India Tsunami Relief
On December 26, 2004 one of the most catastrophic disasters of our time took place. The destruction stretched all the way from Indonesia to the Western coast of Africa. When news of the Tsunami first began to unfold, I immediately thought about the fishing villages that surrounded several of the cities in India where we've done crusade work over the last two years.I called our crusade director whose ministry offices are fairly close to the coast. He had already sent teams out to survey the damage. His team went to many villages and found over 30 that had been hit hard or totally destroyed. We put a plan into action within a few short days to provide immediate relief to those villages. Within the 30 villages that we committed to help, we found there were more than 7,000 families left homeless by the disaster. As the cool season was just settling in we realized we needed to provide blankets and cooking pots for as many as we could since everything many of these families owned was washed out to sea.
We were able to enlist the aid of Feed the Hungry out of Indiana to help us with our first response. They sent several thousands of dollars which purchased blankets, oil and rice. With over 300 workers, mostly volunteers, distribution points were set up in each of the villages. This was easier where there was an existing church but in many of these areas they are without a gospel witness. However, after our 100 day commitment we are believing that many of the ministry volunteers will pioneer churches for the Lord in those unchurched areas.
Every metric ton of rice is able to feed nearly 300 families for a week and a half. Since the first week in January we have been able to purchase nearly 50 metric tons of rice and thousands of villagers have been given blankets. Trucks are on the road from sun up to sun down making these deliveries. The gospel message is preached each and every time a new supply of rice arrives giving the local people the opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of their lives. This kind of outreach tears down the religious walls and demonstrates the love of God to a hurting people.
Most of these families are still in shock and they are just beginning to regroup. That's why we have committed to helping them all the way into April. In May of this year, our teams will prepare a mass crusade. We will rent buses, Jeepnees, tractors, and whatever else we can find to bring these villagers to the event. Many will receive Jesus and many will be healed by the Power of God. Jesus will be exalted and we will have helped bind up the wounds inflicted by this terrible natural disaster.
Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, preaching the gospel, and healing the sick is the work of Jesus. That's our responsibility and together we are continuing the ministry of Jesus Christ!