"The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you."
(Psalm 22:26-27 ESV)
Dear praying friends,
Many of you are already aware of the severe typhoon that struck the middle section of the Philippine Islands called Visayas Region. The news and pleas for help from our contacts there have been overwhelming. We are gearing up to respond but as you know disasters never happen at "convenient" times. Many of you have written to us asking how you can give and pray and what our plans are for responding. When the typhoon struck, Jeff and I along with two others from our team were in a training program in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We returned to Manila on Saturday so after taking one day of rest, we have begun a very hectic schedule. Jeff is hosting two short term workers and they are all at camp for street kids this week. This is why I am writing this letter.
ACTION's International Director Nelson Reed wrote the summary below which provides initial information.
Jeff Anderson is ACTION's Emergency Disaster Relief Coordinator in the Philippines and has been gathering news from partnering churches and other sources in order to draw up a plan for ACTION's part in disaster relief. While at camp this week, he is gathering information, raising funds, developing our response plans and mobilizing personnel. He is also waiting for a pastor friend to return Wednesday from Bohol to discuss with him the extent of the effects of the storm on Bohol.You may recall that Bohol was severely devastated by a 7.2 earthquake, October 15, 2013. ACTION has been desiring to do relief work in the aftermath of that earthquake but has found it necessary to raise more funds for the extreme needs caused by the earthquake. Our grave concern is that even though the eye of typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan didn't go directly through Bohol, the storm would have wreaked absolute havoc among the thousands of families still living in tent cities because their homes were destroyed by the earthquake. And even now things are only going to get worse with the new tropical storm Zoraida coming soon with torrential rains which will cause flooding, mud slides and significantly impede relief efforts! Pray for God's mercy and protection for this storm.
While we are gathering information in Bohol, Jeff is connecting with partner churches in the Visayan region in general and Tagbilaran in particular, investigating where we can be of the most help to the victims of this terrible calamity and not in any way add to the utter confusion. Information gathering and planning is absolutely important in times such as these. Let me give you an example.
Typhoon Yolanda's destruction was much greater than Hurricane Katrina, the Atlantic tropical cyclone that devastated New Orleans in August 2005! Do you remember how disorganized and chaotic that relief effort was? Typhoon Haiyan, as is it is known internationally, was much stronger and caused significantly more damage; 3.2 times the impact! Reports from the Philippines speak of terrible disarray and chaos overshadowing Yolanda's relief efforts as I write. Pray for Jeff and his team as they investigate, plan and mobilize!Please join with us in praying for the government officials, military personnel, peace keepers, and for all the multifarious relief organizations and workers, that God would providentially impress on them wisdom and understanding as to how to address the incredible needs and suffering. Pray especially for God's people, both believers in the Philippines and those who go to help, that they will be instruments of God's compassionate care and mercy. Pray too that God's people worldwide will give sacrificially to aid our brothers and sisters in Christ to serve their people with the love of Christ.Please visit our website regularly to get the most recent updates on the progress being made in the disaster relief efforts. I anticipate the first phase of this relief ministry going through the end of the year. We also anticipate partner churches continuing to assist victims who have lost everything to rebuild their lives. As much as possible ACTION hopes to be able to continue into the next phases of development, assisting with ministries of mercy and restoration.Therefore, ACTION is raising immediate funds for the first phase of the disaster relief budget. ACTION will continue to raise funds for the second phase of development also. It would be wonderful if you and your church could help our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ in the Philippines through your prayers and financial gifts. Please pray about not only giving a generous one-time gift, but also a monthly donation for the on-going rebuilding that will continue long after the mayhem passes. Thank you for your prayerful consideration.Thanks again for your concern and prayers for the Philippines and thanks for thinking of ACTION's efforts to assist Christ's people and their outreach to the thousands effected by Yolanda."Lord, have mercy on the people of the Philippines and empower Your church to help in this time of horrendous need!"Praying for God's Blessings,L Nelson ReedACTION International Director
Thank you dear friends. We will try hard to keep you posted on information but we may not be able to respond to emails right away. Refer to the link below for regular updates. To follow the news and see pictures, I recommend you search Google News for Haiyan Typhoon or use your preferred news source. When we have photos of our own, we will post them on the webpage below. Please pray for wisdom, strength and resources as we move forward. Pray that we will not grow weary. Pray for protection for our relief team when they go to the disaster area because doing relief for disasters of this magnitude is very dangerous. We need God's providential direction to go to the right places at the right times. We will also be teaming up with people who will be doing trauma debriefing and providing training for pastors and others to debrief their people. This is an essential part of relief efforts. In the midst of this we are still gearing up for our Christmas ministry outreach in December so funds are needed for this ministry as well. Jeff told me this morning that his team wants to be able to provide Christmas parties for children who have been affected by the disaster as well. This may seem odd in light of all the disaster but it brings a tremendous emotional boost to these kids and it also gives us many opportunities to present the gospel.
Under His hand,
Mary Ann
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