Ministry Prepares to Help South Sudanese People Face Upcoming Famine – with the Gospel
Millions of South Sudanese people are facing crisis as a famine hits the land, but a ministry is working hard to provide what they need: life-giving food from the word of God.
According to the latest UNICEF report, nearly half of all people in South Sudan are going to face food shortages between May and July 2017, and more than a million children are expected to suffer from malnutrition, the Jesuit Refugee Service reported. This famine is largely caused by the civil war raging in parts of the country.
World Mission sees the famine as a great opportunity to spread the gospel to the people of South Sudan.
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"This is a tremendous opportunity for us to be the hands and feet of Jesus and respond to these precious people in South Sudan, not only with these acts of relief and kindness, but also with the Treasure, which is our solar-powered audio Bible," World Mission's Greg Kelley told the Mission Network News.
World Mission aims to deliver the word of God to unreached people groups using an audio format called The Treasure. The organization uses audio so that those who cannot read are able to receive it, particularly in their native tongue.
While The Treasure has proven its effectiveness, delivering it to the people of South Sudan also proves to be a challenge. Kelley said that in South Sudan alone, there are 78 people groups, many of them at odds with another group. There are also about a dozen different languages between these nations.
Despite the challenges, The Treasure succeeds in bringing the message of the love of Christ to people. The Dinka people of South Sudan, for example, are being encouraged by The Treasure to keep following Jesus despite the conflicts that are going on.
"We heard another story from the Bari people in the village of Tali where 40 people just in the past few days have given their lives to Jesus because of listening to the Treasure in their language!" Kelley added.
The Treasure is also reaching government officials, Kelley said. These officials, along with other relief workers such as the UN and Red Cross, are also receiving and passing on Treasures.
It only takes $40 to send a Treasure to South Sudan, and usually each Treasure unit reaches about a hundred people with the gospel. Those interested in helping spread the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ to war-affected and famine-ravaged South Sudanese people can do so by clicking here.
