Just imagine . .

You are a widow because your husband has died of AIDS, you are now HIV as well and the village and the family have rejected you. You are an orphan because both Mum and Dad have died of AIDS and because you are the oldest you have to care for the smaller children, alone. You saw your family massacred in a rebel attack, your home was burned and you live in a camp with no facilities at all. You are a child living on the street eating from the bins, chased away by everyone.

Then one day this week a man taps you on the shoulder, smiles, gives you a slip of hand written paper from an exercise book. He says, “Come to this place on this day, Come, I’ll collect you.”

When you get there people sit you down, sing to you, speak to you, wait on you as if you were in the restaurant the rich go to, and serve you with as much as you can eat and drink. They explain to you what happened on Christmas Day a long time ago and how this Jesus lived, died and rose again and will give you hope today. You are sent home with medicine, or a school book, or a mosquito net, or seeds or a tool to make money with.

You live in famine stricken and AIDS-ridden Malawi, in the refugee camps of north Uganda or in a colony of 325 socially unacceptable lepers in India and you have just been to our Christmas Party, the only party you have ever been to.

Three years ago the Lord spoke to us from Luke 14 saying,

"When you put on a luncheon or a dinner, don't invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbours. For they will repay you by inviting you back. [This is what people do and what we used to do but not any more] Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the godly, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you. Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that my house will be full."
Jesus

So maybe you can to do the same as us this Christmas. Bless the poor, those crippled by life, AIDS or whatever, the lame who are limping because of the hardships of life or accident, and the blind, literally and spiritually. You find them in the streets, the alleys and in the bush - not in the churches. People who have become hopeless and helpless, people who have no-one to care about them, except Christ. You can serve them as if you were serving Christ himself [Matthew 25.35] and give them a day that they will never forget as long as they live which may not be much longer. We promise you - you will feel the smile of God instead of the smile of the shops who normally take your Christmas money.

This is how to have a Happy Christmas.

Les, Pilar and Lizzie.
Contact Us



  From 1985




December 2007






The Worldwide Christmas Party
for the Poor 2007 . .


The Party happened this year in the Peruvian Amazon, Uganda, Liberia, Indonesia, India, Malawi, Brazil and Cameroon. Click on the country names to read the organizers report. Click here to see the photos: Page 1 and Page 2 Over 3000 disabled people, AIDS victims, street kids, homeless people, beggars, widows and orphans enjoyed a day they will never forget, eating, drinking and being served by smiling believers, and after an explanation of the reason for Christmas they went home with a gift to commemorate God's greatest and best gift of all, to them and to everyone, Jesus - Saviour, Healer, Provider and Giver of Hope.

December 2006

The Uganda Party for the Poor



We welcomed people with all kinds of disabilities, the cripples, the lame, the blind, the deaf, AIDS, mad people and others, 774 in all. People came carry-ing sick and lame on bicycles, in vehicles and others carried their sick people in their arms from the hospital. There was food, drinks and gifts of clothes, and scholastic materials for children. Even the cripples were dancing on their hands to praise our God who made all this possible for them. We heard the message of Christmas and 80 people decided to follow Jesus. After the party all the streets were full of people singing praise to God. So many poor people without a shepherd were carried, pushed or put in trucks to get them back. Not many pastors have a heart for the poor and see them as a liability, in fact one church is sending away the people who were sleeping in their grounds and they have nowhere to go to. Maybe we can open a centre for the poor in Lira?
George Purkweri, Pastor for the Poor, Lira, Uganda



In Indonesia we’re still doing our Christmas party . .



We are still visiting 90 more poor families with free Christmas gifts of rice, sugar, vegetable oil, sauce, fish, salt, milk, and the Gospel. The Party here was so wonderful with 400 people, young and old and 140 children all together to celebrate Christ’s birth with songs, dance, prayer, food, drinks, Gospel booklets, gifts, CDs and clothes. About 50 people received Jesus as their Saviour and Lord. Some people received healing from diseases and demons and some renewed their commitment to Christ. We blessed pastors with gifts and we prayed for the harvest. We did puppet shows, Gospel stories and a garden party. The meal was bat meat, beef, roasted duck, fish and coconut. They all ate and were filled, with baskets full of the fragments that remained. In one other gathering 18 young people committed their lives to serve the Lord. This Christmas party was the most extravagant I’d ever seen.
Yoppi Margianto, Indonesia



Wonderful Malawi Christmas Party for the Poor



Despite the rain the people came, we had music, dance and different perfomances. I gave gifts of clothes, books and seeds. All the 400 people were in a tent next to our house. May God bless you and everone who gave, we were able to see some faces happy this time who otherwise have no reason to be happy at all. Hope the photos will be with you soon.
Pastor Moses, Luinga, Mzuzu, Malawi.



From Chaing Mai, Thailand
Click on the links to see lots of photos and read the story

	The message of Christmas to 200 Karen unreached people
	A Party for the Poor for 100 severely mentally ill patients
	Christmas with 200 Shan refugees from rape and murder in Burma
	A Party for 300 poor Shan tribes people
	Christmas in a village of spirit worshippers
	Party in a hospital for the poor and abandoned These people are from multiple people groups and many don't know the Lord Jesus. They have every kind of disease and have suffered every kind of road accident or other form of accident that you can only begin to imagine. Many have also been tortured, especially the refugees from Burma. This Christmas brought them tears of joy and hope.

From Gareth Lavell, our friend in Thailand
www.rejoicecharity.com



Christmas in Papua, a party to remember . . .
We brought 153 tribal people and 30 children in rented government buses to a luxurious government building, not under a tree as expected because we wanted to give the best to the people. Neither did they dance half naked because those who had no shirt were given one. 50 people were born again, and 103 renewed a commitment to Christ and showed their joy dancing after a worship time. We send our many thanks to you all.
Adri and Sunni



Great of you to have done the parties for the poor.
It takes a big heart to do it. If you see on the Christmas tree a little light flickering, if you hear a little chime from the evening bell, I am sure that it is the Lord telling you: "Thank you". With all my love and prayers.



Philippe Saadé, Elboeuf, France.

§ What a lovely thought, however the privilege and honour remain ours to thank Jesus according to Matthew 24 the only practical way we can, by blessing the poor, just a small reflection of what Jesus himself always did and asks us to do not once a year but every day.
Les and Pilar

December 2005

§ Dear Les, Greetings from Malawi . . .
I have found out that I might need double what I had requested, the number of people will be even bigger because there is famine in this place. The poor people i was talking with would not believe that they will eat free. I happen to visit a family of seven children all orphans, both parents dead because of AIDS and they had totally nothing to eat even as I was with them. I pointed them to Jesus Christ who is able in all things, three of them gave there lives to Christ there and then, I invited all to them party.

Pastor Musa, Mzuzu


I have widows, orphans, the AIDS victims and the literal and spiritual blind.
My poorest are almost being left to die in their poverty either in the camps because of helpless condition or due to AIDS, lameness, blindness, and other disabilities. I have children who are living alone on the streets, eating from the dustbins. I plan to minister to these poorest people the love and the care of God through giving them a day to remember African style with good food, drinks, music, films or drama and an explanation of Christmas Day, and prayer for the sick and hopeless, sending them home blessed and carrying a useful gift.

George Purkweri, Lira, Uganda
 

Our Christmas party with the poor
We have had a very successful Christmas celebration with 230 people and the MP for Mzuzu who was so excited at the love of Christ and so challenged that he had to accept Christ when he saw words and deeds rhyme. At least ten gave their lives to Christ after the drama, music and praise. We pitched a tent by my home and gave gifts to the poor, We ate together and you could see the happiness on people's faces for what God can do.
Moses Atte, Mzuzu District, missionary from Kenya.

Today 29th December 2005 we had a special program for lepers.

 

We were able to feed and clothe 370 lepers at the lepers colony. As last year also God enabled us to share the love of God and the gospel of Jesus with these unwanted people. Many old ones have died but new ones are added. The dead ones had heard about Jesus and loved Jesus and died in peace. We thank God for the open door in this colony to share about Christ. Pastor Johnson will continue the work and will keep on feeding them when ever he goes there to meet them at least once in a month.



Pastor Daniel, Kerala.
http://www.voiceofgospel.com

December 2004

 A Christmas in Uganda beyond our expectation . .
God graced the celebration of the birth of His son Jesus as we celebrated this years Christmas with 300 poor or lame, blind people, and lepers, people with deformity and swollen bodies, the mentally ill, paralyzed, deaf, epileptic people and AIDS widows, orphans. Friends offered five vehicles to transport these poor people from the refugee camps to my home where we had a party. We served Coca Cola and cooked a whole bull to show God’s true love for the lowly people. These people went back praising God and the whole town was surprised to see the poor rejoicing and praising God in different vehicles. One journalist said ‘this is a true religion’. It was a surprise to the civic leaders and a lesson to the rich who have all, but are mean with their riches, and a great challenge to the religious leaders in Lira. One church leader saw and learned and went himself to five camps to bless 150 orphans with books, pens, soap and one plate each. Thanks for this great blessing to Uganda.
Pastor George Purkweri, Lira, Uganda.

God moved in a great way with the 200 street kids  . .

See all the photos

They enjoyed a big roast and an Argentine potato salad. They ate a lot, almost all of them without stopping. Normally they eat in street soup kitchens and the kind of food they had was a miracle for them. The happiness on their faces was indescribable and in spite of the fierce heat that day we did all we planned for them. At the end of the music, drama and the story of Jesus we made an prayer of gratefulness to God for the celebration. Later we distributed some very nice clothes that was a finishing touch for these children, because their parents if they have any, can never buy anything for them, not even the minimum necessities.
Mariela Ruiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

To our surprise 350 Hindu village people turned up!

Jai Yeshu, Jai Yeshu (Praise Jesus) was the sweet chanting which the poor, the lame and blind people recited with joy. Pastor gave a short Christmas message and many confessed that it was for the first time they heard the gospel. At the altar call everyone invited Jesus into their hearts. To our surprise we were thrilled to see them in church the following Sunday! It was with great joy our church people served food to them. One of them said "I never got so much of love in my whole life". We also gave blankets to the needy. You have turned many tears of sorrow into joy. You have such a great impact in the lives of poor people. 
John Joseph, Central India.
http://www.hmcindia.org/
 

In Burkina Faso it was awesome . .
When we had this DCI sponsored beautiful meal with some of the most special people in Burkina Faso. There were widows, blind, deaf, disabled and sick people.  How they clapped and rejoiced in the Lord. The angels must have been celebrating with us. "
Marie Therese Lannuzel, Croydon, UK.

Our Christmas with the helpless touched everyone because it is the first time that such a celebration took place over here. Some pastors and AoG Council members came for the lesson and were touched. There were blind and deaf people, lame people, orphans and very needy people. 
Pasteur William Ouedraogo, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Uganda in December 2003

"Marvellous, excellent, historical" said the chairman of the disabled in Lira and the local Member of Parliament said, "This was the most real Christmas party which I have ever been to."

We had over 450 men, women and children who are beggars, blind, lame, paralysed, orphaned, with AIDS, and we had as guests of honour the blind lepers who brought the presence of our Lord Jesus who was born for such a people, the hopeless and downcast people in the community. All the radio stations and the papers made us the main news The name of the Lord has been lifted in Lira more than before. It was much more better than holding even the biggest crusade. My wife was still feeding other refugees the next morning with the leftovers from the party even though everyone ate all they could."

Pastor George Purkweri, Lira.

Not 200, but 350 turned up in Peru . . .

It has been wonderful, and you will never believe that not 200 as planned but 350 poor children, teenagers, adults and elderly people turned up. The people from church were up very early getting the food ready and they did it in the street with tremendous love and enthusiasm, the cooking pans were huge. From 10 am till 3 pm we had the Word of God through songs, drama and puppets it was just beautiful. We could see Jesus working a miracle amongst us because the loaves and fishes were genuinely multiplied as we had not provided for so many people.

Even when everyone had finished we still had plenty left over to take out on Christmas Eve to 50 poor Quechuas in Yanamilla. It was a very special experience to be actually in a stable with a real manger with all these people from 5pm till 11 at night. We could feel the cold of the night, and the rain coming down and turning the ground to mud. We all slept on the floor as these people do and we felt their poverty. The people didn't stop singing and praising the Lord and listening to the Word of God, they were full of joy and happiness. This has been the most extraordinary Christmas that we have ever seen in our lives, thank you for sharing your love and your hearts with the poorest people in this world.
Raquel Yupanqui and Max Candia, Ayacucho.

The total cost for everything was only just over £1 ($2) for each person, as nearly 1,600 of the poorest people in the world  enjoyed a day they will never forget for £1,250, a gift that was raised by a literal handful of our DCI friends. 

If we can do this what could you do for the poor next Christmas if you were to start planning now ?

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