We’re thankful to report that the school year began somewhat on time this year. It’s not always guaranteed out here! Most of the EAP kids we help sponsor for school began classes in early October. The photo above is of some of the kids from the younger classes. They’ll likely go late into next summer to make up for the delay in starting, which was no fault of the school, or the kids, but tied to broader issues in the country.

We’re thankful to be able to help 63 kids total attending two different Christian-run schools in the mountains and 2 young women in vocational school. One of the schools is a traditional K-12 program. They follow an English-based international curriculum and have done a good job of giving these kids a hands-on, one-on-one education they weren’t getting at the UN-run schools. They incorporate a Bible class into the school curriculum, but the main point is NOT to be a seminary, but a quality K-12 program that gives these kids an education and a future.

The other school is a K-12 remedial program aimed at getting kids “caught up” who couldn’t go to school for years due to either the war in Syria, displacement or COVID lockdowns that shut most schools here for an entire year. Many kids here are reaching 7, 8, 10 years old and have not even begun 1st grade. The implications of a lifelong ignorance are tremendous.

The two young women are also EAP “graduates” who we helped finish high school in recent years. They are in a post-secondary vocational school to get a professional certificate to be able to work in either practical nursing (like a CNA) or bookkeeping. We are amazed their fathers have allowed them to pursue education, as out here women their age are usually pushed into an arranged marriage.

There’s a reason so many missions in past centuries focused on education as a way of serving the community. We do NOT see education as our aim or goal in itself – Christ is the goal and faith in Him the aim. We didn’t come here to start schools. But if the people we help can learn to read, then Bibles become far more useful. If they can learn to reason, then ignorance and deception by other groups becomes far less effective. If they can learn to work in a skilled area, then they have a future where they can provide for their needs and for others, instead of being dependent or risking a deadly escape to a Western country.

For the current EAP cycle, 30 of these kids still do NOT have a sponsor – we didn’t want them to miss the school year, so we helped with the initial fees in hopes there’d be a future sponsor come along some time during the school year. If you or anyone you know are still interested to sponsor a child, find out more about it here.

What To Pray For With The EAP Ministry

Even if you aren’t committed to sponsor and pray for an EAP child, we’d still ask you to pray for them! Pray they would be good students, making the most of this opportunity given them to study at a quality school. Pray they would respond to the truths they learn at these schools about Jesus. Pray we could wisely choose which children to accept for the EAP and which to not. We always have far more mothers asking to put their children into school than we have the ability to do so.

Thank you again for your prayers and support. This is a work bigger than any of us, but not bigger then God or His church! If you wish to be involved in any way, you can support TGI via our site, sign up for our relief updates e-mail newsletter to better know how to pray, or contact us if you are interested in knowing more about how to be personally involved.