Mar–May 2015 | flickerflame eNewsletter

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Communities of Hope
Foreign to Familiar
Family Highlights
Ministry Highlights
The Refuge Initiative
Father's Worst Nightmare

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Building Communities of Hope

In just 3 months we have seen our work here in Northern Iraq grow in unimaginable ways. This week we've completed our 5th refugee camp, which are now sprawled over three locations in the Soran & Rwandz Region. That means almost 100 families - close to 600 refugees/IDPs - now have a safe place to call home.

We've also had plenty of visitors recently, with teams, ministry delegates, and volunteers all spending time with us and serving at the community center and refugee camps.

On June 9th we will be celebrating our 1 year anniversary of life in Kurdistan. It has been an exciting and challenging adventure to say the least. The Kurdish people have endured a lot over the centuries and this last year has tested the resolve of this amazing people. In our town alone over 100 Peshmerga soldiers have lost their lives defending their homeland from the threat of ISIS.

We have some really exciting things on the horizon in the coming days, including an official launch on the revamped work that we are doing here that centers around our outreach to refugees and IDPs. It's called "The Refuge Initiative", but more on that later.

There are many challenges to living and working here, but we have seen first hand what God can do, even in our weakness. Just recently I was deeply impacted by an encounter with a Yezidi man who is experiencing what I can only describe as "A Father's Worst Nightmare". As you take time to read through our eNewsletter be encouraged - God is moving. But know that you too can be part of the solution. There is so much more that we want to do in bringing the hope of Jesus to Northern Iraq and we need your help.

As a family we're so thankful for the ways that God has seen us through our first year in Kurdistan and we're so grateful to those of you who have been cheering us on through your prayer and support - you know who you are! Enjoy the photos and updates of what has been a busy Spring.

If you have ever spent time traveling or living in a completely different culture, I can guarantee you have had moments that have left you scratching your head in confusion or just plain frustration. I can't recommend this book more highly. It is a simple and engaging read packed with profound truths to help you understand and thrive in a cross-cultural setting.

It's a must read if you plan to go on a short term trip in the near future!

Family Highlights

Lily Turns One

We had a wonderful time celebrating Lily's birthday with friends here in Soran. We are so grateful for the delightful little "Lady Bug" that God has blessed us with. But don't be fooled, she is quite a mischievous girl... seizing every opportunity to sneak through an open door and wreck havoc in no time. Sarah also celebrated her birthday in March, looking more and more beautiful as years go by!

Seven Years of Blissful Marriage

Can you believe it.. Seven amazing years have passed and we are just blown away by the goodness of God in our lives. We couldn't be happier with our three beautiful children and the incredible journey that we have been on together. At times life has seemed more like a rollercoaster, living in three countries and countless homes/apartments. We can't wait to see what happens in the next seven years - bring it on!

Celebrating Our First year in Northern Iraq

I reckon we could write a book about the experiences we have had in just our first year in Northern Iraq. The shocking emergence of ISIS and the challenges of everyday life in Kurdistan have made for some memorable experiences. It has been a privilege to stand alongside the Kurdish people as they fight for their homeland. Ultimately we know that it is only through the love of Jesus that true freedom and hope is found and we are believing for the seeds of the Gospel to burst forth into a great harvest here in the coming years.

Ministry Highlights

Team from Portland | A Jesus Church

We had an amazing two weeks with a team from A Jesus Church in Portland, OR. There was 4 guys and 3 girls on the team, including a Kurdish believer from Kirkuk who has been in the US for the last 15 years. We had a tremendous time loving on the children at our first two refugee camps – The Shabak camp and Yazidi camp in Akoyan. The women also spent time talking with the women of the camps and also visited homes in the local neighborhood where we live.

Team from New York | Times Square Church

In May we had a scouting team from our home church in New York, TSC. It was such special time enjoying the company of good friends. They were supposed to be here in March, but their flights were canceled and they reschedule for May. It turned out to be the perfect time to visit, with good weather and lots of opportunities to serve. Thanks for visiting us Amy, John, Jeremy, Ryan & Aziz!

More Guests & Volunteers

We've had some special guests come visit and witness first hand the work that God is doing here. New York Times bestsellers Don Miller (Blue Like Jazz) & Bob Goff (Love Does) joined Myles Adcox (Onsite Workshops) & Mike McDonald (Hear The Cry) for a few days in March. Delegates from The Voice Of The Martyrs also visited and as a result, they've since partnered with us to help build our Rwandz Camp. We just love having people come visit us and are so encouraged when they come alongside us to partner in the work we are doing. That being said, you all have an open invitation to come visit!

The Refuge Initiative

In just a couple weeks we will be re-branding our work here with World Orphans as The Refuge Initiative: Building Communities of Hope.

At the heart of why we are here is the desire to be a practical demonstration of the love of Jesus to those around us. So as the needs around us change, we want to stay relevant and right in the thick of the action - doing all that we can to serve the orphan, the widow and the refugee. We're excited about the vision that God has given us of Building camps of refuge, restoring dignity and hope, and providing pathways back to independent living for those running from persecution.

Right now we are in the final stages of launching a new website and are so excited about the stunning design work done by Jeremy Dawkins to brand our new identity. We can't wait to share it with you.

Don't you just want to be part of what God is doing here in Northern Iraq?

Click Here to Help Us Build More Refugee Camps

A Father's Worst Nightmare

It was bright and early when I got the phone call that the expansion to our Yezidi refugee camp in Rwandz was ready for the tents. We had a team staying with us from New York City - good friends from Times Square Church - and it didn't take much convincing to get the guys pumped for a bit of good ole' brute labor.

Buzzing from our morning coffee, the five of us loaded into the car and headed out to the camp - I had the feeling that today was going to be a good day!

We rolled into the camp around 9am with the sun already beating down on us with ferocious heat. Thankfully the heavy tent bags were already laid out on the ground evenly spaced in front of the concrete bathroom and kitchen facilities that had just been completed. A few minutes later a truck-load of Yezidi men and young boys showed up to lend a helping hand in putting up their new dwellings. This small camp was built to accommodate an additional ten larger Yezidi families that were not going to fit at our existing Yezidi camp in Rwandz.

It didn't take long for a little cross-cultural confusion to ensue surrounding how best to put up the tents. The main culprit being the fact that we spoke hardly any of the unique Kurdish dialect that Yezidis use, and their English was practically non-existent. You could safely say that it was a great learning experience for the team of guys from New York. I like to see these situations as a wonderful opportunity to hone my "charades" skills and develop a little more patience.

Much to our surprise things seemed to be going swimmingly when the Yezidi workforce took full control of the the tent assembly, leaving us with the opportunity to play a little soccer with the kids and take in the incredible scenery surrounding this camp.

I decided to wander over to one of the older Yezidi men who seemed to be visibly upset - his eyes peering off into the nearby mountains, welling up with tears. I was not quite sure what to do and I knew I didn't have the vocabulary to really ask what was on his mind. So I did all that I could do, I stood there beside him and placed my arm around his shoulders and silently looked up towards the same mountains.

The first tears began to roll down his cheek and it took everything within me to keep from choking up. Suddenly, he steps back and starts pulling at his chest and waving his hands across his neck, motioning a slit throat that could only mean one thing in this part of the world. I could barely process the amount of heartache he was trying to express to me. All I could say was "I'm so sorry" in my broken Kurdish.

Soon after, the work was complete. Ten new tents had been successfully put up, and the five of us had barely worked up a sweat - aside from the two guys that went off to play soccer with the Yezidi boys.

As we were saying our goodbyes I noticed that the elderly man was in our circle of conversation and so I asked my Kurdish friend to translate for me what the man was trying to convey to me just 30 minutes earlier.

The pain seemed to quickly reappear across the man's face as he explained again how ISIS had kidnapped more than a dozen women and young girls from their group whilst they were still at their home on Sinjar Mountain - wives, sisters, cousins and daughters. Just yesterday he got a call from the Iraqi city of Fallujah where a man belonging to ISIS offered the return of his daughter if he paid a ransom of $10,000. Again, his dramatic hand motions seemed to express more than his words ever could. It was a father's worse nightmare.

What if he did come up with money, could he even be sure he would get his daughter back? And wasn't paying ransoms just another way of funding more terrorism and enabling ISIS to kidnap more women and children. I could barely even imagine what condition she would be in if he were to ever get his daughter back in his arms again. The stories of suicide, shame and mutilation of those who have managed to win their freedom from the hands of ISIS are enough to make your stomach churn.

And as I stood there paralyzed in thought and emotion, my mind suddenly raced towards my own wife and children. What if it were my daughter, what would I, could I do to get her back. What shape would I be in emotional, physically, mentally. Something within me broke and I was overwhelmed with a sense of fear - as though I had just woken up from a nightmare, and yet I knew my family was at our home... safe. But for these Yezidi fathers, it was reality - the worst kind.

I just couldn't look at these men the same anymore, these men who had just spent a few hours putting up a bunch of tents for their new home.

Now, almost a year later these Yezidi families are still in great need - broken apart and broken-hearted, hundreds of miles from their homeland.

Thankfully here in Rwandz Camp they are in a safe place, sheltered by the mountains that surround the ancient town of Rwandz, the once capital of the Soran Empire.

Through the efforts of The Refuge Initiative we have been able to provide 70+ Yezidi families with shelter, food, medicine, electricity and water. But we desire to give them so much more.

Our goal is to provide these families with the care they need to bring healing into their lives and restore hope for a brighter, independent future.

We all can make a difference, one family at a time. Just a few weeks ago we began work an another small camp to accommodate a further 9 Yezidi families that are in desperate need of a place to live. Will you join us in praying for and supporting these Yezidi families? You can follow our efforts at The Refuge Initiative's Facebook page and make donations to the Iraq Emergency Fund here that directly funds our efforts to care for refugees and IDP's fleeing persecution.

Thanks for journeying with us - Tim & Sarah Buxton (Elliana, Charlie & Lily)
Kurdistan, Iraq

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