When Nurul* and her mother left their home country in Southeast Asia and relocated to a neighbouring state in 2019, they did not expect that they would have to return home after only a few months. Nurul’s grandmother had fallen badly ill and required their care.

Sadly, after some time, Nurul’s grandmother passed away. The mother and daughter remained home, but they struggled with having a livelihood and the continuation of Nurul’s education. Jobs were tough to get, and schools stayed closed for a long time after the Covid-19 pandemic hit.

So earlier this year, Nurul, who is now 14 years old, and her mother once again made the move from their home country to the nation where they had relocated previously, hoping that the situation would be better. To their dismay, it was not so. They were faced with the same issues of livelihood and education, now in a foreign land.

FACING THE SAME CHALLENGES ABROAD

When they were here in this new country previously for a few months, Nurul’s mother had a job as a seamstress, and Nurul was enrolled at a learning centre for children like her who came from other nations and couldn’t go to a local school. But they quickly realised that the economic situation here was just as badly affected. Nurul’s mother could no longer find work as a seamstress, and without a job, she couldn’t afford to send Nurul to school.

When OM MTI’s local partners, Wayne* and Cecilia* heard that Nurul and her mother were back, they quicky reconnected with them and discovered the various struggles they were having. 

“Since returning, it has been challenging for [Nurul’s mother] to earn a stable income through sewing,” Cecilia shares. “She has yet to receive her full wages from the sewing orders she took on in March.” They even had to borrow money to pay for their overdue rental fees.

GOD REMEMBERS AND KNOWS THEIR NEEDS

Wayne and Cecilia helped to arrange support for Nurul’s education with OM MTI, which includes school fees, lunch, and basic healthcare. She is enrolled in an Accelerated Learning Programme as she had missed almost three years of school.

To encourage Nurul and her mother, Wayne and Cecilia also shared with them the biblical story of God using the prophet Elijah to miraculously provide for a widow and her son during a great famine. “We prayed for them and assured them that God remembers and knows their needs.”

At the recent mid-term examinations, Nurul came in 3rd in the programme although she only started school in June, much to the pleasure and comfort of her mother.

“We hope that the gospel of the kingdom will be fully demonstrated through our acts of service in the community.”

OM MTI PARTNER, CECILIA

“It is our desire that through the education sponsorship, the children will be equipped with better opportunities to make a difference for themselves and their families,” says Cecilia. “We also hope that the gospel of the kingdom will be fully demonstrated through our acts of service in the community.”

*Names changed for security purposes
Photo by Dương Hữu on Unsplash

OM MTI works through local partners on the ground, providing community care and development for least reached and marginalised people groups, and building deep long-term relationships towards vibrant communities of Jesus followers.

Please pray:

• That Nurul will continue to do well in her studies and can progress as far as possible in her education. Given her age, it’s common to feel the pressure to stop school and work to help support the family.
• For Nurul’s mother to secure some sewing jobs that will provide a stable income for the family.
• That Nurul and her family will be drawn to God and experience His goodness.
• Pray for OM MTI’s partnership with local partners like Wayne and Cecilia, that our engagement with the communities will deeply impact the poor and marginalised for the gospel.