Grandson of the late Billy Graham, Edward Graham, has commended the efforts of Operation Christmas Child, a project under Samaritan’s Purse. According to Edward, “More kids have heard about Christ through these shoebox distributions than ever heard about Christ in stadiums with my grandfather.”
Operation Christmas Child has been giving gift-filled shoeboxes to kids in more than 160 nations across the world. This includes 50 hard to reach areas. The shoebox is filled with toys, school supplies, hygiene kits, and Gospel booklets. The simple box has created a platform for the Gospel and has already reached millions.
OCC’s vice-president of programs and government relations, Edward, has seen how God uses an ordinary shoebox to transform the lives of many children. “A kid doesn’t care, a kid goes out and lives their faith, and they’ve been so bold,” he said. “I saw that in Mexico, and that’s happening here in Himba. These are unreached people groups, kids that have never, hear the Gospel.”
The tribe of Himba, located in a village in Africa, was one of the receivers of OCC’s shoebox gifts. They consist of 50,000 semi-nomadic people who practice ancestral worship. Before, they resisted the message of the Gospel. But after OCC hosted 130 children in the village, 46 children and 6 young adults showed interest in Jesus.
They were then introduced to a 12-lesson discipleship program, teaching them more of Jesus and how to share that with their family. Followers of Jesus grew within the Himba people that the village elder had to provide land for the people to gather. Today, villagers have stood the first-ever church building where 100 Himba gathers to worship the Lord Jesus Christ.
Edward affirmed, “Just like what we saw in Mexico, that village is very proud of their church and where they worship the Lord. And they want other villages; they want their neighbors to see. And they go out, and they share that news and that message and the Gospel. It’s so encouraging for me to see.”
He added, “God is using something simple, as a simple shoebox full of toys to pierce the heart of darkness. I love that, and I’m so excited about it.”