Better World Magazine - December 2022 Edition

BETTER WORLD

Hope For A Better World

It is not an understatement to say 2022 has been a tough year. There have been earthquakes, floods, and volcanos, affecting millions in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tonga, and other parts of the world. There have been violent military conflicts, displacing millions of families in Ukraine, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Sudan and beyond. And there’s been a subsequent global hunger crisis so worrying that the United Nations wonders if we might have to take food from the hungry to feed the starving.

All this, along with COVID’s ongoing impact has made it understandable why we might have felt hopeless this past year. But our God is a God of hope. And because of his great work planting hope in followers of Jesus, hope springs up in acts of kindness, care, and practical help for those who’ve been affected by all that 2022 brought.

We know this is true each time we read the Christmas story, the message of hope born

into a messy world, as we read in this edition’s feature article, ‘Born into Brokenness’ (page 4). We see hope in the hundreds of workshops our Christian Partners provide on agricultural practices, health, and savings groups. We see hope each time a young person has a new sense of purpose they’ve discovered in one of our Child and Youth Clubs. And we see hope every time God’s people come together for those caught in the crossroads of disasters.

That’s why this special edition of Better World Magazine highlights all the hope in action we’ve seen this past year. From pages six to 11, it’s exciting to read an overview of the hope and change that emerged in our programs, disaster responses, and sponsorships throughout this past year, thanks to your generous support.

As an extra treat, we want to make sure you get a special Christmas greeting from our Christian Partners around the world on our Postcards pages (12-13). And we’re especially grateful to our guest columnist, Dr. Brian Harris, for his thoughtful and wise response to this edition’s Curly Question: What if we stopped celebrating Christmas? (page 14)

Recently, I was privileged to attend the thanksgiving service for Rev David Groves, National Director from 1990-2000. David was a remarkable man who’ll be remembered for his courageous service to make a better world for all. We’re honoured to continue his legacy.

We know it’s not always easy to hang on to hope in a world where famine, conflict, poverty, and injustice are rife (see our new devotional on page 15). And yet God in his mercy has given us a timeless hope in Jesus, one that truly does make the weary world rejoice. Thank you for joining us this year and in the years to come as we work for a better, more hopeful world for all.

of Jesus, Melissa Lipsett CEO

HOW THE CHRISTMAS STORY IS FAR FROM SENTIMENTAL

BROKENNESS BORN INTO

He is born in the middle of a power play. For centuries, war ravages the land to build an empire. Then, in a precarious moment of peace, all people are ordered to return home for a census, to be counted, to be taxed. To feed an emperor’s greed.

A young man and a pregnant teenager walk for days, across rocky terrain and dangerous roads to a once-obscure town. Aching, sweaty and especially dangerous for a young woman with child, the two hold on to each other. And to a promise.

They don’t have much else. Not even a place to stay when they arrive. So they accept—as those who are displaced must—what shelter they can find, what help they are offered, a makeshift bed of straw and a trough.

How can the hope of a child be born amidst so little? Or a mother’s pain turn to joy amidst such poverty? How can a father’s heart find home in a place like this?

But the promise is born, and the weary world rejoices.

It is not long, though, before peace is shattered. Again. Children are murdered, refugees go into hiding, and emperors find new wars. Famine strikes. Storms batter. Power battles rage.

The promised boy grows amongst such brokenness. And as a man, he loves others who are born as he was: vulnerable, poor, marginalised. He seeks them out. He heals their pain. He feeds them and he invites those without a home to live with him.

Until this man, once a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, is wrongly accused, murdered. He becomes a corpse, covered with burial clothes. The promise is placed in

a tomb. Emperors gloat. Followers despair.

But there is no place for him in the inn. Or in death. Because the promise of hope cannot be displaced, nor can it be buried.

Jesus, our Christmas hope, cannot be confined to a manger, to a time 2,000 years ago, in a town we call Bethlehem, to parents we know as Joseph and Mary. Nor to a garden outside Golgotha, in a locked room, or on a beach with his disciples those 40 days after his death.

His death and resurrection breathe new life, new hope, into every broken situation.

Yes, he lives whenever a friend in Uganda feeds her family with vegetables from her new garden.

He shines in the face of each child who knows they belong because of a Youth Club in Nepal .

He breathes new life into women who’ve joined savings groups in Cambodia for their small businesses.

And he dwells in the clothing factories of Bangladesh where workers are treated fairly, in the fields of Kenya where crops have multiplied, in the hospitals of PNG where life and health have been restored.

The joy of every longing heart, the promise of hope, bursts through the brokenness all year long and proclaims, ‘I live!’

Jesus cannot be confined to a manger, to a time 2,000 years ago, in a town we call Bethlehem, to parents we know as Joseph and Mary.

Year In Review

to beekeepers in Nepal and Malawi,’ said Peter Crompton, agricultural teacher at Wycliffe Christian School, ‘that they’d see their beekeeping is part of God’s plan for us to bring the blessings of his kingdom to our world.’

WARMTH IN WINTER

Winters are hard in mountainous Afghanistan with average daily temperatures of 1.2C in December and January. For the most vulnerable, this is life threateningly cold. Our local Christian Partners support immediate humanitarian needs through a winterization program, helping families prepare for the cold by adapting shelters, providing essential medicines, and ensuring there is enough food. A total of 9,924 people benefited from this program.

AUSTRALIA

BEES FOR GOOD

Beekeeping generates more than buzz—it provides income that is good for the earth and doesn’t require land ownership. That’s why it’s taught in our livelihood programs in Nepal and Malawi. Students in Sydney’s Blue Mountains are also learning beekeeping in their agriculture class. Donations collected from the honey go to Baptist World Aid for livelihood training programs overseas.

‘I’m praying that as we get into beekeeping this summer, the kids will feel a connection

AUSTRALIA

LOVE BEYOND OUR BACKYARD

Shirley (center) became a Child Sponsor after hearing about Baptist World Aid years ago at her church in Tasmania. ‘You always hope that having a heart for others rubs off on your kids and their kids,’ Shirley said. ‘It’s pleasing to know that we can make a difference to someone else’s life.’

Following in her footsteps, Shirley’s daughter, Cindy (left), used her childhood pocket money to become a Child Sponsor herself, and is still one today. And Shirley’s granddaughter, Kelsea now works with Baptist World Aid, as an International Programs Coordinator helping build community resilience and respond to disasters.

‘We’re not meant to live as islands,’ Cindy said. ‘As Christians, we’re called to live in community and support each other, even across the globe’. For more on Kelsea’s story, visit bwaa.co/love-beyond.

FROM WAR, DISPLACEMENT, AND NATURAL DISASTERS TO AN UNPRECEDENTED GLOBAL HUNGER CRISIS, 2022 HAS BEEN A TOUGH YEAR. BUT LOOKING BACK, WE ALSO SEE HOPE. HERE’S HOW DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES ARE BUILDING A BETTER WORLD AMIDST THE HEARTACHE, WITH OUR LOCAL CHRISTIAN PARTNERS.

FISH FARMS AND VEGGIE GARDENS

Before Pomilla met our Christian Partner, her rural life in Bangladesh was not unlike 65 per cent of her country’s population: full of challenges to find food, stay healthy, and get clean water. Poverty was a way of life.

Pomilla’s husband is a garment worker, and her daughter is a member of our Partner’s Child and Youth Club. So, when she learnt through the same Christian Partner how to grow a garden, access clean water and build a fish farm, she knew she’d be able to take care of her family.

Now Pomilla sells bananas, vegetables, and fish at her local market, and no longer worries about feeding her family.

CAMBODIA FOOD IS BETTER SHARED

Each month, Meng, an elderly farmer in Cambodia, opens his home and farm for a fellowship meal with his community. Together, they share food— cabbages, bananas, and fish to name a few—that he learnt to cultivate during agricultural training sessions with our local Christian Partner in Cambodia

ETHICAL FASHION ABOUT THOSE SHOES

Are your shoes ethical? This year’s Ethical Fashion Report and Guide includes an expanded focus on ethical practices in the footwear industry. It also gives even more transparency over how brands

are protecting workers and the environment, so we know which companies we can ask to do better.

‘The 2022 results show us what needs to change to bring justice for workers and protection for our planet,’ said Peter Keegan, Director of Advocacy. ‘It helps us be better informed citizens and provokes us to act.’ Scores have also changed from an A to F grade to a score out of 100, giving shoppers a clearer picture of how brands are performing against ethical standards. Find out more on our website bwaa.co/see-the-guide.

Year In Review CONTINUED

HEALTHCARE FOR ALL

When the second wave of COVID hit, hospitals in India faced a crisis, running out of beds and medical equipment. Our Christian Partners provided new beds, PPE, flooring, and essential medical equipment. One hospital received a portable X-ray unit, which meant staff no longer had to transfer COVID patients to the X-ray room and risk further infection. Another hospital’s staff had to travel 150km away to the nearest oxygen plant to refill their small tanks two to three times a month. Our Partners provided larger tanks, which meant fewer trips and fewer patients turned away.

They also gave 1,499 Indian households a subsidy to meet basic needs, including COVID tests and medication. ‘It was

satisfying to welcome all who came without worrying about financials,’ said a hospital staff member.

INDONESIA FOOD RELIEF DURING COVID

COVID-related lockdowns meant people across Indonesia, whose livelihoods depended on daily wage jobs, struggled to feed their families. Our Christian Partners provided multi-purpose cash grants for vulnerable families, to spend on food, medical expenses, and education. Our Partner also sent 810 nutritious food packs to vulnerable families impacted by the lockdown in Indonesia, Philippines , Cambodia, and Nepal.

LEBANON DOCUMENTS BRING HOPE

Farah’s* parents dream of the day she and her sisters will receive official ID papers. She lives in Lebanon with her family; all except her mother are stateless. In Lebanon, a woman is unable to transfer her nationality to her children. Only a father can do so.

When Farah was nine, our Christian Partner helped her mother find a school where she could enrol with only a birth certificate. ‘I was so happy when my daughters were accepted; at last they would have an education!’ her mother said.

‘With the help we are getting, we feel more hopeful. Our life is hard and we sometimes are helpless because of the situation. But we are not alone anymore, and we can hope for a better future for our daughters.’

*Name changed for privacy

LEBANON HELP FAR FROM HOME

A FARMER NAMED JUDY

There was a time when Judy wasn’t sure she and her husband would have enough food to last more than a few months.

Working their 1.5 acres of land in the Kitui county of Kenya, Judy struggled to expand their crops, especially with erratic rainfall.

But since she learnt new agricultural techniques through our Christian Partners, she saw her crop yields grow 700 per cent! Today, Judy produces 720kg of maize and 225kg of mung beans, despite the below-average rains.

‘Now we have enough to eat and usually a balanced meal,’ she said.

‘Our children can study at night too with our solar lights and their performance has really improved.’

After years of distress, Wafaa and her husband fled Syria to Lebanon with their six young children in search of peace. She is one of 89 million people around the world today displaced by conflict.

In Lebanon, Wafaa’s family live in an unfinished one-room stone house along with her sister’s family. They are now safe from the bombs, but life is still difficult.

Through the work of our Christian Partners, the family has food, blankets, mattresses, and heating supplies. They’ve enrolled their younger children in an education centre, facilitated by local churches who provide education for the children, and pastoral care and social interaction for the whole family.

‘Some people from our community were not pleased with us getting to know the church,’ said Wafaa. ‘So I told them that I wished we all were like the Christians and that we all had the mercy, love, and honesty that they have within their hearts.’

JOIN OUR PRAYER

Dear Lord, please bring an end to the violence in Myanmar and help leaders to find their common humanity. Help vulnerable, internally displaced people find strength, protection, and provision in you. We pray for justice, and practical care for innocent children, vulnerable people, and families who have fled from their homes due to military attacks. We pray for wisdom for the international community, and for mercy from neighbouring countries. May your presence to be evident throughout Myanmar. In Christ, Amen.

NEPAL

SUSTAINED AND THRIVING TOGETHER

No matter how hard Sani and Deepson worked, their farm in Nepal couldn’t produce enough to support their family. Both parents were forced to take on second jobs, meaning that Deepson moved to Mumbai, while Sani stayed

NEPAL HEALTHY MUMS AND BABIES

Imagine a pregnant woman walking several kilometres over hilly dirt roads, just to reach the closest hospital because no safe transportation is available.

That’s what Rajmati faced when she went into labour and her husband walked her to the nearest government health centre, only to be referred to another centre 56km away. It was an obstetric emergency, and her family couldn’t afford an ambulance. Thankfully, a nurse knew of a support fund our Christian Partners provide, that immediately offered to pay the ambulance fee. Rajmati’s baby was safely delivered and today, Rajmati and her baby are healthy and well. ‘Many here can’t afford the transportation,’ Rajmati said. ‘So, I am grateful they helped to save my child’s life.’

NEPAL FROM AUSTRALIA WITH LOVE

The Queensland Baptist Women partnered generously with Baptist World Aid at their Anew Conferences this year. In countries like Nepal, COVID has meant maternal and neonatal deaths are on the rise and children are more at risk of early marriage. Women at these conferences gave over $18,700 to our New Life Appeal. A number of women also became Child Sponsors, some partnering with more than one child.

behind to care for the farm and family. Things became even more difficult when COVID lockdowns struck and they both lost their jobs, leaving them struggling to care for their three children. Our Christian Partner provided resources, equipment, and training

to help Sani and Deepson get the most out of their property. Soon, their farm was able to sustain them all, and even produced enough to pay for extra expenses like school.

‘The people of Australia have helped us,’ Sani said. ‘I would like to thank them very much.’

Year In Review CONTINUED

HOPE FOR EQUALITY

Citizenship and the right to own property in the Kapilvastu region of Nepal is typically restricted to men, even when husband and wife are working side by side. This affects the women’s sense of value, and negatively impacts the occurrence of gender-based violence.

KEEPING HOSPITALS OPEN

Our Christian Partner helped keep Baptist-run hospitals in Papua New Guinea open during the pandemic, with one hospital providing healthcare for over 153,560 people in a 12-month period. ‘This was a tough year for us, especially with COVID and other related financial constraints we experienced as a nation. We were so grateful for support, so that we were able to provide and deliver this very important service to the rural population of PNG ,’ said a hospital staff member.

But things are changing. With support from the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP), our Partners are helping couples work through actionreflection steps to understand what it means to be joint owners of property. Through these processes, any fears around the change are addressed, and couples together choose an equal status.

homes damaged nation-wide. In the immediate aftermath, they supported families with basic shelter kits after their homes had been destroyed and now, they’re continuing the long task of helping rebuild homes in the communities they serve. ‘I’m so thankful someone could help us,’ said Leah, mum of two, ‘so we can rebuild our house.’

SOLOMON ISLANDS PROTECTION FROM COVID

Because of prior training and planning, when the COVID outbreak occurred in Solomon Islands , our Christian Partner knew what churches would need to provide effective disaster response. Baptist World Aid funded the distribution of hand sanitiser, masks, and disinfectant. Eight water tanks were also purchased and installed for villages across Solomon Islands to ensure hand washing facilities were available to all.

SOLOMON ISLANDS YOUTH CREATING A BETTER FUTURE

THE PHILIPPINES

REBUILDING AFTER RAI

Our Christian Partner in the Philippines has been helping communities recover after the devastation caused by Typhoon Odette (Rai) in December 2021. The typhoon destroyed over 4,000 homes in the region where our Partners work, with 1.7 million

Many young people in the Solomon Islands face challenges with drugs, alcohol, and young pregnancy. This year, our Christian Partners continued to implement the Model Community Development program (MCD) throughout the country, engaging youth in various initiatives and providing training in health, landscaping literacy, agriculture, and more.

Participating in this work equips the youth with valuable skills for the future. Over the past year, 2,080 people have been provided with access to clean water and sanitation, five communities have graduated from the program

as ‘model communities’, and secure footpaths have been built to improve safety. ‘We now experience life like never before. Thank you, Baptist World Aid, for supporting us,’ said one community member.

TONGA RISING FROM THE ASHES

When Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai volcano erupted in Tonga, people from Mango, Atata and Kanokupolu islands lost their homes and fled to the main island of Tongatapu. Still living in evacuation centres, they now face the challenging task of feeding their families.

Our Christian Partner is helping 2,000 people from 12 displaced communities construct greenhouses to grow nutritious food. They have provided items from local suppliers such as gardening tools, greenhouse materials, and fencing, so families can eat and be nourished.

UKRAINE HELPING PEOPLE SURVIVE WAR

The conflict in Ukraine has left 6.6 million people in the country without homes, and in need of food and emergency supplies. Our Christian Partners have provided support in a variety of ways, including:

• 4 8 trucks filled with packages of long-life food to Ukrainian communities. From the end of May to June, 10,000 children, women and men received these packages;

• 150 tonnes of food (that’s as heavy as the Statue of Liberty) to Western Ukraine, as well as medical teams to provide care;

• Families displaced in Ukraine received cash transfers to help

By May 2022, Andriy and his colleagues had delivered food and other items from our Partner to over 24,000 people in 32 locations around Ukraine

them survive, with plans to support those returning home, and trial the provision of teams, materials, and tools for small-scale house repairs; • Each day, Baptist Churches in Ukraine provide temporary shelter for up to 45,000 people who are journeying west to cross the border into neighbouring countries.

Postcards

Bangladesh: Melissa Lipsett, Baptist World Aid CEO, meets the Chair and Vice Chair of the Water Treatment Plant Committee in Bangladesh , which sells clean water to fund community development projects, and provides free clean water for those in need.

OUR TEAM ARE THRILLED TO BE BACK VISITING OUR PARTNERS IN REAL LIFE AFTER NEARLY THREE YEARS OVER ZOOM !

From Our Partners

Lebanon . Rima had to give up studies to help her family during Lebanon’s economic collapse. Teaching with our Partner has given her confidence.

Cambodia: Our Christian Partner in Cambodia is ready to celebrate Christmas! ‘Christmas reminds our team members that God is with us, and his divine grace is strengthening our faith and hope in him, as we love him from our heart and mind.’

What If We Stopped Celebrating Christmas?

I’d be a kilogram lighter and somewhat richer. I’d have fewer socks (I have enough already). There’d be space in the cupboard where Christmas decorations are kept, and I’d miss the multiple email updates from friends who only get in touch each December. Actually, I would miss those most.

Does Christmas matter, and is it appropriate for a ‘secular’ society to put all their usual activity to one side so that the ever-smaller Christian population can have time out to celebrate the birth of Jesus?

This matters when you remember that plenty of Christians don’t get excited about Christmas, complaining it is too commercialised, or that it is unlikely that December 25th was the day of Jesus’ birth. Or whatever it is they like to grouch about.

I spent many years as the principal of a theological college and remember a student flopping down in my office and complaining that he had to write an essay on John 1:14: ’And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.’ When I asked what the problem was, he replied that, ‘the idea had been done to death’.

We’ve heard the Christmas story so often that it no longer ignites our imagination or sparks us to generosity. Is that the problem? We’ve got so used to the idea it no longer moves us?

Perhaps we are looking at it the wrong way. What if Christmas had never happened? What if Jesus never came and we had a world minus Christianity?

That’s a confronting question. Christians have been at the forefront of so many social changes— like William Wilberforce and the struggle to help

end slavery, or the early church’s work to end infanticide, or the promotion of the rights of women, education and healthcare for all, or the birth of the labour movement. The list goes on. Each was sparked by the conviction that all people are made in the image of God, and all are loved by God.

True, there has been a dark side to Christianity. There is nothing to celebrate about the Crusades, or the Inquisition. The close alliance between state and church in the colonial era was very unhealthy. Often the church has opposed much needed change.

THE GIFT OF FOOD

Yet for all the mistakes, the great good that has come because of Jesus far (far) outweighs the shadows. Surely that should be celebrated?

So what if we shifted our approach? Too often Christmas is about self-indulgence, consumerism, false joviality and giving people things they really don’t need. That kind of Christmas is a betrayal of the Christ child born in a humble stable to poor parents living in a conquered country.

But Christmas can (and should) be about changing the world. Which it is, and it’s up to us as followers of Christ. If it’s consumerism, yes, let’s stop celebrating Christmas. If it’s about changing the world, count me in.

Dr Brian Harris is a Baptist Minister and the author of several books including ‘Why Christianity is Probably True’. He directs the AVENIR Leadership Institute and also lectures part-time at the Vose Campus of Morling College.

‘Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground— everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.’ —Genesis 1:29,30

There’s nothing quite like a good meal. The aromas, the tastes and mostly, the people gathered around, all make the gift of food a celebration on many levels. Whether it’s a five-star banquet or a simple community gathering, well-planned meals nourish our bodies as well as our souls.

In fact, ever since God created seed-bearing plants and trees as food, its nourishment has been as much about physical wellbeing as it has spiritual. When the Lord made trees of all kinds, as Genesis 2:9 tells us, he made them to be both pleasing to the eye and good for food. Creation’s food is for body and spirit.

So, when a person goes without the daily provision of nutritional foods, it affects many parts of their lives, from mental health and physical development to spiritual wellbeing. A lack of food is the opposite of God’s best because it keeps people from the fullness of life he’s intended since Creation. Hunger, and especially the global famine we see today, has no place in the Creator’s desire for his people.

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‘Too often Christmas is about self-indulgence, consumerism, false joviality and giving people things they really don’t need.’

BRIAN HARRIS

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When you become a , your monthly giving goes where’s it’s needed most—to countries where hunger, poverty and injustice hit people the hardest. Through our Christian Partners, we’ll respond to world disasters as they happen.

For more information, visit bwaa.co/better-world-for-all