We had a prayer meeting a couple of weeks ago and were given some statistics around this country. Side note: You’ll notice I’m not specifying where we are exactly due to security issues and privacy for those we work with.
The one statistic that stood out the most for me was that approximately 70% of women are sexually abused before the age of 18.
What?! This is horrific and fills me with righteous anger.
Most of this is perpetrated by someone they know. This issue is not talked about, not acknowledged and dismissed as part of culture and religion. In some extreme cases, religion permits men to have sex with multiple virgins to gain access into paradise. How twisted and sick is that?! In fact sex and birth education is severely lacking here. We were also told recently that about 5 babies per day are abandoned and left on the street. This is often due to pregnancy out of wedlock, which is considered a huge shame on the family and leaves women feeling helpless. It saddens my heart to think about these circumstances and the pain and shame these women carry with them through life, some never telling another person what has happened to them. They are such hard workers who consistently provide for their families, while in some instances the men sit in cafes all day long. The oppression over women in this country is strong. But our God is stronger and He sees their value and their worth.
We pray that this statistic would be abolished, that women would be protected and valued in this country and that oppression would end in Jesus name.
Coming into this country we knew our platform would be to work with women, as culturally that is what is appropriate. When we were praying for what this month would look like and asking for God’s guidance, my team leader Tamara had Isaiah 61 brought to mind. It is such a powerful chapter. I’ll share just a section but read the whole thing!
Isaiah 61:3 ESV
“to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.”
We knew that the ministry ‘Beauty for Ashes’ (that my team mate Niki is the squad coordinator for and does a great job at) was going to be our biggest opportunity in this country.
Beauty for Ashes exists to bring God’s restoration, hope and healing to suffering and victimized women through ministry and training. Their vision is to see women restored from all nations serving as Christ’s ambassadors for change, healing, and freedom in their homes, communities, and cultures. Ashes are the useless things in your life that no longer serve a life-giving purpose and we want to allow the wind of the Holy Spirit to blow them away.
We were stoked when we had the privilege of running a beauty for ashes retreat (with team Daughters of the Light also) in North Africa. It occurred over 2 days for the women of the international church we are partnered with. Many of the women in the international church are from other countries, such as Nigeria, Philippines and USA, with only a very rare and small percentage beings locals. Due to Islam being the dominant religion, international churches are allowed in the country, however, they are often monitored and security can check who is entering, ensuring locals are not attending. Therefore, most locals who have chosen to forsake Islam and accept Christianity, meet in home churches due to persecution.
The women who attended the retreat came from all different backgrounds and cultures and have incredible stories of how they came to Christ and ended up in this country. By God’s grace we even had a Muslim lady attend who was encouraged to by the pastor. It was so refreshing to gather with women who are thirsty for God and willing to be open and honest. The activities that Niki and Landry led us on were very intentional. They required the women to honestly reflect on the way they see God, to ask God how He sees them, forgiveness and replacing lies in our lives with God’s truth. They did an incredible job the whole weekend! The women were able to be as creative as they wanted to be, through drawing or writing their reflections. I so enjoyed hearing the hearts of the women at my table on the first day and appreciated their openness. We laughed, cried and celebrated each other as we shared. It was beautiful.
The second day I got to help with the kids program, beautifully organised by Joelle. We had fun! What I learned from this was that a young girl from the local neighbourhood (highly likely from a Muslim background) comes into the complex every weekend when the doors are opened and just hangs out in the church. She would stay for hours and hours- who knows if her parents knew where she was! But it is so encouraging to know that the Holy Spirit is working in her life and leading her to Jesus by drawing her to this building so regularly! She joined our activities with the kids both days, sang songs about Jesus and made crowns to represent her worth. We are so excited that God has big things in store for this young girl. We are expecting that He is going to use her to change her family and neighborhood for His glory. Pray for this little one- God knows her name.
I’m reading this book at the moment called ‘Daring to Hope’ by Katie Davis Majors. It is the second of her books with ‘Kisses from Katie’ being the first, which I read on my very first mission trip to Zimbabwe. They are both so encouraging and challenging and I am loving soaking up the words on these pages as they speak to my heart. Here is a small section that gave me some fresh perspective recently:
“I think that as humans, each of us just as lacking as the next, the most powerful thing we can do for another person is not to try and fix his or her pain or make it go away but to acknowledge it. I cannot heal. I cannot perform miracles. Even for all my trying, I cannot make sure that someone will receive salvation from Jesus. But I can be a witness. I can look at another’s broken, bleeding mess and say, ‘I see you. I am with you. I will not turn away.’ It is a great honor to share the life of another, to bear witness in a way that says, ‘You matter. This matters. Your story matters’. Because it does. It matters to God.”
Beauty for Ashes highlights the importance that ‘Her story matters’, women have value and we believe that God has a redemptive purpose for this nation.
Enjoy this video beautifully created by our squad leader Alyssa, who was able to join us for the weekend of the retreat.
