UGANDA and AUSTRIA, May 22, 2007 — This year’s United Bible Societies’ Day of Prayer inspired Bible Society staff in two different parts of the world to reach out to people in need. In Uganda, prayers and fasting on May 9 were followed up with a visit to a children’s hospital, while staff at the Austrian Bible Society prayed with refugees representing several African countries.
On May 9 itself, three ecumenical prayer sessions, each lasting between one and two hours, took place at Bible House in Kampala. Staff and volunteers joined together to pray for all aspects of Bible work, both local and international. Special prayers were also said at Nakawa Pentecostal Church in Kampala, led by a Bible Society staff member, and various other churches held prayer sessions over the following few days.
As well as devoting time to prayer, staff and volunteers fasted. The money they would have spent on their lunch was donated to the children’s ward at Mulago Hospital. When Bible Society staff visited the children’s ward at this hospital, the largest in Uganda, on May 17 in fulfilment of the commitment they made on the Day of Prayer, they found many people who are facing great physical and emotional challenges. As they distributed Selections, New Testaments, drinks and dried fruit, they heard about many situations of great need.
“We were nearly moved to tears when we heard about two special people in particular,” said Justus Rubarema, the Society’s Fundraising and Church Relations Officer. “One was a child of about a month old born to a young mother who does not know who the child’s father is. She was totally discouraged. But after prayer and encouragement, she could afford a smile.
“Another was a 13-year-old boy who is a street child in Kampala and is nursing compound fractures of his right leg. He has nobody to look after him. We assured him that God loves him and will restore his health. There were other moving scenes but we made it clear to all that there is hope in the Word of God. We really praise God for his love and mercy.”
In Austria, refugees are one of the neediest social groups. Many of them have to spend several years in detention centres run by the government or charities while their asylum application, which is likely to be unsuccessful, is processed. Most have entered Austria illegally, and it is not uncommon for them to have been duped into smuggling drugs into the country. While they are waiting, they face the challenge of living in cramped, unhygienic conditions with very few personal possessions. The Austrian Bible Society has been working among refugees, many of whom are Christians, for some time (see World Report 369/2, 404/13 and 406/27). It was natural, then, for Bible Society staff to invite refugees to pray with them on May 9.
“We had almost no response from local churches and Christian groups when we invited them to come to Bible Centre to celebrate the Day of Prayer,” said General Secretary Dr Jutta Henner. “My assistant and I were wondering who would turn up. We were delighted when two buses arrived containing refugees from the camp 25 km south of Vienna where have we distributed Bibles regularly over the last year. There were people from countries including Ghana, Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire and we had a very good prayer meeting.”
One of the highlights of the evening was praying for countries around the world, she added.
“We made little prayer cards printed with country information and a map. Each person took a couple of cards and we prayed sitting around a map of the world. People lit candles for the country they prayed for and put them on the map. We closed the evening with singing accompanied by African drums. The refugees said, ‘We can't pay for the Scriptures you give us, but we can give you our prayer support’. They all took their cards and promised to continue to pray for the various countries.”
|
