The Cross - Stories of God's Love in Action - Spring 2024

STORIES OF GOD’S LOVE IN ACTION

At Cross International, we believe one of the best ways to improve the lives of women and children in impoverished communities is to empower moms to provide for themselves and their families.

This month, as we celebrate Mother’s Day, we’re highlighting the incredible work our compassionate supporters are making possible in Zambia as an intrepid group of women have been empowered to rise out of poverty through a sewing project!

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

STORIES OF GOOD NEWS FOR THE HURTING

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WhatsAppening: Snapshots from the powerful work CI donors are doing around the world.

The Chance to be a Child: Esther’s Story

Blessing Benjamin: Addressing Clubfoot in Africa

Partner Highlight: Divine Shelter Schools, Haiti

WhatsAppening

UGANDA: Staff from Cross International and the Project Princess initiative pose for a portrait at PPI headquarters during a recent visit.

ECUADOR: A young artists shows off his work at The Moses Project, a Cross partner in Ecuador.

ZAMBIA:

A drilling crew gets ready to drill a new well in a remote village giving them safe water for the first time!

MALAWI: People gather for a mobile medical clinic provided by Cross International through our local partner in Lilongwe, CURE Malawi.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC:

A patient receives care at the Municipal de Miches Hospital where Cross International has delivered critical medical supplies.

EL SALVADOR: Cross International’s President and CEO, Kelly Miller, celebrates a food distribution with children at the John Paul II community center.

THE CHANCE TO BE A CHILD:

Esther’s Story

Esther is a courageous girl from an impoverished village outside of Blantyre, Malawi. Though just nine years old, she’s already experienced plenty of tragedy in her young life.

Esther lost her mother when she was just 6 months old. Taken in by her elderly grandparents, there wasn’t enough food to go around and Esther often went hungry. Making matters worse, the family could not afford to pay school fees or buy her a uniform. Hungry and unable to go to school, Esther found herself following some of her friends to a local Cross International partner organization called the Ambuya Development Center where hundreds of other children were enjoying free, hot meals every day. Soon, thanks to the compassionate generosity of Cross supporters, Esther was enrolled as well.

to her grandparents. “I appreciate the food we eat at the center,” Esther says. “I bring food back home to my grandparents because there’s no food in our home.”

Not only is Esther no longer going hungry, Cross friends have also made it possible for her to go to school, supplying her school fees and giving her a uniform. “She didn’t have any clothes,” Esther’s grandfather told us. “She had only one dress before she got her school uniform.”

Now Esther no longer suffers the pangs of hunger and is even able to bring some leftovers home

Though she still faces challenges, Esther’s life has been transformed through the simple gift of food and the chance to get an education. “I am thankful for Cross taking so much care of Esther,” her grandfather relates. “We are relieved knowing that she’s taken care of. May God look after you.”

Blessing Benjamin:

ADDRESSING CLUBFOOT IN AFRICA

What causes babies to be born with clubfoot is a mystery.

Although there’s no known way to prevent the condition in which a baby’s feet are twisted inward and downward, mothers of children with clubfoot are frequently ostracized in their communities. Such was the case for Lydia in southwestern Zambia. She felt isolated and consumed by concern for her firstborn, Benjamin, knowing his mobility would be severely restricted. .

overjoyed upon learning that the clinic would treat her boy’s clubfoot at no cost!

As Benjamin completed multiple rounds of treatment, Hope Walks advisors educated Lydia about clubfoot, dispelling myths that it was a curse or somehow her fault.

They framed disability from a Christian perspective, which shifted Lydia’s mindset and brought her peace, while preparing her for what was to come.

That was five years ago. Today, Benjamin is able to walk without limitation. While clubfoot is correctable through a common and highly effective treatment method, Lydia had initially thought there was no way she could afford it. That notion vanished when she discovered a clinic run by Cross International’s ministry partner, Hope Walks, right in Livingstone. She was

Benjamin’s younger brother Richard was also born with clubfoot. Richard is beginning treatment at the age of two and faces a difficult, but promising, road ahead. After several weeks in a cast, he’ll wear a foot brace until he’s five, then if all goes well, he will be able to walk and run freely!

Your faithful partnership with Cross International is bringing physical healing and lasting joy to children and families around the world!

Benjamin and his little brother, Richard, have found the help and hope they needed through Cross’ faithful supporters.

PARTNER Highlight

DIVINE SHELTER SCHOOLS, HAITI

In the midst of extreme poverty, non-existent government support, and political turmoil, children in Haiti often have few prospects for receiving a quality education. But where the government has failed, the Church has stepped up, especially Cross supporters like YOU.

Cross partners with Divine Shelter Schools, a network of schools across Haiti, to ensure that thousands of children who otherwise wouldn’t have the chance to go to school receive a quality, Christian education—and healthy meals, too!

Each DSS school is partnered with a local church and the children’s daily lessons include prayer, devotions, and a weekly Bible class along with the standard curriculum. The schools also serve as a major source of nutrition for the children, as many do not get enough to eat at home.

Even in the midst of the recent gang violence and upheaval across the country, many DSS schools remain open, serving the children and offering the hope, and opportunity, for a better future to their students.

BECOME A

When you join Cross International as a monthly donor, you provide struggling children and families with what they need—food for the hungry, water for the thirsty, medicine for the sick, and so much more, all in Jesus’ name! Your monthly gift will provide critical care and ongoing support all year long!

Reaching Those in Deepest Need

THANK YOU for your ongoing commitment to serve those who are poor and suffering in Jesus’ name. With your help, Cross International will continue empowering local ministries with the help they need to serve those in need in their communities.

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