From Garden to Kingdom
Little seeds
Buried in freshly turned earth
Watered, encouraged
Spring from darkness to light
A miracle
Tended, nurtured
The plants grow green and strong
Blossoming
Flourishing seeds
Now producing their fruit
Ripened, harvested, washed
Hungry? Ready to eat!
Or prepared for market
Sold—Joy!
Income yields health
Blessings
Gospel seeds
Hearts open to Good News
The call moves stones
“Come forth!” the Lord says
Born again, new life blooms
Faith grows
Sisters and brothers together
The Kingdom comes
“I am poor, and I was struggling. From day to day, we may not have had food.”
Years of war had left Achol's community with a dire food shortage.
“I am poor, and I was struggling,” Achol said. “From day to day, we may not have had food.”
Samaritan's Purse responded to their plight by training Achol and others in her South Sudanese village how to increase their crop production. In addition to the training, we provided them seeds, watering cans, and farming tools.
They now eat better and have leftovers to generate income. Before our staff came to her village, Achol's limited earning options were collecting and selling wild fruits or cutting trees in the forest to sell for firewood. Now, she sells her vegetables in the market.
“My life changed,” she said.
Samaritan’s Purse teams are working in Jesus' Name in impoverished areas all over the world to teach livelihood skills such as farming and home gardening.
Through these projects, Samaritan's Purse is providing physical relief—a tangible expression of God's love—and sowing seeds for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in rural communities.
“I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” John 6:35
Relieving Physical and Spiritual Hunger in Africa
“Now, I can sell part of the produce to buy clothes for my children and to pay their school fees.”
Like others in her poor farming village in Kenya, Kauchi struggled to feed her family. Her harvest yielded barely enough for her six children to eat. Rarely did Kauchi have any surplus to sell.
Then Samaritan's Purse came alongside her with agricultural training. Kauchi and other beneficiaries are now enjoying increased crop production and vegetables from home gardens. “Now, I can sell part of the produce to buy clothes for my children and to pay their school fees,” Kauchi said.
We also partnered with Kauchi's church to plant a communal garden where our staff taught improved farming techniques to families. “I could never have imagined that we could have a garden right here,” said Emmanuel, pastor of the church. “It brings me joy to see all this. Samaritan's Purse coming—this is great love.”
As people passed by and saw church members working in the garden, they wanted to know—who taught them how to garden? And why would people come to their remote village to help?
This provided opportunities for these Christians to witness to their neighbors and invite them to church. “It's been one-on-one evangelism,” said Pastor Emmanuel.
We praise God that the church has grown from fewer than 20 members to more than 60!
A Harvest of Hope in Asia
Her harvest is now enough to feed and support her family.
Channa's husband Sovann is disabled due to a spinal injury, leaving her as the sole provider for their three children. When Samaritan's Purse teams started working in her village in Cambodia, the family was in desperate need.
We provided Channa with vegetable seeds such as cabbage, morning glory, pumpkin, spinach, beans, and watermelon, and taught her how to grow the produce. Her harvest is now enough to not only feed her family, but to also sell the extra.
As a result of our team's witness, the family heard the Gospel and Sovann has prayed to receive Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior! Please pray that Channa and the children will also come to faith in Christ.
“If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed…nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20, ESV
“In this difficult time, the garden we established through the help of Samaritan's Purse has fed my family.”
In the Philippines, Samaritan's Purse is reaching families like Aisa's who are persevering through an especially hard time due to the coronavirus pandemic. Her husband lost his job as a tricycle driver due to stay-at-home restrictions.
“We could not buy enough food for the family,” Aisa said.
Samaritan's Purse distributed tools and used demonstration gardens to teach families how to grow their own produce. Aisa now cooks using vegetables picked straight from her garden, saving money and adding convenience in a season when travel to markets is limited.
“In this difficult time, the garden we established through the help of Samaritan's Purse has fed my family,” Aisa said.
God Provides in South America
“What would have happened to us if we didn’t have this support?”
Teresa and her husband moved their family to the countryside of eastern Bolivia with dreams of farming the land and securing a stable future for their children. Yet, the work turned out to be more daunting than expected and they struggled financially. Teresa prayed for God to help her family.
When she heard about the Samaritan’s Purse agricultural training project, she met with our team and was delighted to hear that the teaching was designed for novice farmers just like her. Our staff taught her how to get started and how to continue caring for a garden.
Soon, Teresa was not only providing delicious, nutrient-rich food for her family, but also selling what was left at a local market. “In hard times, my garden was the only work I could do for my family,” Teresa said. “What would have happened to us if we didn't have this support?”
Teresa now eagerly shares her testimony of thanksgiving with neighbors and fellow farmers, encouraging them to trust in the Lord.
Join us in sowing seeds of hope.
