The IAFR Blog

It’s not easy to live without a place in this world.

Asylum seekers and refugees face a myriad of challenges to do things that most of us take for granted. Take France for example. Due to a shortage of shelter available to asylum seekers, over a third of them must make do without assistance.

Many asylum seekers end up living outside in makeshift camps.

Their small homemade shelters are cold, muddy, and saturated with the pervasive smell of damp wood and old campfires.

Our team in Lille, France, regularly visits the people in one such camp and noticed their struggle to wash and dry the few clothes that they possess. So the team recently added a washer and dryer to our refugee ministry centre there.

"We have nowhere to go for this."

IAFR’s Paul Sydnor recently visited the camp. A couple of asylum seekers pulled him to the side and asked if he could help them wash their clothes. They confided, "We have nowhere to go for this."

Paul was happy to tell them about the washer and dryer at the centre and arranged to meet them there to drop off their laundry.

We all know how clean clothing can make us feel human again. It is hard to imagine just how much it means to our displaced friends. We trust it is a tangible sign that God has not abandoned them.

It is our joy to meet them on their journey.

We are grateful to our many friends who partner with us in prayer and through financial support. It is because of you that we are able to show up in the lives of our displaced friends in life-giving ways.