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19-16930 Connect & Encourage USA Version Spring-Summer 2019-V2.Indd Spring/Summer 2019 connect& encourage Write to someone facing injustice for their beliefs. Human rights defenders in South Asia In this issue How to connect & encourage 2 Get writing 3 How to Writing a letter 4-5 Africa & the Middle East 6-9 connect & encourage South Asia 10-11 East Asia 12-17 Many of the people on the following pages are Giulio Paletta/CSW Latin America 18-23 victims of violence, intimidation or harassment. Will my letters actually All of them need your encouragement. Using reach the intended person? Connect & Encourage, you can stand in solidarity Get writing Although some letters may be intercepted, with them in a very special way – by sending cards Is it ok to include Christian and letters of encouragement. most will reach their destination. Even if the greetings and scripture verses? letter doesn’t reach them, it can still have a powerful effect by reminding governments Receiving a personal letter reminds each person who gets Most of the people in Connect & Encourage it that someone, somewhere cares about their suffering. that their case is not going unnoticed by the are Christians, and we encourage you to rest of the world. Connect & Encourage is ideal to use as a group, but we write appropriate scripture verses and encourage you to use it wherever and however you can! Christian greetings. Writing relevant Bible Is it safe to include my name Could you use it at a creative prayer night, as a youth group references is useful for non-English speakers and address on my cards? activity, or at a church mission event? Be as creative in your so they can look up the same scripture encouragement as possible! verses in their own language. As long as you are happy to receive a reply, including your contact details isn’t However, some are not Christians – we have a problem. In fact, a pen pal relationship People have been putting Connect indicated this next to their names. Please with someone who is persecuted for their & Encourage to fantastic use! be sensitive to this when writing to them. faith can be extremely inspiring! However, If the person you are writing to is a Christian, you may receive letters requesting financial Be inspired by the experiences of churches and individuals it’s okay to send them cards that are help. Always contact CSW regarding these using Connect & Encourage throughout the booklet. obviously Christian. However, if you want requests before you respond to them. to be safe, or the person you are writing to Can I send letters to every is from a different faith, cards with colourful country where CSW works? pictures or landscapes on the front are always appreciated. We have only included people in Connect Keep in touch. Today. What if I can’t write in the & Encourage if we can verify they will receive person’s language? your cards safely. In some of the countries where we work, sending letters and cards Even if the person receiving your card could further endanger the recipients. how you’ve used it, and If you would like to order more Share More can’t read English, receiving a card can still Instead, please remember these people we’ll let others know so they can try copies of Connect & Encourage please bring them hope and encouragement by in your prayers, asking God to grant them using it in the same way! call us at 877-279-8723 or email us at reminding them that they are not forgotten. strength, protection and comfort. email us at [email protected] [email protected] However, if you can write in the language of You can find more tips for the person – even if it is just a phrase or two writing your cards at – please do! They will appreciate your effort. csw.org.uk/connectencourage 2 Pray with us www.cswusa.org/pray To download more copies visit cswusa.org/pray/connect-encourage 3 connect&encourage Writing a letter Letter 1 We’ve included some sample letters Dear [name] here to give you an idea of what to write. A personal letter with details I was deeply moved when I about your everyday life can be a heard about your situation. wonderful encouragement, but I wanted to write to you and it’s also the case that sometimes a let you know that your story is template letter may be a safer option for some of our cases, or a good start being told all over the world for you to write your own message. and that people are joining If you want to write your own message, together to pray for you. here are some general guidelines: • Just write a little bit about yourself – [name] where you live, what the area is like, your family, your hobbies, and so on. Most of the people in Connect & Encourage Letter 2 are Christians, so you could write an encouraging Bible verse in the card, and some Christian greetings such as ‘God Dear [name] bless you’ and ‘May the Lord be with you’. • Even if the person who gets your card I pray that God grants you can’t read English, receiving it will still strength and courage to encourage them by reminding them that they’re not forgotten. persevere in this terrible • Writing relevant Bible references is useful situation. Please know that for non-English speakers so they can look you have not been forgotten up the verses in their own language. by the world. • If you’re happy to receive a reply, it’s safe Send hope. Today. to include your name and address on the cards. Many people have developed [name] rewarding relationships in this way, Writing tip Many prisoners appreciate by writing to and hearing from people a postcard with a bright picture on it: try who suffer because of their faith. to find something colourful and uplifting. 4 Pray for the people you write to Pray for the people you write to 5 connect&encourage Africa and the Middle East Africa Egypt Iran Nigeria and the In the past we’ve asked you to write cards Unfortunately it isn’t safe to write to many of The Most Rev. Dr. Benjamin to Egyptians, but at this time it’s difficult the prisoners in Iran. Over the last few years Argak Kwashi and Middle East to ensure that cards will arrive in a timely we’ve seen a pattern of religious minorities Mrs Gloria Kwashi manner. Please keep praying for Egypt being arrested on national security charges, though the situation has become more and in a number of current cases it could Dear friends stable, religious minorities are still a target. put them at risk if they were to receive cards Dr. Benjamin Argak Kwashi from other countries. I use Connect and Encourage on the first day of each month, asking God Eritrea to guide me as I open the booklet. Many Eritrean Christians have been forced It’s good to browse through the pages to flee their country due to the severe oppression they face on account of their and to choose someone to whom faith. As they waited for acceptance in I can send that month. I love to think third countries, they have established their of my small card reaching a lonely, own worshipping communities. They are hurting prisoner somewhere in the essentially refugee churches. Many of these The Most Rev. Dr. Benjamin Argak Kwashi, Christians still live cautiously because the world, and I pray particularly for that Anglican Archbishop of Jos, is a prominent Eritrean authorities have been known to and eloquent advocate for Christians in individual during the month, track down and harass people even outside northern and central Nigeria. His family was trying to picture their situation. of Eritrea. The cards you’ve sent have been subjected to two brutal attacks in recent an amazing encouragement to many. years, but has made a full recovery. In Elaine Brown Please keep writing! addition to writing to the family, please pray for their safety and strength in the midst of Pitlochry Ebenezer Foundational ongoing tensions in Nigeria. Healing Church GPO 16147-00100 The Most Rev. Dr. Benjamin Argak Nairobi Kwashi and Mrs Gloria Kwashi Kenya Anglican Diocese of Jos PO Box 6283 Jos Plateau State 930001 Nigeria 6 Pray for Egypt Get our monthly prayer calendar cswusa.org/pray 7 connect&encourage Africa and the Middle East Nigeria Sudan Hey CSW, Our partner organisation, CSW Nigeria, Christians in Sudan have faced severe works to promote religious freedom in an repression since South Sudan became an We used Connect and Encourage exceptionally difficult context and with independent nation in 2011. The Khartoum as one of our units of study Bahri Evangelical Church is one of several very few resources. However, despite the on global justice issues. We many difficulties they face, their work is churches that’s experienced acute harassment, with some of its buildings and land being spent some time looking at the growing! The head of CSW-Nigeria, Rev. Hervé Serefio Yunusa Nmadu, was recently elected General sold to Muslim investors and its leaders being persecuted church and Connect Secretary of the Evangelical Church Winning arrested. Please pray for the church and write and Encourage was a practical to encourage them via the address below: they Catholic Cathedral Bangui All (ECWA) denomination, one of the largest way for us to respond to what denominations in northern Nigeria with a would love to hear from you. membership of over five million worldwide. we learnt. The students enjoyed Please write to encourage Rev.
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