Brokenness. As I consider the struggles of our 22 partners to help their precious fellow people, made in the image of God, and reflect on the stories I was told by many pastors at the recent International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC) in Namibia, one word rises to the top, “brokenness”. The world is broken and man was and is at fault. Pastor Patrick Jok of South Sudan* told me of the ongoing lack of the rule of law in his country which has also spread to Sudan proper where his denomination (the Sudan Reformed Churches) has a number of churches. While there was an Islamic government in Sudan before with lots of issues, today, with the overthrow of the government, there is rising anarchy, and everyone needs a gun to protect their families, when few had one in the past.
Haiti. Schools are closed. Gangs rule the streets. Corruption is rife with many “on the take.” Now the specter of hunger is raising its terrifying head. Given generous donations, Word & Deed is funding $340,000 CAD / $255,000 USD worth of food relief in Haiti.
Humility. We can shake our heads at the sins so evident in many of these countries but what about our own countries? Having recently attended an ARPA event (Association for Reformed Political Action in Canada), the rapid rise of medically assisted suicide is confounding with 10,000 people killed in this way in 2021 alone. Increasing numbers of our doctors are becoming mass murderers. I
was told by a midwife recently that she is one of two prolife members of her team of 10. The other 8 readily counsel women to get abortions. Despair. So, are we left in despair? Without a God to look up to, surely despair is the only answer. As the West turns away from God, are we not seeing a rapid breakdown of our society? The problem is sin, as the Bible urgently points out, “for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
Hope. But God doesn’t leave us with our horrendous sin problem. While sin is the problem, the solution is Christ and it is this answer that our fellow sojourners on earth need to hear. With Christ as our High Priest, we can rejoice with Pastor Swets in the meditation in the answer to, “What is my only comfort in life or death?”. In this issue, there are updates on the work in Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, and Malawi. Please pray for our partners there and those they reach out to in the name of Christ.
During this Christmas season, we remember that God sent His Son to enter a broken world, to live a perfect life, and to give His life a ransom for many. Brokenness? Yes, but not despair. May the hope of Christ fill our lives and overflow from us into the lives of those around us in countless acts of love through both word and deed.
*To read more about the ICRC meetings in Namibia, including an article by Pastor Patrick Jok, visit icrconline.com and click on the link to the latest edition of Lux Mundi. W&D
Rick Postma is the Director of Public Relations for Word & Deed Ministries.
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Shelly Crites, Hanna Korvemaker, Kara Luiting, Bethany Post, Susan Trentacosti Word & Deed North America is an evangelical and Reformed humanitarian relief and development organization. Our aim is to help meet the physical and spiritual needs of people in the developing world in accordance with biblical principles for the glory of God. With cooperating offices in St. Thomas, Ontario, and Hudsonville, Michigan, Word & Deed partners with Christian agencies in Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Guatemala, Kenya, Myanmar, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Malawi, and South Africa.
John Otten
Director of Public Relations
Rick Postma
Director Heidi Pronk
Support Staff
Scott Dekorte, Scott Koopman, John Kottelenberg, Kara Luiting, Dave Vander Meer
Canadian Board of Directors
Chairman – Corney Les Vice-Chairman –John Vangameren
Secretary – Harold Leyenhorst
Treasurer – Henry de Waal Wilf Bout, Dr Arjan de Visser, John Jagersma, Bert Mulder, James Neven, Paul Wagenaar, Dave Wielinga
USA Board of Directors
President – Paul Beezhold
Vice President - Jay Van Voorst Secretary – Harry Kooistra Treasurer – Karen Vander Sloot Eric Brandt, Pastor Adrian Dieleman, Eric Greendyk, Paul Laman, Pete Vander Stel,
Mr. Jim Beeke –International Educational Consultant Dr. Gerald M. Bilkes – Professor of Old & New Testament, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Pastor Richard Bout –URCNA Missions Coordinator
Pastor Danny Hyde – Pastor, Oceanside United Reformed Church
Pastor Mark Vander Hart –Associate Professor of Old Testament Studies, Mid-America Reformed Seminary
Pastor Frank Van Dalen –
Former Executive Director of the Foreign Missions Board of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Canada Office PO Box 20100 St. Thomas, ON N5P 4H4 Toll free 877.375.9673 office@wordanddeed.org
United States Office PO Box 157, Hudsonville, MI 49426 Toll free 866.391.5728 usoffice@wordanddeed.org
Registered Charity Number (Canada) 89 120 0941 RR0001
EIN Non-profit Number (USA) 37-1429283
Bible quotations are from the NKJV unless otherwise noted.
BY PASTOR STEVE SWETSBelievers in Christ are confronted with the question of purpose and calling. Both the Heidelberg Catechism and the Westminster Shorter Catechism begin with a question of purpose and comfort in life and in death. Each of us must answer those questions from our hearts before the Lord and oftentimes before the world. Psalm 115:1 gives us an answer to that great question, “What is the purpose of life?” Though it can be answered in many ways, Psalm 115 focuses upon the Lord, to whom all glory is due.
The context of this Psalm is on the nations around God’s people mocking them. Verse two says, “Where is your God?” Though these nations worship idols made with human hands, they cannot see Israel’s God. God is not praised because he is like us in appearance. He isn’t simply the ideal man, strong and mighty. God is altogether different. All glory goes to the name of God because of “your steadfast love and your faithfulness.”
The steadfast love and faithfulness of God is seen in that what he says is true. What he says will happen, happens. God had made a covenant with Abraham (Gen. 15; 17) and he promised to remain faithful to that covenant. Though God sometimes chastised his people,
he continued to provide a deliverer. This took the form of a judge over Israel, a prophet, a godly king, and ultimately in Jesus Christ.
Those who trust in the Lord for their salvation have their lives changed. They echo the great Reformation cry “Soli Deo Gloria.” This becomes the theme of the believer’s life. It is that important and essential. Think of what it might mean to live with the worldview that says “not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory.” How might this impact how we pray, how we live, how we study God’s Word? This gives us direction in our lives as we seek the will of the Lord. To reflect on this beautiful truth informs us as to how we are to thank God. As each milestone passes, as each holiday passes, we are afforded opportunity after opportunity to look at the bigger picture of God’s work of redemption. This all begins in our own hearts. It is for this very purpose that we might be motivated to be active in missions and to carry, in Word and deed, the Gospel to the ends of the earth. “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory.” W&D
Pastor Steve Swets is the pastor of Rehoboth United Reformed Church in Hamilton, Ontario. He is married to Rachel and they have four children.
“Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1, ESV)BY CORNEY LES
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:9–11).
Having recently been on a trip to Colombia to review Word & Deed projects there, it was good to see demonstrations of the Family Mission Program in action. This is a social development program designed to protect families with children in the Conviventia school system from abuse, family strife, or unhealthy situations in the home. Once a situation is detected, it is investigated to determine the level of intervention needed.
The Family Mission Program in Colombia is run by Word & Deed’s partner, Conviventia. This program deals with families in crisis and uses family meetings to share the Word of God, bring practical exercises for the members to
work on, developing daily programs for them to follow, and encouraging them to pray together. A psychologist, a social worker, and a chaplain are involved in each visit.
In Cartagena, we went along on a visit to a family that is going through a grieving process after losing a great-grandmother and a young mother. Both of these women passed away a few months ago, leaving behind a grieving greatgrandfather, two parents without a daughter, and a young daughter without a mother. Together they make a family of four across four generations. The child has become distant and closed off and so has the mother who lost her daughter and her mother.
On this particular day, the exercise involved recalling the joyful memories of the past that involve a tree. Each of us gave a good memory that we had under a tree. For some it was playing, peeling carrots, working on or growing up around trees. Then we posted a tree onto the wooden wall with thumbtacks, followed by drawing fruits to place on the tree. The fruits were the positive symbols that reminded those grieving of the one they had lost. My story emphasized how Christ is the tap root that grows deepest and
feeds the entire tree. This root keeps us secure and solid when times of trouble or drought come. Near the end of the visit, the family was given a poster and clear bags for their small home-based business. The family had been visited multiple times and were making progress but were still hurting. It was good to see the couple that night at the couples’ workshop held at El Pozon school.
In Bogota, we visited a family who had just entered the Family Mission Program. The older daughter had been abused when she was younger and is now having relationship issues. Her 29-year-old mother lives with a different, older man than her father. The mother and three children participated in the session. The activity was to portray how communication can break down so quickly between family members. Each had to draw on the other person’s back and pass on that message to the next person. What started as a picture of a house ended up being a smiling face. Chaplain Freddy reflected on the lessons learned and opened the Bible to read from Proverbs. The family planted seeds in a 2-liter pop bottle cut in half and filled with dirt. As the seeds sprout and grow, this will represent the family’s growth over subsequent sessions. It was a good opening session to begin with to have the family on the same page. This is a unique program in which the Word of God is brought to at-risk families who are in dire straits. May God continue to bless the work of Conviventia and the Family Mission Program. W&D
Corney Les is the chairman of Word & Deed Canada Board and attends the Heritage Reformed Church in Chilliwack, BC.
Word & Deed partners with Conviventia to fund a num ber of projects in Colombia including the Family Protection Program and Christian education. Through the hope of the Gospel, these projects are making a differ ence in this country that often struggles with violence and corruption which has the largest effect on those who live in poverty.
My name is Aly, and I spent this summer volunteering in La Esperanza Medical Center in Quininde, Ecuador. The clinic was established through the partnership of Word & Deed and the Luke’s Society in 2019 and has been serving the people of Quininde ever since. Clean, organized, and honest, the clinic is a beacon of healing and hope in the community. The doctors who work at the clinic are knowledgeable and upfront about costs, and the staff care deeply for each of their patients. My primary role as a nursing student was to take vital signs, start IV drips, draw blood, and administer injections, but my favorite job was to share the Gospel and pray with each patient I treated. Doing this improved my Spanish skills and taught me how to evangelize. I learned that the spiritual need (as well as physical need) in Quininde is great—most people I treated believed in the concept of God, but did not attend a church or understand the true message of the Gospel.
I also visited the three after-school programs in Quininde. The children at these projects have sponsors in the USA and Canada through Word & Deed. These projects are situated in the poorest, most dangerous areas of the city. The locations have been robbed multiple times and while I was in Quininde, one of the projects closed early because of a fatal shooting nearby. The day that I visited, I
saw the children eat, sing, pray, and listen to a devotional. Then they broke into classrooms by age and I was asked to help the kindergarten teacher. It was chaos. The children were adorable, but disobedient. The teacher calmly, through a thousand interruptions, tried to teach them a Bible story
Word & Deed partners with San Lucas Society as they minister in Quininde, Ecuador operating the Healing with Hope medical clinic and three After-School Programs supported through child sponsorship. Pray for Quininde as drug cartels have recently moved into town and brought with them much violence. Pray that peace through the Gospel would prevail.
and then did her best to help them complete the homework they had from school. The kids in the projects desperately need structure, discipline, and good role models, and I cannot say enough good things about the work the teachers are doing there.
A few weeks into my trip, I was also able to go with a small group to visit a river-dwelling, basket-weaving, indigenous people group called the Chachi. Religiously pagan and mistrustful of outsiders, I doubt we would have been able to visit the Chachi at all if we hadn’t been accompanied by Dr. Yeny, the founder of La Esperanza Medical Center. After years of leading medical and dental trips to the community, Dr. Yeny was the first person the Chachi called when one of their mothers was in danger of dying in childbirth. Dr. Yeny rushed to the village, delivered the baby, and drove mom and infant to the nearest hospital. Both are alive and well today. Since then, Dr. Yeny has been able to form relationships with Chachi women and work with Chachi schoolteachers, though there’s never enough time to stay for long. “We want to send them someone to plant a church,” Dr. Yeny told me, shaking her head, “but right now we have nobody to send.” It is estimated by the Joshua Project that less than 2% of Chachi people are evangelical Christians today. May God raise up workers for the Chachi people, and may He bless the work being done in Quininde, Ecuador! W&D
Aly Koning lives in Michigan where she attends the Cornerstone United Reformed Church in Hudsonville.
Haiti is experiencing a serious crisis generated by armed gang activity, a fuel crisis, and the rising cost of living. These factors are causing significant social unrest in the country and are worsening the plight of the most vulnerable populations. The increasingly deadly turf wars between rival gang coalitions reveal the depth of the political stalemate in which Haiti is immersed. Nothing seems to be able to stop the rapid progression of gangs, given the absence of a legitimate government since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.
This power vacuum has given free rein to armed gangs who kill, kidnap, and extort with little resistance from the state. Street gangs control a large part of the gasoline reserves, which prevents the transport of water to the population and to the hospitals. These gang leaders are seeking to consolidate control of the most populous neighborhoods before new elections are held, which would allow them to coerce residents to vote for certain candidates and would provide significant leverage in their negotiations with politicians.
Many people, confined to their homes, no longer have access to water, food, or electricity. The majority of Adoration students’ families were already living in extreme poverty, which makes their cases worse. There are many students who usually get their daily food from Adoration; we can only hope that they will not die of hunger.
Adoration staff are forced to stay at home and all schools are closed. The prices of basic necessities have increased by more than four to fives times what they were before. Public transportation is paralyzed because a gallon of gasoline that used to sell for 250 Gourdes ($1.91 USD) is now being sold for 3,000-5,000 gourdes ($23–$38 USD).
Hunger has worsened in this part of the country, caused by people being unable to work and, in turn, being unable to provide for their families. The fuel crisis, as well as the tensions and insecurity throughout the country, have direct consequences on humanitarian activities and basic services, including health, nutrition, and education. If no solution is found to the fuel crisis soon, the humanitarian crisis will take on a whole new dimension. Please pray for our country. W&D
Maurice Wilfride is the Assistant Director of Adoration Christian School in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Note from the editor: Although the situation in Haiti seems hopeless to our human minds, we know that the Lord is at work in the midst of this tragedy and He continues to care for His people. Since the writing of this article, Word & Deed has sent $40,000 CAD/$30,000 USD to Adoration for distribution to the families of students at Adoration who will use these funds to purchase food for their families. May the Lord continue to care for His people in their time of need!
BY KARA LUITING
Since the start of COVID-19, Word & Deed has been working with several of our partners around the world to provide food aid. Many governments made decisions that ended up hurting the most vulnerable populations of their countries. These people know what it is like to ask their Heavenly Father for their daily bread. Largely due to the war in Ukraine, the economic situation in these countries has not improved. Ukraine and Russia were some of the biggest exporters of food in the world, and Word & Deed works in four of the top seven African countries that imported food from them. Since the beginning of 2020, we have disbursed over $1.85 million CAD/$1.4 million USD in food relief through our partners, supporting over 30,000 families.
We foresee a great crisis of food insecurity on the horizon that will impact millions of people worldwide. Please pray that our Great Provider will make a way for many people throughout the world to be nourished, both physically and spiritually, as many people continue to grapple with the effects of this increasing need.
An October whirlwind trip through Malawi with Paul Beezhold and Karen Vander Sloot provided lots of heat, dust, bumpy roads, smiling children, and reasons for praise. For a quick flyover tour of our projects there, read on!
Lizulu Orphan Care is one of our oldest and most reliable children’s programs in Malawi. There are 540 orphans scattered amongst six villages near Dedza, along the border with Mozambique, an area known for its moderate temperatures and tasty potatoes! Lizulu Orphan Care’s long reputation in the community means that they are often approached in crisis situations, such as earlier this year when a grandmother brought them an 18-monthold child. The baby’s parents had died when their hut caught
fire. The child was thrown out of a window by the father and managed to survive the blaze. This baby is living with its grandmother but is being cared for through the program.
Thandizo Orphan Care is located about 45km from Dedza and supports 600 orphans and vulnerable children in six villages. In addition to the nursery schools (for ages 3-5) and the Bible clubs (for ages 6-12), they have tried to provide mentoring and support to older students. A recent self-sufficiency initiative involves taking 30 high school graduates and sending them to a vocational training program for three months. The students can choose skills like cell
phone repair, plumbing, sewing, bricklaying, and motorcycle maintenance. If this pilot program is successful, Thandizo hopes to make it a permanent feature of their ministry. Chibulika Orphan Care, our northernmost project, is the smallest of the orphan care programs. They focus on nursery school support for orphans and vulnerable children aged 3–6, but they also have Bible clubs for older children. Because Chibulika operates in six villages in very rural areas with limited access to social services, their needs are very basic. Nutrition and evangelism are key elements of their program. Earlier this year, they requested pit latrines for five of the nursery schools. The absence of the most basic hygiene facilities in these communities is an indication of the severe poverty there.
Neighbor Mission Orphan Care is the most picturesque stop on our trip as it lies along the beautiful shores of Lake Malawi. Neighbor Mission oversees 660 vulnerable children in six villages. Each village committee consists of individuals from the local churches. The growth of Islam in this area means that church involvement and evangelism must be a central component. In Kamuona village, we met with local leaders who had taken the initiative to start building a classroom adjacent to the church so that the children’s program would have its own space. Word & Deed has agreed to help them with some final costs.
The last stop on our quick tour is Logos Ministries in the capital city of Lilongwe. Logos is the theological and leadership training program that Word & Deed has been supporting since 2008. Over the last several years, Logos has added satellite offices in the north in Mzuzu and in the south in Zomba. With the added reach of these two offices, Logos was able to impact over 1,500 lay leaders with biblical training last year. The trainings range from threeday intensive conferences, to weekly classes, to a diploma program through Mukhanyo Theological College. The basic theology classes are being expanded over the next couple years, a development that allows the training team to build relationships with the students over the course of 6-10 months. New classes being developed by the Logos staff include soteriology, biblical stewardship, and the Holy Spirit. The board has also worked diligently this year to put many new policies and governance procedures in place so that as the ministry grows, it does so with professionalism and effectiveness.
We are grateful to the Lord for faithful believers in Malawi who continue to work diligently to serve their communities in the face of mounting challenges with inflation, food supply, Islam, and weak theology in the churches. In spite of these obstacles, our visit also gave much hope that God is at work building His kingdom and preserving His church in big and small ways. W&D
Heidi Pronk is the Project Manager for Malawi and works out of Word & Deed’s Hudsonville, MI, office.
1. Pray that the message of the Gospel would impact many of the families in Colombia that the Family Mission Program ministers to.
2. Praise God for the time that Aly could work at the clinic in Ecuador and pray that the staff there would continue to faithfully serve the people of Quininde.
3. Pray for the very difficult situation in Haiti and pray for a blessing on the funds that were sent for food relief.
4. Thank God for the various ways that His people in Malawi are serving people in their communities—including many orphans and vulnerable children.
5. As we approach the end of the year, give thanks for the many ways that Word & Deed, along with our partners, has been able to reach out around the world through the generous support of our donors.
1. What are the ways that the Family Mission Program ministers to families in crisis?
2. What is the root cause of relationship breakdowns between people? Read James 4:1–4. How does this same issue affect your relationships?
1. What was Aly’s favorite job at the clinic in Ecuador? Why is this job so important?
2. What percentage of the Chachi people are evangelical Christians? Look up the Joshua Project online and spend some time reading and praying about unreached people groups.
1. What factors are contributing to the serious crisis in Haiti? What is the impact on the people of Haiti?
2. How is inflation causing issues for the people of Haiti? Reflect on the impact of prices going up four to five times what they were before.
1. What key elements are consistent in the various orphan care projects in Malawi?
2. Why do you think that the vocational training program offered by Thandizo Orphan Care is a critical part of helping orphans and other vulnerable children?
For $35 USD/ $38 CAD per month, you can have the opportunity to support the costs related to a student in a class, without being paired up with a specific child. You will follow a grade through their education journey, receiving quarterly updates on the class. Each student in the class that you are sponsoring will receive the benefits of individual child sponsorship (Christian education, nutritional support where needed, etc.) without the direct connection to a sponsor.
BUT DON’T WANT THE PRESSURE OF CORRESPONDING WITH THE CHILD?
Are You Interested IN Supporting A Child’s Education...
The schools that participate in this sponsorship model are located in areas of high turnover which makes it difficult to connect sponsors to students who are constantly leaving. This program also assists our partner schools, cutting down on administration burdens.
Westminster Catechism (Nicaragua)
Westminster Catechism (Nicaragua)
Provide a student with a copy of the Westminster Catechism
Provide a student with a copy of the Westminster Catechism
Bibles
Bibles
A Bible (to be distributed in various countries)
A Bible (to be distributed in various countries)
Meals (Colombia)
Meals (Colombia)
10 meals for
10 meals for malnourished students
Bundle of Love (Guatemala)
A Christmas Gift for a student (a toy and a practical item)
School Supplies (Haiti)
School Supplies for a student at Adoration Christian School
After-School Program (India) One month of care for a child in an After-School Program Sewing Machine (India) Sewing machine for a graduate of a women's sewing program
Sewing Machine (India)
Laptop Computer (Kenya)
Vocational Training Operations Cost (South Sudan)
Monthly cost to operate one class of 20 street youth
Book Printing (Nigeria)
Printing of 1000 Reformed books on Christian living
Vocational Training Operations Cost (South Sudan) Monthly cost to operate one class of 20 street youth Book Printing (Nigeria)
Printing of 1000 Reformed books on Christian living
Vehicle (India)
Purchase of an offroad vehicle for a missions office
Vehicle (India)