January 2015
Dear friend,
“The moment my husband died, his family took my home and everything I own. I managed to escape before they took my kids away from me because I was not the ‘owner’ [of the home or children] anymore.” That’s what an African widow told me. Unfortunately, she is not alone. In many cultures widows suffer all kinds of indignities –homelessness, widow cleansing (rape), widow burning, and abandonment.
God loves widows and orphans! Thank you for praying with us this month for the 200 million widows of this world.
William Carey, the 18th-century British missionary to India, was deeply disturbed seeing widows being thrown onto their husbands’ funeral pyres in hopes of a better chance in the next life. Carey started a movement that, in time, outlawed “suttee” – this terrible practice – in 1834. However, culture speaks louder than the law. One hundred eighty years later, India’s widows are still considered a curse that brings bad luck. Ostracized, thousands of them live as beggars, working as slaves, hidden away. Varanasi is a city on the banks of the Ganges River that is a huge cremation site and a “city of widows.” I was told that they pray daily for death to come swiftly.
Some months ago, my sister-in-law, Ursula, lost her husband of four decades. The sudden shock and pain were deep; but so is her faith. She believes the God who the Bible says is “the Father of the fatherless and the husband of the widows.” That’s the hope that we share. Please pray for grace and wisdom for Project Hannah’s teams as they comfort widows and those whose husbands have abandoned them.
It takes time to feel “normal again” after a husband dies, says Miriam Neff, another widow who is using her pain and grief to help others. She writes: “The glove of grief is as unique as the fingerprint inside. Don’t compare yourself to others and their timeline. … Time is simply a tool. Remember that God is a specialist in granting grace and mercy and is the Great Physician. Healing is His specialty.”
If you are a widow, my friend, I pray that this exercise of praying for others will start a healing process in your life. May you sense the powerful reality that “God is our refuge and strength – a very present help in times of trouble.”
Believing with you,
Marli Spieker
Global Ministry Director/Founder
Project Hannah
TWR