Call2Prayer June 2022: World Refugee Day - Hope & Healing For Children
/The 20th June is internationally recognised each year by the United Nations (UN) to honour the strength and bravery of millions of refugees around the world – it is known as World Refugee Day. It’s hard to be unaware of the ongoing fight for survival of so many, with the news of the crisis in the Ukraine hitting our screens daily. Often it is the most vulnerable groups, namely women and children, who face the greatest perils. Shockingly, according to data from the UN, 42% of forcibly displaced people world-wide are children – that is, under the age of 18. Between 2018 and 2020 alone, 1 million children were born into a refugee life*.
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has tragically been renowned for its past and present warfare, which has forced millions over the decades to flee their homes in search of safety. According to the UN, two thirds of all refugees displaced abroad come from just five countries – with Syria coming out on top*. The Yemeni civil war, which began in 2014, continues to be one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with 4 million already having fled, and 20.7 million in dire need of aid**.
Warmth, shelter, access, food security, clean water, sanitation, protection from harm. Undoubtedly these are among some of the most urgent requisites for those seeking refuge. Unquestionably, too, as human beings made and loved by God, they are deserving of the right to seek asylum, and be treated with dignity, respect, and equity. It is vital that these basics are met, whoever, wherever, and whenever there is need. None should have to face deprivation in any of these areas, and our hearts cry out for God’s mercy as we hear stories time and time again of civilians facing plight after plight in their desperate search for safety.
Our many years of working in the MENA, however, have highlighted just how much more support survivors need once these basics have been sought. Surviving such a journey is an incredibly traumatic event. Further, dwelling in refugee camps poses additional threats, particularly to vulnerable groups. Children rarely receive any formal education; women and girls are preyed upon by traffickers.
Without the right help, the emotional and psychological impact of such experiences can have devastating effects beyond an individual’s lifetime. In the MENA, there is sadly not enough provision from major players like the UN or UNICEF to support local groups working with victims. Unaddressed, traumatic experience in childhood can lead to learning difficulties, behavioural and mental health problems, crime, substance abuse, and even long-term physical health problems. This has knock-on effects on relationships, parenting styles, and coping strategies well into adulthood. In a region replete with a history of warfare, political oppression, and inequalities, the unresolved emotional weight of these catastrophes upon survivors has created a perpetuating generational cycle of trauma, ripping apart individuals, families, and communities.
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This is why MEM is using media strategically to change this reality, and help break the cycle. Our 3D animated Life in the Desert series has been specifically developed alongside a children’s psychologist to help traumatised children begin to process and heal from their experiences. The series follows the journey of the main heroine, Farah, a young girl who experiences significant trauma through the death of her mother and having to move home. Farah finds hope and inspiration through the stories in the Bible that her father reads to her. Life in the Desert aims to help children start the healing process, learn healthy ways of expressing their emotions, and to know how loved they are by God.
Since we started distributing this programme and its corresponding workshop curriculum in 2018, through our partner organisations, almost 7,000 children have been reached in refugee camps, orphanages, and impoverished communities. We have also trained over 250 teachers and NGO workers to use this resource with children in their own communities.
Feedback from our partners has shown just how effective a tool this programme is for children dealing with trauma. The children love Farah, as they can relate to her experiences. To maintain this sense of relatability, and according to significant demand from our partner organisations, we are currently seeking to raise funds to dub the series into more languages and dialects of Arabic, so that more children in need can be reached and benefit from its content.
As we move to lift up refugees across the Middle East and the world, and specifically our work with children through Life in the Desert, can we encourage you to prayerfully consider giving to this vital project? If you would like to financially support either finishing the production or the dubbing of this series, please head to our Giving page. Make sure to put Life in the Desert, or LITD, in the comments box, so that we can send your donation to the right place.
Thank you for praying with us for…
Those currently fleeing from their homes in search of safety. Lord, we cry out to You to meet them in their need, to protect them, to shelter them, to comfort them. We lift up specifically the most vulnerable groups – women, children, the elderly and disabled – who face the greatest dangers in their pursuit of safety.
The organisations and individuals working on the ground to provide humanitarian aid to displaced peoples. May they be appropriately equipped to be able to provide the necessary resources and practical support to those who need it most. May aid workers be strengthened, filled with compassion, and protected both physically and emotionally from the events they are witnessing.
National and local governments across the world who are engaged in present major warfare that necessitates civilians seeking refuge. We lift up specifically the nations of the Ukraine, Russia, and Yemen. Lord, where change seems so impossible in human terms, we believe that You are a God of wisdom and peace.
Refugees and survivors of recent past or ongoing conflicts, struggling to come to terms with the aftermath of their experiences. We specifically think of nations in MENA including Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Iraq, Israel, Palestine, and many more. Lord, please bring emotional and spiritual healing to individuals, families, and communities. We ask that You would provide those suffering with access to the right resources and forms of psychological support that will help them begin to heal. We pray that You would be restoring hope to damaged lives.
The impact of Life in the Desert. We pray for the thousands of children who have already benefitted from the programme, that You would be continuing to walk with them on their healing journeys. Remind them of Your love for them and of the lessons they have learned through the series. Surround them with the right influences so that they can go on to step into the life of hope that You have called them to. We pray for our partners and other trainers currently taking the series to children in refugee camps and impoverished communities. May you strengthen them, and send them to where the children’s need is most desperate.
The future impact of Life in the Desert. Lord, we ask for Your generous provision of the necessary funds needed to complete the production of the last two episodes in the series, and for the finances that will enable us to dub the programme into different languages and dialects. We pray that Life in the Desert would go on to bring hope to thousands more children across the MENA region in the coming years, beginning to break the cycle of generational trauma, and helping to bring a lasting positive change to this part of the world.
