Greetings from cold and raining Athens!  Life continues to march onward here: Sofia and Emma are growing up so quickly; the ministry is busy and constantly changing; each day is full of great challenges and great celebrations.  Life doesn’t slow down, but neither does God’s care and provision.  Thanks so much for being a part of our ministry team.  Your support, your encouragement, your prayers – they are priceless to us!  Here’s how you can pray for us today:

1 - God saves sinners.  This simple fact continues to amaze and humble me.  In the last few weeks we’ve seen several refugees put their faith in Christ: two young Afghan men and an Afghan girl  (and please pray for the rest of her family – mom, dad, and three siblings – who are also seeking earnestly to know the Truth). Please pray for these new brothers and new sister in Christ.  Pray for courage and strength in the face of rejection (in some cases, their families will never speak to them again); pray for deepening faith and knowledge; pray for the witness of their testimony as they speak and serve in the name of Jesus.  Join us in praising God for His work in these lives!

2 - Lives on the move.  Working with refugees, we’re constantly saying goodbye to dear friends.  Last week a good friend – “A” – and her family (husband and four kids) moved from Greece to Germany to be reunited with her oldest son.  We’re thankful that she her family will be together once again.  Praise God for this, but please continue to pray for “A.”  She has confessed faith in Jesus, but like the seed sown among the weeds, the many difficulties in her life have made it a challenge for her faith to grow and thrive.  Pray that as she leaves Greece, God would use this change to help her faith blossom.

Many families are torn apart as they travel along the refugee highway: sometimes intentionally (e.g. sending the wife ahead into Northern Europe so that she might secure asylum for the entire family) and sometimes unintentionally (e.g. a family member is arrested or lost in a foreign city).  In either case, this separation often devastates families.  We work closely with dozens of families that have been separated.  What is worse yet, we are now working with several young children who are one their own.  Please pray for these kids (“unaccompanied minors”).  One particular child is close to our heart.  ”S” – a 9-year old Afghan – has a mom and two sisters in Germany; she is in Greece alone with her father.  Her father, however, is a drug-addict.  He is now so deeply controlled by these drugs that he cannot care for his daughter.  Although completely well, “S” is now living in a hospital, waiting to be placed in a state-run orphanage.  Please pray for this precious young girl.

3 - Life together.  Please pray for our ministry team here.  As you can probably tell from the above, there is a lot going on: good and bad, frustrating and exciting.  God is really using the team in great ways right now, so please pray against division and disunity – tools that Satan would use to divert our focus.  God is greater, so please pray that we would rely on Him for our strength, our unity, our focus, and our endurance.  This is a busy season of ministry and we have several teammates in the US for furlough, pray for our strength and perseverance.

4 - The Sanner family.  We would also appreciate your prayers for our family.  In addition to balancing all of the above, Kristin is five and half months pregnant.  From what our doctor tells us, the baby looks perfectly healthy, as does mom.  But we would still appreciate your prayers.  As we begin to look into the future, we are also praying through what our next season of life and ministry will look like.  Would you pray for wisdom and clarity on our behalf?

Thanks for your prayers!  We deeply appreciate your partnership in our ministry.

By God’s Grace,

The Afghan government recently reported that around 50,000 Afghans cross illegally into Greece each year, a country which is both on the outer reaches of the Schengen zone and relatively easily reached from Turkey.

and

Becoming victims of such criminality and exploitation is a constant risk. The situation for marooned Afghans in Greece is so bad that the Afghan government plans to open an embassy in Athens to help deal with tens of thousands whose dreams of moving deeper into Europe have turned into a nightmare of limbo with no money or papers. Their plight is often made all the worse by smugglers who keep their passports until they are paid in full.

“It is a lot more difficult to get asylum protection in Greece so it is just a transit point,” said Jean-Philippe Chauzy, a spokesman from the International Organisation of Migration. “There is a lot of resentment against migrants in Greece, especially with the economic crisis, which makes it very hard to make money and continue their journeys.”

Read the whole article here.  Please pray for Greece.  Pray for our refugee friends (Afghan and otherwise).  Pray that justice would roll down like waters and righteousness like ever-flowing streams (Amos 5:24).

Like a flower in the sun, we’ve seen “A’s” heart open before God’s rich grace.  Please continue to pray for her.  Here’s more info from our teammates Kent and Myrna:

Another big news item for us is that our friend “A” has been accepted to immigrate legally to Germany where her son is currently living.  We are SO happy for her to be able to go without worry of being caught and sent back and to have a place to go.  Life has been VERY hard for her here but through it all she has kept her sweet spirit.  She is truly one of my favorite people and I find as I am writing this that the tears are starting to flow as I think about her going away.  There are so many bittersweet moments in this ministry.   We are thankful that she will have a chance at a better life.  We are thankful that her son is a Christian so she will not stop hearing about Jesus but our hearts ache with the thought of not being a part of her and her sweet children’s lives.  Pray for her as she goes.  Pray for her husband who is a heroin addict and not a kind man.  Pray that her son will be a strong witness to her and her husband.  Pray for us because it hurts to say goodbye and the temptation is to close ourselves off from loving new people because of the fact that we will likely have to say goodbye to them as well.

Thanks so much for your prayers and support during these outreaches!  Your partnership in these outreach events is so important to us.  Thank you!  Here are a few more pictures from our week.  Enjoy!

A packed house!

Enjoying the festive environment!

Our teammate Michalis with some of the Afghan boys

Burnt bread from the bottom of the rice pot - an Afghan treat

We hope that your Thanksgiving was full of joy, laughter, and gratitude! We had a fun time here in Athens, gathering with teammates and remembering God’s grace in our lives. We are incredibly thankful for each of you – our support team around the world! Your partnership in this ministry is vital. So again… thank you!! We’re humbled and honored both by your support and the opportunity to be a part of God’s work here.

As we begin to turn our attention towards Christmas, would you join us in praying for our family and the ministry?

1 – Emma turns two this week (Dec. 2). She is talking, climbing, and loves hiding around the house. Sofia will be four in just over a month (Jan. 8). She is enjoying school and starting to make friends. Baby Sanner continues to grow, adding kicking to his/her list of activities. Life between two cultures can certainly be tough on kids (and also a unique blessing), so thank you for joining us in praying for our kids!

2 – On Saturday of this week, we begin our Christmas outreaches. We’ll host 5 outreach parties this year, sharing the message of Christmas with over 600 refugees this season! Thanks for giving to help make these outreach events possible. Please pray for these parties: for the refugees (that they would experience the love and hope of Jesus, and that many would be saved), for our team (that we would have strength and health during this demanding time), and for our Greek partners (local churches are partnering with us to host each party; pray that this would encourage them to continue to grow in service and evangelism).

3 – Please pray for our good friend and dear brother – “G”. “G” is a young Afghan believer (he was baptized here this summer), active in ministry (sharing his faith, translating for our kids program, serving other refugees) and growing in his faith. “G” is homeless at the moment. His previous landlord kicked him out after he refused to lie about his status. I am so encouraged by “G’s” faith and heart for fellow Afghans, but it’s been a tough week. Please pray for “G” – his growing faith, his ministry, and his housing situation. And pray that God will raise up dozens of other young believers, future leaders in the young Afghan church!

4 – With another baby on the way, we’re crunching the numbers and taking a serious look at our finances. We’d like to enter 2012 with an average increase of $400 per month. Would you please join us in praying for our financial situation? Would you consider contributing towards this with a special year-end gift?

You can give by check or credit.

Give by credit card or bank draft. Go to International Teams’ secure online giving page: https://wwws.iteams.org/us/. In “Step 2 – Designation” please indicate your gift is for Brett & Kristin Sanner. You can select credit card or bank draft, regular gift or one time gift.

Give by check. Send your check (made out to “International Teams”) and a note (designating your gift to “Brett & Kristin Sanner”) to International Teams; 411 W. River Rd.; Elgin, IL 60123.

If you have any questions about giving or our finances, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Thanks for your prayers, your support, and your encouragement! You are a vital part of our ministry here. We are thankful for you all.

By God’s Grace,

Brett, Kristin, Sofia, & Emma

Of course, I’m thankful for a lot: God’s grace and faithfulness, an amazing wife, two wonderful kids (plus one on the way), an all-star group of teammates, and much more!  This morning, however, my mind is on something a bit simpler: sleeping bags.  As you may remember, about five weeks ago, I asked for help purchasing sleeping bags for homeless refugees here (see previous post).

I’m so thankful for God’s provision and your partnership (maybe I should say, God’s provision through your partnership)!  Several blog readers and Facebook friends gave generously.  Thank you!  We’ve already handed out 100 sleeping bags, and are making plans to give another 100 bags in the next few weeks.

Nearly twenty of these sleeping bags went to a group of Afghan and Iranian refugees sleeping on the roof of an abandoned theater near one of the main parks in Athens.  They slept in groups of two or three, embracing to stay warm, covering themselves with whatever they could find that might help keep the cold out (blankets, cardboard, stray fabrics, newspapers).  In the name of Jesus, these sleeping bags were tangible witnesses of God’s love; a needed reminder that God has not forgotten these young men.  The gift of these sleeping bags is a perfect compliment to our team’s ongoing witness with these refugees.  I am thankful.

Our team also distributed almost 50 sleeping bags to (mostly Afghan) refugees sleeping in and around the port city of Patra (see here and here for some context).  The needs in Patra are great, and we are thankful to work alongside our brothers and sisters from the Greek Free Evangelical Church of Patra.  I am thankful.

Again, thanks!!  Your generosity has opened the door for a deep and meaningful witness to the power and love of God in Jesus.  Your partnership in this ministry means so much.  Thank you!

As new migration crises emerge in the Mediterranean basin and as Frontex’s responsibilities expand, there is an urgent need for a shift in EU asylum and migration policy from an enforcement-first policy to a protection-first policy. This is not only legally required but is a worthy and achievable approach for the EU, its agencies, and member states to take in addressing real problems that are susceptible to real—and principled—solutions.

The human right watchdog and defense group Human Rights Watch recently released a report (entitled: The EU’s Dirty Hands) outlining the abuses and inhuman treatment of asylum seekers happening on Greece’s borders.  In short, the report – based on interviews with 65 refugees as well as police and Frontex (the EU border patrol) officers – claims that asylum seekers are treated as criminals (actually, aren’t even given the basic rights afforded to criminals) at the EU borders in Greece rather than given the protection required by EU law.  Although conditions at detention centers can vary, in general the situation constitutes “inhuman and degrading treatment.”  It is no secret that the Greek government has no money, but this is not a Greek problem; it is a European problem.  Any solution will require a European response.  Read the entire report here.