SERVING THE LEAST OF THESE

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’” Matthew 25:31–46 

Insaaf serves among one of the most vulnerable populations in Lebanese society, migrant domestic workers from Asia and Africa. They have no worker rights and are often considered “strangers” in this land. During this ongoing economic crisis, they are also hungry and sick. The focus of this month’s newsletter is on the various ways we serve this special community.

Repatriating the Least of These

In October, INSAAF was able to help repatriate, S.A.G. a Sri Lankan woman with a special leg condition.    She has been living in Lebanon for 25 years and has not been able to work because she could not walk for a year. INSAAF was able to help her with legal assistance with her paperwork as she is undocumented. It took a two-month process, but her sister claims that this process moved faster with prayer.

          We praise God that  S.A.G.  is back in her home country, especially as it is hard for undocumented maids to go through the repatriation process, both financially and legally.

        Her sister comes to our Friday morning Bible Studies and she is relieved that her sister is home at this time. It has been an incredibly tough year for S.A.G.’s sister as the primary caregiver during the pandemic and economic crisis.

picture: S.A.G. on the right and her sister on the left

Your funds help women like S.A. G. to be repatriated back to their home countries!

To view a thank you message from S. A. G. visit: shorturl.at/ikwG6

Providing Medical Care to the Least of These

          A few weeks ago, an Ethiopian woman came to INSAAF with her one- year-three-month-old baby boy. Her son suffered from a second-degree burn while she was working. She left her son with a neighbor who accidentally spilled boiling hot water on the boy’s back. After going to the Burn Hospital in Tripoli (80 km away), she came to INSAAF, unable to pay for the medications her son needed.

          We were able to refer her Balasan, a faith-based clinic we work with. She was able to receive the antibiotics, ointment, and pain reliever for children she needed for free.

          We are grateful to be able to help her in this way.  Adequate medical care for Migrant Domestic Workers and medicine is rare to find in Lebanon these days, but we are grateful to have connections with several clinics that are willing to serve our migrant domestic workers and have medicine to give.

If you would like to give towards our medical aid for MDWs, please e-mail INSAAF at:  insaaflebanon@gmail.com

Meet the Newest Member of Our Staff

          Rachel Khalid is originally from the Philippines.  She met her Lebanese husband in Qatar and has been living in Lebanon for 12 years.  She is a mother of two children.  Last year, her husband ended his job abroad during the pandemic.  He is now a taxi driver but unfortunately, the economic crisis has affected his wage so much, what he makes goes straight to paying for the fuel he uses.  During the pandemic, she was introduced to Insaaf through a friend and she became one of our regular beneficiaries.

Rachel holding the baby of one of our MDWs

          In June, Insaaf hired Rachel to be a part of our staff as an office assistant. Her administrative skills have been in helping us distribute our monthly vouchers, food parcels, and setting up medical appointments for our beneficiaries. Rachel is also a very relational person who also speaks English, Tagalog, and Arabic. She helps us discern who is in most need by asking the beneficiaries how they are doing, if they have kids, and if they are working or not.  This is not an easy job as she listens to many heartbreaking stories and occasionally, she runs into an MDW who lies about her situation. However, sometimes she runs into women who are really grateful for the services we offer.

          “One time I called one beneficiary to come to receive her voucher. She had loud shouts of joy and happiness, continuing to repeat, ‘Thank God’ over and over again.” Rachel shared. The woman’s landlord wanted to evict her and she had no money for rent. The voucher helped her offset her expenses so that she can pay for her rent and still have food on her table. The woman continued to exclaim, “God is so good!” and Rachel was also joyful in being used by God to be a blessing for this woman. “

“I’m so happy because it’s not just work

but we are helping people.  In college, I

used to volunteer at an orphanage.  In

my heart, I really want to help.  I used to

say to God ‘use me to be an answered

prayer to some other person’.  I thank

God for using me to help people,” says

Rachel.

         When asked how we can be praying for Rachel and her family, she asked that we would pray for the health and safety of her family and for the situation in Lebanon.

We are truly blessed to have Rachel on our team!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP

We rejoice in the many varied ways God is using us to be His hands and feet to
“the least of these” in Beirut at this time. Thank you for partnering with us in
prayer and for your generous giving!

If you would like to give a gift, please visit:
https://internationalministries.org/lebanon-insaaf-center-project/

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