Mission International - Teams Training Event:

Burundi Team receives Training:

The fifteen strong Burundi team received a course of training to prepare them for their trip last weekend. The team, from a wide variety of age groups, were very attentive as they were given information regarding their trip from Mission International staff. For more information on this story please click here.

Hope Centre Kids see their new home for the first time:

Time for transformation:
The children of the Hope Centre in Burundi have been shown round house one for the first time. The house will be copied almost identically another five times to provide homes for all of the children. The transformation for them will be huge, coming from the insecurity of poorly apportioned rented accommodation to a home in which they will grow up securely and comfortably will for them be like a dream come true.
We are all so grateful to Charles & Val Carr for their hard work and of course to the Burundian team who have grafted tirelessly to get the centre to this stage. There is of course some way to go before the centre is complete but this is an exciting stage to reach.

If you would like to contribute to the continuing work of the Hope Centre Burundi then please see the options at the top right of this page.

Hope Centre houses near completion:

Houses one, two and three are almost there!

Charles and Val Carr and their family, who have spent the last 10 months in Burundi managing the Hope Centre building project will be returning to the UK at the end of May. During their time in Burundi they have managed to build three of the six homes which comprise the Hope Centre in Mutimbuzi, Gatumba, Burundi. Charles and Val have managed to squeeze in a short holiday to Uganda and will now finalise their time in Burundi before making their way back to the UK. Their efforts have been nothing short of remarkable. They have left their home, their friends and their jobs/schools and have travelled to a foreign country, climate and culture and have worked incredibly hard to set up and establish a very worthwhile project and at the same time have kept us all informed of progress and have been involved closely in the fundraising process as well.

At the rear of the homes there is a small porch attached.

The front of the homes shows how beautifully they appear and reveals the extent of the detail and high level of workmanship put into the whole project so far.

To see more on this story visit www.HopeCentreBurundi.com

Marathon for Mission International:

Edinburgh Marathon Runner runs for Hope Centre Burundi:

Grandmother Janet King, a hairdresser from Port Seton in East Lothian in Scotland, will run the Edinburgh Marathon on Sunday 31st May to raise funds for the Hope Centre in Burundi. Janet heard about Mission International's Hope Centre when hairdressing for one of her clients - a member of a local 'Ambassadors for the Poor' group. We wish Janet well for the run and if you would like to sponsor her run then please contact us on mail@mission-international.org.

To see more on the Edinburgh Marathon click here.

To support the work of Mission International see the options at the top right of this page.

Pakistani Christians pray for their nation:

Many are in fear after attacks on Christians:
Many Christians don't know what the future holds for them as they try to make some sense of the savage attacks that have taken place on their communities throughout Pakistan by Muslim extremists. They are being hunted and killed for the simple reason that they belong to Jesus.

Many Christian communities have been left homeless having had their homes and churches razed to the ground and their young men and women raped and killed.

How can you help?

Mission International wishes to help support those who have been most severely affected by this brutality. If you would like to help then either click here or donate through the PayPal link at the top right of this page.

To see more on this story click here:

Pakistan - Christians being killed!

News from Pakistan!

News recently received by Mission International from contacts in Pakistan relate stories of Muslims meeting out cruel abuses on Christians and churches in the Punjab region. Under reporting by local press agencies and the fact that Government agencies have largely ignored the plight of the Christians and the crimes of those carrying out the abuses is further evidence that Pakistan is in a crisis.

The recent reports received claim that churches have been burned down and many Christians have been killed, in particular young men, although some reports detail rape and murder of young women.

Appeal:

Mission International intends to send financial support to Pakistan to help purchase basics like food, clothing and shelter for those whose homes and churches have been sacked. If you are able to help by supporting this endeavour please donate by clicking here or donate to 'Pakistan Appeal' via PayPal at the top right of this page.

Rema Ministries supports returning refugees:

Mission International partners help needy returnees:

Rema Ministries, an indigenous Burundian Christian ministry was able to distribute clothes and food to refugee returnees as they arrive back in Burundi from camps in Tanzania. Mission International sent out over £1000 of support raised by East Linton Primary School in East Lothian in Scotland, funds raised by the children their parents and families and friends of the school.

To see more on this story click here:

What do you do with your old mobile phone?

Your old mobile can change someone's life in the developing world:

Most people nowadays have at least one old mobile phone lurking in a drawer somewhere in their house. Old phones are now worth very little here in the UK but in the developing world a mobile phone can mean a small business in a rural community thus an income meaning a lifeline to the owner. Furthermore many very rural communities have no permanent means of communication and so a mobile phone can be for some the difference between life and death.

If you would like to donate your old mobile phone (working phones only please) to help a community in the developing world, please send it to Mission International, 25 Tait's Lane, Dundee, DD2 1DZ, Scotland, UK.

Easter Celebrations in Mbarara!

Parental Care Ministries Easter Celebration:
Pastor Emmanuel Nnyanzi and his church in Mbarara, Uganda held a special Easter celebration for the church congregation and for the Children of Parental Care School during the Easter period, her you can see the kids lining up for a special Easter meal. No Easter eggs or bunnies here but lots and lots of Matooke, the staple of Ugandans.

To see more on this story click here.

More food for those with leprosy.

Pastor Nathaniel distributes more food in India:

Due to elections in India, this distribution of food was delayed, but now those in need have received a supply of rice and other essentials.

To see more on this story click here:

Teach us to pray:

Remember to check on the Mission International prayer blog.

Items for prayer are regularly added to the blog to help you as you pray. Please pray for our work, our volunteers, our partners in the developing world and for the may who God had given us the responsibility to support.

To visit the News and Prayer blog click here.

Refugee returnees need church buildings!

Not even basic Facilities:

Refugees returning to Burundi after many years in exile are facing many great difficulties. The lack of food and shelter amongst the most pressing. Christians however face a further problem, that of finding the means to build a place of worship.

Many Christians meet in the open air, under a tree or in the case shown here under a piece of tattered tarpaulin.

You can help:

If you would like to support Mission International's work amongst refugees please either follow the PayPal link at the top right of this page or click here and choose the appropriate forms.

Bensteads get busy!

Family team help at the Hope Centre, Burundi:

The Benstead family have travelled to Burundi for a few weeks to help the Carrs and the rest of the building team, as they move the Hope Centre project on in Gatumba. This family have spent the last few months of their lives raising funds, in all sorts of ways, to support the project.

To find out more detail visit www.hopecentreburundi.com

More Bibles for Refugees!

Bible-A-Month Club sends Bibles to Tanzania:

Happy smiling faces on the church leaders in this picture when they receive a new Bible from the Bible-A-Month Club. Pastor Hezroni, who is now resettling in Burundi and travels between the camps and his new home, is the senior pastor responsible for this group. He distributed the Bibles at a recent training seminar for church leaders in Katumba refugee camp in Tanzania.

To see more on this story click here.

Resurrection Day Ministry Fayre:

Mission International Display Stand:

Like many other local and national ministries, Mission International took the opportunity to erect a display for those who came to the Resurrection Day celebration in the Caird Hall in Dundee to browse before and after the main event. Friends old and new came by to have a look and many took materials home with them to look at later. A number of people expressed interest in mission teams and others in supporting the work of Mission International financially.

Since this was the first large event the Mission International has attended we are delighted that so many visited us on the day.

A view of the corner site we were given with display images and leaflets backed up by a PowerPoint presentation showing some of the work in which we are involved all to the beautiful strains of the African Children's Choir.

Great support on the face of it!

Three girls take support for Mission International to a new level:
Three girls, soon to be going on a Mission International team to Burundi, have been helping at a recent Easter fundraiser for the charity. The girls are part of the July '09 team of 15 people who will fly to Burundi for their first excursion into Africa's great continent.

To see more on the fundraiser click here.

Would you save a stranger?

Channel 4 asks a big question:

Luke 10:30
...."A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'
36 "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"
37 The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

Finishing begins on house one:

The bulk of the work is now done on house one:

The Hope Centre Burundi plans to have six houses on the site. The foundations have been laid for all six but funds are in place for only four of the six. Charles and Val Carr will be returning to the UK in May and so it is hoped that up to four homes will be completed by that time. The remaining two will be finished when funds are located for them.

Here a plumber fits the first of the shower bases in house one, this will be inhabited by Pastor Leonard and his immediate family.

The cement floors need to be finished with a coat which is shined up and smoother off in order that it can receive a few coats of floor paint.

The reinforced concrete frame for the hose is given a finishing coat of cement to smooth it off and to make it more aesthetically pleasing.

Here Pastor Leonard helps construct some of the roof trusses which will eventually end up on one of the homes.

To find our more detail and see a weekly update of the whole project go to the Hope Centre website - www.hopecentreburundi.com

To donate to the Hope Centre project please use the PayPal link at the top right of this page or visit the Mission International giving page http://www.mission-international.org/giving.html

Powerful Words!

Isaiah 40: 28-31
"............. 28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

Sponsored bike ride raises funds for Hope Centre - Burundi:

Sponsored cycle run from Fort William to Inverness:

The Benstead family, who will shortly be heading for Burundi to help out at the Hope Centre project, have just completed a sponsored bike ride between Fort William and Inverness. The purpose was to raise funds for the Hope Centre and even though they are finished its not too late to support their mammoth cycle ride. To make a donation please see the PayPal link at the top right of this page or alternatively there is a link on the Hope Centre site www.hopecentreburundi.com or give via the Mission International website http://www.mission-international.org/giving.html

Well done guys!