A Global Advent: 25 Stories of God With Us Around the WorldSample

Do you have a nativity set in your house? They are wonderful visual reminders of what we celebrate at Christmas. Now, imagine a nativity that only contained the important figures. Which would you remove?

A young unwed mother, a handful of out-of-town farmers, a small-town tradesman, and one fragile baby. Who would the world find important? Look at those figures positioned around the manger – not one of them important to the world, yet every one of them important to the story of God.

For pastor Daniel in a small village in Burkina Faso, every villager is important to him, especially the overlooked women and children. Over time he observed that the single schoolhouse in the village was so overcrowded that few children completed their elementary. Without that certificate, secondary school and vocational training were forever out of reach, leaving children vulnerable to poverty and even exploitation.

Pastor Daniel and his church set out to do something to show that every single person was important to God and that they were worth the investment of education.

Starting out with temporary shelters, they opened a new school to children who had stopped studying. As their ministry grew, they built multiple rooms in a sturdy schoolhouse with help from Compassion’s community development funds.

Photo Caption: Teen returns to school because of new opportunities provided by the local church.

In time, the church was even able to open vocational training buildings for villagers to learn to design and sew clothing, care for livestock and start their own businesses. Young women who had not been able to keep up in the crowded community school found new purpose and a future in this training along with peace about their future.

Photo Caption: Students whose lives have been changed by the new vocational training centre.

And this idea is transforming the church, too! From only 50 people in 2002, now more than 600 are serving together in the name of Jesus and planting churches in nearby villages.

All this happens when we choose to see the world the way God does. No one is unimportant— not just because they could someday change an entire community like Pastor Daniel did, but because they are made in the image of God, beloved by Him.

God with us means Jesus seeing our need and doing what we couldn’t do for ourselves. Who are the overlooked people around you that you can value with your actions today? Where can you sow seeds of peace?