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Editions of Africa Messenger typically report on the situation in Sudan and on the various ministry activities in which PPF is engaged. But the really beautiful thing about the ministry work is not always the work itself, but how it came to pass.

PPF is 100 percent supported by the prayers and giving of individuals, churches, businesses, clubs, foundations, and other non-profits. Therefore, behind every story of a Sudanese refugee receiving a cup of cold, clean water from a PPF well, is a story of compassion and sacrifice from a Christian far away who decided to get involved.

I am reminded about this every week, as I receive notes, pictures, and other testimonies of people actively engaged in compassion for the persecuted.

Church members gather for fellowship and bracelet-making (Photo courtesy of Emily Eckerson).

Recently, I received several pictures from a lady named Marilyn. Marilyn lives in Massachusetts and has a heart for the persecuted. She decided to make the 100 Wells Campaign bracelets that PPF offers on its website(https://secure.giftwrapplus.org/ppf/EU/cart/default.aspx?) to help raise funds and awareness for the Darfur refugee community in Jaac.

In her own words, this is what Marilyn had to say:

“One of the most frustrating aspects of growing old is feeling useless – especially when you have always been really active and involved.”

“The Sunday that Ed Lyons spoke at our church, I was sitting up front in a special rocking chair reserved for me. As he talked about the Persecution Project and the bracelets he needed for the 100 Wells, my heart started pounding, and I got so excited. ‘This is something I can do!’ I raised my hand as soon as he finished and volunteered.”

“Everyone in the church said they wanted to help as well – and they have. We’ve held sessions at church, but at home I sit with my children and my grandchildren (from 8-80 years old), making the bracelets.”

Marilyn making 100 Wells bracelets with family members.

“I thank God for the opportunity to help others once again.”

Marilyn did not just start working by herself; she recruited several ladies at her church to help as well. This is just one small but significant way concerned Christians can get involved. I often tell stories like this to the Sudanese people we help, just to encourage them. When someone gives us a gift, often we don’t know the story behind it. When we hear the story, it can sometimes bless us more than the gift. That was certainly the case with Marilyn and her friends.

The timing could not have been better. Not only are the seasonal rains making work difficult, the refugee community of Jaac continues to swell with new arrivals. Some are coming from the North to start a new life in the newly independent South. Some have fled border communities that have been hit with rogue militia attacks and even assaults from the Sudan Air Force.

The number of wells completed in the Jaac administrative district now stands at 74. Thank you for your role in helping us to achieve this milestone. If necessary funds can be raised over the summer, it is still possible to reach our goal of completing 100 wells by the end of the year to provide the basic water canopy for the community.

Humans are not the only ones needing safe water in the wilderness of Jaac.

The Bible says much about the poor, and our responsibilities towards them. One thing I have noticed is that there is a class of poor and destitute who simply need immediate, unconditional intervention.

Emergency medical relief is given without hesitation to those who need it.

Recall the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30). A man was beaten, robbed, and left for dead on the road. Two “pious” fellows passed by and did nothing. But the Samaritan acted. He did not investigate why the man was on the road in the first place. For all the Samaritan knew, the victim could have been a thief himself who was successfully repelled by a caravan he attempted to rob. The Samaritan simply saw that a man needed help, felt compassion, and acted.

Remember when Jesus and His disciples approached a blind man, and the Apostles wanted to know if the man was blind because of his sin or the sin of his parents? (John 9:2).  What did Jesus say in response? He said, “Neither.” The man was blind, so that in God’s Providence, His glory would be revealed through this man’s disability. Jesus then healed the man.

But there are also other ways of handling the poor in the Bible. Naomi and her daughter-in-law Ruth were impoverished. So they took advantage of the “welfare safety net” in Israel at the time. The poor were allowed by law to follow behind the harvesters in a field and glean what crops were not picked. Also, the corners of fields were not harvested specifically with the poor and hungry trailers in mind.

This was not unconditional charity. It required the poor to work for what they received.

Later in the story, the young widow Ruth approached her cousin, Boaz, and asked him to do his duty as a kinsman to marry her, which was a principle in the Law. Boaz agreed to “go to court” as it were, and fight for Ruth’s rights. When the nearest kinsman refused to marry Ruth, Boaz agreed to do the job himself. This is a beautiful story of love and sacrifice to help those in need. It is a picture of Christ redeeming His bride. In fact, Christ Himself descended from the lineage of Boaz and Ruth.

What all these examples show is that giving and dealing with the poor must be done with wisdom and sacrifice. In some cases, the poor need unconditional help. In other cases, the help is given with conditions.

PPF supports certified nurse Majzoub Abass (center) in further education so he can continue working with patients.

But in both cases, the presence of love, compassion, and advocacy is always present.

Persecution Project Foundation has several program categories that are modeled after what we believe are Biblical patterns for giving. We have funds that focus on “crisis relief” and medical needs. These are designed for the “Samaritan” type need where the victims are lying in the road needing immediate assistance.

Crisis relief items include food and shelter materials.

But we also have programs for clean water and discipleship and evangelism. These programs require participation from the people we are trying to help. The activities promoted in these programs seek to build people up, build relationships, and to help those in need eventually become givers themselves.

Safe Water Projects open the door for agricultural programs, which lead to discipleship and training opportunities and increase recipient self-sufficiency.

Clean water is not just about digging wells. Providing a dependable water source to a poor community opens the door for agricultural initiatives that lead to greater and cheaper food production. This brings self-sufficiency, wealth and greater health to a formerly impoverished community.

Discipleship and evangelism is not just about Bible studies. It opens the door for teaching and mentoring that go beyond the “lifeboat” salvation message that focuses on getting an initial profession of faith from a convert. It equips the new believer for the rest of his life.

Students who graduate from our pastor training program strive to bring the gospel to the people they serve.

PPF’s Transportation and Logistics fund is not just about paying for the transportation of relief items to get them from point A to point B. It opens the door for vocational training programs that help the poor and persecuted overcome three of their most difficult challenges: isolation, lack of infrastructure, and getting their products to market.

Our desire at PPF is to give — but to give wisely. That sometimes means giving like the Samaritan. At other times, it means giving like Boaz. As you pray for the ministry of PPF, please pray that God will continue to give us wisdom in how to give, so that His Name is glorified and people are changed — including us!

In our January newsletter, we reported that a number of wells in Jaac were broken from overuse by the swelling refugee population. We are pleased to report that with the exception of six, all broken wells have been repaired as of press time for our February newsletter. The remaining wells will soon be fixed. Thank you for your continued prayers and support of PPF’s 100 Wells Campaign.

What I just witnessed never happened. You won’t read about it anywhere in the news. No one is talking about it. Yet I just returned from seeing the biggest humanitarian crisis going on in Africa today… and most of the world is doing nothing about it.

Several weeks ago, I wrote about the tragic airstrikes in the Darfur refugee area called Jaac. Jaac is an administrative district in Southern Sudan on the Darfur border and has been home to tens of thousands of refugees fleeing the violence in the world’s only ongoing genocide.

Jaac is also the scene of one of Persecution Project Foundation’s largest ongoing relief operations. We first visited Jaac in 2005, and we’re still there today. When we first arrived, we found a few hundred refugees sitting under the trees waiting to die. The nearest water supply was a two day walk. The only food was leaves picked from the trees and boiled into a mush. It was horrible.

Current refugees are forced to once again eat leaves.

We took action, and began pouring into Jaac whatever God placed in our hands through the generous contributions of Christians all over America.

We built a base camp and began using it as a makeshift clinic while we built a permanent structure. We brought in shipments of food, blankets, medicine, mosquito nets, clothing, and other crisis relief items.

In December, PPF distributed medicine, food, action packs, blankets and Bibles in Jaac.

We supported the founding of a school to teach children to read. And we gave them Bibles in their own language so they could learn about the Love that sought them out in a wilderness.

And most importantly for their physical needs, PPF began drilling wells to provide a clean source of water to the now swelling population in Jaac.

Wells in Jaac are being stressed by the influx of so many new refugees.

Jaac is an area largely neglected by the UN and the NGO community because of its proximity to danger and its extreme remoteness. The roads are nothing more than glorified cow trails, which washout for half the year, cutting Jaac off from the rest of the country.

Yet, Jaac is the only refuge to an estimated 200,000 people who have fled their native homes to find safety from their enemies. But recently, the drums of war have touched this “Oasis in Hell” as the Sudan Mirror described Jaac in 2009.

A new Jaac refugee sits near his makeshift hut.

The ruling government in Khartoum, the National Congress Party, is angered by Darfur rebel groups who it claims are finding support and sanctuary in border regions in Southern Sudan. Consequently, the Sudan Air Force bombed two villages in the Jaac area three times in November, killing and wounding many and causing widespread panic among the local population.

Tens of thousands fled… and they ran to the only safe zone they knew: the PPF mission station in Jaac.

New refugees in Jaac wait near the PPF mission station.

I recently flew to Jaac to personally see with my own eyes what I had been hearing through numerous pleas for help from my contacts in the community. We landed on a Thursday in early December, and what I saw shocked and disturbed me.

All around the Jaac airstrip, which PPF had constructed soon after our arrival in 2005, were thousands of makeshift grass huts. I estimate 18,000 people were living in just the vicinity of the airstrip. They knew the airstrip had welcomed relief to the community for years. Now, they pitched their tents, as it were, to the only lifeline they had.

A small section of the new "homes" in Jaac.

The scene was heartbreaking. I walked around from hut to hut, interviewing the refugees. While surveying the scene, I saw a little eight-year-old girl named Aluet just arriving in Jaac after a two day walk. She was carrying a little bottle of milk and her twelve-month-old brother, Garang. When I asked about her story, I was told her father died last year and her mother was recently killed in the November 24th airstrike.

Aluet with her twelve-month-old brother, Garang.

But Aluet’s story of suffering was sadly not unique. I was also informed by medical personnel that 200 women had died giving birth in the last three weeks because of severe malnutrition.

Thankfully, the night before I landed, PPF’s relief truck, Mercy, arrived. It brought blankets, medicine, and action packs that the Voice of the Martyrs donated. As soon as the truck was offloaded, I sent it to the closest town where we could buy food, and instructed the driver to purchase as much as I had funds on me to buy. But it was a drop in the bucket compared to teh tremendous need.

PPF's truck 'Mercy' delivers much need relief supplies to Jaac.

Tragically, all we could do was select from among the refugees, 500 families who seemed to us to need the most help, and give them what we had. It may last them two weeks.

I also discovered that the swelling population in Jaac had stretched the wells to the breaking point. Twenty five wells out of the 62 we have in the entire area of Jaac were broken because of the stress of constant use by the new refugees.

I met with the local Administrator, who I have known for years, to discuss what could be done. I could see the worry in his face. He told me his district was being largely ignored by the government because of the fear that too much attention to the area would distract and even endanger the referendum on secession that is scheduled for January 9th, 2011.

Brad meets with local Administrator in Jaac.

The Administrator said the fighting was much heavier than reported by the government or the press, as witnessed by the growing refugee population in Jaac. But no one was doing anything. Most western aid organizations have already sent their people home for the holidays. They will be gone until the referendum is over.

This means that the humanitarian crisis in Jaac is being overlooked and is taking a back seat to the political issues surrounding the referendum. Jaac is basically a news void – a vacuum.

But the people of Jaac don’t know this. Little Aluet and her brother Garang don’t know anything about referendums, or interim peace agreements, or politics. All they know is that their parents are dead, and they are orphans in a wilderness.

In the same manner, we at PPF seek not to be distracted by politics. All we know is that a community we have served for the last six years is now in a state of crisis and extreme need. And we must do something.

The refugees in Jaac are not just statistics. They're people. They're friends.

These victims are not statistics. These are people we have known for years. I have watched their children grow. I have worshipped in their churches and helped baptize new members. I have seen the miracle your compassion has created in a wilderness of death and despair. This is my family. This is your family. We must do something. We cannot abandon them now.

Last week, PPF sent out a press release reporting on the recent bombing of Darfur refugees in Southern Sudan. Although these incidents were far from the worst behavior we have witnessed from the National Congress Party in Khartoum (formerly known as the National Islamic Front), it especially hit home to us because Jaac Payam, where the attacks took place, is an area where PPF has worked for six years.

The airstrikes were the latest in a string of violent actions in the Darfur border area, which began in August. The result has been hundreds killed and thousands displaced from their homes. More than 15,000 people have fled the border and moved further south, straining the PPF-sponsored resources like wells and medical facilities.

PPF's Medical Clinic in Jaac.

There is an immediate need for clean water, food, and medical care to help in this new humanitarian crisis. PPF has 62 wells in the Jaac area, but many are currently broken due to overuse by the swelling population. Each well is designed for 500 people, but several thousand are currently using each well. When one breaks, people move to another well, straining the new well and eventually breaking it, starting a domino effect on other wells.

The good news is that roads are finally drying, making the affected area accessible for relief shipments.

The bad news is, because of security concerns and the upcoming referendum in January, there are no other organizations operating in the Jaac area to help the victims. It’s just us. Jaac is very remote, and PPF has been the only permanent NGO presence in Jaac since its establishment as a refugee settlement in 2004.

The Northern Government hopes to spread mayhem all along the border prior to January. And the Southern Government has chosen not to retaliate, because it believes it would threaten the scheduled referendum. To the Southern government, the referendum in January is all-important. Western governments, including the US, have promised to support the outcome of the vote, which everyone knows will mean Africa’s newest country is inaugurated. When this happens, Southern Sudan will officially be free from Northern oppression.

But what about the Jaac residents, who are being treated as little more than pawns in a massive game of diplomatic chess? They have us, their brothers and sisters in America, who have consistently stood with them from the beginning.

I am writing to you today to let you know that PPF’s response is not limited to a press statement. We are doing something about it.

This great need requires our quick response, and we would like your help to make this happen.

Our reliance during these unexpected challenges has always been on God’s provision through your compassion and generosity. I feel bad when I have to make an outright appeal for support, because I know so many of you have already given sacrificially. I don’t want to take that for granted. Thank you for all you have done.

PPF's truck, "Mercy", loaded with medical supplies for Jaac residents.

I simply lay this need before you and ask for your prayerful consideration. In addition to our budgeted needs, we need to raise another $161,000 by the end of the year to help the victims in Jaac. Any part you play in this will be gratefully appreciated. Our pledge is to do all we can with what God puts into our hands to help our persecuted brethren in Jaac.

Gayle with her husband, Don.

We laughed until the tears flowed. We danced with joyful abandon. We built deeper relationships, and we learned new skills. And this all happened in a completely unexpected way while serving God.

In April, PPF Director of Ministry Advancement, Ed Lyons, spoke at my church, Bay Ridge Christian Church in Annapolis, MD. As he was speaking, I couldn’t help but wonder how God could use me to help the people in Sudan. As a mother of two young children, going to Sudan seemed unlikely.

Bay Ridge Pastor Bret Hicks, with his wife, Linda, and their two children.

Then Ed said something that captured my attention: “Start where you are.” As he talked about how Persecution Project Foundation endeavors to meet the spiritual and physical needs of the people with whom they work, he mentioned the 100 Wells Campaign. He then explained how he and his 11-year old daughter made bracelets together to raise money to drill wells in Jaac.

Although I had never before made bracelets, I knew this was the way God would have me get involved with PPF. Ed e-mailed me a list of supplies and provided me with an instructional video on how to make bracelets.

Then God gave me another idea. Once a month, the ladies at Bay Ridge gather for a “Ladies’ Night Out.” As I talked with the ladies’ leader about hosting an evening of beading, I realized both of us had been given the same idea. It was wonderful confirmation that God was working through us for His good pleasure.

Associate Pastor Garey’s wife, Autumn, oversaw the ladies’ bracelet-making activity.

After facing different trials and obstacles, eleven ladies gathered to make 15 bracelets. Our youth group then got together and made even more bracelets. To date, we have sent 127 bracelets to PPF, with more still to be shipped.

I was incredibly blessed throughout this adventure. I danced with joyful abandon with my youngest son as we listened to the catchy tune on the bracelet-making video. I learned a new skill and entered into a deeper relationship with the leader of our ladies’ group as we manipulated the crimping tools. And the night with the youth group (one girl and many boys) resulted in joyous laughter.

Youth leader, Jer, and his wife, Hannah, had a good time making bracelets with the Bay Ridge Christian Church youth group.

Truly God’s yoke is easy, and His burden is light when we walk in obedience to Him. And it’s as simple as Starting Where You Are.

Despite exams, these STAND students gathered to present their donation to PPF.

STAND, the student branch of the Genocide Intervention Network, has active groups on college and high school campuses across the nation. The STAND chapter at Mount Tabor High School began in 2007 under the guidance of Ms. Laurie Schaefer, a tenth grade English teacher. Current sponsors also include Ms. Eileen Coates, Ms. Emily Bennett, Ms. Carrie Bennett, and Ms. Becky Maier. STAND membership at Mt. Tabor has grown each year, climbing over the one hundred mark during the 2009-2010 school year. It is encouraging to know, in this racially diverse school with an enrollment of approximately 1700 students, that there are so many students who truly care for other people. Mount Tabor’s STAND members specifically focus their efforts on addressing the genocide in Darfur, and the purpose of the organization is to educate other students and community members about the genocide in order to raise funds to help victims.

During the club’s first two years of operation, funds were raised in order to provide protection for the women often victimized at displaced-persons camps in the Darfur region, as well as to support a much-needed school in Darfur. With the assistance of the Persecution Project Foundation (PPF), students became aware of the great need for safe drinking water in this region of the world, and it was decided that all monies raised during the 2009/2010 year would go towards PPF’s 100 Wells Campaign. STAND held a “Dance for Darfur” in the fall and the “Darfur Fast” in the spring, with the goal of raising $5,000 to donate to the 100 Wells Campaign. All who participated were touched by the generosity of the students and community, and were thrilled to present a check of $10,500 to PPF on June 2.

On behalf of thousands of Darfur refugees who will benefit from the generosity of the Mt. Tabor STAND club, PPF would like to thank these courageous young people who decided to make a difference in their world.

These men are in the process of drilling yet another borehole in Jaac.

According to the UN, the war in Darfur has killed 300,000 people and displaced another 2.7 million. Other estimates put the death toll as high as 400,000 killed.

Escalating violence in Darfur means more refugees – people fleeing the conflict zones. And one of the major “safe zones” where refugees go is the community of Jaac, on the Southern Darfur/Southern Sudan border. Since 2005, the community has grown from a few thousand to now over 200,000 displaced persons. People are spread out over a couple hundred square miles of flat, dry “no man’s land.”

Persecution Project Foundation is feverishly working to provide a basic water canopy for the population in Jaac. The 100 Wells Campaign has drilled 62 clean water wells in Jaac, with plans to complete 100 by the end of 2010. But this aggressive goal is totally dependent on God’s grace working through the generosity of thousands of Christians in America.

By using your community in America to support their community in Darfur, thousands of lives are saved. But, most importantly, many souls are saved as well. God has presented PPF with a perfect opportunity to teach the Gospel message in word and deed to many people who have never heard about Jesus Christ. We give them something their bodies need: clean water. And then we introduce them to the Water of Life that nourishes their souls.

This young girl gets a mouthful of fresh, clean water from a new well.

War is a terrible thing. It is our responsibility to do what is within our power to promote peace. But even when peace seems impossible, Christians can still be encouraged, because we know God is sovereign. Our God uses the wickedness of men to work great good. In the case of Darfur, wicked men are killing and destroying to promote their own selfish agendas. But God is using the extreme upheaval in Darfur to drive many people to Faith in Him. In the end, this is the only way peace will come to Darfur – or anywhere else in the world.