Monday

Today we ventured outside of Amman to a neighboring area to meet with a group of women at the Baptist Church. The meeting began with a time of prayer, then enthusiastic praise and worship. Though we could not understand the words, other than Amen and Hallelujah, we certainly felt the spirit and were blessed by their songs. We were asked to share some teachings on being a wise woman and how to study the Bible, so we spent time on these subjects, which seemed to really encourage the women. We ended our time with prayer groups so that the women could share their prayer concerns and we could pray together for one another. The needs expressed were in some ways not all that different from what we might hear at home: concern for children, family stresses, financial concerns, with the exception of so many parents having their children living in other countries. Being so far away is hard. The increasing cost of living here has driven many young people to look for jobs elsewhere, so the country is losing many of its bright and talented young people who otherwise would be enriching their country and preparing for leadership. This is creating quite a gap in the population here, which also affects the churches.

Life can be hard here, and as we heard the requests of the women, we realize more fully how difficult it is to be a woman here, especially a Christian woman. It was an enormous blessing to pray with them and for them, to share their burdens. One of the women present invited us to her house for some refreshment. While there, she shared that her husband is Egyptian, and since he is has not been granted official residency here, their children are not allowed to attend the public school, and they cannot afford private schooling. We prayed for God to miraculously intervene for them.

Before we left, we visited the medical and dental clinic adjacent to the church, which is a ministry outreach of the church to the community. Many here live in impoverished conditions and have little means of getting health care, so this has been an important way to minister to the people. The clinic is only two years old, a very nice facility well equipped. They have little funds to operate on and are praying for a full time doctor and perhaps a gynecologist. They have teams come occasionally to provide free clinics for those who have no means to pay, and we were invited to bring a group here for ministry. What an opportunity to reach out to people who have come to Jordan from surrounding countries for refuge, but find themselves very poor. Here workers can pray with them and share the gospel as well as meet their physical needs. Truly a significant outreach.

To sit with these women is to wish to be a sponge and absorb all that they are sharing with us. We have so much to learn from each other!

This evening we are going to enjoy a visit with a young woman we met yesterday, another wonderful opportunity to listen, learn, ask questions, and increase our understanding of the needs here.

Tomorrow we will meet with another group of women here in Amman, as well as visit the seminary. Please pray for these women! They have such hearts for the Lord, to serve Him, to minister to people, to pray for not only their country, but the world. They are touching so many lives in many ways, but they need encouragement. May we stand firmly with them.