Reflection upon and consideration of these ministries reveals to us aspects of care and love for which women have a particular and special empathy, ministering woman to woman with understanding and insight. The fruit in many lives is not only relief and support for physical and material needs, but that eternal fruit – the winning of lost souls and lost families for Christ.

The challenges and difficulties faced by many of these women in ministry are considerable. For example, care of the children in Grace Shelter, Odessa, is in the context of ongoing violence and war. Reports from house parents Olesya Krokhinova and Maria Shykina speak of aggressive and daily shelling, interruptions to power and water supplies, frightening circumstances which make care for the children both difficult and dangerous. However, the welfare of the children is the priority for the dedicated staff, whatever the cost.

The provision of shelter, food and even protection offered in the Hope Centres of Central Asia falls inevitably upon the shoulders of committed believing sisters who give themselves unstintingly to their task of Christlike care, sharing both the daily necessities for those sheltering with them, and the hope of the Gospel and God’s eternal provision for their spiritual need. Gulbakhor is Uzbek, living and witnessing in Tajikistan. She is a miracle of grace herself. After a life of sinful involvement in drugs she has been transformed by Christ into a ministering ‘angel’, who in her own home shares the message which transformed her, with more than a dozen ladies who come to hear the Word of God. They do so without the knowledge of their husbands for fear of being rejected and abandoned

Mary’s House is a provision of the Good News Foundation in Hungary, for women who have troubled circumstances – some are addicts, some are outcasts from their homes and communities, some have spent time in prison, and all are in dire need spiritually. In Mary’s House, organised and run by Barbara Ficsor and her team, they find refuge, help, friendship and support, and the opportunity to find true life through the Gospel of Jesus.

SGA’s committed group of six Phoebe Representatives located across the UK and Ireland, keep in close communication with all the Phoebe Projects, and are always willing to respond to any invitation from churches or interested groups to present these vital needs and challenges, and encourage growing prayerful and practical support.