Samaritan's Purse is working alongside a church in Greece that is providing homes for refugees.
“Everything is now ok,” Ahmad* tells everyone who asks. “We are very happy.” Ahmad and his wife Miriam,* and their daughter and newborn son, just moved into a new apartment that Mylotopos Evangelical Church provided for them.
The church in Mylotopos, a small village in Greece, is providing housing, groceries, and health care for refugee families, including Ahmad’s family. Samaritan’s Purse supports this congregation and 29 other churches that have provided care for more than 7,000 refugees.
Savvas, right, is a church elder who serves refugee families in Greece.
“ISIS was fighting in my city every single day,” said Ahmad, who lived in Iraq with his family for three years before fleeing for safety. After landing on Chios island they traveled to Thessaloniki, where they stayed in an informal refugee settlement.
“My wife was crying every day when we were in Kavala refugee camp. She was on her sixth month of pregnancy at that time and the conditions in the camp were terrible,” Ahmad explained.
Today, Ahmad and Miriam tell a different story. They have a place to call home. “The church is so good and kind to us. I will never forget their love,” Ahmad said.
Ahmad takes English classes three times a week at the church. He didn’t speak any English before arriving in Greece. With the support and care of church members, Miriam gave birth to a healthy baby boy in a hospital near Mylotopos.
Refugees participate in English classes at the church.
Savvas, one of the church elders, is involved in pastoring and serving refugee families. He and other church members often visit Ahmad and his family. Through the relationship Savvas has built with the family, he was able to share the Gospel with Ahmad for the first time.
“Do you know why we do what we do for you?” Savvas asked Ahmad. “We do so because we love you, and we love you because God first loved us. It is from the love that we have received that we share back with you.”
It is an honor for Samaritan’s Purse to stand by the church in Greece, supporting these faithful believers. We have provided furnishings and electrical appliances for the homes of refugee families.
Samaritan’s Purse staff members also regularly visit the village of Mylotopos, connecting with and encouraging the church members and refugees. Please pray for this church to have opportunities to share the love of Christ with refugees, especially as more refugees arrive and their outreach to refugees expands.
*Names changed for security.
