To all supporters and prayer-partners of World Horizons ministry taking the Good News of Jesus Christ to the nations: We thank you for your deep care and concern for the health and safety of our staff, partners and those we serve. World Horizons leaders continue to carefully monitor information and guidelines regarding coronavirus (COVID 19). In order to do our part in helping to protect the most vulnerable in our society and reduce the impact of this virus, the World Horizons UK office is currently functioning remotely. Whilst a number of activities are currently on hold, such as short-term teams and expeditions, we continue to maintain all operations necessary to serve our team members in the nations.

The leadership of both World Horizons International and World Horizons UK is in close communication with our members around the world to determine how best to support and serve them. Despite the disruptions to daily life, we are grateful for the technology that enables us to maintain communication. Many of our teams are meeting online in ways that they have not done before, encouraging one another, praying together, and sharing the stories of God’s faithfulness. We are living through a challenging time but challenges in the economy of God’s Kingdom always present opportunities for His people too. Please pray with us not only that our staff would know the protection and provision of the Lord at this time, but also that our life and daily witness would be an example to those around us as we seek to serve our local communities. We would like to reassure financial partners that the finance office is continuing to process donations and assist our staff in their ministries. During this tumultuous moment, we invite you to pray with us that the Lord would continue to work through our team members to love their neighbors and lead them to Christ. We will be praying for you as well.

Thank you for your understanding, support and prayers.

The World Horizons International Directorate Team has worked together with other members of the World Horizons community to compose this statement on racial justice for our movement.

‘If one part suffers, every part suffers with it’ (1 Corinthians 12:26)  

Following the murder of George Floyd in the USA, a renewed awakening to the reality of historical and systemic racism has spread around the world. World Horizons is an international family that explicitly values cross-cultural community. Racism is an issue that we cannot ignore.

We in the International Directorate Team recognise that World Horizons members both come from, and work in nations where these systemic injustices exist. We are convicted that the engagement of God’s justice and shalom are inseparable from the heart of the Gospel. We see that in the beginning God created all humans ‘in His own image’ (Genesis 1:27). We see at Pentecost the Holy Spirit gather and unite the early church from ‘every nation under heaven’ (Acts 2:5). We see that God reveals in the end that there will be ‘a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb’ (Revelation 7:9). As members of the body of Christ we want to humble ourselves, learn and promote the pursuit of ethnic equality, justice (redress of wrongs) and racial reconciliation.

We repent and ask for forgiveness from both God and our brothers and sisters from among the nations, because we recognise that we have not always got things right, whether that is today or in the past. As we seek to become ‘blameless and pure, children of God without fault’ and as we seek to work out our salvation ‘with fear and trembling’ (Philippians 2:12-15) we commit to being and doing better by our brothers and sisters. May our Lord Jesus help and guide us as we submit to God’s love for the nations.

We affirm the ministries and individuals that are actively engaging and empowering our black brothers and sisters in their calling. We have members of World Horizons who have experienced racism, discrimination and prejudice. Maybe that is you, in which case we want to affirm your experiences, support you and take immediate action.

We acknowledge that there are no quick fixes and that much education, listening and dialogue is required. Moving forward, we are putting together a working group to explore and discuss these issues within our movement so that any initiatives taken result in meaningful change.

Finally, as a movement that has found hearts with the same vision in many nations: we recognise, honour and support our local leadership in their pursuit of ethnic equality, justice and racial reconciliation.