In 2023, as diaconate CGK, we received €1,723,358. We would like to show you what that was earmarked for and its impact. We are very grateful for all the help we were able to give.
With the help you gave:
- We helped 3 churches rebuild their church, which was destroyed by an earthquake (Mamasa, Indonesia)
- we helped 100 people with temporary housing in Turkey, Hatay (after the earthquake)
- we built another primary school in Haiti, storm-proof and equipped with a cistern for the whole village
- over 1,000 children were taught and nearly 1,200 children received day care
- 150 women learned to provide for themselves
- 180 people received (major) medical surgery and 100 received medical training
- we gave aid to Christians in Pakistan, whose church and homes were destroyed
- 6 victims of sexual violence received justice
- 25 single mothers with their babies were taken care of
- 3 students received scholarships and 40 young people received work-related training
- we gave women in Egypt (Quseia) embroidery machines for their livelihoods
- and much more: see Passing on and the web pages of diaconate
Giving for God's kingdom
We know Jesus' saying that our left hand (love hand) will not know what our right hand (giving hand) is doing. The moment I feel like a giver and transfer that feeling to the other person, the value of giving is effectively gone. So the text protects the receiver.
But it also brings us to our motives for giving. We give to God, for His kingdom, and we give away. We give of what God has entrusted to us. A children's song says 'All that I have, I have from my Father.' A Biblical truth for adults too. And we give away. We do not give with one hand our contribution and watch with a slanted eye what the other person does with it or how he or she reacts to our giving. We give out of love for God, His kingdom and its expansion and visibility.
Counting blessings
This does not mean that we do not make arrangements with organisations or churches we work with to account for how donations are spent. The possibility exists that the money may not end up with the intended target group or purpose. Moreover, it is good to see the impact of support. At the miraculous bread multiplication, the number of people who received bread and fish were also counted. And at the miraculous fishing, 159 fish were also counted. This is how we as diaconate CGK count our blessings, with you and yours!
A request to diaconates: would you please pass on the infographic to church members?
