Giving children hope for the future

"While we were doing a children’s programme in one of the villages, a man turned up and, in full hearing of the children, started telling us we were wasting our time,” shared OMer Becky.

“These children have no worth and no future,” the man had said. “Their parents are alcoholics and these children will become just like them. There is no hope for them; you’d better go to another village.”

"We were shocked to hear this,” remembered Becky. “And to realise that this was probably not the first time these children had heard this verdict about themselves.”

Becky and the team knew that many of them would no doubt start believing this about themselves.

With only one morning left with the children, the team wondered how they could possibly make a difference in their lives.

“How could we help them overcome this prejudice that had already been planted so deeply in their little hearts?” asked Becky.

As they prayed with the kids, they were reminded of the biblical story of King Josiah and decided to share this story with them: Josiah’s father and grandfather did very bad things, but still Josiah became a good king at the age of only eight. When he found the Word of God, he was able to change the whole nation.

Prior to the outreach, Becky had told the team about a survey she’d read, which looked at different people who had achieved great things in their lives and what had caused their success.

One common element in each of the stories, remembers Ianos, an OM Moldova long-term worker, was that each person could distinctively point out someone who had influenced them as a child, someone who had believed in them. While some were influenced over a long period of time, others were influenced by one short encounter that had changed their lives.

"I have been on many outreaches before,” says Ianos, “but this time I had a new enthusiasm as I spent time with the children, because I myself had been given fresh hope. However short our time with them was, for the first time, I really believed that I could make a difference in their lives!"

Concludes Becky, "We continue to pray that a seed of hope has been planted in these children’s hearts and will grow into a conviction and real experience that God can make something good out of their lives, and through them also impact others and even their whole country.”

Consider making a difference in someone’s life. Click here for more information about short-term opportunities in Moldova.

OM’s role in the Church is to mobilise people to share the knowledge of Jesus and His love with every generation in every nation. OM pioneers and leads initiatives to redeem lives, rebuild communities and restore hope in over 110 countries.