What if I stepped out of my comfortable life with nothing but God and put my faith to the test alongside those who live with nothing every day? It’s extremely difficult to answer such questions when we see how harsh and confronting the situation is on the streets. We, as Christians, are called to help, share love and lead the lost to Christ. People that are not accepted by our society, people that are condemned because of who they are - homeless people.

Mission Without Borders’ Street Mercy project in Chisinau, Moldova was developed just over a year ago. At first, only a handful of people came. They were served hot meals and told about God’s word. Within this short amount of time, the number has doubled. Ilie, the person responsible for gathering the beneficiaries, serving the lunch and preaching, told us how it all began: “Our church wanted to have a ministry for the homeless for a long time, but we couldn’t gather the necessary resources for it. We prayed and prayed and then one day, Valentin, a church member who works for MWB Moldova told us that they would like to implement this project and were looking for a church that would like to partner with them. We were so happy that God answered our prayer and without any hesitation,

we agreed.”

The first months were challenging because it was very hard to gain the trust of people that live on the streets. When they are approached and invited to church, they tend to think that you want to trick them or force them to convert to your faith. There is nothing you can do to make them trust you, but only show unconditional love and respect. People that choose to take part in the Street Mercy project have one rule they need to strictly follow - they must not drink alcohol until 12 o’clock, when they come to the church.

“This condition keeps them motivated to stay sober a large part of the day, otherwise, they would start drinking right when they wake up in the morning. In the streets, everyone becomes alcohol addicted. I haven’t met anyone yet that hasn’t,” Ilie confessed sadly.

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to Me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in Me

shall never thirst.” John 6:35

A MINISTRY DEVOTED TO CHANGING HEARTS BRINGING HOPE AND FEEDING THE HOMELESS

The beneficiaries are given hot meals five times per week, Monday to Friday. A full meal consists of soup, a main course including meat, salad, biscuits and tea. “We cook delicious and healthy food and many are surprised they aren’t given scraps. They are so used to eating out of garbage bins and are overwhelmed with the lunches we provide. We want to change their hearts and show them they are loved. Tasty food is a small way to build their trust.” the chef, Maria, explained to us.

Although they are fed, their clothes are washed and they have a place where they can shower, many homeless people don’t make any effort to resume a normal life. Many of them repent while the Word of God is shared, but when they leave, the temptations are too big and they struggle to overcome them. For some, it’s easier to continue to sleep near a garbage can, and eat scraps than accept our help. Fortunately, there are some positive cases when people win the battle with the devil and experience God’s love in their life: Oleg is one of them.

Ten years ago he was a happy husband and father to a handsome boy. Because of financial hardship, his wife decided to leave for Germany to earn money to buy a house. That decision changed everything. A year later, she took their child with her and filed for divorce. Soon after that, his parents died and his sister committed suicide. Oleg couldn’t overcome the anguish and turned to alcohol. When the alcohol didn’t seem to help, he tried drugs. After a year of active drug consumption, he began hallucinating. He has lived this miserable life for seven years.

“I don’t remember much about those times, but there is one particular day I’ll never forget. I was having my second shot in the afternoon and frightening hallucinations appeared again before me. I was so scared and I screamed out loud: God, if you exist, release me from this addiction. I don’t know how I deserved His attention, but I felt His presence there. Since that day, I have never used drugs again,” Oleg confessed.

This man is now a devoted Christian who loves Jesus with all his heart. He is a key person for the Street Mercy project, being a living testimony for other beneficiaries of how God changes lives. Every day, with his own car, he helps Ilie deliver food to homeless people that are disabled and cannot come to the church. Oleg’s dedication and enthusiasm is extremely motivating for other homeless people but the situation is still very difficult. Since we started this ministry, seven people have died, two of which committed suicide. We would like to ask you to pray for the persons we work with, so that they get saved and build a bright future. We know that only God can change their hearts and give them hope. It’s wonderful that through MWB, we are able to share God’s love to homeless people. The hot meals and clothes they receive through Gift in Kind are very helpful and we believe more and more people will be saved as a result of this project.

Can you help us share God’s love?$60 = 20 hot meals, $300 = 100 hot meals and $600 gives hot meals each day to a

family of 5 for 6 months!

opens the doors to lost souls so they can feel the practical love of God.

Hello, my name is Anna Atanasova but my friends call me Ani. I have been the Street Mercy coordinator since November 2014 in Bulgaria. I was born and raised in a family that didn’t know God.

One day after school, I was invited to my aunt’s Bible study group. There, I heard things that my heart was craving for. It was the first time I was hearing about the work of Christ on the cross and the everlasting love with which He loves me – that He loves me the way I am, with all my shortcomings. This knowledge warmed my heart. I knew then, that the only way to live was with God in the centre of my life. I knew that he would provide, and he certainly has and continues to do so every day.

I have been blessed with a wonderful husband and a child. God has helped me through so many adversities, and I have absolute trust in Him, knowing that He makes no mistakes and always gives us His best.

A few years ago, my husband was offered a position to join the staff of Mission Without Borders, serving in the Street Mercy project as a bus driver and last year, I was asked to join the team as a coordinator. I was anxious and prayed about leaving my well paid job in one of the biggest hospitals in town. I prayed to God as I wanted to know His will. I realised that my place is with the homeless, being close to them, showing them God’s love and care. I have been working in this project for almost a year and I now know that being with these people, neglected by everybody in this big town, is a great blessing for me.

Sofia is the biggest city in Bulgaria. The country’s population is 7.1 million people and about 2 million work and live in Sofia. There are also internal emigrants who travel every day to work in Sofia from the nearby villages and smaller towns. People come here with the hope of finding work and a better life, which is hard to achieve in the small towns and villages. Unfortunately many of them are left without hope and disappointed at not finding a place in the big town.

Some of our Street Mercy beneficiaries are people like that – they have come with lots of dreams and hopes but are left with none. They have neither a job nor a place to call home. They sleep on benches in parks, in the entrances of some blocks of flats, under subways. They don’t feel accepted anywhere; all the big stores where they want to spend a few hours to warm themselves chase them away. Many of them have no identity cards and this closes all opportunities for finding a job or a place to live.

There are people who remained homeless after real estate foreclosures, inability to pay their debts, and family breakdowns. Each person has their own horrific story. They are broken in so many ways.

We love because Hefirst loved us.1 John 4:19

Bring hope to those who need it most. Donate to Street Mercy today.Show them God’s practical love.

www.mwb.org.au

“I realised my placewas with the

homeless, beingclose to them,

showing them God’slove and care.”

“Christ’s love and care motivates me on the difFIcult days..I remind myself of His sacrIFice on the cross for the

salvation of every human soul”Distributing hot soup and bread is of crucial importance for them but we try to offer them more than just providing for their physical hunger. Our aim, by using the material items we have at our disposal through Mission Without Borders, is to reach to their souls. We offer them clothes and shoes suitable for the season. We call them friends and try to behave with them as our friends. We offer them our attention and care, to win their trust.

There are 120 people on our register but the number of homeless we care for is much more. The StreetMercy project is carried out in partnership with two evangelical churches. They provide us with the volunteers that are needed daily to help us in our ministry to the needy. Apart from the evangelical churches, our partner is the Food Bank which provides various additional food to the menu like yoghurt, biscuits, apples and other things, depending on what they have to offer.

My favourite part from my ministry is connecting with the beneficiaries. The time spent with them so they can share their needs and problems brings me great joy. This is an indicator that I have won their trust - they see a friend in me, someone who can offer them support. It is an open door to the soul of the person and that is the way they can come to Christ. I feel great joy when I am asked by a beneficiary to help them in solving a problem or by providing a material need they have. That is a way they could feel the practical love of God.

Sharing the Word of God is one of the most important emphasis of our ministry among our beneficiaries. Every day before distributing the food I read a small Bible passage and give a short explanation. In my conversations with them, I try to direct their thoughts towards the hope God has given us. My goal is to offer them God’s vision and God’s way of resolving their problems.

My dream is to see a change in the social policy of Bulgaria to help these people on a larger scale. To see more centres for homeless people opened with better living conditions, better medical services for those living on the streets, and jobs for those who really want to work, allowing them to become self-sufficient.

Christ’s love and care motivates me on the difficult days of my work with the homeless, I remind myself of His sacrifice on the cross and His long-suffering for the salvation of every human soul. The fact that Christ wants to show His mercy and hope gives me strength. It is unbelievable that we can be instruments of His grace. I feel motivated by the fact that we can help our beneficiaries in practical and significant ways that can change both their way of thinking and their life.

Every day we help them to survive. And it is a miracle that some of them are still alive. Even if some do not appreciate what we are doing for them now, there will be a time when they will be grateful. I strongly believe that the seed we have sown in their hearts will strike deep roots in their souls.

I would appreciate if you could pray for us - that God will give us wisdom, strength and a big heart for these neglected people as well as a vision on how to best serve them. May we be good instruments in God’s hand for what He wants to accomplish among the homeless in Sofia.

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have

put my trust in you.Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.

Psalm 143:8

MISSIONWITHOUTBORDERSAUSTRALIA PO Box 7533 Silverwater NSW 1811 | 10 Stubbs Street Auburn NSW 2144Phone 02 9647 2022 Email australia@mwbi.org Website mwb.org.au facebook.com/MissionWithoutBordersAustralia