April 8, 2011

Dear Praying Friends,

Gayle and I wish to thank you right now for the time you will take to read this letter. It is a little longer than we normally send out because it comes from our very heavy hearts. We are concerned about the tragedy unfolding in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), where we have served for 20 years, because it is affecting the people we work with and love. The events there have been eclipsed by the recent natural disaster in Japan (with the state of its nuclear power plant and the tremendous loss of life there), the events taking place in Egypt, and more recently, Libya. One news source has called the events in the Ivory Coast “The Forgotten Emergency.’’

Since we are still here in the U.S., we have been following very closely through first hand sources of pastors in the Ivory Coast, internet news sources, and the press releases in from the State Department. The former president, Mr. Laurent Gbagbo, reportedly lost the election but has refused to step down, claiming there was voter intimidation at the polls in the northern region. The UN and much of the international community stand behind Allasane Ouattara as the legally elected president. Since January, Abidjan (the economic capitol) has become the war zone of the south. The second major battle ground to the north western region is the area where we first ministered our first term. Baptist Mid-Missions missionaries worked in this area from 1975 to 2003, and the ministries have been directed by national pastors and committees since that time.

We have read the reports of town after town being a battle ground. We have been to many of these towns and know pastors and churches in or near them. The western town of Doukoué was the scene of a massacre last week where 800 people are confirmed dead. They were victims of terrible atrocities. It broke our heart to see the pictures. We had been working with a pastor who had a church plant in this town, and know another pastor there. Although the pastor was not there at the time, it is reported that those killed were mostly women, children, and the elderly. Please pray for others who are afraid that the same thing might happen in their town.

San Pédro, the city where we live and minister was taken over by the rebels (now called “New Forces”) loyal to Ouattera. At this writing, things are calm, for which we praise God. Many of the nationals with whom we have spoken speak of their fear to move about. PRAY with us for the Christians with whom we work there. Emmanuel, who is directing the Bible Institute, had accelerated the courses by going to class Mondays and Saturdays, in order to finish a month earlier than scheduled. But since these forces came into town, they have canceled classes. Please continue to pray for the safety of the people.

The United Nations High Commission of Refugees (UNHCR) has estimated that one million people have been displaced with now very limited health care in Abidjan because even health care workers are fleeing. We have read that nearly 120,000 people from the north western region have gone over to Liberia. There are over 1,250 confirmed deaths. We know firsthand what this means to those who have left everything material for the safety of their lives. We have confirmed that 15 of our pastors and their families have gone to Liberia and are now living in refugee camps. They will have difficulties in Liberia even with the help of the UNHCR and other aid agencies. Then, when they come back home, everything that they left behind may be lost. They will come back home sometime in the future not knowing what they will find. We saw this when we ministered from 1991-1994 with refugees who had fled Liberia’s civil war. One of the things that encourages them is to know they are not forgotten by their churches they fellowship with in the Ivory Coast or us, the churches in the US. ( Here is a picture of these pastors and families on our web site from a conference I had with them in 2009 – http://steveandgayleking.com/profile.html).

We have tried to briefly update you on the situation in Côte d’Ivoire, now Gayle and I are asking you to respond. You may ask, “How can I or the church help?”

1. YOU CAN PRAY. When you pray for the Kings please pray for the pastors, believers, friends with whom we work, and for the entire country. Pray for God to put a hedge of protection from theft and looting around the campus of the Bible Institute, Youth Center, and Book Store/Cyber Café; also, protection of our home.
   
   
2. YOU CAN GIVE A GIFT. Would you consider a gift? We are praying that we can have funds to minister to the suffering of these people. Gayle and I have already received some gifts and have been able to send to the field money for the purchase of rice for pastors, our institute students, and a widow. We are also designating some of our recent love offerings for this purpose. There are 15 churches that we work with that have already been affected by this crisis not to mention other people that we know through our contacts in Abidjan and other places. Funds are needed for food, medical needs, and replacement of basic necessities lost (pots, bowels, mats to sleep on, sheets, mosquito nets, etc) due to the crisis. We are asking God to provide abundantly for the needs that are evident now, and for their future needs 
   
   How can you give? Baptist Mid Missions has its WORLD RELIEF FUND. This fund is unique in that it is only used for natural disasters or in our case civil wars and relief related to this. All special gifts given to this fund will be used 100% for the crisis. The office of BMM takes nothing out for administrative costs. All gifts given will be entrusted to us for dispensing as we assess each and every situation. Since we are not there right now, the committee of our Bible Institute will be empowered to administer the funds as they assess the situation based on the criteria of the WORLD RELIEF FUND.
   
   If you would want to give a gift for this urgent need, please send a check of any amount made out to: BAPTIST MID MISSIONS (PO BOX 308011, Cleveland, OH 44130-8011) Designate your gift: WORLD RELIEF FUND – Ivory Coast. All gifts are tax deductible; BMM will issue you a receipt.
   
   
3. YOU CAN FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO PRAYING PEOPLE about THE IVORY COAST: “The Forgotten Emergency”. We need massive prayer and relief funds right now. Gayle and I are not much on e-mail forwarding, so we almost hesitate to ask you to do this, but we would like you to help us get the word out that there is a great tragedy taking place right now. If you are concerned about the situation as we have  conveyed it to you, would you prayerfully forward this message to people you know well and add your personal thoughts to this? Thank You.