Living Letters

Living Letters “You are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” 2 Cor 3:3 Nov 2009/Issue 6

Dear Friends

Note from our Director

Greetings from Manila!

Jitka Svozilova Director, ICPE Philippines

In the last couple of months, the country of the Philippines has been often in the news all over the world because of the natural disasters which have been happening in this part of Asia. We are very thankful to God for protecting us, our lives and our belongings throughout the three typhoons. Nevertheless, even if we were not affected adversely, the reality of the many lives who suffered loss and damage led us to focus our activities on providing typhoon relief in the past few weeks. Immediately we joined one of the biggest relief centers in the Ateneo de Manila University, helping with packaging the goods for distribution. Thanks to your donations amounting Php 525, 556.88 coming mainly from Singapore, Czech Republic, Holland and South Korea, we could reach out to the affected communities of 800 families in Montalban by distributing food packages, mats, blankets, medicine, clothes, and toiletries worth Php 341,286.43. We have been providing not only material help but also spiritual help by listening to the people and praying with them in their relocated places. With the remaining balance of the donations, we are still looking into the possibilities of repairing some of the houses which their owners are not able to repair due to lack of finances for construction materials. We are also planning to bless these families in several weeks’ time with special food packages for Christmas. Once again, we would like to thank you for your generous hearts, your prayers and for your compassion for the typhoon victims which brought hope for those who have been suffering and helpless. God bless you,

Feature Article

Recovering from the aftermath of Ondoy Six weeks ago, the world’s newspapers and media were filled with photos or scenes of cars submerged in water, people sitting on roof tops surrounded by water, people wading through high waters, houses swept away and many faces in distress. On 26 September 2009, according to the National Disaster Coordinating Council, nearly 70,000 families were displaced and 337,216 people affected by the massive flooding caused by the tropical storm Ondoy (international name:Ketsana). Today, the waters have subsided in most places, and the sun is beating fiercely down again on Manila. Tropical storm Ondoy was the 15th weather disturbance that hit Philippines in 2009. The attention of the world media has turned its focus somewhere else, yet thousands are still recovering from this trauma, having to pick up the pieces of what is left of their homes, lives and rebuild.

We would like to turn the spotlight on some of these people, that they may share their stories... The Atabay family, Mai Mai, Jaime and their three young children were living at Bautista Creekside, Montalban, when Typhoon Ondoy “Ketsana” started pouring incessant rains on their riverside neighbourhood. When the waters from the river started overflowing its banks, the residents remained calm, bracing themselves for another flash flood, a common occurence in their low lying area. ‘

“The water only rose to our ankles so we thought we would be ok. All of a sudden, we saw water gushing forth from the mountains behind us and the river waters swelled so quickly. It was 10am and my husband kept asking me to take the children and run. I was still trying to gather the few things that I had when I turned around and realized that Jaime Jr (age 4) was not there. I looked up and saw him floating away. The water had already reached our waist and was rising by the second. I screamed and thankfully a neighbour caught hold of Jaime. It was all so fast.” Mai-mai fled to higher ground with her three children while Jamie Sr, her husband, stayed behind to monitor the situation. A few minutes later, as the waters rose even higher, Jaime was also forced to evacuate. Mai Mai turned back to look for her husband and saw her wooden house rattle as a huge wave engulfed it. A few seconds later, another wave gushed down the hills and this time round, Mai Mai saw their little house disappear under the wave. Wooden pieces of her house, their meagre possession of clothes and kitchen utensils were swept off in the force of the current. Mai Mai recalled, sobbing uncontrollably, when she saw her house disappear. She said “Jaime told me not to cry. He said that if God allowed it to happen, He could also make things to change for the better.” The family lost everything they possessed in that flood. Today, they live in a temporary evacuation site, consisting of empty lots of houses yet to be sold. Although the local authorities promise to find suitable housing for them, they are unsure how long it will take.

“Thankfully we still have our lives but everything else is gone,” says Mai-mai as she sits on a mat in their makeshift house. The ‘house’ has no electricity, water supply, doors or windows. They have no cooking utensils or furniture. At a corner, there is a pile of second hand clothes. “Everything here is donated, “Mai Mai continues. “Even my bra and panties are second hand.” Throughout my conversation with Mai Mai, she does not strike me as a woman who has suffered such a tragedy. I could only marvel at her resilience. Her husband, who is currently unemployed, is out gathering building materials to rebuild their house. Her youngest child who is only ten months old is with her sister who lives nearby. “I put my baby there because at least my sister’s place has some electricity and water,” explained Mai Mai. As we walk to visit her baby to take a picture with her children, I ask her about her hopes and dreams. She laughs and flashes me her lovely smile, “Only to have a

small house, a happy family and 3 meals a day.”

Due to the floods affecting the various parts of Metro Manila, our weekly Montalban ministries were cancelled for two weekends. When we returned on 10 October 2009, we were anxious to hear from the children, youth and adults in our ministries.

.... our children share their experiences The children gathered in their small groups and shared their experience when Typhoon Ondoy “Ketsana” blew across Montalban. Although many of their houses were flooded, they did not suffer many damages. Judelyka, age 14: “My father was stranded in Manila because of the floods. He could not come home by public transportation and had to walk all the way home. At some points, the water was waist deep. I was so worried the whole day as we had lost contact with him for a few hours and by the time he arrived home it was late. I am thankful that God protected my Father.” Mary Clarence, age 15: “The water from the river rose very fast and our family had to evacuate to higher ground. We lost our home and only managed to save a few of our belongings. Thankfully, a week after the floods, we managed to build our house again. We are thankful for all the relief goods that were distributed by ICPE missionaries. Although we lost our home and belongings, I am thankful that we’re alive!

...grateful adults Thankfully, most of our members suffered limited damages to their homes. Although we were not present for the sessions, our members gathered to pray and to share with one another. We thank God for their faith and their resilience! “We had no electricity and drinking water for almost one week. We drank rain water and had one meal per day. But we survived by the grace of God!” ---Isaac and Perla Melmida, parents of 6 children. “My husband was at work and had to walk 8 hours to get home. I was alone with my three children (age 9 years, 7 years and 5 months). The walls of a nearby embankment broke, allowing the fast rising water to flow to the uninhabited hillside. If the embankment had held, the waters would have gushed down and flooded my house. God truly protected us!” ---Joecellen Abbang

...youth ‘homeless’ for a month Our youths were also not spared from the devastation caused by Typhoon Ondoy (Ketsana). Two of our Youth Ministry members living in Pinagbuhatan, by the Pasig River, had to relocate to a rental house at the outskirts of Pasig. A month after the rains had stopped, Central Pasig where they were located was still flooded. Severely blocked drains kept their house water clogged until the authorities intervened and sucked out the waters, leaving behind a massive stench and an uninhabitable house.

Thank you for the generous donations that have been given in support of the relief work for victims of Typhoon “Ondoy’’. Our hearts have been greatly touched by your generosity. We thank you also for your prayers for us, emails and sms messages expressing your concern for us during the typhoon. We appreciate your friendship and support. Thank you for your monetary gifts that have supported our community in our living and daily needs. Without your continued support, we will not be able to share God’s empowering love with those in need. May the Lord bless you richly with his love and providence in your lives.

Photos of our relief efforts! :

Prayer Intentions In these coming months, please pray with us for: · The ongoing work of helping victims of the Typhoon Ondoy rebuild their lives and homes; · God’s protection from further destruction by weather forces; · The Reverse Carolling project – that as we share food hampers with the poor, we may also bring the Light and Hope of Christ in their lives this Christmas; · A place in which we can hold the English tutorial classes for the children; · The Lord’s blessings upon the 2000 youth who will gather in Manila for the Asian Youth Day from 20-27 November 2009; and · The process of our relocation - that the Lord will provide us with a new house that can serve our needs.

INSTITUTE FOR WORLD EVANGELISATION - ICPE MISSION

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