If you need to know the arrival time and platform of an incoming train at the Sunrise City station, just ask one of the many children who live at the station. They have all the schedules memorized.

But why do they live on the train platform? It’s their home! They eke out a living by collecting empty water bottles to refill and sell, polishing shoes, or sorting through trash for items to sell. Their conditions reflect your worst nightmare: exposure to the elements, rough treatment by the police, physical and sexual abuse from adults (known and unknown), and addiction to drugs and inhalants. Last year two babies died because of extreme cold. The greatest need here is hope.

Hope is what we want to give them—hope that God has something better for them than what they know, hope that they can break out of the cycle of poverty and hope for a redeeming destiny. Very soon we plan to open a Family Care Center near the train station where we can offer schooling, skill training, counseling and other ministries. Twice a week two or three of us go to the platform to hand out sandwiches and chai (milk tea) and treat minor injuries and infections. When the weather turns cold, we distribute blankets and warm clothes. While we’re there, we listen to what is going on in their lives, and sometimes we meet some of their family. With eyes of faith, we see them not as they are now, but as they could be in the future by the grace of God. A former street child (now a believing adult), who plans to join us in ministry soon, spoke to the children during a special program. They listened attentively to the testimony and songs and enjoyed playing games and coloring pictures (some of them for the very first time).

“Sunrise City” is one of the largest cities in this huge Asian country. As we follow God’s leading, we trust Him to help us plant a “street church” and open a school in a middle-class section of town. We partner with a local Christian organization whose vision is to raise “a million orphans to reach the country for Christ.” Eventually we plan to open a children’s home and school outside the city for children who need a secluded and protective environment to heal and grow. Meanwhile, we will mentor and train Bible school students and graduates so they can launch children’s homes in other cities.

Does this sound overwhelming? It did to us at first, but we serve a great God Who desires all people to come to know Him and find true salvation, especially these little ones who lost their innocence far too soon!