We have recently asked our prayer partners to pray for the team in Syria but we make no apology for bringing George and the team before you again. Please do not forget Syria.
"Pray for us," says George Andrea, head of the Bible Society in Syria, based in Aleppo, "Every day that we live is a gift from God," he continues. People in Aleppo are living without water and electricity. There is nowhere safe to shelter. Bombs and missiles are falling, causing huge damage throughout the city.
The war reached Aleppo four years ago and George talks of explosions day and night with no warning before the shells land and the rockets explode.
"We live with the knowledge that we could just as easily be hit whether at home, at work or in church. There's nothing we can do, nowhere we can go. It is God who decides. Every day we get to live is a gift from God. Therefore, people continue to live as normally as possible. They go to work, and they go on worshiping, though many of the city's churches are now partially or completely destroyed. In the old town all the churches have been badly hit."
Despite the war, the Bible Society team has managed to bring in 30-40 tons of Bibles and Christian books each year.
"The demand for Bibles is high here," says George.
"Children's Bibles are very popular. People feel that only the Bible can provide answers in this difficult time, and it is only God who can really meet their needs."
"For the Bible Society, this is actually a good time, because we witness and give people hope through the Bible... Also, everyday life has become harder. Even small or mundane tasks are difficult. People are dependent on private generators for electricity, they have to get water by carrying it in buckets, and there is little to buy in the shops. We are tired and traumatised."
