José gripped his father’s hand as a dog rushed out and attacked him. As his father struck at the dog with his umbrella, the dog’s owner stepped outside his door and shot the father. His death plunged José’s family into poverty, and his mother grew bitter and vicious towards José. He spends most of his time on the street. He is only one of millions of children worldwide at risk of being swept into a hopeless cycle of rage, violence and despair. Another child, Janet, has parents but exists mostly on the streets. Her father beats her mother with an iron rod, and Janet can’t stand to watch. Her street companions urge her to go with them to the staging place for child prostitutes. In her desperation, will she succumb?

José and Janet (not their real names) live in Renca, a disadvantaged area of Santiago, Chile. God has brought us to Renca to work alongside Chilean believers offering hope and help to these children and others like them. We began our ministry in a borrowed room with breakfast, Bible stories, and tutoring. Now our own building is nearly completed, and we’re mobilizing for a full range of help for the children and their families.

It won’t be easy. Some of the children have never gone to school at all. Others, like José, have fallen behind due to family crises. Volunteer tutors will help them catch up so they can enter public school, and then we’ll help them keep up with their class work. Other volunteers will provide the fun and games so needed by children in grim circumstances. We plan to offer job skill training to prepare the children for adulthood (which starts early for far too many). A Christian psychologist on our team counsels the children who suffer abuse and trauma at home. Soon we hope to help entire families: literacy and job skills for parents, health training, counseling and relationship skills to prevent violence and substance abuse, and—above all—Bible teaching to draw them into relationship with their Creator.

When we came to Chile from Switzerland, we intended to work with children on the streets, i.e., children with no home at all. It now appears God is leading us to children in the street—who stay away from home as much as possible but haven’t yet become fully “street kids.” They hover only inches from despair, but still there’s hope of making a difference for them, their families and communities..

Please pray

• for the power of Christ to rescue children at risk and their parents
• for God’s protection as our team enters dangerous areas
• for provision of funds needed to create sustainable programs

Matthew 18:14, “It is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.”

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