March Update

 Dear Friends,

The war is definitely being felt here. In our talks with neighbors and friends, there is a lot of fear and very little hope. We pray constantly that God would intervene so that any further death and suffering will stop. The refugees are pouring into Germany. Through my extended network, I have been able to connect several women and children with christians in Cologne willing to take them in. One of our colleagues and his church have taken in a family;  Another one spent a week on the Polish border with Ukraine helping refugees.

There is a large tent welcome center set up right in front of the main train station in Cologne where hundreds of people a day are being welcomed, given immediate necessities including SIM cards and being assigned to temporary housing around the city. I ride by there on my bike almost every day and pray.

I saw a report on the German news about a 12 year old Ukrainian girl who had to choose what to bring with when her mom said that they were fleeing. She decided on bringing her violin and her pet ferret. She is a talented musician and was immediately given a spot in a music school for talented kids in Berlin. It moved me to see just a snippet of her giftedness and see this little bright spot that comes out of such a dark place. Please pray with us for Ukraine and for God's intervention. Pray for us and many others as we respond with Christ's love to the traumatised refugees showing up here. Pray for wisdom in how to help them beyond their immediate needs.

Also, please pray for me as I do a funeral for the mother of a friend of ours on Friday. Pray that I would be able to speak comforting words but also share the gospel clearly for all of the not-yet-believers who will be present.

Please pray for our church retreat April 9-10. We are thankful and excited for the many who will be attending, including a refugee family from central Asia that we have been working with for the last 5 years. The theme for our weekend is peace.

And finally, check out this 2 minute video from GEM’s president Jon Burns about “Why Europe, Why Now?" There you will find a further link on the page that shows exactly what GEM is doing in response to the war.

Thankful for you,
Jason and Sue