Freely you have received, freely give

February 1, 2024

Karim and his wife, Rima, fled Aleppo, Syria, after they lost their home and shop to the hostilities and persistent economic instability in the region. In search of safety and a new start for their family, the couple, parents of two young teenagers, headed to Latakia. In Latakia, with the help of Franciscan friars, they rented two small rooms and a small shop and Karim and Rima worked very hard to provide for their family’s basic needs and to ensure their children got an education—the family lived a simple, but content life.

But things completely changed after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, followed by a 7.5 magnitude earthquake nine hours later, and thousands of aftershocks in the following days, rocked northern Syria in February 2023. An estimated 8,476 people died, thousands of families were displaced, including Karim and Rima’s, and thousands of people were injured. For over a month, the family was not able to afford to buy food since their shop, like all other businesses in the region, was forced to shut down because of damaged roads and infrastructure.

In this time of crisis, World Renew’s local church partner was able to step in and provide families with food parcels and hygiene kits containing essentials such as tissue boxes, soap bars, detergent, and toothpaste. Rima says the assistance from the church felt like gifts from heaven because the prices for food and necessities had doubled during these difficult days. The support lasted for several days and gave the family renewed hope for the future.

Despite a still struggling financially, the family currently hosts a single mother and her child in their small living space. It has been more than two months now and they have been blessed by this experience, as they put into practice the teaching of Matthew 10:8, “Freely you have received; freely give”. Although the family still hopes for a better tomorrow, they know it is not going to be easy, especially with the ongoing economic crisis in Syria. Nevertheless, Rima says that they can see God’s hand in every single detail in their life, thanks to the support of the church, World Renew, and the loving and merciful impact this support has had on her family.

Thank you for helping World Renew to share Christ’s hope with families impacted by this disaster. During our initial earthquake response, gifts like yours helped our local partner provide 40,329 people with food assistance and hygiene kits, 38,487 people with winter support, including blankets, jackets, and pullovers, and 16,905 individuals with diapers. Sadly, with the ongoing economic crisis in Syria, 16.7 million people remain in need of humanitarian assistance; World Renew continues to work with our local partner to provide food and other emergency essentials to families struggling with food insecurity, your gifts help us to continue this work. We invite you to give to the ongoing Syria earthquake response. Please continue to pray for the people of Syria who have endured heartbreak after heartbreak.