrying a man that seemed to love her. She became pregnant, lost the child and then lost one boyfriend after another. Many women here have told me, “Without a husband I have no value.” So, with each broken relationship, Rita’s hope of finding value and respect in this society melted coldly away. Shame, despair and disappointment were all part of the journey that lead her into prostitution and caused her to detach emotionally in order to ‘survive.’

Rita is despised by her society and many consider her to be unworthy of love, care and even the gospel. I look at Rita: her head is bowed as she risks a glance at her beautiful daughter and I can’t help but reflect… that could have been me. If I had experienced her heartache and endured ill treatment in this society, it is probable that I would have fallen into a similar trap in order to survive and gain independence from those who hurt me. I am reminded of Jesus’s grace in John 8 and the stark lesson that none of us have the right to condemn her!

When I visit Rita, her request is often the same: “Will you share a Bible story with me?” She is quick to tell me her favorites: an estranged child who is welcomed home (the prodigal son, and Jacob and Laban), a despised and bereft woman who has her dignity restored (Ruth) and a prostitute who is forgiven and honored (Rahab). Rita now knows these stories by heart. She once asked me, “Please pray that I have the courage to turn to God and do what I know I need to.” I ask you to pray the same prayer for her. Without God’s help, it is surely too hard for Rita to offer her shattered heart for healing or to dare to hope for a better future. Yet healing is possible and it is God’s desire to give her life, hope and a future.

In the Vulnerable Women’s ministry , our vision is to see broken and lost women find hope, healing and salvation through Jesus. We long to see women’s dignity restored and for them to find sustainable employment to support themselves and their children.

After six years of working closely with the women, we are finally at the point of being able to open a small Rehabilitation Center. The Center will invest in women who are ready and willing to change. The Bible-based syllabus will provide spiritual, emotional and practical support for the women. We will offer work placements and training in life skills to help them find new employment, and prayer and counseling to help them find healing.

We urgently need staff for the center! We need people with a heart for the lost and hurting who have experience in any of the following areas: creative arts, counseling, teaching, outreach, business and much more. If you think you could contribute in any way to this vital work on a short-term or long-term basis please contact us. Women like Rita long for your encouragement and help.

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Loving Like Jesus Cross-Culturally (Part 1)

By Megan Lunsford • 23 Apr, 2024

When seeking to serve cross-culturally with an authentic love for others, there’s no better example for us than Jesus. If we sat around a table and threw out the question, “How do we love like Jesus?” I think we would have several commonalities as we respond. For example, Jesus loved all people right where they were. He loved those who were deemed the least, those hardest to love, or those who were His enemies. These are all beautiful realities of the heart of Jesus. When we step into relationships, it can be easier to take on the warmer, more gracious gestures of Jesus’ love, especially in cross-cultural relationships. Think about it––when doing life with those who look and act differently than us, we are already out of our comfort zones and would rather keep things as simple and familiar as possible. But there are other facets of Jesus’ heart we often overlook that can transform us and others even more into His likeness. Jesus is love because God is love. Everything Jesus did was out of love; it’s the mere definition of who He is. As followers of Jesus, He calls us to the same: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” (1 John:7-12) Every display of love we offer to others is an opportunity for them to encounter the ultimate love of the Father. That’s a pretty big deal! In this article, we’ll look at three expressions of Jesus’ love that we tend to overlook when engaging others cross-culturally. (Next month, we’ll look at three more.) 1. Jesus loved sacrificially. Everywhere Jesus went, crowds followed Him. We even see times in Scripture where Jesus had plans to step away for time alone but those who were hurting found Him and He had compassion on them and stayed with them. Can you imagine rarely having any time to yourself but, instead, constantly being surrounded by crowds of people wanting help from you? Jesus loved sacrificially. He welcomed all who came to Him with love and compassion, never turning anyone away. “When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36) In the same way, we can make room in our lives for Jesus to bring sacrificial interruptions which, in His eyes, are orchestrated encounters to transfer His love to others. It can be tempting to be so “on mission” that we are full steam ahead and find ourselves frustrated when the Holy Spirit sends an interruption into our path that we feel we don’t have time for. Or, perhaps, we have scheduled a meet-up but it’s the norm in another culture to be 30 minutes or an hour late. We anxiously think through how it will affect whatever we have planned next. While it’s normal to feel a little stressed, what if the very "interruption” standing in front of you was really a divine appointment sent by God? Or what if that person running late experiences how peaceful and gracious you are in adapting to their culture and therefore, they can encounter a beautiful display of Jesus’ love? To truly represent Christ, we should remain ready and willing for each assignment the Lord sends into our path, no matter the cost or how much we will have to re-route our day. He is always a hundred steps ahead and will work all things for His glory and our good. 2. Jesus loved by discerning each situation well. Think about how many situations Jesus had to respond to on a daily basis. We read in Scripture that there were lines of people waiting to be healed by Him, talk to Him, hear His teachings, or simply touch the hem of His robe. Jesus was fully dependent on His Father to discern each situation before addressing it. “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.” (John 5:19) Another temptation we can have when in a relationship with those God has sent us to is to think we already know the solution or what God wants to do before we’ve even asked Him. We believe we are full of knowledge, so we just pull from the bank we have stored within and go with it. However, when we access what is familiar to us as our default, we risk missing out on a God-given solution that might truly be the key to unlocking whatever challenge is in front of us. What does this look like when interacting with others? We can simply ask, “God, what is on Your heart for the person standing in front of me?” Then we listen and respond as He speaks. When we make it a daily habit to pause and hear God’s heart for each situation before responding, we are guaranteed to be effective in loving those around us. He knows the heart of every person that will cross our paths. Imagine how impactful we can be if we first lean on His wisdom and discernment before moving forward. 3. Jesus loved by speaking truth. Most of us are familiar with the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. If we are honest, this conversation makes us a bit nervous as none of us would be comfortable with Jesus calling out intimate details of our lives that we would prefer to hide. But Jesus went further than just airing her dirty laundry. He offered her the hope of the Gospel and a relationship with Him - a divine fulfillment that could never be found in an earthly relationship. Jesus modeled a powerful example of loving others well cross-culturally. He took the low place and spoke truth, truly out of love––speaking to her heart from His. Like Jesus, our goal in sharing the truths about Him and His Word is to bring hope and satisfaction through Him alone. When we speak truth from Scripture, we are calling others higher into all God has for them. The tricky part here is we should avoid speaking truth if it isn’t first fueled by compassion. If it merely comes from a place of judgment, condemnation, or self-righteousness, it will fall flat 100% of the time. But if it truly comes from love, you are likely to not only win a heart back to the Father but, like the story of the Samaritan woman, even an entire village! If you see someone living outside of God’s best for their lives, ask God to show you your heart before engaging theirs. Once your heart is properly postured, you can speak truth out of an overflow of God’s love and trust Him for a transformation in their lives.

Hospitality, Help, and the Hope of the Gospel

By Suzanne Pearson • 16 Apr, 2024

TEAM Canada provides warm welcome and trusted friendships for diaspora populations living far from their native countries. As TEAM Canada workers Peter and Ruth (names changed) drive from their home to a nearby community center, they pass numerous apartment buildings and townhouses. Most of the families who live there are immigrants. They’ve left their countries of origin due to political unrest, trauma, and other difficulties. They’ve left family, friends, homes, jobs, and personal wealth behind. They search for peace, justice for the oppressed, and rest from fear and weariness. And as they adjust to a new country and a new language, they are often very isolated from others around them. “The sad reality is most immigrants are never even invited inside a Canadian home,” says Ruth. Peter and Ruth and their team try to change that reality. For the last nine years, the team, which includes workers from partner organizations as well as volunteers, has held English classes at the community center. Three days a week, over 60 students from more than 20 countries come together to learn English as well as to fellowship together and receive practical help in assimilating to a new normal. Meeting Needs and Building Trust That practical help may come in the form of procuring furniture, clothes, or dishes for newcomers, assistance with creating a resume and finding a job, or teaching people how to navigate Canadian laws and the medical system. As these tangible needs are met, relationships are built. “We invite them into our homes for meals and games,” Ruth shares. “We take them on hiking trips, picnics, outings, and out for coffee.” This is particularly important in this type of ministry because most immigrants come to Canada from cultures that value hospitality. Conversely, Canadians do not typically prioritize hospitality and consequently many newcomers feel lonely and isolated. Inviting folks to various gatherings and outings allows the team to spend extended time hearing people’s stories, struggles, hopes, and dreams. When she speaks about building friendships, Ruth’s heart for the people she serves is evident. “Hearing their stories, it’s easy to love them, and many have become close friends,” Ruth says. “We recognize the value of steady one-on-one relationships.”