Disaster Relief Update - Tuesday, October 6, 2009

"Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, for I take refuge in You. I will seek refuge in the shadow of Your wings until danger passes." Psalms 57:1 (HCSV)

What a blessing it is to have a place of refuge. When one is hit by life’s most difficult situations, God is always there. Southern Baptist disaster relief volunteers are ministering to hurting people and pointing them to that refuge. Please pray that God’s love reaches those who are seeking Him.

American Samoa Tsunami

Veryl Henderson, executive director of Hawaii-Pacific Baptist Convention, reports, “Our churches in American Samoa are making sandwiches and distributing them into communities. The Korean and Chinese pastors (in American Samoa) are overwhelmed at the moment with grief and funerals.”  The Seafarer's Center, whose building was destroyed by the storm, continues its ministry out of a nearby church. Mission Service Corps missionaries Joeli and Tupe Sovea and their three children lost all their possessions when the water washed everything out of the center, which was also their home. They continue reaching out to seafarers even as they work to put their own lives back together. Pray for our pastors, missionaries, and other church leaders who are tending their flock and leading them to minister to the needs of so many on the island who have lost everything. Pray that God will give them needed rest and rejuvenate them for each new day.

The North American Mission Board in partnership with the Hawaiian-Pacific Baptist Convention is sending Terry Henderson, Southern Baptist Disaster Relief operations consultant, to the area. Work continues to secure passage to American Samoa for needed volunteers. Please pray that a means of transportation will be secured swiftly.

The North American Mission Board has received several calls from individuals seeking information about family members living in American Samoa. Elise Tafoa, pastor of Happy Valley Baptist Church, has been out surveying the damage and encouraging residents. Pastor Tafoa reports that the villages with the most severe damage from the storm are Leone/Auma, Asili, Nua, Seetaga, Amanava, and Poloa. The American Red Cross Safe and Sound website is available for person's seeking information about family members living on American Samoa. The website https://disastersafe.redcross.org/default.aspx lists individuals who have registered and provides their current location and contact information.

Individuals wishing to make a contribution to the Hawaii Pacific Baptist Convention American Samoa Tsunami relief efforts may do so online through the NAMB Disaster Relief Donations website. Designate your donation for American Samoa by using the In Honor option and type Samoa in the Memorial Name box.

Philippines Typhoon

SBDR teams are traveling Monday and Wednesday of this week to the Philippines. The first team, from the Southern Baptist Texas Convention (SBTC) will begin to connect with national representatives and formulate a plan of action. As you know, the Philippines have been hit by two major storms less than a week apart. Flooding in parts of the country have left widespread devastation in their wake. The SBTC team will be joined by teams of volunteers from Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Texas Baptist Men arriving on Thursday. Please pray for these groups as they travel and for their work in the Philippines.

Georgia Floods

The Georgia flood response is entering its third week. The Lord has blessed this difficult situation by bringing 10 new believers into His kingdom through the work of disaster relief volunteers.  Volunteers from the following state conventions have worked more than 1,340 volunteer days to bring hope to those affected: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas Baptist Men, Virginia Baptist Mission Board, and Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia. If the average volunteer works 10 hours, this would amount to more than 13,000 hours of work. Please pray for God's continued blessings through these volunteers and that many more will come to know Him as Savior.

You can support the Georgia Flood disaster response with your financial gifts through either Georgia Baptist Convention online or through the North American Mission Board's Disaster Relief Fund online.