ARISE!
City of Sanctuary: Creating A CULTURE OF WELCOME IN SHEFFIELD
by Beth Craggs
Faith Lives
36
When Blessan Babu was fifteen, he attended a secret gathering of Christians in his Keralan village. What happened there completely changed his life. Now settled in Sheffield with his wife and two sons, Blessan works for City of Sanctuary, and is a local hub group leader at City Church. I caught up with Blessan to learn more about how his faith influences his work with refugees and asylum seekers.
A blessing to the nations
school, even in the local shops - people would say, ‘Something’s changed about you. What’s happened?’ Even though at the time I didn’t think anything had changed, looking back I can see that that was a really significant point in my life. Recognising that calling doesn’t mean that everything was smooth and easy from then on: far from it. But it was the start of something new.” The power of that encounter at the Charismatic gathering led Blessan to start an organisation in India called ‘Blessing the Nations International’, and he began to travel to areas such as Africa and the Middle East to train and empower Christian leaders.
“One of the big pivotal moments in my life was when I was filled with the Holy Spirit. I was fifteen, and the main church in In 2008, Blessan met and my village didn’t believe in married Katherine, and the work of the Holy Spirit, together they moved to so I was expelled from Cambodia, where they the congregation. I had worked together in a New heard of a small gathering Frontiers church plant. As of Charismatic Christians they prayed about where nearby, so even though I was to move next, Blessan and forbidden from joining them, Katherine felt drawn to I decided that I would visit Sheffield. them in secret. “Katherine had At the very ...people would completed her first gathering, Masters degree say, ‘Something’s one guy was sharing the changed about you. in Sheffield, so we decided word, and he What’s happened?’ to move pointed at to the UK. me and said, Unfortunately, even though ‘Young man, you will be a Katherine is British, and blessing to the nations’. And I we were married, I had a was just trying to hide myself little bit of difficulty with because if word got out that immigration. Initially, my I was at this meeting I’d be application was refused, in big trouble. But ever since which was really tough for us. then, I have felt God’s calling This was my first experience to the nations. of the hostility of the Home “After that meeting, wherever Office to people from other I went - in my village, at countries. But looking back
