Christian Freedom International

SAULT STE. MARIE, MI (Christian Freedom International) -- Miraculous. It’s the only word I can think of to describe what’s going on here in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

When I say “miraculous,” it’s not what you might think. There hasn’t been an outbreak of sudden, unexplained healings, nor have there been any sightings of angels walking among us here in the Soo.

Instead, the town has been quietly rejuvenated by a group of 14 families—over 50 men, women, and children—who have claimed for themselves a piece of the American dream while making a lasting impact on the small community they’ve learned to call “home.”

What’s so remarkable about these 14 families and the 8 children my wife and I have adopted? They’re Karen refugees from Burma.

Against the greatest of odds, these families have gone from struggling through a bleak existence in Thailand refugee camps to enjoying abundant freedom and opportunities in the United States.

In the recent months since they’ve relocated to Michigan, these refugees have found new homes, friends, and churches, and are happily thriving in ways that they never thought possible.

As they secure jobs and earn their own income, many refugees have begun donating to CFI, simply because they know firsthand how effective our programs in Burma really are.

Many refugee teenagers—kids who were once students at our Vocational School in Thailand—plan to return to their homeland one day to serve and teach at CFI schools and clinics.

And a Karen pastor, who was once in charge of CFI’s Freedom House orphanage in the Mae La refugee camp, has relocated to Sault Ste. Marie in order to provide pastoral care and services.

The fact that these refugees have all overcome the bitter adversity of persecution in Burma and become productive members of American society can only be attributed to the miraculous hand of God.

Want to know something else? Divine intervention may have brought them to the United States, but the loving support they have enjoyed since their arrival wouldn’t have been possible without you, either.

For many years, you have invested your prayers and financial gifts into CFI and its mission to assist the persecuted church in Burma, and I’m excited to tell you that your investment is paying off in a big way.

Because of your generosity, we have been able to effectively help these refugees with everything from medical care to food and clothing needs.

We have even purchased and begun renovating a nearby motel which serves as a Christian refugee resettlement center. This motel helps to provide temporary housing for the many other Christian refugees who are hoping to relocate to the Sault Ste. Marie area.

Local volunteers have been a special blessing to the growing Karen community, as well. Several mentor families are teaching many of the refugees the basics of how to shop, pay bills, and manage their homes, and more than 25 volunteers hold English classes for the refugees three nights a week.

Volunteer manpower has also been a tremendous help with the motel reconstruction, which is an especially important project that will offer clean, safe housing for new families—many of whom have been living in high crime, inner city neighborhoods since their resettlement in the United States.

The anticipated arrival of more Karen refugees is an exciting prospect as well as a challenging one.

As CFI continues to welcome them to the Sault Ste. Marie community, we still urgently need your support, especially as we work to complete the motel renovations.

If you can provide a donation of $50, $35, or even $25, rest assured that you will see your future investment continue to grow like never before.

Dear friend, it will be my pleasure to share with you even more encouraging stories and reports from the Soo in the coming months. Until then, I ask you to please remember our persecuted brethren who are still living in Burma.

Please pray for their safety, pray that God would continue to give them the courage and strength to persevere, and please pray that, somehow, their war-weary nation will one day know peace.