countries in the world. According to SOS Children, over 30 percent of
its children under the age of 15 are orphans, and half a million young
children live on the nation’s streets.
The street children go particularly overlooked. Most suffer from various
diseases and are treated with suspicion and disgust as they try to help
load buses.
“These young men have pretty much been shunned by society there, just
because most of them have some kind of addiction,” explains Greg Yoder, vice president of Christian World Outreach. “They live on the streets. They live in the poorest parts of town.”
The street boys of Ndola are sometimes marginalized even by Christians,
who fear what the boys are capable of. “If they go to church, people
suspect they’re there to steal,” says Yoder.
One missionary couple has been able to see past the addictions and
stigmas to the God-breathed souls that exist within those young men. This Christian World Outreach couple decided a while ago to befriend the
boys loading buses at their bus stop. As they got to know more and more
boys, the friendships soon progressed into a full ministry. Now two
groups of what the missionaries call “nephews” meet regularly.
The groups, numbering about 50 boys each, provide care and life for
kids who have been overlooked their whole lives. While together, all
nephews play board games, enjoy meals and study the Bible.
The outreach has not only given dignity and self-worth to many, but has changed hearts for eternity. “Many of these young men have become Christians just because we’ve shown
them some love, and care about them as people,” Yoder says.
One group is for older nephews, and another for younger. Yoder says the
second ministry to younger boys actually stemmed from a desire of the
older boys: They wanted to help other young lives transform as theirs
had.
God is moving in tremendous ways, but the ministry is not without
heartache. Yoder says it seems that every month, another boy dies
from disease. Since the boys often don’t have family that cares enough
to support a decent burial, Christian World Outreach provides dignified
services for the young men God so deeply cares for.
The budding ministry has many needs, not the least of which is prayer.
Pray that the missionaries and other Christian workers there would
continue to make a positive impact in the lives of these boys. Pray that
churches would accept the boys with open arms rather than turned backs.
Pray that the young men would be changed completely.
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