What began as a physical act of service has had a great impact on a refugee community in the suburbs of Atlanta — leading to the opening of doors and hearts to the gospel.
Some readers may find the content of this article distressing.
Clarkston, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, is an official refugee settlement city in the United States. Known as ‘the most diverse square mile in America’, the almost 15,000 residents represent more than 150 ethnic groups from 40 different countries, including Somalia, Iraq, Sudan, Ethiopia, Togo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Myanmar.
When the Hartwell** neighbourhood of Clarkston was built in the 1970s, it was considered to be a safe community with condominiums and tennis courts. Now, residents live in unsafe conditions, sometimes squatting in or renting rooms without running water or electricity.
When Daniel*, who works at the OM office in the USA, heard of an opportunity to help with a clean-up in Hartwell in 2021, he was eager to join. “The vast majority of people in the community we visited are very poor and their living conditions were deplorable,” he remembers. “The buildings were in bad shape. One building was literally falling apart. Up to two-thirds of it was gone, a majority burnt, and one portion of the three-storey building was being held up by a single wooden post.” Outside was not only overgrown with grass and bushes, but the area was full of rubbish as mattresses, furniture, building supplies, etc. had been dumped there.
Local community leaders had asked for help cleaning up, and it was the easiest point of entry for teams into the neighbourhood. The goal of the clean-up crew was simple: to help restore dignity to those who lived there and make the community safer. It was slow going, as entire days were spent on one portion of the property at a time. Even that made a big difference, as people appreciated the improvements and some began taking more care of the surroundings afterwards. On one of the first clean-up days, a woman came outside, speaking excitedly and gesturing at a bush they had just cut down. Someone translated what she said: “I was sexually assaulted behind that bush. Thank you for cutting it down.”
The group cut the overgrowth back to where everything was more open and visible. Within a year of regular clean-up efforts, local police told them that crime in the area had dropped significantly.
Getting to the heart
Over time, the clean-up crews grew from less than 10 people to much larger numbers. The clean-up days brought together believers from different areas, ministries and churches. Three years later, clean-up days still happen every six weeks. Additionally, the group does art and games for children, completes small repairs like filling potholes, delivers single meal outreaches and one-on-one acts of help and helps people navigate the local bureaucracy to get a driver’s licence or access healthcare. The group also goes on prayer walks in the area, talking with anyone who’s willing and praying for deeper relationships to share the love of Jesus with those who feel forgotten and alone. Daniel says, “The clean-ups only scratch the surface. We want to get to the heart. Perhaps our primary impact is through making friends and walking through difficult situations with them. This is where they will feel the love of Christ most abundantly.”
There is a weekly Bible study in the community, which was started more than a decade ago by a couple from another organisation. After 10 years of discipling one woman, Bethany,* a believer who has since passed away, the couple had come to the end of their physical and emotional resources.
“They had weapons brandished at them and were threatened; they saw people being beaten and much more. They needed a break,” says Daniel. “Three years ago, we offered to help until they were healthier. Later, they asked us to keep leading it.”
On any given week, the Bible study, which meets openly in a car park, has from two to 10 people coming and going throughout the session. The attendees vary, with some only able to stay for a short time. Sometimes, the group sits outside one of the buildings and studies the Bible; other times, they sit and talk over snacks and sweet Somali chai. When Bethany, the first believer in the area who regularly invited people to attend the Bible study, died in a fire, there was uncertainty over whether the blaze had been started deliberately or accidentally. For months afterwards, the group went to Hartwell without knowing if anyone would attend. Then, the group began slowly growing again, with mostly Somali attendees.
Recently, two Somali women decided to follow Jesus. They and another new Somali believer meet weekly, off-site, with Somali Christian ministry partners, so they can be discipled in their own language. They are gradually sharing the gospel with others in their homes as well as close friends, and others in the community are listening to audio Bibles in their own languages.
Serving as one Body of Christ
Whenever he would join an outreach in Clarkston, Daniel prayed: Lord, I am going, I pray You guide my steps. Give me a divine appointment. Again and again, his prayer has been answered. “I might plan to do something, but God might have other plans,” he says. “What is happening in this community has nothing to do with us. God is the one who works in the hearts of people. We just keep showing up, doing the same thing and trusting God to work.”
There are many challenges, according to Daniel. He says not everyone there is pleased with the Jesus followers’ presence in the communities, and over the years, there have been moments where it can feel like they are starting over due to setbacks. Some in the area have been known to work behind the scenes to intimidate others. Those with children who previously attended activities, particularly ones who expressed interest in reading the Bible and talking about Jesus, have been forbidden from going again. Language and translation are also challenges, as many of the residents of Hartwell do not speak English.
This is a prayerful, two-steps-forward, one-step-back joint endeavour between believers from different churches, ministries and nationalities built since 2011. “What’s so amazing about this ministry are the connections between all the partners who show the love and the unity of believers,” says Daniel. “Churches, ministries and even mission organisations are all part of it — there isn’t one group is saying: ‘This is mine.’ We give credit to the pioneer couple who started this, and update them when significant things happen, telling them: ‘This is your legacy. You are part of what God is doing now.’ When you believe in Kingdom work and the unity of believers, things like this can be done.
“We’re praying this group of three Somali believers will strengthen and develop in their faith, becoming a local church within their community, and from there continue to grow.”
*name changed
**Information from: https://www.clarkstonga.gov/community-development/economic-development/population#:~:text=Ethnic%20and%20Cultural%20Diversity%3A%20Clarkston,born%20outside%20the%20United%20States and https://www.envisionatlanta.org/what-we-do