Dreamsalive:
The Arab-American Alliance for Relief & Development
September Through October 2015
One of our main partners in ministry is Haytham M., the pastor of a Nazarene church in Amman Jordan. I met Haytham on my very first trip to Amman in 2007 when I was still serving as the pastor of Calvary Chapel in Southern Ocean County NJ. One Wednesday evening we were having a Bible Study and during the worship I had a strong impression that I should visit Jordan. Later that night I told Sue and she said, “That sounds like the Lord to me.” So, I began planning a trip accompanied by a young friend, Nate Sims. On that trip we met Haythem and visited the church he served, which at that time was mostly comprised of Iraqi refugees from the war in Iraq. Haytham had just graduated from seminary & had much love for the people. He especially had a big heart for the suffering refugees. We quickly became friends, brothers in the Lord. About one year later I formed Dreams Alive and resigned from my pastorate position in order to raise awareness about the church in the Middle East and to train American Christians to share their faith with Muslims immigrating to the United States. I visited Haytham every time I passed through Jordan and we did ministry together whenever possible.
Then last year, ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq & Syria), swooped across large portions of Syria & Iraq with extreme brutality. Their campaign of death & destruction focused primarily on Christians and other minority religious groups for mass executions. Churches were burned & destroyed, Bibles and people were sarcastically given the choice to “Convert, pay, or die.” Many, including children, gave their lives in the name of Christ while literally millions of people simply fled for their lives.
Mona is just one of those Christians. She & her family fled a village in Syria after ISIS attacked. A rocket went off near her & the shrapnel pierced her left eye. Doctors are almost non-existent in the war zone so Mona received no medical treatment but she was happy that she & her children were alive. By God’s grace, her family managed to escape into Jordan and shortly after their arrival someone told them about our work in Amman. Today, Mona & her family are receiving the medical, physical, & spiritual care they so desperately needed. Haytham has a team of nearly 30 dedicated believers, some of them refugees themselves, and some that are new Christians! Through a local police department & word of mouth, they seek the refugees that have found shelter in their section of Amman.
Pastor Haythem & his wife Maha have been our friends & ministry partners in Jordan since 2007.
Other Ministry In The Region: The church continues to wax & wane numerically as expatriates come & go. Still, there are many attending our worship services & the leaders are praying for a dedicated youth leader to join our staff. A few weeks ago we had the privilege to baptize 12 people from 7 different nations: 3 Americans, 2 South Africans, 2 Sri Lankans, 2 Lebanese, 1 Bahraini, 1 Brit and 1 Philippine. Sue continues teaching her beloved kindergarteners. We recently ventured into Lebanon to see if the Lord would lead us to expand our work. We’ll share more about that in the next newsletter! Near the end of October, Denny will be a speaker at a pastors’ conference for the Middle East & North Africa. This will be our 4th regional conference. We’re hoping that it be a time of spiritual refreshing!
It is estimated that more than 60,000 refugees live in just this one sector of the city! These people not only lack access to the necessities needed for survival such as work & homes, but they have also been stripped of their very identity, suffering the loss of “community.” This horrid, painful experience will be felt for years, and decades to come. Our team has countered the hatred of ISIS with the love of Christ by providing mattresses, blankets, cooking stoves, food, clothing, & medical care. Last Christmas, we held two Christmas parties blessing over 500 children. Our latest effort is a new medical and dental clinic that will provide free care to any refugees. We’ve rented a place near the church, began remodeling & purchasing equipment, hoping the clinic will be open by November. With our friends at Calvary Chapel in Old Bridge, NJ, we will soon be sending Medical Missions Teams to serve with Jordanian doctors & dentist. If you are a qualified medical practitioner & would like to serve in short-term aid please contact us! We’ve also opened a small school giving crucial access to education for refugee children and EVERYTHING we do is done in the Name of Jesus. On behalf of the Dreams Alive Team in Amman I thank you for your friendship!
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Prayer Requests
- Pray for peace & prosperity in Jordan as refugees continue to pour into this tiny but generous nation.
- Pray the government give full freedom of religion to the churches.
- Pray that many Muslims, especially the refugees, put their faith & trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Pray that our new medical & dental clinic will open soon. Pray that we find Medical Mission Teams to come & serve in short term ministries.
- Pray Christ visits the leaders & soldiers of the Islamic State and they turn to Him in repentance.
- Pray for the end of this terrible war & that nations would beat their swords into plowshares.
- Pray for the victims of this war, especially the children that have experienced so much horror; and that all the kidnapped girls and women would be released.
- Pray for more people to have their hearts open to serve with Dreams Alive.
“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”
All financial gifts to Dreams Alive are used to share the Gospel in word & deed. As such, most of our funds provide relief to refugees from Islamic State & the war in Syria, and we do so in the Name of Jesus. If you feel led to give, checks may be sent to PO Box 78, West Creek, NJ 08092. Or you can use PayPal via our webpage: www.thearabamericanalliance.com
We appreciate your friendship, prayers, & gifts. If you’d like more information about serving with Dreams Alive or if you simply want to write, please email us at [email protected]
We appreciate your friendship, prayers, & gifts. If you’d like more information about serving with Dreams Alive or if you simply want to write, please email us at [email protected]
To download this newsletter, please click the document file here:
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