Life in India can be very difficult for someone born into poverty and limited by the caste to which their family belongs. Unfortunately, for girls life can be especially hard. The birth of a baby girl often brings disappointment and shame. Life does not get easier for these girls as they grow up and mature. In far too many cases, they end up living in brothels where they are forced to work to survive. According to statistics cited by the U.S. State Department, approximately 1.2 million children are prostituted and enslaved throughout the country. Only about 2,000 victims of trafficking are rescued per year. Andhra Pradesh, the state where Reverend Thomas ministers, has the worst record for crimes against women.
"In India, boys have all of the advantages," said Asha Biswas, a community health nurse who has spent the last 15 years working in villages near the Himalayas. Boys carry on the family name and build up the family wealth. Girls drain resources through dowries. "Families will argue, "What is the point of raising a girl who will spend most of her life serving someone else?""*
Thankfully, Reverend Thomas and the ministers of Feed My People understand that God loves these young women and has a better plan for them (...plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11b). They are committed to rescuing these girls from lives of misery and sharing the love of Christ with them. Currently, 164 teenaged girls who have been rescued from brothels are residing at the Feed My People campus and receiving vocational training to be nurses and health care providers. They also receive Biblical training along with the love and care of a family. After the teen girls have completed the two year training program they are able to obtain jobs in the medical field.
opportunities to use their new skills to help people in surrounding villages. They recently conducted a polio vaccination clinic for local children. They also offer other inoculations and training on health and environmental issues. Your generous donations are put to good use as Global Outreach invests in the lives of these teen girls. Please remember them in your prayers. Reverend Thomas reported that most of them have given their lives to Christ since coming to Tenali and many of them also attend Bible College.
To see more pictures of women in India participating in this training please download our June 2011 newsletter: http://media.wix.com/ugd//b27ff3_0e55a55a83012cd18ff684f31b8a80f1.pdf Learn more about Global Outreach's ministries in India: http://www.global-outreach.net/#!india/ctg7 To make a donation to Global Outreaches providing hope and a future to orphans in India please visit our donation page: http://www.global-outreach.net/#!donate/c1ghi
*Excerpted by permission “Worthless!”, by Michelle Wright, WORLD magazine, all rights reserved. www.worldmag.com
