Our Impact / 11 September 2017
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A Friend in Every Moment
Lusiana Official Writer
We recently commemorated the 72nd anniversary of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) on September 17th 2017. Perhaps only very few people are even aware of the commemoration, but let us take a closer look on this humanitarian foundation whose founding date nearly coincides with this nation’s. PMI was founded on September 17th 1945 for serving a number of humanitarian causes. This includes disaster response, handling both during-disaster crisis and post-disaster recovery. It is also involved in blood donation program, with their familiar slogan “A drop of your blood means life to others.” PMI has also been very active with health programs. Based on a 2016 statistics, around 4,447,654 people reaped benefit from their emergency health treatments, water and sanitation, social service, and community health service programs. The huge number of people who benefit from their programs is proportional with the number of volunteers and facilities that they provide
There is also a ministry with the same humanitarian goal, our Sahabat 24, the counseling center of CBN. Sahabat 24 and just like its name is a ministry that is ready to assist everyone 24 hours every day, wherever they are, like a good friend. True to our slogan, “A Friend in Every Moment,” Sahabat 24 can be reached via phone call, SMS, email, or even messenger apps like Whatsapp. The following is a testimony of a respondent of our counselling center.
“After 7 years of marriage, I was in a struggle because I could not bear a child. My husband and I have tried anything we could, but nothing succeed. The doctor told us that my wife had a very small egg cells which poses difficulty for fertilization. In our disappointment, we contacted Sahabat 24 one night to ask for prayer support so we could finally have a baby. I was really happy when my SMS got a reply, and I felt thankful because I felt like I was not alone in my struggle. My faith was rejuvenated; I put down every worldly efforts I was doing and instead I turned only to God. Praise the Lord! Several months later, my wife could finally get pregnant. The doctor told us that the growth of our baby in her womb has gone on really well. Although only through SMS, the response I have been getting from Sahabat 24 really blessed our family and strengthened our faith in the Lord. Thank you and may God bless you.” Mada, 0853327xxxxx.
“I once confessed about my struggle to Sahabat 24 when my husband cheated on me. I felt really happy at that time when I got a response from them. They helped me to remain strong in my faith, to not take a hasty action, but to instead keep on relying on God to recover my family. Ever since that time, I have only relied on Him and bring myself to forgive what my husband did to me.” Desi, 0823441xxxxx.
