The horrific suffering of Christians in southern Sudan has left us feeling shocked, angry and helpless. With over 3 million people killed and another 5 million displaced due to 20 years of religious persecution by the Islamic militia, the situation has seemed too big and too hard to do anything about.

But when Angelo Dhel, a refugee from Sudan, spoke to the Magill Church of Christ about the current situation in Sudan, we realised that we could make a difference. By sponsoring one family to settle in Adelaide we could see that we were not only making a difference to that family but were bringing awareness to our community and ultimately helping to bring international pressure upon the Sudanese government to enforce a peace plan for the nation.

Within a few weeks over $4000 had been donated and arrangements were made for the Lual family to travel to Australia. Just three weeks later we welcomed them at Adelaide airport and the following Sunday introduced them to our church community. The church had already been involved in searching for accommodation, gathering furniture, buying food and making arrangements with CentreLink, schools and the bank.

Thiik Lual is 25 and is caring for his four younger siblings, Amath, Amath, Deng and Adhel. Thiik’s sister (also named Amath) and her three children had been in Australia just over a month and the two families, along with their niece, now live together as one extended family. Coincidently, both families were members of the Sudanese Church of Christ.

Already the life of the church has been enriched through our involvement with the Lual family. And other Sudanese refugees are beginning to join our church too. From opposite sides of the world, and from vastly different cultures, we have joined together as one Christian family.