In the aftermath of the devastating typhoon Haiyan, a storm that has left more than 1,700 dead and millions homeless, YWAM teams from many nations are making their way to the Philippines to provide relief to the victims.
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As he was leaving The Netherlands for the Philippines, Dick Brouwer, a member of the RescueNet team, said, “We don’t really know what to expect. The cyclone victims are experiencing the worst time of their lives. We trust God for His leading and we make ourselves available to help many.”
Another member of RescueNet, Michelle Thompson, left from South Africa. “A mad dash to get last supplies,” she wrote, “then on that plane.”
The members of RescueNet have been trained in disaster response. They have served in the Haiti earthquake, Indonesia tsunami, Pakistan earthquake and many other places of crisis.
They will add their services to the work of YWAM outreach teams and YWAM workers from the Philippines. Many YWAM locations in the Philippines are preparing to provide practical assistance to the typhoon survivors. Some of these Filipino YWAM staff have already been involved in caring for the victims of the October 15 earthquake in Bohol, one of the areas now damaged by the typhoon.
YWAM has several ministry centers in the area affected by typhoon Haiyan. Those centers are located in Calapan City, Calabayog City, Molo, Tagbilaran City, Dumaguete, Cebu, Naga City, Daraga, and Surigao.
One of those Filipino YWAMers, Barbie Calo, asked for prayer. Specifically, she asked believers to pray for:
–The places badly hit by the typhoon (Leyte, Samar, Albay, Sorsogon, Cebu, Bohol, Aklan, North Palawan, Iloilo, Capiz, and Roxas)
–Efficient distribution of relief (food, water, medicine, housing, clothing)
–For safe travel, health and finances for the YWAM relief workers
–Restoration of power, water and communication
–Psychological/emotional recovery from trauma
–Families to be reunited, survivors to be identified
–Access to many other areas that are still unreachable
–People will stop looting and stealing from one another
–For wisdom and protection for relief workers
Photo by Erik De Castro/Reuters