The Philippines
“Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, ‘I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now My eyes shall be open and My ears attentive to the prayer offered in this place.” II Chronicles 7:12-15
Most of us will never experience the terror and helplessness of being in an earthquake. If you have lived through one (as I have) you know what it feels like. On 8 June a 7.8 magnitude struck The Philippines. Over 6,000 aftershocks have been recorded thus far and remain very active. The most recent official update from The Philippines National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reports:
· 65 Deaths
· 36 Missing
· ~1,400 Injured
· 68,000 Homes damaged
· Tens of thousands have been displaced and remain in emergency shelters (earlier figures ranged from 20,000–25,000+ displaced)
Other impacts include:
· Damage to roads, bridges, government buildings, schools and infrastructure.
· Estimated infrastructure damage in the billions of pesos.
· A small tsunami (up to ~1 meter waves) affected some coastal areas.
Death toll and injury numbers have risen gradually as rescue and verification efforts continue amid ongoing aftershocks.
My beloved friends, and planters of seminaries and churches, are struggling to help their leaders in the most seriously affected areas. Isaias sent this today. If you are able to help in any monetary way please help. No matter what pray. The Philippines is a ‘field white for harvest’ and the Catorces are worthy labourers!
From Isaias in The Philippines:
Dear prayer partners,
I am coming to you again to ask especially for your continued prayers. Aftershocks every now and then are very real. Today at about 5:18 pm a Magnitude 6.2 shook Mindanao again.
I would greatly appreciate your prayers to my seven siblings with families of their own in South Cotabato and for Judith's in Davao who lack sleep and some stay at tents outside their homes for safety sake.
We have an immediate need to raise $8,100.00. If you could give just $150.00, this would go directly to each of our 54 church planters to help the pastor’s family with immediate needs in their communities as they assess long-term repairs and cope with the daily aftershocks.
a. Go to www.tms-global.org .
b. Select the ‘Give’ option at the top of the page.
c. Scroll down a little and select ‘Give to a Worker.’
d. Type the amount of your gift
e. Enter the code 6028 (stands for ‘Catorce’)
f. Then follow the simple directions.
God’s Word for us: “If you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday” (Isaiah 58:10).
I can just sob with tears and prayers as I received requests through text messages for relief assistance from my fellow pastors and our church planters.
Lord God, have mercy please.
Thank you for standing with us in prayer,
Pastor Isaias
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Take care with love, especially His, from Darlene, who still prays for you each day.
PS: You can also find the devotions on line/ on your mobile phone here: www.weakdaydevotion.com .
NOTES: I choose to believe the Bible because it's a reliable collection of historical documents written down by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses. They reported supernatural events that took place before, of specific prophecies; and claim that their writings are divine rather than human in origin.
The Five Solas: Individuals are saved by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone, as revealed by Scripture alone to the glory of God alone!
Find my full statement of faith: https://especiallyhislove.blogspot.com (where you will also find a series of Bible studies). For the books, go to Amazon books. For prayer requests/ updates, email: darlenerichard@gmail.com