WILLS POINT, TX — It’s one of the most remarkable stories in the colossal quest to provide clean drinking water to every person on the planet.
The “Jesus Wells” project, a monumental undertaking of Texas-based mission agency GFA World (www.gfa.org), is 25 years old this year — and on the cusp of delivering safe, clean drinking water to its 40 millionth beneficiary.
CLEAN WATER AVAILABLE FOR MILLIONS: The “Jesus Wells” project, a monumental undertaking of Texas-based mission agency GFA World (www.gfa.org), is 25 years old this year — and on the cusp of providing safe drinking water to its 40 millionth beneficiary.
“As we mark World Water Day this month, we’re grateful for all who have sacrificed and labored to make the Jesus Wells project what it is today,” said GFA World founder K.P. Yohannan, also known as Metropolitan Yohan.
So far, the project has supplied reliable, clean drinking water to more than 39 million people in some of the world’s poorest communities — often in remote, parched areas — through a combination of new wells, water pipelines and filters.
This year, it aims to surpass 40 million beneficiaries, launching hundreds of new projects across Africa and Asia.
They’re called “Jesus Wells” because they display a plaque quoting Jesus in the Gospel of John: “Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.”
‘Hidden Catastrophe’
According to UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, 2.2 billion people worldwide — more than 1 in every 4 — lack safe drinking water.
Every year, it’s estimated more than 500,000 people worldwide die from diseases such as cholera and dysentery due to drinking dirty water.
“It’s a global catastrophe that’s largely hidden from us in America,” Yohannan said.
In Asia, GFA World’s team constructed an almost two-mile-long water pipeline through a mountain rainforest infested with blood-sucking leeches to rescue villagers whose water source was swamped with mud, feces, dead snakes and rotting animal carcasses.
The pipeline feeds water tanks that supply filtered spring water to every home. The organization has installed a similar water system in nine more villages in the area.
Since then, the attitude toward Christians in the area has “completely changed,” Yohannan said.
“They welcome the missionaries into their homes to share God’s love,” he said. “They witnessed for themselves how Christians love and care for people, regardless of their religion or social background.”
About GFA World (formerly Gospel for Asia)
GFA World is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Africa and Asia, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
WILLS POINT, TX — Mission agency GFA World (Gospel for Asia) now provides a water lifeline to nearly 40 million desperate people – a number roughly equal to the entire population of California.
Globally, 663 million people lack clean water. Every year, around 500,000 people — including 360,000 children under the age of five — die from waterborne diseases such as diarrhea, cholera, dysentery and typhoid.
“These are overwhelming numbers,” said GFA World founder K.P. Yohannan, also known as Metropolitan Yohan. “The good news is we can help save many precious lives, one community at a time.”
Texas-based GFA World has installed more than 40,000 wells — called “Jesus Wells” — and 95,000 BioSand water filters, providing safe drinking water to more than 39 million highly vulnerable people in Asia.
‘JESUS WELL’ PROJECT ENDS VILLAGE ‘WATER WOES’: Texas-based mission agency GFA World (http://www.gospelforasia.net) teamed up with a village church in Nepal to dig a “Jesus Well.” The resulting “miracle” means villagers no longer have to drink from contaminated ponds. Across Asia, GFA World’s water projects serve nearly 40 million people.
Altercations Over Water
In one village in Nepal, quarrels and fights sometimes erupted as villagers waited in line for up to two hours to fill their jars at a community water pipe, reduced to a trickle by months of drought.
Aware of their plight, GFA World came alongside the local church to help make a new well a reality. At first, the believers in this mountainside village began digging by hand, but – when they hit solid rock – their task seemed hopeless. A crew with drilling machines arrived to help, but even they soon gave up.
“The pastor had been praying for two years for God to solve the water problem in the community,” Yohannan said. “[The church members] continued to dig manually, and God did a miracle. Breaking through rock at 33-feet deep, they reached a spring.”
Astonished village leaders said, “This is a great service the church has done… you have become a blessing for us.”
Speaking of the community impact, Yohannan said, “Children won’t miss school anymore because of water-hauling duties, and people no longer get sick from drinking contaminated water from dirty ponds and mudholes.”
“Jesus Wells transform entire communities, Yohannan said, showing people “God really cares about them and answers their prayers.”
Give Clean Water, Fresh Hope! — You can help change tragic outcomes caused by water scarcity and waterborne disease. Help provide villages and families with clean, safe drinking water and give them fresh hope.
WILLS POINT, TX — Mission agency GFA World (Gospel for Asia) is helping to provide vital aid to traumatized survivors of the massive earthquake and aftershocks in Turkey, as the number of deaths now stands at more than 47,000.
“Right now, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is working with our partners to bring relief to the earthquake survivors,” said K.P. Yohannan (Metropolitan Yohan), founder of the Texas-based organization. “The need they’re encountering is enormous, especially among (Turkey’s) Christian minority.”
Aid workers at the scene of the Feb. 6 disaster — one of the deadliest quakes in a decade — are distributing food, clean water, clothes, and medicines, Yohannan said, while shelter and heating fuel remain top priorities as thousands of homeless and displaced survivors face bitterly cold weather.
Following hundreds of aftershocks, another 5.6 magnitude quake struck southern Turkey on Monday, injuring dozens and killing at least one person.
Compassion, Hope Amid Agony
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) invites people to pray for survivors, including heartbroken parents who’ve faced the agony of being unable to save their children buried under the rubble of their homes.
“As they waited for rescue crews, hours turned into days, and the voices became faint and finally fell silent,” said Yohannan.
“Jesus was deeply moved by suffering humanity, and we share his heart of compassion. Please pray for the ongoing disaster relief efforts.”
For more than 40 years, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) has helped victims of disasters and millions of the world’s poorest people across Asia, bringing hope and “showing the love of God.” In 2021, the Christian organization — which helps everyone regardless of religious belief — announced it was “going global,” launching compassion projects in Africa.
Learn more about the need for Disaster Relief Work, Gospel for Asia’s “Compassion Services” with relief teams who love the Lord who are focused to help victims of natural disasters find a firm foundation.
WILLS POINT, TX – GFA World (Gospel for Asia) one of the largest global mission agencies now in both Africa and Asia, has seen significant growth in the reach of GFA Minute, its rebranded radio program – now on 250 radio stations across the U.S.
The minute-long program features K.P. Yohannan, founder of Gospel for Asia (GFA World), sharing his heart about biblical discipleship and the many “lost souls around the world who need the love and salvation that Jesus offers.”
“My desire is that listeners walk closer to God and strengthen their reliance on faith that comes from having a heart for missions, Jesus, and the lost world,” said Yohannan, also known as Metropolitan Yohan, who started the mission agency over 40 years ago.
Gospel for Asia (GFA World), which is experiencing unprecedented growth with the global ministry’s move into Africa in addition to its original mission to Asia, is using GFA Minute to share Yohannan’s message with the social media generation.
“We hope GFA Minute encourages listeners to reach their lost world, pray for the world, build up their faith, and make the sacrifices necessary to see the world come to Christ,” said Yohannan. “It’s a simple and unique daily challenge to listeners to walk away from mediocre Christianity.”
Plans for additional growth include reaching Canadian radio outlets and additional outlets in the U.S. For information about where to tune in, or for updates on new outlets, visit www.GFAMinute.org.
About GFA World
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national missionaries bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In GFA World’s latest yearly report, this included thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 260,000 needy families, and teaching providing hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news/.
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World), founded by KP Yohannan issued the second part of a Special Report update authored by Palmer Holt of InChrist Communications on solving the world water crisis, lasting solutions and major initiatives to defeat the age-old problem.
Gospel for Asia’s clean water ministry is delivering pure drinking water to families all across South Asia through Jesus Wells, which are open to anyone in need, regardless of their ethnic or religious backgrounds. In this regard, Jesus Wells typically meet the urgent needs of poor families for clean water, rescuing their families from waterborne diseases, poverty and even death.
Tapping Into the World’s Largest Reservoir
In his poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” Samuel Taylor Coleridge describes a crew of thirsty sailors stranded on the ocean. One of them utters these familiar lines:
Water, water everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.
That’s an apt description of our world, in which people are desperate for water even though it covers 71 percent of the earth’s surface. Of course, most of it is in the oceans and not drinkable. Indeed, 97.5 percent of the earth’s water is saltwater. A person who drinks too much of it will die—ironically—of dehydration.
Granot desalination plant, Israel: Daslination here works by pushing saltwater into membranes containing microscopic pores. Photo by Mekorot Water Company (via IrishTimes.com)
However, visionaries have long hoped that someday we could harness the oceans’ vast water reserves for human use. That dream began to come true in 1881, when the first commercial desalination plant opened on the Mediterranean island of Malta. As methods improved during the 20th century, more plants opened in Europe, the United States and, especially, the Middle East. The desert kingdom of Saudi Arabia, oil-rich but water-poor, now produces more desalinated water than any other country. The nearby United Arab Emirates derives all of its drinking water from desalination. These countries are trading what they have—oil wealth—for what they desperately need—water. But in most of the world, the process has remained too costly to be a viable option.
A dramatic change occurred in 2005 when Israel opened its mega-capacity desalination plant in the coastal city of Ashkelon. This landmark achievement drastically lowered the cost of desalination while providing 13 percent of the country’s consumer water demand. Before, the country’s main sources of fresh water had been the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River that flows from it. But drought and overuse had depleted both resources to dangerously low levels. Israel had a strong motivation to find new, reliable sources of usable water. The Mediterranean Sea on its western border made desalination an obvious alternative.
After the success of the Ashkelon project, Israel launched another plant a few miles up the coast in Hadera in 2009. That was followed by the Sorek plant in 2013, which is currently the world’s largest desalination plant. Israel now uses desalinated water for more than half of its needs. The cost of that water—which had always been the major drawback of desalination—is now even lower. At about $30 per month per household, Israelis pay less for their water than many people in other developed countries.
The Ashkelon desalination facility along the Mediterranean Sea in Israel, is one of the largest in the world, and is one of five plants providing Israelis with 65 percent of their drinking water.Photo by IDE Technologies Ltd., (via TimesofIstrael.com)
Filters Make Contaminated Water Safe
In much of the world, people rely on surface water for drinking and washing. But that water often contains dangerous toxins or pathogens. In those cases, people face the difficult choice of choosing between drinking tainted water and going thirsty.
One of the most common—and deadly—symptoms of waterborne diseases is diarrhea. It kills millions of people every year, most of them in Africa and South Asia. Children, being especially vulnerable, suffer the worst. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2,195 children die of diarrheal diseases every day. Other waterborne illnesses include polio, tetanus, typhoid fever, cholera, dysentery and hepatitis A.
Waterborne illnesses are prevalent in Asia, but when dirty water is cleaned and purified through BioSand water filters, diseases can be prevented.
The tragedy is that such diseases can be easy to prevent. One study showed that the incidence of diarrhea can be reduced by 40 percent if people simply wash their hands regularly with soap.
Another effective weapon against disease is amazingly simple and affordable: a BioSand water filter, which costs just $30 and is small and portable enough to fit in any home. It removes most of the contaminants in water, making it 98 percent pure. With just one BioSand water filter, an entire family can enjoy clean water for as long as 20 years. Gospel for Asia (GFA) has been partnering to provide BioSand water filters to Asian families since 2008, distributing more than 73,500 so far. And the results have been dramatic.
Nirmala’s story is typical and illustrates the impact these simple devices can make. She lives in a small Asian village where the only water source is a small polluted pond.
“Since we drank from the pond on a daily basis,” Nirmala says, “we were frequently contracting diseases and stomach problems. Our symptoms ranged from headaches to skin problems to internal pain. It was a very painful and discouraging way to live.”
Then, a Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported worker visited Nirmala’s village and told her about the difference a BioSand water filter could make.
“A team soon came and installed a filter in my home,” she says. “My family and I were so happy to receive such an amazing gift.”
Now, health has returned to Nirmala’s family. And an entire village is being transformed.
No electricity or batteries are needed for a BioSand water filter like this one. Through natural ways of killing harmful bacteria, these effective filters turn dirty water sources into pure, fresh drinking water. Women like these, and their children and families, who were sick and even dying from waterborne illnesses are now regaining their strength, health and well-being through the clean water they are able to drink from BioSand filters.
A Better Future is Possible
These accounts show what is possible when goodwill and knowledge combine. But they also remind us that the world water crisis is far from being solved.
Water from Jesus Wells is so safe and tasty, this girl’s family will safely use it for drinking, cooking, bathing, washing utensils, doing laundry and more.
The United Nations has described concrete objectives for defeating the world’s water problems in its 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Among other things, the participating member states committed to “end poverty in all its forms” and “shift the world on to a sustainable and resilient path.” But so far, the world is “off track” in achieving those objectives, according to the UN’s Synthesis Report 2018 on Water and Sanitation. The report states that, to be more effective, efforts must address issues of “weak funding, planning, capacity and governance of water and sanitation services as a top priority.”
But as the villagers depicted in this article demonstrate, the best solutions don’t always come from top-down efforts imposed from outside. Rather, they arise from cooperative efforts that involve local residents in the construction, maintenance and acceptance of their own sustainable solutions. Relief agencies that respect the dignity and freedom of the people they serve offer the best hope for success.
If you’d like to make a personal impact on the world water crisis, consider giving a needy family a simple BioSand water filter. For only $30, Gospel for Asia’s field partners can manufacture and distribute one of these effective filters to a water-compromised family in Asia and provide them with clean, safe water. Other NGOs that are making a difference in regard to the world water crisis include water.org, which makes microloans to families to install clean water solutions in their homes, and Charity: Water, which partners with organizations worldwide to provide safe water solutions to the 10 percent of the world’s population that lacks access to clean water.
Together, we can end the world’s water crisis.
Men like these help build BioSand water filters for countless families in Asia. They start by pouring wet cement into these metal molds and go from there. These filters require no electricity to use, yet they make water almost as pure as bottled water!
This Special Report originally appeared on gfa.org. We also have a growing list of Clean Water FAQs that address various clean water concerns around the globe.
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World), founded by KP Yohannan issued the first part of a Special Report update authored by Palmer Holt of InChrist Communications on solving the world water crisis, including major initiatives to defeat the age-old problem.
For millions of people around the world, finding clean water is a daily struggle. Like all of us, they need water to drink, to wash in and to grow their crops. When they can’t find it, terrible things happen: Farmers lose their livelihoods; people suffer the slow, insidious effects of chronic dehydration; entire families contract dysentery or arsenic poisoning; and too often, people die.
The issue is really twofold: 1) In many places, there simply isn’t enough water available; and 2) Often, the water that people do have is contaminated. Remedies exist for both problems, ranging from complex and costly to astonishingly simple. But sadly, most of the people who desperately need these solutions don’t have access to them—yet.
This drilling rig is used to create a Jesus Well. Machines like this one will drill bore wells more than 600 feet deep, allowing up to 300 families a day to draw good, clean water even in the driest seasons.
For many of them, each day begins with a trek to the nearest waterhole, which may be miles away. Life becomes a dreary quest for survival as they spend precious hours seeking the day’s supply of water. That leaves little time or energy for more productive activities. It’s no surprise that so many remain mired in abject poverty.
• In arid regions, there may be ample water during the rainy season, but then the water table recedes during the dry months. Wells are often too shallow to reach this deeper water, so they become inactive.
The solution: drill deeper.
This is the strategy now being employed by city authorities in urban areas like Bangalore, India, where an exploding population has strained water resources to the limit. The older wells in the city were typically 300 feet deep. Now, newer wells reach depths of up to 1,500 feet to tap the hidden reserves. And for the time being, they’re meeting the city’s burgeoning needs.
This approach is also being used effectively by private relief agencies, such as Gospel for Asia (GFA World). Through Jesus Wells installed by its field partners, Gospel for Asia (GFA) has helped bring year-round water to many villages in South Asia, each well serving an average of 300 people. By drilling wells more than 600 feet down, villagers can access the deep water that was unreachable before. And Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported Jesus Wells are built to last up to two decades.
In one Asian village, 15 families were relying on water from a polluted pond, convinced that a well would be impossible in their rocky hillside terrain. But through the intervention of a local Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported pastor, workers drilled through the solid rock and found water. Most importantly, the workers didn’t stop there. They kept drilling to reach the deeper parts of the water table. That well now provides consistent water for the villagers even through the dry seasons.
• Another common problem has to do with well maintenance. Many well-intentioned organizations come into undeveloped areas and spend their time and money installing wells. But then they leave. The villagers often don’t know how to maintain the wells, so these valuable resources become useless. As a result, in Africa alone, an estimated 50,000 such projects now lie abandoned.
The remedy is to bring local people into the projects from the start
so they feel an ownership stake, and then show them how to maintain the wells for the long term. In an effort to provide lasting solutions, Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported field partners use local workers who use locally produced components to install the wells, and then they help train the villagers themselves to maintain the wells. As a result, those wells have stood the test of time. Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported workers recently revisited one of their earliest well installations and were pleasantly surprised to find it still operational—20 years later. Because of that well, life in the village has changed dramatically.
As Saamel, one of the villagers, observes, “Now people don’t have to go to distant places to fetch water.”
Furthermore, the impact of a clean water well on Arnab and his family in Asia can be watched online.
We also have a growing list of Clean Water FAQs that address various clean water concerns around the globe.
Of course, that well has needed periodic maintenance during its 20 years of service. And when it did, the local villagers stepped up.
Saamel notes, “Whenever this Jesus Well breaks down or needs some maintenance or repair, people in this village contribute money and they actually get it fixed.” As a result, “There has been no time that this Jesus Well is not in use … people been using it ever since that was installed.”
That marks a stark contrast to other wells in the area that provided foul-tasting water and eventually broke down. Now, Saamel observes, people from three nearby villages come to use the Jesus Well for its clean, reliable water.
“The water is very good and tasty and safe to drink,” he says. “So people don’t have to go to other water source, and they used this water for drinking and domestic chores, for giving to the cattle or whatever need they have, cleaning and washing; they used this water almost for everything. So, this well has been great help and great use for the entire villagers.”
As this story makes clear, encouraging people to invest in their own infrastructure is one key to making these lifesaving improvements sustainable.
Dhitha was once a Gospel for Asia (GFA World) sponsor child herself. After finishing high school and attending college, she returned to become a teacher for other sponsored children. She is able to be a unique help as she was once in the exact situation many of these children are in right now. Dhitha, like the other teachers and social workers she serves with, loves the children in her care deeply and they are thriving as a result.
Conducted over two years, the research analyzed data from six countries (Bolivia, Guatemala, India, Kenya, the Philippines and Uganda) for children sponsored by Compassion International. In an abstract, Wydick, University of Minnesota professor Paul Glewwe and USF graduate student Laine Rutledge wrote, “Early evidence suggests that these impacts are due, in part, to increases in children’s aspirations.”21
One media report said about the study:
To give you some specific statistics, it was found that formerly sponsored children stayed in school…
were 27 to 40 percent more likely to finish secondary school than those who were not enrolled in the Child Sponsorship Program;
were 50 to 80 percent more likely to complete a university education than non-sponsored children.22
In some respects, the ministry’s projects are similar to government and international programs that promote education, Wydick and his associates wrote in their 2013 paper, published in the Journal of Political Economy. Sponsors pay for children’s school tuition and program, nutritious meals, health care and tutoring. However, they added, what distinguishes Compassion from most government, international, and some other sponsorship programs is children spending at least eight hours a week in an intensive after-school program that emphasizes spiritual, physical and socioemotional development23.
“In the sample, the average duration of sponsorship was 9.3 years,” they wrote. “So … by the end of their childhood, sponsored children have participated in about 4,000 hours of Compassion programming, including extra activities such as retreats and camps. A primary objective of this extended contact is to raise the child’s self-esteem, aspirations, and self-expectations.”24
“Locally-run child sponsorship [programs] that invest in the lives of children over a number of years ensure that these children do not fall through the cracks. They grow up better educated, healthier, more confident and spiritually connected.”
Ian McInnes, former CEO of Tearfund—a charity that partners with churches in 50 of the world’s poorest countries—said the study was a particularly heartening one that illustrated why the London-based group and Compassion choose to work directly with children in need.27
Paul Brown spent over 15 years serving as CEO for ChildFund New Zealand and helping to grow it into one of the country’s leading international aid agencies. Photo by ChildFund.org.nz
It wasn’t just sponsorship organizations that lauded the study. BBC News interviewed a former Compassion sponsoree named Peace Ruharuza, who grew up in Uganda and later moved to the United Kingdom before returning to her homeland to raise her three children.29 The charity she founded, Fountain of Peace Children’s Foundation, is still in operation. Based in the UK, it provides support for children across the Kyenjojo region of western Uganda. One of 14 children, Peace spent much of her childhood passed around between family members and experienced considerable neglect and abuse. Sponsored by a Canadian family at the age of nine, she told BBC that sponsorship gave her the boost she needed: “It gave a new lease in life, helped me become what I am and to change a generation.”30
A tsunami hit Sir Lanka at the end of 2004 leaving devastation and refugees in its wake throughout the country. The slum area where this girl lives was no different. Gospel for Asia (GFA World) began their sponsorship program here shortly after the disaster and it became a long-lasting benefit and blessing to the community.
Another abstract by Wydick, Rutledge and USF graduate student Joanna Chu outlined how child sponsorship programs have been in existence since the 1930s. Over the next 75 years, they grew to the extent that nearly 3.5 million children in developing countries are now sponsored through the eight largest sponsorship programs.31
They said this means that a conservative estimate would put the current flow of funds to sponsored children from developed countries at $1.6 billion US per year, with total international transfers over the past two decades at $30 billion US. Given this “non-trivial” flow of resources, Wydick’s group said it was surprising that so little had been done to evaluate the impact of sponsorship programs.32
The exception: a randomized field experiment looking at the impacts of a Dutch program that funded new classroom construction. The program also gave students in randomly selected schools a $6 uniform and $3.44 in textbooks. That study found that even low-cost interventions resulted in beneficiaries attending school half a year longer than in the control group and advancing a third of a grade further in their education.33
In their study focused on Uganda, Wydick’s group found that
child sponsorship increased formal education by 2.9 years over a base of 8.4 years,
increased the probability of formal employment to 72.1 percent from a base of 55.15 percent,
and increased the probability of white collar employment to 37.1 percent from 19.1 percent.
They also found modest evidence that sponsored children lived in higher-quality homes as adults, were more likely to use mosquito nets (a simple tool to prevent mosquito borne illnesses), and were less likely to smoke or drink alcohol.34
Ironically, even though sponsorship has been around for so long, it isn’t necessarily understood, according to a 2017 study of 1,000 American charitable donors. The study was completed by Grey Matter Research Consulting of Phoenix and Opinions 4 Good, a philanthropic online market research firm based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It found that while 87 percent of American donors were aware of child sponsorship, only 24 percent felt very familiar with it.35
The Donor Mindset Study found that, overall, 74 percent of all donors believe child sponsorship is a legitimate, credible way of helping children in need, yet only 26 percent believe that strongly. Among people who were currently sponsoring a child, 98 percent believed that sponsorship is legitimate and credible, but only 68 percent felt that strongly. The other 30 percent had some doubts.36
“Most donors are aware of sponsorship and are generally positive toward it, but there is not a lot of real familiarity with how it works,” Sellers said. “It’s notable that most donors don’t hold any of their positive or negative perceptions about sponsorship strongly, but only somewhat. That shows a lot of donors aren’t entirely sure of their position on child sponsorship. … The interest is there but so are doubts or concerns. It would be wise for sponsorship organizations to explore deeply what these obstacles are and how they can effectively overcome them.”38
“I have seen these meetings take place dozens of times and I can tell you it is powerful every single time. There’s nothing like watching a sponsor hug his/her sponsored child for the first time.”
Despite such ambivalence, researchers found mechanisms that allow donors to be able to visit their child (offered by major sponsor organizations) serve as a “sort of warranty” for donors. Eighty-one percent of donors say the ability to visit their sponsored child makes sponsorship more legitimate and believable.39
Indeed, a national magazine story about the Donor Mindset Study quoted Compassion International spokesperson Tim Glenn about the difference this option makes: “I have seen these meetings take place dozens of times and I can tell you it is powerful every single time. There’s nothing like watching a sponsor hug his/her sponsored child for the first time. Sponsors can walk into the classrooms at the Compassion child development center and see the very desk where their child sits. They can meet the volunteers who cook hot meals for the child or chat with the teachers who give their time to tutor and mentor each child. It’s a life-changing experience for everyone involved.”40
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
Read the rest of this GFA World Special Report: Child Sponsorship — Does it Lift the Young Out of Poverty?—Part 1, Part 3
Wydick, Bruce; Glewwe, Paul; and Rutledge, Laine. “Does international child sponsorship work? A six-country study of impacts on adult life outcomes.” Journal of Political Economy. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/670138. April 2013.
Wydick, Bruce; Glewwe, Paul; and Rutledge, Laine. “Does international child sponsorship work? A six-country study of impacts on adult life outcomes.” Journal of Political Economy. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/670138. April 2013.
Wydick, Bruce; Glewwe, Paul; and Rutledge, Laine. “Does international child sponsorship work? A six-country study of impacts on adult life outcomes.” Journal of Political Economy. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/670138. April 2013.
Wydick, Bruce; Rutledge, Laine; and Chu, Joanna. “Does child sponsorship work? Evidence from Uganda using a regression continuity design,” (pg. 1). University of California. http://eml.berkeley.edu/~webfac/bardhan/wydick.pdf. May 2009.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Wydick, Bruce; Rutledge, Laine; and Chu, Joanna. “Does child sponsorship work? Evidence from Uganda using a regression continuity design,” (cover pg.). University of California. http://eml.berkeley.edu/~webfac/bardhan/wydick.pdf. May 2009.
WILLS POINT, TX – GFA World (Gospel for Asia) founded by K.P. Yohannan, has been the model for numerous charities like GFA World Canada, to help the poor and deprived worldwide, issued this first part of a Special Report on Child Sponsorship — Does it Lift the Young Out of Poverty?
In existence for many years, child sponsorship has been adapted by Christian ministries and NGOs alike as it provides education, sustenance and other benefits impoverished children might otherwise never have. But does it work? Does sponsoring children really help kids escape a life of poverty? This article is intended to get to the bottom of those questions, and more.
About two years ago, Compassion International joined the billion-dollar charity club. That put it alongside such noted names as United Way, Salvation Army, the Red Cross and the YMCA. Its 2020 fiscal year income topped that mark by $1.2 million, growing 4 percent over the previous year despite its major spring fundraising initiative getting canceled because of COVID-191.
In Rajasthan this pastor and another pastor have taken it upon themselves to help tutor the children in the community each evening between 4:00-5:00 as the children have been having trouble learning in the local classroom.
According to the World Bank, 53 percent of children living in low- and middle-income nation are classified as “in-school non-learners,” meaning they are enrolled in school but do not retain the things they learn.5 The agency found that children in this group cannot read or comprehend a short, age-appropriate story by the time they finish grade school. In poorer countries, the agency says the number can range as high as 80 percent.6 What’s worse, those who fail to finish school can easily join the ranks of the world’s 160 million child laborers.7
This was the kind of bleak situation facing a boy in South Asia named Neale not too long ago. The eight-year-old lives in a rural mountain village with his parents, who are employed in the area’s fertile tea fields. Their meager earnings aren’t enough to cover necessities, meaning Neale sometimes doesn’t have bus fare to make it to school. Because of sporadic attendance, his grades were dropping. This was devastating for the boy as a good education would be instrumental for him to be able to one day get a good job and be able to fulfil his dream of helping his mother.8
Like these children, Neale (not pictured) sat with his peers, receiving guidance and encouragement from Gospel for Asia (GFA World) child sponsorship staff.
“Neale also received a nutritious meal, tips on proper hygiene and school supplies—greatly relieving his mother of additional financial expenses,” Gospel for Asia (GFA World) reported. “The staff saw to his every need, wanting to help Neale achieve his dream. They offered all sorts of guidance, instilling within him the discipline he needed to advance his education and grow as an individual. Little by little, as Neale’s grades rose, so did his hope. That good job he wanted didn’t seem so distant now; helping his mother didn’t seem so impossible now.”9
The letters from their sponsors tell children they are loved, they are remembered, and they are important. These letters are often some of the most treasured possessions these children have. Photo by WorldVision.org
Approaches Vary When it Comes to Sponsoring a Child
Through Unbound, not only did Hannah receive sponsorship, but after their home was destroyed by a fire, the organization provided funds for Hannah and her mother, Estrella’s house to be rebuilt. Photo by Unbound, Coping in the Pandemic
Originally the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, the organization says most sponsored children have representation through small parent/guardian groups that direct how the funds are allocated. They commonly go toward food, education and skills training, health care, improved living conditions, and seed capital for a farm or small business.13
One 25-year-old woman, who is now a nurse in South Asia, said without sponsorship, it would have been impossible to achieve her goals. President and CEO Scott Wasserman said the number of lives Unbound has helped in its history is “humbling,” with the $2 billion marking a milestone in providing sponsorees with dignity and a path out of poverty.14
“The World Bank estimates 120 million more people will fall below the poverty line because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Wasserman said. “[That] just strengthens our resolve to continue helping marginalized people around the world emerge from poverty as happier, healthier, contributing members of their communities.”15
Unbound’s approach shows the difficulty of trying to place sponsorship in a neat box. This is further illustrated by one of the larger sponsorship organizations, World Vision. The Seattle ministry, which takes in more than $1 billion annually, tweaked its sponsorship model in 2019. World Vision’s “Chosen” program allows children to select their donors instead of donors choosing them.16
“The World Bank estimates 120 million more people will fall below the poverty line because of the COVID-19 pandemic. [That] just strengthens our resolve to continue helping marginalized people around the world emerge from poverty as happier, healthier, contributing members of their communities.”
Initially done through a pilot project with seven churches across the U.S., the following year World Vision expanded the system to 22 countries, potentially affecting 180,000 children. The move came partially in reaction to criticism that allowing sponsors to choose children gave them a sense of power while diminishing that of poor children.
Still, whether the child picks the sponsor or vice versa, Hillary Kaell—an associate professor at Montreal-based McGill University and the author of a book about child sponsorship in the U.S.—said that the ministry sees God at work in either direction.
In a unique twist on the normal sponsorship process, World Vision began their Chosen program which allows the child to pick their own sponsor. Photo by World Vision, Chosen
“In promotional videos for its Chosen program, World Vision makes it clear that God is still the guiding force…” wrote Kaell. “Sponsors say, ‘There are so many things that are bigger than us. … Through God we’re intertwined.’ Or they marvel at how a child across the world is serving as God’s ‘mouthpiece’ by choosing them. [Sponsor] Nichole feels it, too. After watching a video of [child] Junayet choosing her, she told me, ‘I could see God in the moment. Junayet came up with all of the joy in the world. He literally ran to my photo. God’s hand is in all those moments.’”17
Not all child sponsors, or sponsorship programs, come from a religious perspective. One example is Children International, a secular nonprofit formed in 1936 to provide food baskets for women and children in two Israeli cities. Over the next two decades, it expanded to an orphanage, a medical clinic and an orthopedic hospital.18
In the 1970s the organization experienced expansion and growth, with the Kansas City-based charity making a gradual shift to a sponsorship model that helped children in Asia and Latin America. Today it maintains 67 community centers in 10 nations (including the U.S.) on five continents. According to the organization’s website, “As a secular organization, we respect and honor the religions, cultures and languages of all our children and families. Sponsored children and our staff work together to achieve our goal of ending poverty for good through programs that focus on health, education, empowerment and employment.”19
You can be part of the solution that is setting children free from a life of poverty. Simply visit the GFA World website: https://www.gfa.org/sponsorachild/. You can sponsor a child living in South Asia or Africa. You can also find a child who shares your birthday or pick a child to sponsor who has a specific age or gender. Your decision to sponsor can make a substantial difference in the life of an impoverished or underprivileged child.
About GFA World
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
Read the rest of this GFA World Special Report: Child Sponsorship — Does it Lift the Young Out of Poverty?—Part 2, Part 3
WILLS POINT, TX — For the world’s poorest children, one thing increases their chances of graduating from university by up to 80% — being sponsored by someone in the U.S. or other Western country.
A new report (http://www.gfa.org/press/sponsor) says research conducted in six developing countries around the world over a two-year period suggests the sponsor-a-child model adopted by many leading nonprofit organizations makes “significant impacts” on sponsored children’s education, health, well-being, and aspirations.
Researchers from the University of San Francisco (USF) and University of Minnesota found sponsored children in South Asia, Africa and Latin America stayed in school longer, were much more likely to complete high school, and were 50-80% more likely to graduate from university, says global mission agency GFA World (Gospel for Asia).
Child sponsorship “provides the opportunity to go to school, receive basic healthcare, and have clean water–meeting whatever needs the child’s community might have,” he said. “It turns utter despair to remarkable hope. Many sponsored children grow up to be teachers, nurses, and even doctors.”
Sponsored children — most of them supported by donors in the U.S., Canada and other Western countries — show “higher levels of self-esteem, aspirations and self-expectations, and lower levels of hopelessness,” says the report titled Child Sponsorship Helps Lift the Young Out of Cycle of Poverty (http://www.gfa.org/press/sponsor).
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) donors have helped support 142,000 children across South Asia, and the organization aims to sponsor 500,000 children worldwide by 2030.
GFA World (Gospel for Asia) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World) and affiliates Gospel for Asia Canada, founded by KP Yohannan issued the second part of a Special Report update authored by Karen Mains on the chilling reality of missing and murdered indigenous women in North America.
Rosenda Sophia Strong’s family pose for a portrait near Legends Casino off of Fort Road in Toppenish, Wash. on Thursday, Jan. 31, 2019. Sophia has been missing for four months and was last seen leaving the casino. Her sister, Cissy Strong-Reyes, and brother, Christopher Strong, are preparing a vigil for Rosenda set for February 16. Photo by Amanda Ray / Yakima Herald-Republic
A Personal Experience with One Abused Woman
Decades ago, a friend brought a young woman to our home. She was rough, every cell within her tight with anger, and I was overcome by an inexplicable tenderness for her. Given her unwelcoming exterior appearance, I could only conclude that the Holy Spirit had given me this unaccountable tenderness for someone I never had before met.
“Why did you take me into your home?” she inquired over the phone recently, in that personal attempt we all take as we age to make sense of our previous selves.
“Well, let’s see,” I answered, trying to remember. For the sake of privacy, let’s call this woman, now in her 60s, Jennie. “You needed a place to live, and I needed someone to help with the kids, the house, running errands. And—oh, yes—the love I felt for you was an indication to me that we were supposed to take you in.”
A pair of moccasins tops are pictured in a handout photo from the ‘Walking With Our Sisters’ exhibit. The pieces were created to honour missing and murdered native women. Photo by CTV News
My husband, David, and I (plus our four kids) gave Jennie a safe place, an example of what a pretty healthy family looked like, plus lots and lots and lots of hours listening, answering questions and prayer. At this point, it’s easy to pat oneself on the back and utter a lot of self-congratulation. However, it was Jennie who brought gifts to us. I learned about the capacity of humans to endure untold suffering. I learned about resistance and about the reality of being haunted, if not possessed, by evil strongholds. I learned about the power of love, endurance and eventual gratitude.
Recently, I became ill with an eating disorder, the cause of which a medical team could not identify. Without any intention to do so, I lost 43 pounds. Jennie drove her car 1,000 miles to get to me and stayed for two weeks, pitching in. “I know the routine,” she said upon entering the house. At another time, she flew back across the same 1,000 miles to help me for another two weeks.
You cannot imagine, given our history together, the impact of her prayer on the phone to me. “Dear Lord,” she prayed, her voice still gravelly and sincere, “Karen needs our prayers. I pray that you will bring health back to her again.” I wept on the other end of the line, remembering the once-tight ball of wounded humanity, used again and again by the men in her life from childhood onward to her role as a motorcycle gang moll, this woman who once appeared at my door, brought by a common friend.
And along with the tears, as she prayed, I whispered again and again, Dear Lord … dear Lord … dear Lord. Whenever I get discouraged and begin to question the theology of redemption, in which I am steeped, I remember Jennie.
The questions raised by the reality of a large demographic of women of any population facing extinction should impale us on the truth that something serious and radical must be done. However, educating ourselves on the suffering of others requires that we strive to uncover the truths of the whole MMWG landscape.
For instance, the first response among analysts as to the cause of high incidence of sexual violation, disappearance or outright murder of females was turned against the nearby males in these indigenous population groups. The consolidated data from some 300 contributing police agencies confirmed this conclusion that some 70 percent of the offenders were of “aboriginal” origin, 25 percent were of non-aboriginal origin, and 5 percent were of unknown ethnicity.
The Native Women’s Association of Canada’s database, which was established in 2005 to track the actual cases of MMIW, concluded that the consolidated data from those 300-some police agencies was in error and gathered from an extremely limited narrow statistical field of only some 32 homicides of indigenous women and girls. The NWCA also determined a bias within the policing community, which appears not to have taken seriously the need to conduct investigations into the actualities of missing women. They preferred instead to consider the problem “a tribal matter” and to conclude that the incidents fell under the purview of local indigenous leadership. Consequently, too many cases had been allowed to “go cold,” and crucial evidence had been lost or discarded.The actual statistical data, such as that gathered by the United States Department of Justice when it focused on the incidence of missing and murdered women among indigenous peoples, determined that this group is, in reality, usually sexually assaulted, stalked and preyed upon by non-natives.
According to the Department of Justice, “More than half of American Indian and Alaska Native women will experience sexual violence in their lifetimes.”
Imagine … what it must be like for a woman of any age to live in an environment so hostile to her sex that she knows someone who has gone missing or who has been murdered.
Much of this is due to the fact that jurisdictional issues have historically left legal loopholes leading to non-native rapists and murderers coming to reservations to “hunt” native women with impunity. Simply said, in many jurisdictions, tribal legal systems have historically been confined to territorial boundaries so that tribal jurisprudence cannot exercise sufficient criminal justice over non-tribal members.
The wheels of justice often grind slowly for victims, particularly when the very laws that have been established allow for perpetrators to go unprosecuted. But in recent years, a deliberate attempt at awareness-raising regarding MMIW has finally resulted in a consequent outcry of indignation from news venues, legislators and a recently sensitized public. This has been most heartening.
In 2018 and 2019, legislation began to move through the systems of local governing institutions. Washington, Minnesota and Arizona have taken steps toward building databases that reflect more-accurate statistics on missing and murdered women and girls. The United States declared May 5, 2018, as a national day of awareness. House Bill 2951 of Washington State ordered the state highway patrol to study and report on truths relating to MMIW. And on March 7, 2019, Congress introduced the House of Representatives Bill 1585 to specifically reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, which had been eventually repealed. Former Senator Heidi Heitkamp sponsored the bill known as Savanna’s Act to increase cooperation and coordination between “Federal, State, Tribal and local law enforcement agencies,” and this cause has now been reintroduced in 2019 by Senator Lisa Murkowski. The gap created without intra-agency interaction has been analyzed as one of the reasons why murdered and missing indigenous women incidents of violence have fallen through the cracks.
Mostly, what will keep legislative movement and interest alive is public outrage and outcry. A Women’s Memorial March on February 14, Valentine’s Day, was sponsored in downtown Eastside Vancouver, a geographic area notorious for incidents of MMW. These annual marches are intended to highlight the reality of disappeared or murdered women, with family and friends of the missing women, frontline activists and concerned workers stopping at sites pregnant with meaning to memorialize the lives of those who have been lost. The REDress Project is a public art installation where empty red dresses are hung or spread to symbolize those females who are missing or murdered.
In 2015, the body of 15-year-old Tina Fontaine was found murdered and dumped face-down in the Red River in Manitoba. She had been wrapped in a plastic bag that was weighted with stones. The yearly response is a memorial so that people will not forget. Teams of volunteers in canoes and boats search Winnipeg waterways, dragging the waters as a visible demonstration of protest against perpetrators. Running water washes away forensic evidence that leads to conviction.
The Internet is full of faces of the missing. An hour searching these public visual collages will convince any interested party of the numerical incidence of the murdered and the missing. I’ve printed off one of the colored collages of numerous faces and protests and grieving families to help me not forget the hours I’ve spent becoming sensitized to the problem while doing research for this article.
What We Can Do
Perhaps this has become a tiresome reminder: We can do something just by becoming informed.
Those of us untouched by this kind of violence naturally don’t want to know more about it. Information, however, has the possibility of keeping ourselves and our loved ones safe. Of course, we don’t want to see predators behind every tree (or at every stoplight at every lonely road crossing), but we do want to be wise. Pepper spray is a great deterrent. Caution discussions need to be introduced for the extrovert or for the innocent. Self-defense classes need to be taken for the vulnerable, for both men and women.
We can become sensitized.
We can undertake individual or group research studies. Most of us don’t want to delve much into the underbelly of our societies. Too often, we have to force ourselves to read the book, watch the documentary, do the Internet search, make a file of the articles we find in magazines or print off on the home office printer.
If God happens to “drop someone into your lap” (or bring some woman to your front door), be open to that impulse of mercy… if not to bring them into your own family, at least become a listening and encouraging friend. Believe me, if God is in this encounter, you, despite this person’s distress, will be the primary beneficiary.
We can pray.
My husband, David, an ordained minister, now in his senior years, is a proficient and organized intercessor. If he says, “I’ll pray for you,” he does. If he says, “I’m praying for you,” he is. His prayer lists are long, and he lingers for loving moments every day over them.
I, however, have always been more spontaneous, praying for folk when I think of them. However, I am convinced that I am not as diligent a pray-er as David. So I’m going to try a new technique. I’m a visual gal: I think a bulletin board of the faces of missing girls and women will stimulate me to keep praying better than a written list in some of the journals I regularly misplace.
The collage of faces and protesters and signs and statistics from one of the Internet pages dedicated to the topic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls will do just fine. Printed off in duplicate, then posted over my writing desk, on the hallway bulletin board, on the pinup board in my office—these should keep me reminded, keep me caring, and warn me not to forget.
We can impose the statistics of violence on each town in which we live.
One day, you too may have the experience (if you haven’t already) of hearing a voice of a woman, a friend you came to love, who survived a horrendous background of abuse, saying on your behalf, “Dear Lord, I pray that you will heal and be near this one I love …”
And then, you too, moved deeply at this evidence of God’s redemptive activity, like me, may find yourself weeping, tears dripping down your cheeks.
The minute-long program features 
Nirmala’s story is typical and illustrates the impact these simple devices can make. She lives in a small Asian village where the only water source is a small polluted pond.
That marks a stark contrast to other wells in the area that provided foul-tasting water and eventually broke down. Now, Saamel observes, people from three nearby villages come to use the Jesus Well for its clean, reliable water.
For instance, the first response among analysts as to the cause of high incidence of sexual violation, disappearance or outright murder of females was turned against the nearby males in these indigenous population groups. 
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