When Jehoshaphat was leading the army of Judah to meet their enemies, he asked the Levites to come along in order to lead the charge with songs of prayer and praise. It is possible, according to scholars, that they sang Psalm 136. For the time it took to march toward the enemy armies, they sang the praises of the Lord. Within this Psalm there are words of praise for the greatness of the Lord, but also reminders of God's faithfulness. As they marched out in faith against an enemy they had no power to defeat, they were reminded that the God who was with them was the God who had delivered their ancestors from Egypt (vs. 11-12) and had done so by dividing the Red Sea (vs. 13-15). He had made them victorious over other armies (vs. 17-21). When you are afraid, anxious, or discouraged (and we all will be at some point or other), remind your soul to bless the Lord. Recall the memories of His faithfulness. The battle is not yours, so surrender it into His hands.

Paraguay:

Tears ran down Pastor Ramon's face as he watched boys and girls open their Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts during an outreach event at his church in Paraguay. “I felt the presence of God,” he said.

Reaching children with the Gospel is important to Pastor Ramon. Most families in his church are impoverished and live in communities with significant drug use.

During the outreach event, Alex received many items in his shoebox—a soccer ball, coloring pencils, notebooks, and other small toys—but he said that The Greatest Gift, which is a booklet given to each child that explains the Gospel, was the most special gift. “The book is my favorite because Jesus is in it.”

Alex accepted Christ as His Savior during an outreach event. Of all the gifts he received that day, he said that The Greatest Gift Gospel booklet was the most special.

Alex prayed to receive Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior during the outreach event. “Jesus lives inside my heart,” he said.

Operation Christmas Child is opening doors for Pastor Ramon to share God's love with Alex and other boys and girls who are desperate for hope.

Like Ramon, all of our teams and church partners around the world are working hard in Jesus' Name to bring shoebox gifts to the most hard-to-reach communities, even to those that are extremely isolated. In Lesotho, we're using donkeys to transport gift boxes to children whose families are shepherds. Sometimes it takes several weeks to reach one group of shepherds because they live in outlying areas. Their nomadic lifestyle also makes them difficult to contact, as they move their flock to different mountainous areas as the seasons change.

Mexico

Fernanda's home was destroyed when Hurricane Otis hit Acapulco. She was reminded of God's love for her and her family through Operation Christmas Child.

In the past year, God also used Operation Christmas Child to bring great joy and the Good News of Jesus Christ to boys and girls left devastated when Hurricane Otis slammed into Mexico's Pacific Coast. Fernanda, age 10, lost everything in the storm, including her cherished notebooks and crayons. But when she opened her shoebox gift alongside dozens of other children, her eyes widened with delight. Inside she found a toy boat, little toy kittens, socks, and, most thrilling, notebooks, colored paper, crayons, and pencils. “I was excited because I wanted to draw many things—like flowers and cats—and a picture of how God took care of us during the storm,” she said.

Her mother, Esmeralda, said that the love shown by the local church and Operation Christmas Child encouraged her to reconnect with God and other believers. “God has shown us that even in the most difficult moments, He brings the right people. These gift boxes and the church are a blessing to us and to this whole community.”

Ghana:

In a remote village in Ghana, Epiphani was delighted to receive a shoebox gift filled with special presents, but when she met a boy named Daniel who was from an even more severely impoverished family, she decided that he needed the treasures more than she did.

Epiphani shared the Gospel with Daniel and invited him to church, where he heard the Gospel for the first time and gave his life to Jesus Christ. He shared the Good News with his mother and she also accepted Christ as Savior.

In the weeks following the outreach event, she joined other girls and boys in learning more about God and His Word during The Greatest Journey 12-lesson discipleship program. “Through the program, I now know who Jesus Christ is. The classes changed my life,” she said. “I put my trust in Jesus—He is the One who came and died for our sins.”

The last lesson encouraged the children to share their faith with family and friends. One day, Epiphani saw Daniel picking through trash in search of metal scraps to sell so he could have money for food. She had never met Daniel, since he had stopped going to school and wasn't interested in church. “I shared the Gospel with him, and I prayed over him and invited him to church,” she said.

Daniel was intrigued by Epiphani's thoughtfulness. He accepted her invitation to attend church and began studying the Bible. Before long, he repented of his sins and gave his life to Christ. His mother also gave her life to Christ and they enjoy going to church together. “I have peace,” Daniel said. “I tell other people about Jesus.”

Kenya:

A group of children in Kenya started a soccer club though they didn't have any sports gear. Their families couldn't afford to buy soccer balls, so they used whatever they could find to kick around the field. They prayed that God would provide soccer balls. During an outreach event, shouts of joy were heard, as nearly every child received a ball in their shoebox.