Earlier this year a hurricane damaged the sanctuary and worship center of Care Corner Orphanage in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Care Corner was begun in 1995 by Ricky Tan, a graduate of Bethany College of Missions, and his wife Lay Hwa to be a beacon for Christ by bringing hope to the hopeless, joy to the despairing, and love to the fatherless. They began by caring for 26 children and now they and their staff care for 62.

We have all been horrified by the sight of beheadings and other barbaric forms of execution that have followed in the wake of the terrible fighting that is taking place in Syria and Iraq. As appalling as these acts are, they are but one aspect of the terrible effects of the fighting.

Tens of thousands of people have seen their homes destroyed and, in order to survive, have had to flee with only what they can carry. Among these are the Yezidi Kurds, many of whom are Christians. Thousands have taken refuge in the southeastern part of Turkey, where they are being assisted by Turkish Christians, who are doing all they can to provide aid and comfort.

China’s one-child policy often means that parents abandon any child that is not physically perfect. In order to save as many of these children as possible, Tim and Pam Baker, graduates of Bethany College of Missions, formed the Philip Hayden Foundation (PHF) in 1995 to honor the memory of their good friend whose untimely death inspired them to continue his passion for China’s orphans.

Singer sewing machines click and spin in the one-room Gashora Sewing School. Teacher Clementine Abedi sits at her machine in the corner, pedaling evenly to make a patchwork shoulder bag from scraps of bright African fabrics.

After many years of war, the Cambodian government is struggling to provide education, medical care, and social assistance to its people, many of whom live in extreme poverty. As is too often the case, it is the children who suffer the most.

When Swarna and Thirumalai founded St. John’s School to bless families in Jesus’ name in their hometown of Tenkasi, in Tamil Nadu, India, they had no idea the impact the school would have on the lives of so many poor children who could not otherwise receive such an education.