newsletterSummer 2011

www.mwbuk.org

Children‘Knitting without borders’

MWB on-line

Most children enjoy holidays. But for Anisa and Daniel with his two brothers, the contrast to normal life will be staggering. At summer camp, they can be just like other children.

SUMMER CAMPS ARE LIFE CHANGINGAnisa’s family needs her help to survive. She works hard looking after the house and her siblings – so she must be an adult.

But ten-year old Anisa says, ‘I want to see the sea and to feel the sand for the first time in my life’. Even though she lives just a few kilometres from the coast, she has never been to the beach – her childhood has been dominated by keeping house and caring for siblings. Watch Anisa at home at www.mwbuk.org

HEALING PAST PAINSimilarly, Daniel and his brothers can’t wait to go to Summer Camp. It’ll give them time away from the Children’s Home in Moldova where they now live. It’ll also give them a caring environment where many of the scars from their past can heal. Daniel says ‘I don’t remember any happy days in our family. The only memory I have is of fear.’

Daniel is eight years old and his brothers Florin and Cristian are seven and five. They joined the Orhei Home after their mother died of cancer. She had been their only protection against her many violent partners. Home was filled with quarrels and fights. The brothers were often chased out of the house at night – even in the middle of winter.

Reaching children for Christ

Daniel and his brothers live in a Children’s Home and will go to summer camp. They’ll hear the message ‘I believe in you’ from the camp workers and learn that they matter. Hopefully many of their past hurts will heal.

God’s call to Jeremiah gave him similar worth: ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart...’ (Jer 1:4–8) God has a plan for every one of us. Yet, like Jeremiah ending up in prison and a cistern, there may be hindrances and life is often tough. But we’re still in God’s plan.

None of the children we support have a smooth start in life. That’s why children are as much a part of the MWB family as the many elderly and families we reach.

The focus of this Newsletter is our work with children: Not just at Summer Camps, but all year. We could not do any of this work without your help. Thank you for your financial and prayer support. Together we can reach people of all ages for Christ.

Giving forgotten children priceless memories

Mission Without Borders brings hope, healing and help to change lives. As a Christian organisation meeting the needs of the whole person, we support the elderly, families and children to take steps out of poverty towards becoming self-sufficient.

Giving forgotten children priceless memoriesNow Daniel is all smiles when he tells his brothers where they’re going. In unison they proclaim, ‘We are looking forward to going to summer camp soon. We really want to go!’

Going to summer camp will mean so much more to Anisa, Daniel, Florin and Cristian than just forgetting about their worries for a week. At camp they’ll taste a totally different life, take part in varied activities every day and learn new things. They’ll have good food, fun, friendship and teaching about God’s love.

It costs just £5 per day for each of these children to go to summer camp, so as little as £50 could pay for a whole holiday.

Help Mission Without Borders send more children to summer camp:1. Encourage others to support MWB’s summer camp

appeal by giving them a flyer: ■ Call 020 7940 1370 or

email info_uk@mwbi.org to order flyers.

2. Organise a summery fundraising event.

3. Include an extra child’s trip in your holiday plans: decide to skip a luxury while you are away and donate the difference.

■ Call 020 7940 1370 or post your donation to Mission Without Borders, Freepost RRCC-LEJL-ELCH, 175 Tower Bridge Road, London, SE1 2AG.

Summer camp is an integral part of our ministry to children. The children MWB supports either live in extremely poor families, and so experience the pressure of having to work, such as Anisa; or they live in institutions, coming from troubled backgrounds, such as Daniel and his brothers.

While sending these children to camp is an opportunity for them to have a break from their routines, it is not simply ‘giving them a holiday’. Camp is probably the first time in their lives when they experience true rest, good meals, recreation and receive Biblical teaching, along with emotional healing. MWB believes this is a crucial foundation for an understanding of God. Many children become Christians as a result of going to summer camp.

From our children’s ministries

‘The biggest challenge for me is that children with broken lives are closed and reserved. It is difficult to find a key to their hearts. It takes a long time,’ says Taras, a MWB child sponsorship co-ordinator. But Taras is keen to give that time.

His co-ordinator’s day starts early. Taras is visiting two Homes, and loads the car with supplies for the Homes, and post from sponsors.

On arrival, he meets the Home’s headmaster, sharing his plans for each sponsored child, and completing the paperwork demanded by Ukrainian law. Then he can get on with his favourite part of the role – spending time with the children. Many of them know him from summer camp. They are eager to share their achievements with him, especially in football and other sports.

Taras hands out letters from sponsors, which he translates for each child. He likes to see their joy and excitement when they receive letters, photos and stickers. ‘What I love about my work is talking with the children and being able to help them.’ He takes away letters from the children for sending on to their sponsors.

Moving to the next Home, Taras follows the same routine. He speaks with the staff and children. He makes a point of meeting with one boy in particular, Kostya. He had a difficult family background which has left him shy and reserved. But he comes out of himself quickly with Taras.

A day in the life of...A child sponsorship co-ordinator

Taras Yaremchuck is one of five co-ordinating MWB’s child sponsorship programme in Ukraine. He’s responsible for nearly a thousand children who live in eleven Homes. Each co-ordinator visits the Homes in their patch at least once a month.

A huge thanks to all of our co-ordinators who are striving to reach children. Many of these young ones have suffered so much in their short lives, and we are grateful to each co-ordinator for their care. Please remember them in your prayers.

To support their work by sponsoring a child, contact the office on 0207 940 1370 today!

From our children’s ministries

Deborah is just nine years old but she’s grasped God’s truth when she states ‘Every single person needs the Word of God.’

We’re inviting you to join our new Bible Club. You’ll be part of an exciting outreach to offer God’s life-changing, eternal Word.

Simply by giving regularly, even just £4 a month, you will share the joy of changing lives. Through the Bible Club you will:

Give the gift of God’s love.Lavdie was stressed and anxious about her children’s future. Since she heard about Jesus and began reading the Bible, she says ‘I have found true love and I know God is holding us in His hands.’

Help others to hear God’s voice.It is so important for Sara to read her Bible, she says, ‘because when I read the Bible, it seems like I am hearing God’s voice.’

Bring peace.Ivan’s life was tough. Now, he says, ‘I am finding answers to my life. The Bible has helped me learn how to pray, how to love, to have peace and to know that I am part of something greater.’

Faith comes from hearing... the Word of Christ (Rom 10:17)

Help others experience the life-changing power of God’s Word.Join our Bible Club and give God’s Word, and peace, and love...■ £4 is all it costs us to print a Bible, transport it and place it in the hands of a person hungry to

read God’s Word.

■ £10 is all it costs to open up the Bible to five children taking our Bible Correspondence Course.

■ £20 is all it costs to give a family pack of five BiblesBy giving monthly, you’ll help us to distribute Bibles and set up more Bible Courses where they are most needed.Simply complete the form on the back, phone 020 7940 1370 or email info_uk@mwbi.org

Join the Club!

General prayers for each week

Monday

Ukraine Remember the staff in Children’s Homes, families and the elderly, as they face rising food prices on low budgets.

Tuesday

Albania Praise God for peaceful local elections across most of Albania. But pray for peace and stability following contested election results in Tirana.

Wednesday

Bosnia-Herzegovina This country faces many different ethnic tensions and the rulers require wisdom to promote unity and fairness. Pray for Dalibor Kojic as he travels around the country and seeks new openings for MWB’s ministry.

Thursday

Bulgaria Unemployment is very high and poverty is common. Pray for opportunities to share the Good News, and offer practical help to those in need.

Saturday

Romania Since the country’s entry to the EU, many changes are now required of Children’s Homes and orphanages. Pray for Jimmy Macavei and his staff as they adjust the MWB programmes in response to these changes.

Friday

Moldova Pray that the fledging coalition government will remain intact and choose policies that will benefit the nation. Pray for Vlad Filat, the Prime Minister, to be wise and courageous.

Sunday

Agriculture As our field countries begin preparing for Harvest, pray that it will be bountiful this year and will supply much needed food and income for the people.

Summer 2011 Prayer GuideWhen I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God. (Psalm 73:16–17)

27 June–3 July

AlbaniaAlbania’s poverty, unemployment, domestic violence and poor levels of education are causing serious problems. Remember the MWB workers who seek to respond to the huge and varied needs.

4–10 July

Jubilee Bibles Ask God to show the MWB teams where and how best to distribute Bibles. Pray that people’s hearts will be touched by what they read and that they will be eager to learn more of God.

Summer 2011

18–24 July

Family-to-Family Pray for the families struggling in the face of great hardships. Many have health, financial and emotional difficulties. Pray for our co-ordinators, that as they offer material help, doors will be opened to offering spiritual help as well.

25–31 July

Moldova Pray for the staff visiting the State Boarding Homes as they follow up Summer Camps contacts and for those who will be starting Bible Correspondence Courses.

11–17 July

Bosnia-Herzegovina Praise God for the vision which Dalibor Kojic and his team have to reach the country for Christ. Remember too those who lost possessions, livestock and income in the flooding earlier this year.

8–14 August

Bulgaria Pray that more families and young people will enrol in the already successful Bible Correspondence Course. May God bless the staff and volunteers with fresh opportunities for youth outreach and Bible study groups.

15–21 August

Our Supporters Praise God for the faithfulness of all who support MWB both financially and prayerfully. Without this, none of the work in Eastern Europe would happen. Pray that more in the UK will hear about our work and will be inspired to get involved.

Summer 2011

22–28 August

Community Centres Visitors are offered hot meals, Bible teaching, Christian literature and practical help by staff and volunteers. Praise God for the new centre which opened in Bosnia-Herzegovina this year, and pray that all the centres will see lives changed for the better.

29 August– 4 September

UkrainePraise God for the work in the prison in Kuznetsovsk, which has led to prisoners coming to faith and being baptised. Thank Him that Bibles and aid have been well received, both by prisoners and staff.

1–7 August

Summer Camps Camps are underway. Pray that the children who attend will enjoy themselves and will respond to the Good News being shared with them. Pray that the teams running the Camps will be blessed with joy, patience, love and energy to support the children.

Summer 2011

19–25 September

Children’s Homes Thank God that our co-ordinators and their work are so well received by the administrators of the Homes they work with. Pray that God’s hand will be on these relationships and that He will use them to His glory.

12–18 September

Romania Praise God for the teenagers from a village near Sibiu who are receiving support from MWB to attend Tertiary Education, some of whom have been baptised recently.

5–11 September

Christian Input Pray that God will bless this work, and that people will come to know Him. Praise Him for all those who reach out in His Name – the puppeteers, BCC volunteers and those who visit the elderly, to name a few.

26 September– 2 October Moldova The UK supporters’ tour leaves this Saturday to visit various projects and see MWB’s work in action. Please pray for safety and that the trip will be a blessing and an encouragement to all involved.

Purpose Supporters will see for themselves some of MWB’s programme work. Having prayed for, donated to, and shared with sponsored children and families, our UK visitors will have the opportunity to meet them in person.

Plan Around 20 supporters are signed up for this trip, from 1–8 October. This means that bookings are full. Based in the capital, Chisinau, each day will include visits to various projects and initiatives including Children’s Homes, families and community centres. The group will meet local MWB staff and grow in understanding how MWB lives out its purpose to ‘reach people for Christ’.

Prayer Please pray for all those travelling. Please pray also for the beneficiaries and MWB staff who they will meet.

Looking aheadHARVEST SERVICE‘Celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you.’ (Deut. 16:10)

Summer means crops are growing, fields are ripening and so we’re looking ahead to harvest.

Mission Without Borders’ Harvest Appeal encourages churches and individuals to hold Eastern Europe’s poorest communities in prayer. A specially-written service celebrates God’s faithful provision while reflecting on the plentiful crops families will harvest from their small-holdings through Mission Without Borders’ ‘Mini-Farm’ and ‘Seeds of Hope’ support. You’ll learn about families who are working their way to self-sufficiency with chickens, cows or crops.

To find out more about the Harvest service, please phone 020 7940 1370.

Babushka dolls, Chisinau market

Annual supporter tour visits Moldova this autumn

Cabbages for the Naciu family, Romania

Follow the trip’s regular updates on our website or Facebook: www.mwbuk.org www.facebook.com/MissionWithoutBorders

Harvesting hay, Moldova

The Koval`chuk family’s pumpkins

How you are helping: Thank you

Rebecca and her mum, Bev, organised a Family Fun Day at the beginning of May to raise funds for Mission Without Borders. Visitors enjoyed browsing the stalls, face-painting, games and much more!

What could you do? All support for MWB is so valuable. You’ll really be contributing to our work – whether you pray, do a sponsored walk, set up a lunch party, put on a tea or bake a cake...

Please make sure you tell us what you’re up to. Then we can help you publicise it, so that more people know. That way, you’ll be able to encourage even more people to donate to your activity.

Oh, and whatever you do, whether small or big, make sure you get your activity sponsored.

To help you do this, log on to My Donate, or Virgin Money Giving. That way more people can find out about your event and easily make donations.

Phone the office, 020 7940 1370, for sponsorship forms, and if you’d like assistance with Mission Without Borders’ giving pages at:

http://www.btplc.com/mydonate/ http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/giving/

Pauline held a coffee morning at her church, raising £176.50. She has also been giving presentations, where listeners donated £100. On top of that, Pauline is already planning a Strawberry Tea for July to raise more money and awareness.

Many people collect coins in their MWB Coin Boxes. They add loose change all year round.

The Little Fishes mother and toddler group from Crabtree Church donated £63.48 to buy four mother-care parcels. They have a big heart for supporting mums in Eastern Europe and often give to our Mother Care programme.

Helen gave a talk to fifteen friends about her MWB trip to Ukraine, and sponsoring a child there. She handed out newsletters, gift catalogues, summer camp flyers and sponsorship packs to her guests.

Mrs Payne used her cookery skills to make marmalade. On selling her pots of marmalade, Mrs Payne made £12. She bought a new set of bed linen for a child in Eastern Europe.

Annual spring fair and plant sale at St Pauls Church, St Albans, raised £700 for MWB.

Have you ever thought of giving a gift in celebration of somebody? You could make a special donation in memory of a loved one, just as Mrs Ayriss did. She recently sent Mission Without Borders a cheque for £100 in memory of Mrs Lily Bradd, ‘a dear sister, aunt and friend.’ Mrs Ayriss informed us that her sister would have wanted her to make a donation instead of sending flowers. What a special way to remember Mrs Bradd.

But you don’t have to have suffered a loss to give you a reason to celebrate life. Alan and Jean held a party not only for their coral wedding anniversary, but also for Alan’s 70th and Jean’s 75th birthdays. What a celebration! They specifically asked not to be given presents, but for donations to go to MWB instead. They raised a wonderful £200!

THANK YOU to Mrs Ayriss and Alan and Jean for their thoughtful contributions to MWB in celebration of life!

Whether you give a small or large gift to celebrate life, it’s a different way of giving that makes such a difference:

■ For just £20 you could make sure a child has all the equipment needed for attending school.

■ You could leave a gift of £100 that will give 25 people a copy of their own Bible for the first time.

■ With a celebration gift of £500, you could provide tools to help a carpenter start up his own business, or send 50 children on a Dreambus trip of a life-time.

■ A gift of £5,000 could provide mini-farms for three families taking a first step towards self-sustainability.

Your WillMission Without Borders is hugely grateful for all the fundraising of all our supporters. However, there is one specia l way that many people can support us – through their Wills.

To receive a copy of our guide, A Will to Live, complete the response form at the back of this Newsletter, or make an online request at http://www.mwbuk.org.

Legacies are vital to our work. When the time comes to write, or change your Will, please remember MissionWithout Borders.

Celebrating life

To leave a celebration gift phone 020 7940 1370, visit www.mwbuk.org/donate-now/other-ways-to-give. For gift ideas, click on Present for the Future at www.mwbuk.org

Join the MWB family on-line: It’s easier, cheaper and we’re a growing community!

By following MWB on our website, by becoming a fan on Facebook, by registering for enews updates (ready soon), you’ll keep in touch with what’s happening in Eastern Europe.

Facebook

MWB’s new Facebook page will help you to make Mission Without Borders your mission! Are you holding a tea or a plant sale to raise funds for MWB? Use Facebook to share what you are doing. Or are you short for time? Then catch up quickly with our latest stories and photographs from the countries where we work.

In the last couple of months, we have shared photographs of your knitting being joyfully received, regular prayer updates, the latest news from Europe, stories of lives being transformed, and much more.

If you are on Facebook, we’d love you to join the group – just visit www.facebook.com/MissionWithoutBorders and click the ‘LIKE’ button.

You can even visit the page if you don’t have a Facebook account. Join with other wonderful supporters in the group, read the updates and tell us what you think!

www.mwbuk.org See the latest on our work in Eastern Europe and donate securely

info_uk@mwbi.org Contact us to register for email newsletters (ready soon!)

www.facebook.com/MissionWithoutBorders Join the MWB family and share your support

New stamp appeal

What do you do with your stamps? Have you ever thought that Mission Without Borders can make money out of them?

We’re starting a new stamp appeal. It will run throughout the year, every year. Simply by saving your stamps, you can help us to raise hundreds of pounds. So send us your old stamps, stamp albums, first day covers, and rare stamps.

How does it work?

The humble stamp has a resale value – small, but still valuable when we’ve got enough of them. So when you send us your stamps you are helping give children, families and elderly across Eastern Europe a brighter future. For example, £50s-worth of stamp sales will buy five children a special outing on a Dreambus, provide a family with 10 chickens and seed, give an elderly person over a month’s worth of nourishing meals.

MWB is working with a stamp dealer who operates with various charities, receiving stamps, selling them on and paying charities a proportion of the proceeds. All you need to do is ‘stamp off, save up, send in’:

1. Take the stamp off the envelope – tear off the corner with the stamp (please do NOT send us whole envelopes).

2. Save up your stamps until you have a good number. If you send them to us in small quantities, the cost of postage will probably outweigh the value of the stamps themselves. We suggest you save up your stamps before sending them in.

3. Send in your stamps to 175 Tower Bridge Road, London, SE1 2AG (unfortunately, we are not able to collect stamps from you).

MWB on-line

Join our sponsored knit and you’ll give a double donation to Mission Without Borders’ work across Eastern Europe.

You will:

■ Raise funds through your sponsorship for MWB’s programmes that bring help and healing to children, families and elderly.

■ Provide us with knitted jumpers, hats, booties and blankets to distribute amongst some of the poorest folk, including babies, unable to buy warm clothes against East Europe’s bitter winters

This is what you do:

1. Invite other knitters to join you. You may already knit with a group, or if not, ask knitting friends if they’d like to join for your sponsored Knitting Without Borders – it’s more fun together. You could invite members of other churches to join you for a coffee-morning-style-knit to encourage as much knitting and nattering as possible

2. Decide where you’ll do your ‘Knitting Without Borders’. You could meet in your church hall, community hall, or even your front room.

3. Use a sponsorship form to ask people to support you as you knit away on the day. Or register on

Mission Without Borders’ giving pages at: http://www.btplc.com/mydonate/ http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/giving/

When: Saturday 24 September

The last Saturday in September is the date we hope becomes an annual event to encourage as many MWB knitters to gather together. You can of course choose any date that suits you.

What you’ll need:

■ Sponsorship forms■ Knitting patterns■ Ideas to increase your sponsorship donations.

Please telephone the office on 020 7940 1370 for any of these items to get you going with your sponsored ‘Knitting Without Borders’.

Or you can find everything you need on our website at: www.mwbuk.org

‘Knitting Without Borders’

Children in a home with new knitted blankets

Children at a school for the blind, receive knitted jumpers, hats and mittens

A boy from the Visoca Home is very pleased with his new blanket

Welcome and colourful new jumpers for a lad and girls at Vascuati Home

Mission Without Borders175 Tower Bridge Road London SE1 2AGt: 020 7940 1370 f: 020 7403 7348 e: info_uk@mwbi.org www.mwbuk.org

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Freepost RRCC-LEJL-ELCH, Mission Without Borders, 175 Tower Bridge Road, London, SE1 2AGt: 020 7940 1370 f: 020 7403 7348 e: info_uk@mwbi.org www.mwbuk.org Registered Charity No. 270659 A Company ltd by guarantee Registered in England and Wales No. 1065601 For MWB use - DM Q/P/C/V

I enclose a gift of: £15 £30 £60 £120 Other for the work of Mission Without Borders

You can increase your donation to MWB by:

Regular giving You’ll help us to plan ahead to support those who most need help. (Please tick the regular giving box above.)

Gift Aid You can add 25p to every £1 that you donate at no cost to you. If you pay UK income or capital gains tax, MWB reclaims the basic rate tax from the Inland Revenue. Higher rate taxpayers can claim a rebate based on the difference between the higher and basic rate, nominating MWB to receive any rebate due. Tax reclaimed will be used to help all of MWB’s work.

Please tick this box to gift aid your donation.

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