2019 2020 Müllers Annual Report

TRANSFORMING
COMMUNITIES
Communities have a vital role
to play in enabling children
and young people from all
walks of life to realise their full
potential. Our aim is that children
and young people belong to a
community that reflects the values
of the Kingdom of God, being free
from war, poverty and injustice.
Operation
Mobilisation
(O.M.)
We are delighted to partner with
OM’s economic empowerment
project Unique Star in Lahore,
Pakistan. It is a wonderful example
of work that shares our vision
in which individuals, families,
churches and whole communities
can support children and young
people from all walks of life. This
year has seen many stories of
God’s provision as the program
continues to transform lives and
communities.
As individuals in churches apply for
loans, Unique Star brings O.M. into
partnership with many churches
with whom they previously did not
have any contact. These churches
then also serve alongside O.M. in
relief, development and outreach.
Meanwhile, the openness of the
Christian business community in
Pakistan is giving the church access
to a different, more influential
sphere of society, which is an
exciting opportunity to see God’s
kingdom begin to transform these
communities.
More women are applying for
loans for small businesses, which
is a significant and potentially
dangerous challenge to the
prevailing culture in Pakistan. O.M.
has to manage this very carefully
as it provides training and loans
to help lift whole communities
out of poverty. However, Unique
Star continues to work counterculturally
by offering training
focussed on women and by
encouraging women in the church
to take up this training and to apply
for loans.
Here are just a couple of the stories
we have been encouraged by, which
show how Unique Star is positively
transforming lives and communities in
Lahore.
Musayyab’s family runs a dairy farm
business and his loan is helping him
to produce good quality, organic and
reasonably priced milk. This gives him
positive relationships with his supply
chain and, as they are the only Christian
family in the village, he uses this
goodwill as an opportunity to share the
love of Christ with his community.
Agnes has been running a store for
ten years. In the fourth year, the shop
was burned down, and she turned to
Unique Star for a loan. She is so grateful
to God for His provision, which enabled
her to rebuild her shop and continue to
provide for her family’s needs so that
her children can still go to school and
have enough food to eat.
Asfand is 33 and drives a rickshaw that
he bought with a loan. He is grateful to
God and looks for ways to serve Him
through this work as he shares the love
of God with the community. On one
occasion he picked up a family whose
child was very ill. He suggested that they
go to church for prayer, after which the
child’s condition improved. He was even
able to give them a New Testament and
stay in touch. Asfand hopes that the
income he gains will support his future
family.
TRANSFORMING COMMUNITIES
We are so encouraged to see God at
work through this project, as small loans
bring about big change in people’s lives,
which then go on to be transformative
in communities in Lahore. Following
its success, O.M. will now be looking
to rebrand Unique Star, changing the
name to Living Hope. This will give
opportunities to expand operations
into poorer rural areas, where it has
always been its vision to work. Müllers
is excited to continue partnership in
this work in order to see even more
communities transformed so that
children can grow up free from poverty
and injustice, and fulfil their God-given
potential.
Prayer Points:
• Please join us in supporting O.M.
in prayer as they act counterculturally
in reaching women and
breaking traditional barriers within
their communities.
• Please pray as O.M. re-writes
the training so that women are
empowered to start businesses
despite the cultural challenges.
• Please pray as the O.M. Pakistan
leadership team plan expansion
later this year. Please pray for the
Lord to provide resources including
finance and people, and for O.M. to
be reassured that the Lord’s hand
has taken this program to where it
is now and will give them wisdom
and guidance for the next phase.
22 Müllers Annual Report 2019-2020
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