Ken Postema lives in Western Michigan, about 15 miles east of Grand Rapids, on 10 wooded acres that he purchased 51 years ago when he was a senior in high school. Tall white pines, maples, tulip poplars, and hybrid poplars dot the lush, rolling landscape surrounding Ken’s beautifully handcrafted house, which he built himself. “Some…
Operation Christmas Child
God Opens Hearts Through Shoeboxes in Boise and Beyond
God has used gift-filled Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes to bring millions of children and adults to faith in Jesus Christ overseas. He also uses shoeboxes to draw people to Himself here in the U.S., as Manny Ma and his wife Wen Li of Boise, Idaho, can well attest. Wen accepted Christ as her Lord and…
Operation Christmas Child
Press Release Operation Christmas Child Feb. 1 – Over 11.3 Million Shoebox Gifts Collected
Samaritan's Purse Celebrates Over 11.3 Million Shoebox Gifts Collected for Children in Need BOONE, N.C.—Millions of shoebox packers shared the true meaning of Christmas with children in need this past holiday season. Generosity throughout contributed to a successful shoebox gift collection season at drop-off locations for the Samaritan's Purse project Operation Christmas Child. Across the…
Operation Christmas Child
Bringing Hearts to Christ in Cambodia
Hands clasped, heads bowed, children whisper their first words to the Creator they’ve just learned about. This moment of solemn surrender happens at tens of thousands of Operation Christmas Child outreach events across the globe each year. Watching one such prayer in his home country of Cambodia was especially meaningful to a boy named Samay*.…
Operation Christmas Child
God Uses Operation Christmas Child to Launch Mongolian Churches
Batnorov, Mongolia, is home to only 5,500 people, though an incredible 400,000 head of cattle graze here. Located closer to Russia than the country’s capital of Ulaanbaatar, it is known to Mongolians as the birthplace of Ghenghis Khan’s best friend, Boorchi. However, it’s not because of cows or famous friends that there’s been celebration in…
Operation Christmas Child
Operation Christmas Child Blesses Typhoon Survivors on Saipan
Typhoon Yutu destroyed thousands of homes and left families without shelter, food, and water last fall on the small Pacific island of Saipan. Cornerstone Christian Church gathered together and wept during their first worship service after the storm hit. “We were broken, as individual people and as a congregation,” said Femie Rey, whose husband, Manuelito,…
Operation Christmas Child
Delivering Good News, Great Joy in Peru
Lima, Peru—a city 10 million people call home—is a vibrant place of ministry for Operation Christmas Child. Decades of Samaritan’s Purse outreach events in this South American country have already enabled 5 million children to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ—and the work continues. The Peru National Leadership Team, made up of six experienced, passionate…
Operation Christmas Child
The Power of a Shoebox Packed with Love and Prayer
Ivanna Ramos was looking for a miracle. Ivanna, 12, lives with her single mother and three siblings down a dusty dirt road on the island of Roatán, Honduras. Her father left the family years ago, after lots of “arguments and fighting,” she said. “We always had problems for no reason.” The conflicts and her dad’s…
Operation Christmas Child
Missouri Churches Send Shoebox Gifts Off with Prayer
The farming community of Belle, Missouri, has a population of just 1,300 people, but on Sunday, they accomplished much through prayer. At their 23rd annual Operation Christmas Child dedication service at First Baptist Church, 120 people from more than 25 different churches gathered to commit 1,744 shoebox gifts to God’s purposes around the globe. Each…
Operation Christmas Child
“Mama Gump”: Her Hugs Went a Long Way
“Brother Graham, I’m Mary. Gotcha some shoeboxes for God. Where do you want ’em?” That’s how Mary Damron introduced herself to Franklin Graham, 30 years ago. A coal-miner’s wife from West Virginia with a great heart for children, Mary became a global ambassador for Operation Christmas Child during just the second year of the project.…
