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report

clear words. strong actions.

PERSECUTION »At least one« AVC HISTORY »Trained by the KGB«SIBERIA »Seemingly destroyed«NICARAGUA »Gringo come out«

n e h e m i areportAVCNO.01 2013

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Dear Reader

Discriminated against, persecuted, abused, killed. This is the fate of countless Christians worldwide.

According to conservative estimates, one Christian dies for his/her beliefs every five minutes.

AVC stands up for persecuted Christians. We give them a voice, alongside practical help: courageous, deter-mined, effective.

Yet when faced with the extent of Christian persecu-tion, which is greater now than in any past century, one could ask oneself what good our commitment is actually doing.

One morning a man goes for a walk on a secluded beach. Far in the distance he sees a small boy lifting up objects and throwing them into the sea. As he gets closer he realises: They are starfish. During the night, the waves had washed up thousands of the creatures onto the beach. The man asks the boy: “What are you doing there?” – ”I‘m throwing the starfish back into the sea”, he replies, ”otherwise they‘ll die”. – ”True...” said the man, ”but look around you. There are so many lying here on the beach. You can‘t possibly throw them all back. The few starfish that you can save – what difference will that make?” The boy laughs, lifts up a starfish, holds it in his hand and looks at it: ”For this one here it makes a big difference; this starfish will live,” he says, throwing it into the sea.

This short story typifies the reason why AVC has been supporting persecuted Christians, helping those in need and making Jesus Christ known worldwide for more than 40 years. We get our hands dirty, help and initiate change anywhere and as often as we can. And for those that our work has reached, this help makes a great difference – sometimes the difference between life and death.

Please support us and our partners in the respective countries as we ”throw starfish into the sea”.

Cordially

Pawel Sturz

2 Editorial

3 Persecution At least one

4 AVC History Trained by the KGB

5 SiberiaSeemingly destroyed

6 TanzaniaWild at heart

7 EstoniaBack to the roots

8 NicaraguaGringo come out

10 UzbekistanEleven years as an ”enemy of the state”

11 MoldovaDriven to desperation

12 Mission experienceMiracles added extra

14 AVCImpressum

15 TestimonyWhy on earth am I alive

16 PakistanFacing death

contents

AVCR EPORTEDI TOR I A L

editorial

3AVC R EPORTPERSECU T ION 3

Nobody is able to save the whole world, but everybody is able to help at least one person.

at least one

AVC was founded in 1972 to help persecuted Christians and make Jesus Christ known. In addition, we also help the needy.Behind the Iron Curtain, we visited the persecuted and the families of Christians who had been arrested. This brought people help and above all encouragement, because they knew that they were not alone and not forgotten. Every Bible which got through to them – often at great risk (see page 4, ”Trained by the KGB”) – was a precious treasure. Since then, public demonstra-tions and events, along with the magazine ”AVC-report” have repeatedly drawn attention to the injustice of the persecution of Christians.

Bloody trail of persecutionChristians have died for their faith in every period of history and on every continent. From the death of Stephen to the victims of the Roman Caesars to the martyrs of the Middle Ages right up to our own time the bloody trail of persecution can be traced. In one night alone, the so-called Bartholomew’s Night of 1572, about 5,000 Christians were killed. Countless other victims were to follow.

There are no exact figures as to the extent of the persecution of Christians today. According to cautious estimates, however, every five minutes a Christian dies for their faith. Furthermore, these shocking figures say nothing of the suffering and agony of the Christians in labor camps and prisons, where they are ill-treated, humiliated and tortured.

Stand up and give them a voiceAt no time in history has the persecution of Christians been greater than today – despite this, the ignorance and indifference towards it is phenomenal. We want to give the perse-cuted a voice, and to stand alongside them and their families.

You, too, can give them a voice. You, too, can stand alongside them. You , too, can visit the brothers and sisters. You, too, can give them your love. You, too, can encourage them. You, too, can wipe their tears away. You, too, can help them with finances.

Admittedly, you cannot help all of them, but you can stand by at least one.

“Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow-prisoners, and those who are ill-treated as if you yourselves were suffering.” (Heb 13:3). No one can escape this responsibility.

No one leftI once read a quotation by Pastor Martin Niemöller (persecuted and imprisoned by the Nazis) that I want to adapt a bit:

“When they persecuted the Christians behind the Iron Curtain, I remained silent, I lived in the free West.

When they imprisoned the Christians behind the Bam-boo Curtain, I remained silent, I did not live in Asia.

When they killed the Christians in the Islamic world,I remained silent, I lived in the Christian West .

When they took me, there was no one left who could help me.”

We have to stand up – now.

Pawel Sturz

Director AVC

4

Our first Bible smuggling took place in May 1973.We headed into the Soviet Union and it was a suc-cess. We all experienced God’s supernatural help. We were motivated to attempt another mission that started in late April 1974. At first everything went according to plan and at the Polish-Ukraini-an border everything still seemed to be running smoothly. They were about to let us through.

Suddenly suspiciousUnexpectedly, everything changed. To this day I have no idea why. The border police be- came skeptical and

suspicious. They extended the search on our van. We felt as if dark, frigh-tening, and thunde-ring clouds rolled in when one of the officers pulled out some fragments of paper from the car floor with a thin wire. The van was system-atically taken apart and search-

ed. After three hours, their efforts were rewarded: They found our Bibles and Christian literature. These were confiscated, our van impounded, and, to top it all off, we were arrested and taken into custody. They searched us inch by inch. Luckily, I was able to de-stroy all of the addresses we had with us in the last seconds before they would have been discovered.

Never-ending interrogationI was brought in for the first of a long series of inter-rogations. Sometimes the KGB officers were friendly,

sometimes they screamed at me. They threatened to send me to a labor camp in Siberia. The interrogations started in the morning and lasted until midnight. My attempts to sleep were in vain. The thoughts and feelings were racing inside my head. I could not understand God. Why would he ever allow this situ-ation to happen? He knew better than anyone that the Christians in the Soviet Union were yearning for Bibles. Then I was reminded of the first Christians and how they were robbed and imprisoned for their faith (Hebrews 10:34). All of a sudden, I realized that through this experience I could now relate to and understand the persecuted Christians and the constant oppres-sion, fear and uncertainty that they live through.

Days of uncertaintyThe interrogations and feelings of uncertainty lasted several days but we had an inner peace. The head officer became anxious because he and his col-leagues were not able to pry any information out of us. Meanwhile, I was taking in all the information they were unknowingly providing me with. They made the mistake of letting us watch as they inspected vans. All of the information would be very useful to us in the future.

Now more than everWe were released and when we returned, we decided to buy a bigger van. With all the information I got, we were able to double the amount of books and Bibles hidden in the new van compared to what was con-fiscated on our last trip. This van was the first of many to follow. I began to train others in Bible smuggling. In the subsequent years, we smuggled hundreds of thous-ands of Bibles and vast quantities of Christian literature behind the Iron Curtain of the Soviet Union and into North Africa and the Middle East.

We lost many vans and their valuable freight. We faced many difficulties and disappointments, but one thing was always clear to us: We have responsibility for the persecuted Christians and we will not give up on them.

Hans Ollesch Co-founder of AVC

The first Christians never became angered or distraught when their belongings were stolen. Instead, they rejoiced. How did the co-founder of AVC feel when faced with “robbery”?

AVCR EPORTAVC H ISTORY4

trained by the KGB

The Ollesch

familySmuggling

tour

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Here everything is clean and in order. The reason: Germans live here. During World War II civilians were driven out of Volhynia, Ukraine, Belarus, We-stern Russia and, after the war, exiled to Kazakhstan, Kirghizia and other places. Some found their new home here in the depths of Siberia. Such as the Botte family.

Scoped by the KGBIf you watched house number 13 carefully, you would notice that an astonishing number of people came in and out on certain weekdays. Could these be secret meetings? The KGB found out that Christi-ans gathered here. Not just any Christians, but the infamous Pentecostals. Holding these secret Chri-stian meetings resulted in a raid, punishment and, in the end, the confiscation of the house. Scared and desperate, Valentine Botte hid in the nearby forest. Through sobs he cried out to God, “Was all the hard work we did for nothing? Did we pray or work in vain?” The conclusion seemed obvious as the church had been torn apart and its members scattered.

Glasnost and Perestroika brought changes and opened up new possibilities. In 1994, an AVC team under the leadership of Kriemhilde and Waldemar Sadaczuk left on a trip to Siberia. Along the route of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, we shared the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we were in Omsk, we founded three new churches.

Ussurijskaja todayMay 2011: House number 13 is still there in Ussurijs-kaja, and the street still has no asphalt. Things have changed and the forest nearby has been cut down and replaced with a housing complex, but that is not all. For us it is a miracle that just two house numbers further up, across from the old Botte home, there is a new church with 500 seats. That Sunday we had the official opening service. The new building was very large and grand. The plastering was not yet finished, but the walls were nonetheless filled with thankful Christians worshiping God.

A miracleOmsk has an area of approximately 220 square mi-les– a megacity. God is continuing to move and work in the same place where, in 1979, everything seemed to be lost. In spite of the KGB and their persecution, the invisible seed, which was thought to be destroyed, is now bearing fruit because of the dedicated Christi-ans who prayed and sacrificed so much.

seemingly destroyed

AVCR EPORTSI BER I A

1979: Ussurijskaja – an average suburb located just outside of the large city of Omsk, Russia. There is one house after another, each with a small barn and a yard surrounding the property. However, house number thirteen is different.

Omsk House number 13

Waldemar SardaczukCo-founder and honorary president of AVC

Glasnost (policy established in the Soviet Union by the Gorba-chev Administration that allowed open discussion of economic and political realities)

6 AVCR EPORTTA NZA N I A

Africa. The name of this continent awakens longing and associations of a stunning natural environment, safaris, exotic adventures, freedom. Paul saw a different Africa.

Familiar images in the media, like begging children with bloated bellies or emaciated and exhausted people in front of poor homes in dry savanna landscape. Their eyes tell silent stories of suffering and the fight for survival.

Captivated by imagesBriefly shocked and embarrassed when I saw such pictures, I had – previously – put them to one side and gone on with my day. But finally, I could not get these impressions out of my mind. I did not want to just be an observer, I wanted to do something. And God opened doors for me.

Swahili for beginners”Mzungu”. This word, which people constantly called out to me on the streets of Tanzania, could hardly describe a white newcomer better: ”someone aimless-ly straying”. That was just how I felt. Everything was foreign, I was unable to communicate. Because I was white, I stood out everywhere. This was a strange, new feeling for me.

At my destinationMorogoro. The melodious name stands for the AVC children‘s village in Tanzania. It was just like I had imagined Africa: stinging heat, dust in my throat, barely any running water, broken roads, and no electricity. The children‘s village is a refuge and a loving home for 28 orphans. Football and music were the ‘language’ I first used to speak to them. The children immediately un-derstood; they were always nearby, talking, making me

laugh, letting me be part of their daily life, and patiently teaching me their language. I found my way into their hearts.

Children’s fatesI quickly found out about the children’s fates. Their mi-sery prompted questions directed at God. At the same time, my love towards the children increased every day. We did a lot together. But the most important thing was simply being there for these children as a brother, friend, playmate and sometimes a substitute father. With their laughter, their stories, little tokens, short letters and hugs they give me so much back.

What was the result?In Tanzania I saw, learned and suddenly understood a lot. I came into a world of totally different values and norms. I was greeted warmly and openly by people who owned nothing and still had more than me. Here I expe-rienced a special kind of community, trust and childlike devotion to God and suddenly I had a completely new understanding of something I had known for a long time: Jesus really is the way, the truth and the life. For me there is nothing more rewarding than to live for God – and for my neighbor. In Africa, my neighbors were 28 orphans. Giving them my love and attention has given me the most fulfillment I have experienced until now. My wild heart found rest in Tanzania.

Morogoro is everywhere!I am now back in Germany and still missing everyone and everything. But here, too, I want to be there for my neighbor. Because Morogoro is everywhere! Even here, people become depressed and lonely, desperately searching for support and a sense of being loved. Anyone who re-sponds to the challenges of these people with the love of God will find his own, personal Morogoro.

What about you?

wild at heart

Paul Neufeld

7

back to the roots

AVCR EPORTE STON I A

The long-awaited dream of my parents to return to Ger-many – the land of their ancestors – is being fulfilled.

Everything left behindThe doors of the sleeping car close and the train rolls on. The final lamps of the railway platform disappear into the darkness. We leave everything behind: all our possessions – we are only allowed to bring 20 kg of luggage per person with us, and a total of approx. 260 US dollars – and most significantly our brothers and sisters from the church, our friends. Will we ever see one another again?

The years fly by. The great, unshakable Soviet Empire no longer exists and Estonia has now become a mem-ber of the EU. However, the decades of atheism have left traces behind and still characterise the face of the country today. The request from the few churches: ”Come over and help us.”

I‘m going back After more than 25 years, I am traveling back to my home country. In so doing, a personal dream is being fulfilled. I am once again allowed to be in Estonia. And I am not alone. I am travelling with a colorful group of people, thrown together from Germany, the USA (the former pastor of the church in Estonia, Adam Bondar-uk and the children of church members who emigrated to the USA) and the Ukraine, with Paldiski and Rakvere as our destination. We are to distribute Christmas pre-sents and, most importantly, to bring people the good news of Jesus Christ.

Encounter with a Mafia bossI particularly enjoyed one encounter. In the park in Paldiski we see a group of men. We head over to them. As we approach we notice something: The people are armed. Perhaps we would be better turning back? No! We greet them and invite them to our events. Some laugh and the boss of the group is shocked as he, the man who ”has everything in the city under his control” had not been aware of our activities.

The evening event begins. We are curious. Will anyone even come at all? Yes, some people have taken us up on the invitation. And to our great surprise, the Mafia boss is sitting in the first row. He is heavily drunk, yet we are nonetheless delighted that he is there. The seed of God‘s word falls on stony ground - his heart is hardened. The following day I meet him again on the street. I begin a conversation with him and a verse from the Bible hits him full force. The multiple murder-er gives his life to Jesus Christ. I am thrilled.

As a result of our three-week mission, two churches are founded. I am even more thrilled.

We travel back, but the Estonian Christians remain and continue the work. For there are so many Estonians, Russians, Ukrainians and other people groups in Estonia who have not yet heard the message of Jesus Christ.

The vast Soviet Empire is shaken and the Iron Curtain falls. Borders are opened. And people can finally emigrate out of the Soviet Republic of Estonia. Simon Boschmann is one of them.

Simon Boschmann

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Twelve years ago, God led me to Nicaragua. At that time I knew only one thing: This country was one of the poorest in the world. My wife and I got married five months after arriving in Nicaragua and began looking for accommodation in a poor district. We soon realized that this was the wrong decision.

Much help - little thanksWe gave to the poor what we had: our clothes and shoes, hammers, and shovels. I allowed them to borrow my things, such as my wheelbarrow. I bought drainpipes for a house in which the moisture made the walls turn green and the children become sick. We helped prevent rainwater dripping onto the bed by buying zinc sheeting for them. Our neighbors were suffering from asthma due to smoke in the house. So for them we built a chimney.

But despite all the assistance I gave them, they have never really accepted me, even to this day. On the contrary, the opinion prevails that, as a German, I must be rich and am therefore obliged to help them. I rarely hear a thank you from them

Nocturnal attackOne night, at around 11 o’clock, I heard a knock on the door and someone yelling, ”Gringo, come out. I will shoot a bullet in your head”. Sleepy, but without fear, I went to the door and prayed: ”Lord, I have only been in this country for three months. You sent me here, and it can’t be that my life should end today. I haven’t been able to do anything for you here yet.” I opened the door and stood facing a drunken man who waved a gun in my face. I calmly asked him why he wanted to shoot me. Directing the barrel of the gun at me, he began to yell that it was my fault the wall of our school had fallen on his property. I told him that I did not build the wall and I am also not the owner of the school, but he did not care. ”You Gringos are to blame for everything.” Life can be so simple when you blame others.

”I know where I‘m going if you shoot me right now – to God. But do you know where you‘re going?” As soon as I asked that question, a woman came out of nowhere and calmed the man down, took his gun, cried and asked me not to call the police. She was his wife. I left it at that and thanked God for his protection and for the peace which he had given me during the incident.

AVCR EPORTN ICA R AGUA

He had only been in the country for three months and already someone had pointed a gun at him. He was robbed by people he had previously helped. That was not what Gerhard imagined his work in Nicaragua would be like.

come out!« »gringo

Gerhard Mantei

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Vandalism, theft Other people we had been unable to help threw stones at my roof. I had to keep on repairing it. The son of the neigh-bor for whom we had built the chimney broke into our house, vandalized everything and stole my wife’s clothing.The wife of the neighbor whom we had given the drains offered to clean our house. We thought that she was doing this out of gratitude. Instead, she stole our cash and my wife’s valuables.We have often asked ourselves why we are still here, and why we keep helping others. The answer may sound na-ive to some – but to us it is enough: Because our ministry is from and for God and because we love the people.

Heavy blowOver the course of time, we have now established two schools in which 711 children are cared for – from kin-dergarten to high school. 26 of our 34 staff members work as teachers.

One year we had trouble finding a math teacher. There-fore, we hired a teacher who knew nothing about Christian values but was highly recommended. He proved himself during the trial period and received a contract for one school year.

Increasingly, he came to school drunk, went home early and did not appear on the last six days of the con-tract. Despite our right to dismiss him without notice, we did not fire him right away, and even paid him his full salary. A few weeks later we received the court summons: The teacher was suing us for the payment of one year’s salary. I felt like I had been struck on the head with a hammer.

From blows to a barrageI hired a lawyer, and in the first instance, the court rejected the case. But the angry teacher appealed. The court allowed it and confiscated the mission’s bank account. Then the teacher tried to give the school a bad reputation through the radio station of the leftist Sandinistas, and the radio station repeatedly attacked the school for a period of time.

I found everything so unjust and completely wrong. I went home, lay down on my bed, cried and did not want to see anyone. I was furious with these corrupt bandits. Later, I took my Bible and read about how the people treated Jesus. That calmed me down. Then I began to pray. Suddenly I remembered an experience in one of

our nurseries. A little girl fell down and cried. I began to walk towards her to help her. But before I could help her, she got up and walked away.

Getting up is the right thing to do. So I thought, ”I have fal-len to the ground, do I stay there? No, I must get up!” Such experiences make me thankful to God. He extends his hand again and again when we fall, and He encourages us: ”Do not give up – keep going, because I am with you.”

The time in the day that I have reserved especially for God is when I can gain new strength. My wife is also a huge help, she is a precious gift from God to me. Together we are following our path – no matter what comes.

Gerhard and Ruth

10 AVCR EPORTUZBEK ISTA N

eleven years old and »enemy of the state«

Jamshid* is a pastor in an Uzbek city. He too had consi-dered emigrating with his wife and eight children.

Stay or get far away?When praying with other Christians, they brought this question before God. And in doing so, they had a clear sense that God was prompting them to remain in the country in spite of the persecution. He would provide for them.

So they stayed and since then have experienced both sides of the coin: Discrimination, pressure, persecution – and the supernatural intervention of God.

Children in the line of fireJamshid‘s twin daughters (11) are extremely bright, sporty and are top of the class academically. One day they are called to the front by their teacher and insul-ted for the entire lesson, in front of the whole class. They are told they are enemies of the state, a shame to the school, etc. When they are finally thrown out, they return home, trembling and in tears.

Jamshid tries to console them, to comfort them – in vain. Then he remembers that Jesus had always said that He would be persecuted. And the very same would be the case for those that follow Him. The girls‘ ears pricked up: ”Did what happened to us happen because of Jesus?” Their father confirms this to be the case, upon which the tables turn. At once their sadness stops, giving way to an unexplainable joy.

Prayer with instant effectThey pray together. The kids forgive their teacher and bless her. Feeling anxious, they tiptoe back into school the next day. The teacher intercepts them; trepidation turns to fear. Is there another attack coming?

However, to their great surprise: The woman apologiz-es for her behaviour on the previous day. Significantly, she explains that she has no idea what sort of demon had possessed her to make her treat the poor girls so harshly.

This is just one example from the daily lives of Chris-tians in a country in which persecution prevails. The persecution ranges from ”plain and simple” discrimina-tion, such as that experienced by the twins, to bans on assemblies, criminal charges due to illegal churchservices, the confiscation of property, the abduction of children, rape and other physical attacks and attempted murder.

In Uzbekistan, even children are forced to ”stand by their man” – as a father I know how much parents suffer, yet children are already experiencing that God is looking after them.

Are we doing the same?

*Name changed for security reasons

The pressure is building. And with it the temptation for many Christians to leave the country. Yet the majority stay – in spite of any consequences for them and their families.

Angelika Hoch

11AVCR EPORTACCL I M AT ION I N MOLDOVA

I am 25 years old and have been married to my hus-band Vadim for seven years. We have two beautiful children and now live in Moldova. Most people think the life of a missionary is in some higher sphere. Well, we are often led through deep valleys and it is rarely a walk in the park.

The not-so-funny life of GypsiesMany of the Gypsies my husband was working with had been kicked out of Russia and forced to move back to Moldova. Their new lives in Moldova were miser-able and Vadim was asked to go to their city and help. At first he went alone and I stayed home for three months. I had to give birth to my baby alone. After that I moved to Moldova with our two children, aged one-and-a-half years and two months. We searched for our own apartment to rent while staying with some Gypsy friends. Our humble wish was to have a place with running water and a heating system, but that seemed impossible. Within the space of two months, we lived in three different places. Moving all the time started to take a toll on our health and wallet. We had run out of energy and money, and were exhausted.

Restrooms in Moldovan style In our first home, the toilet was over 300 feet away and was used by two families. In our second place, the rest-room was disgusting– no door and no roof. I began to weep, but three days later things got even worse. The owner’s brother moved into the apartment with his en-tire family. “Just for one week,” they promised, but one week turned into several. I was fed up and exhaust-ed. I just wanted to run away and cry. Glory to God, we finally got our own place with some privacy. Just one little necessary thing was missing: the toilet. We had to use a bucket instead, but this no longer got me down because I finally learned to appreciate what I had and I thanked God for it.

Shaken by illness I have to admit that I still complained. Especially when my children became seriously ill because of the cold temperatures. Sofia, almost two years old, had pneu-monia. She had a soaring temperature and was losing a lot of weight. Artem, three months old, was struck by a severe case of bronchitis and whooping cough. In this piteous condition, we took our kids to the hospital. Nev-ertheless, God was always with us. During our stay in the hospital, countless visitors passed by and brought us food. Most of them were people I did not even know. I had only asked God for help and he provided.

Decisions to be madeTrials have been and continue to be a part of my life. Per-haps the same goes for you. I had to be careful not to turn into a moaner. Prayer helps. My experience has been that God provides the strength that is needed. Even when the world around us is falling apart, He helps us stay calm. I am not perfect but I have an amazing God on my side and am therefore determined: I will not despair.

»driven to desperation …«

The kingdom of God is no vacation resort. Problems - which can seem overwhelming - are all part of the package. Nataliya reports.

11

Nataliyawith herhusband

Nataliya Moldova

12

Johannes Dappen

AVCR EPORTM ISSION E X PER I ENCE

4600 miles of icy roads, ten cities in three nations, more than 25 events with roughly 2000 visitors; all within 21 days. Was it worth it?

We left Germany at the end of December 2012. A mul¬ticultural group consisting of Americans, Germ-ans and Ukrainians heading towards snowy Eastern Europe.

The comb Our journey led us through Poland, Estonia, and Lit¬huania. We took with us Christmas presents and the good news of Jesus Christ for the children and their parents. We experienced great things in the process. In Oswiecim we visited a family of four and brought them Christmas gifts. Their five-year-old son got so excited about discovering a comb in his present. We were humbled to realize that we would probably not have felt that much excitement if we had even received a luxury like an iPad or iPhone.

The miracle In Terespol, after a service, a desperate mother came to us and asked us to pray for her son whose feet were different lengths. It was so drastic that he had to wear two different shoe sizes. We prayed – and nothing happened. But Jesus teaches us not to give up. The next day we prayed again. On the way back to Germany we received an email from the joyful mother, thanking us for our prayers and saying her son’s feet were now nearly the same size. This was one of many miracles we got to experience.

God in action During all the visits and events, we witnessed the amazing work of the Holy Spirit. Lives were comple-tely changed, the sick were healed, and hearts were

opened to Jesus Christ. We were often challenged and astonished to see His power at work. Why do we have to travel thousands of miles through snow and ice to experience God working so powerfully? Why are we not able to experience this in our chur-ches? Are we too comfortable and half-hearted? Does the world revolve only around us?

The churches in Eastern Europe are one step ahead. Despite the years of persecution, they have stepped out of their comfort zone. They are longing to see God in action – and they do. In these 21 day we saw how inju-red knees, back pains, headaches and insomnia were all healed. Many people he¬ard the gospel and came to Christ. After the services, people were not willing to leave, but wanted to stay and worship Him.

And what about us? We also can experience the presence of God in our lives. All that is needed is a whole-hearted decision. Through this trip our team was completely changed. Lukewarm when we left, we returned on fire. God turned our lives upside down. Miracles are an added extra – you can experience the same.

miracles as anadded extra

1313AVCR EPORT

It has been a huge blessing for me to be a part of this mission trip. My life has chan-ged so much in these last three weeks. I‘ve seen and experienced so much from Him in ways I would have never imagined. It was just so awesome to see God work through us, in even the small things. It just shows how powerful our God is. I pray that

God keeps leading me in His direction, and I know that this is just the beginning of my journey with him. Alan Bondaruk

I had never understood that so many benefits came with God’s love. I had only been aware that God’s love was unconditional, but not that I no longer needed to feel or carry the guilt or shame of my past. During one of the services in Poland, Johannes was preaching a word on love. This ser-mon completely opened my eyes and

heart. After this trip, I now have a deeper understan-ding of how God’s love is expressed.Christina Andreyeva

Since our trip, I can see a big difference in my spiritual life. Before, I was going through the motions. I went to church every Sunday, read the Bible, and prayed. That was it. I would have specific times when I would come to Him. Now I crave to be in His pre-sence. It‘s like an addiction. Once you feel just how great He is you really don‘t want

to leave. With any problem that comes up, I now know that I can come to him and he will help me. I thank God for this opportunity, it has brought me so close to Him, the closest I have ever been.Yana Yaroshuk

At one of the church services in Poland, a woman came up to pray for her sons. Hea-ring her pray and seeing her weep and cry touched my heart very much; it reminded

me of my own mother. That evening, we were having fellowship and the mother came and brought one of her sons, Alex, with her. After talking and praying with our leader Johannes, Alex gave his life to God. Praise God because He truly is amazing. Aliona Moskalenko

It was at a youth service in Estonia. Among the young people was a 14-year-old boy. During the entire service he was very loud and didn‘t pay much attention. During his sermon Johannes called him to come up to the front and spoke with him. It turned out that Ken had never heard about God. But he agreed to „give God a try“ and repeated the short prayer. Later there was an alter call for healing and Johannes instructed Ken to pray for his two friends. Ken prayed a simple short prayer and both of his friends received immediate healing. Ken‘s life was changed that day because he no longer doubts that God is real and alive.Taisiya Stefoglo

But what is love, really? A month ago, I would have answered by speaking about the typical girly fantasy of finding Prince Charming. Don‘t get me wrong, I knew about God‘s love but I had never really experienced it. I didn‘t expect anything special from that service. But as Johannes began preaching about love, I felt my he-art opening up as my mind soaked in the truth. I began to realize that all my expectations and knowledge of love had been coming from worldly sources and would never satisfy the craving of my soul. I felt the love of God fill every part of me. Heart, soul, and body all felt completely restored and renewed. Something in me changed that day, and I no longer needed the approval of others to be satisfied with myself. Ellen Korogod

God is love. I believed it, but I truly never really understood what that meant. On our mission trip I prayed that God would let me feel and understand it, and He revealed a little taste of it to me. I felt a sudden warmth in my body and such a joy as never before. During my prayer I laughed and cried for perhaps one hour because it was so overwhelming. God actu-ally is love. We were made in His image, that means we were made to love. I will never be the same after having this experience. I am a new person and I thank God so much for loving us. Julia Vorobets

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impressum

AVC Action for Persecuted Christians and the Needy.

Nehemia In 1990, AVC Germany founded Nehemia Christliches Hilfswerk e.V. (Nehe-mia Christian Aid Organization) in order to be able to better implement the humanitar-ian work. Since then, some of the projects of the AVC umbrella organization are car-ried out under the name AVC and others under Nehemia.

AVC www.avc-de.orgNehemia Christliches Hilfswerk e.V. www.nehemia.org

Help for the needy worldwide, because there are too many empty words, and sympathy is not enough.

Accounts for donations / USA:WELLS FARGO BANKRouting: 121042882Account: 5025200717

check, money orderName: NehemiaAddress: 9880 Jackson Rd.Sacramento, CA 95827

Accounts for donations / Germany: Name: AVC Address: Hassiaweg 3 I 63667 NiddaVR Bank Main-Kinzig-Buedingen eGAddress: Bahnhofstr. 16 I 63654 BuedingenAccount number: 5007001312, IBAN: DE08 5066 1639 5007 0013 12BIC: GENODEF1LSR

Donations made for a specified purpose are used for that purpose. Should there be an excess of funds for a particular project, however, the surplus money will be used for something as similar as possible to the intended purpose.It is also possible to contact us and make orders and payments over the internet.

AVC s mission

AVC assists persecuted ChristiansWe give them a voice and practical help: courageously resolutely effectively.

AVC helps the needyWe provide need-based, humanitarian aid: quickly non-bureaucratically effectively.

AVC makes Jesus Christ knownWe spread the Christian message: with dedication respect sincerity.

AVC invests in peopleWe work together with local partners in 60 countries: capable trustworthy pioneering.

clear words. strong actions.

AVCR EPORTAVC PORT R A I T

Asia Azerbaijan I Bangladesh I Bhutan I China I Geor-gia I India I Indonesia I Japan I Cambodia I Kazakhstan Laos I Mongolia I Myanmar I Nepal I North Korea Pakistan I Philippines I Thailand I Uzbekistan I Vietnam Africa Egypt I Ethiopia I Djibouti I Eritrea I Libya I Ma-dagascar I Mali I Marocco I Sambia I Sudan I Tanzania Europe Albania I Belarus I Bosnia / Herzegovina Bulgaria I Germany I Estonia I France I Kosovo I Latvia Lithuania I Moldova I Austria I Poland I Romania I Rus-sia I Switzerland I Serbia I Slovakia I Slovenia I Ukraine Latin America Brazil I Costa Rica I Ecuador I Haiti Nicaragua I Peru Middle East Iraq I Iran I Israel I Jordan I LebanonSyria I Turkey

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When he was born, the umbilical cord around his neck nearly killed him and thus started what seemed to be a miserable life. From a young age he was up to speed on the Christian lifestyle, but that did not stop him from getting into extreme trouble.

»why on earth am I alive!?«

My parents, faithful Christians, took me with them as a little boy to evangelistic gatherings in the city. At the age of 4, I led my first homeless man to Jesus. So I was called “Little Bonnke”*. My life continued to be pretty normal and peaceful until I had to start school.

School nightmaresSchool and I were never good friends but not because I was lazy. My teachers noticed that I was different. They realized that I had a challenging learning disability and because of that it would be impossible for me to be successful in life. That is what they thought.

Growing up I always wanted to be a farmer because I realized that cows didn’t have very high expectations of their owners. When 7th grade rolled around I was forced to switch schools. There I felt like an outcast. I wasn’t included in any social circles or cliques and I didn’t have any friends. I began to get severely bullied. My class-mates bullied me by throwing me into the garbage cans, beating me up, destroying my bike, and putting my head into the toilet and flushing – every day was a nightmare.

Rise of the cool dudeTime went by and I was still alone. All I wanted was to be loved and accepted. The most important focus in my life was to have friends. I started to smoke and drink, and to take drugs, and because of this people started to like me and accept me. I went from being the loner and bullied kid to the popular, cool guy. It was all fun until one almost fatal night…

Plummet into suicidal thoughtsOne night I got into a scuffle with a different posse. I as-sumed my friends would defend me in the fight that was about to break out, but all of my “friends” had aban-doned me. I still don’t know how I made it home that night. I was literally at the biggest breaking point of my life. I had no friends, I was a terrible student, I wasn’t motivated by the future and I had no idea what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Trembling and broken down I exclaimed “WHAT AM I LIVING FOR?!” I decided there was only one thing left to do, and that

was to put an end to the misery. With the last strength that I had, I reached over to grasp my knife, when suddenly it happened – there, right before my eyes, a radiant light emerged in front of me in my room.

New life Jesus revealed Himself to me that night; He shared with me how much He loves me. I surrendered my life to Him that night. He showed me that He had a plan for my life and that I was born to tell others of His mighti-ness and glory. I wanted nothing more than to follow the resplendent Jesus that had appeared in my room. Since that day, I have been preaching in different places in Germany, the USA, India, Albania, Poland, Estonia, Ukraine, and other parts of Europe. I am in no doubt about one thing: Jesus is alive! The blind see, the deaf hear, and the lame walk – these are not just hollow sta-tements… they are realities through Christ Jesus.

Today I know that my heavenly Daddy created me to be loved by Him and to prove His love and power to the world. I don’t need to struggle for love anymore; I’ve found it.

If Jesus was able to change my life, He is able to change yours as well.

*After Reinhard Bonnke, the evangelist

AVCR EPORTT E ST I MON Y

Johannes Dappen

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Farid, recently married, began making his journey to the city of Parachinar.

Kidnapped He had not traveled very far when a group of Taliban halted the bus. Because Farid’s passport said he was a Christian, he was kidnapped into the mountains. On the way up the mountain, an imam began preaching and attempted to convert Farid to Islam. However, Farid was strong-minded in his Christian faith and this made the imam very angry.

Sleepless nights Farid experienced a cold and sleepless night. He be-gan to pray. At the crack of dawn, they yanked him out. Fearlessly, Farid began to share the good news of Jesus with his guards. He explained to them the difference be-tween the idea of the jihad and the forgiveness in Christi-anity. His testimonies made an impression on them.

Execution right before his eyes That morning, a Muslim man was dragged into the room. They forcefully made him drink a red colored beverage. When he had finished drinking, the leader of the Taliban proceeded to slit the man’s throat in front of everyone.

Farid was next. The Taliban called a friend of Farid’s and demanded a ransom of 20 million rupees (235,000 dollars) for his life. The friend just had time to explain that he did not have that kind of money before they were cut off. Execution appointmentFarid refused to convert to Islam and had no way of paying the ransom. According to the imam, the Koran indicated that the only thing left to do was to execute

him. Farid watched as some tried to put in a good word for him, but the leader yelled at them, “What kind of Taliban are you? Tomorrow at 10:00 am we will execute him. End of story!”

Execution… The next morning at around 9:00 am, Farid saw how they prepared the mysterious red colored drink again. The leader began to sharpen his knife, when a local Taliban member appeared and began to chat about the situation of the prisoner. This local man put in a good word for Farid. He assured the leader that Farid was very poor and had no chance of paying the ransom. This sparked a lengthy debate. At around 9:30 am, the leader of the Taliban decided to discuss Farid’s fate with the imam.

…suspended The impossible happened! Farid was released with his belongings. The only possessions that were missing were his Bible and his books. After his release, the local Taliban man took him to one side and reminded him that without his involvement the situation would have ended differently. The man warned him that he was blacklisted, which meant he would be killed if he ever returned again. After 57 hours of imprisonment, no food or drink, and a lot of uncertainty about his des-tiny, Farid began his long journey home.

Farid says: “I looked death in the face – and I thank God that I am still alive. Now I am more ready than ever to take the good news wherever God wants to use me.”

Farid is continuing his work as a pastor. This occurren-ce has made him even stronger.

* Original name has been changed

Farid* had to watch with his own eyes as they cut the man’s throat. It was the will of the Taliban leader that he should meet the same fate the next morning.

facing death

Angelika Hoch