Mission to rescue child soldiers

A group of Elim men will be embarking on an extraordinary mission in May when they travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

MPower's Mark Lyndon-Jones and Simon Whitley will be joined by a team of guys in a 10 day kingdom adventure, which will include practical, spiritual and missional elements.

This iniative seeks to support the desire that a men's ministry can make a difference to vulnerable women and children in Christ's name.

MPower is collaborating with Elim Missions and their partner organisation, Comfort Rwanda and Congo. Director Dr Callum Henderson said, "A team of men from Elim are travelling out to North Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo at the end of May to take God's love to some of the poorest people on earth."

"It is estimated that around 5.4 million people have died in eastern DRC in the last twenty years as a consequence of the wars in the area and multitudes have been displaced and impoverished. Rebel armies invade villages, burn houses, loot everything, kill and rape."

"People left behind often starve and others are forced to flee to the camps and displacement areas around Goma, the capital city of North Kivu."

"The team will be ministering and be working with rape survivors, child soldiers, pygmies and refugees."

"A key focus will be working with projects that have been part of Be Free – Elim’s campaign against human exploitation."

"In this area of Congo women are subjected routinely to multiple rape by militias and children are snatched from school to fight in the front lines of rebel armies. And yet God is at work - saving, healing and delivering."

"The Elim team will be working with Comfort Congo to provide spiritual and practical support for this journey of recovery."

"Comfort Congo has built a small hospital where surgery is provided free of charge for rape survivors. Many babies are also born through those multiple rapes. The Nyiragongo Health Zone within which the hospital is situated estimated that between 18-25% of newborns in the area were dying at child birth. The hospital has cut that mortality in the area in half as all babies born last year in the hospital survived."

"The team will have the crucial task of building an extension to the hospital to provide pre-and post-natal care and vaccinations. It is expected that this will spread good practice among expectant and nursing mothers and further save lives in the area. Fundraising is going on at present to raise funds for this extension."

The MPower team who are funding themselves for the trip will be ministering to the ex-child soldiers and be upgrading the Village of Hope where Comfort Congo is looking after children and youth who have escaped or been rescued from the armies.

Those young people desperately and urgently need accommodation and support or they may be forced onto the streets of Goma to steal and beg, or, even worse, back to the rebel armies where they could steal to survive. God has been doing an amazing work of transformation among almost 50 ex-soldiers, boys and girls, and the team will be ministering the healing power of God into their lives.

The team would value your prayerful support during the planning and throughout the trip from 26 May - 5 June 2017. If you would like to support financially, please contact the Elim Missions Department.