War in the Middle East

I've been sponsoring a young girl named Vanessa in Lebanon since October of 2001.  It had been something I had wanted to do for awhile before that, but I didn't have enough money to do it.  Then 9/11 happened.  I've been sponsoring her for almost 5 years now and I've watched her grow up through the regular correspondence and photos I get from World Vision.  Then a couple of weeks ago I got this email:

Dear Sponsor, We value your commitment to sponsoring a child in Lebanon. Your generous, faithful support means so much to this child, family and community. You've probably heard in the media about the renewed hostilities in the region. Our field staff have informed us that your sponsored child's community is directly affected and responding to families displaced by the fighting. We're grateful to hear in the latest report that your child is safe — and will do our best to get more information as it becomes available. Life in Lebanon has become very difficult, with the air and sea blockades and the destruction of roads, bridges, ports and telecommunications infrastructure. The death toll in		Medical items and bread are being sorted for distribution to dispensaries, Red Cross and public schools which are sheltering thousands of displaced persons. (Woman in photo: Ruba Khoury Zoghbi, ADP Coordinator)
Lebanon is rising, and hundreds of thousands of families have been displaced. World Vision staff have been busy distributing food and water to people deemed especially vulnerable in this situation. They report it is very difficult to carry out assessments and do relief distributions under the circumstances, but are planning a larger response ... with a focus on helping children and families in need. The need is clear — desperate people approached the World Vision relief trucks en route, begging for help or threatening to sieze the supplies by force. While it is a definite challenge to keep track of all the sponsored children under these circumstances, we are committed to communicating directly with you should we hear of anything that directly affects your child. Please remember to pray: for those who are mourning the loss of loved ones for the safety of all the children in the region, especially for the ten of thousands who have been displaced from their homes and are in special need of shelter and assistance for the safety of our staff as they go about their tasks in a climate of fear and confusion, and for wisdom as they develop plans to respond to those who have been displaced for the success of international efforts to bring about a peaceful end to the violence in this part of the world For the most recent update on the situation in Lebanon, please click here to link to our Web site's Latest News pages.

Yeah, I'm worried.  This hits a lot closer to home when you care about someone who's over there.  So whatever your religious affiliation is, pray for peace because children should never have to live with war.

~Bethany