Last month in Howard County, Indiana, eight tornadoes swept through the city of Kokoma in one afternoon and evening. The tornadoes struck the same area that was hardest hit by tornadoes more than two years ago.
Kokomo is a low-income area, and communities there faced power outages, uprooted trees, blown-off roofs, and severe damage to homes and churches. Several hundred people were displaced from their homes. Miraculously, no one was killed or hurt.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is supporting the Indiana Annual Conference with an emergency grant to assist the efforts of a local mission project, Kokomo Urban Outreach, which is providing recovery support for the outreach center and the community it serves. With the help of United Methodist Volunteers in Mission (UMVIM), Kokomo Urban Outreach will provide immediate basic needs to tornado survivors, including food supplies, shelter, clean-up supplies, and personal living needs.
UMCOR is also assisting the Indiana conference with a grant for the city of South Bend, which experienced a heavy downfall of rain in August — 12 inches in two hours. The city and surrounding areas experienced severe flooding in areas that were not expected to flood and not located in a flood plain. More than 1,000 homes were either damaged or destroyed.
The UMCOR grant will allow the conference to support local United Methodist churches in their efforts to assist their neighborhoods, and will provide supplies to meet the immediate needs of individuals who have been displaced.
You can support UMCOR disaster response efforts in the U.S. by giving to U.S. Disaster Response, Advance #901670.
Monday, September 26, 2016
Al & Mickey Williams' September Prayer and Praise Letter
PRAISE ITEMS:
1. SEPTEMBER 11, 2016 – On that September morning, I (Al) was at the Harrisburg airport waiting for the flight that would take me to Atlanta and on to Dallas, Texas for the Risk Management Network meetings. I couldn’t help but think back to that evening in Manila 15 years ago when I was watching CNN and saw the reports of the airliner hitting the World Trade Center and then seeing the second airliner hit the second tower. I was shocked to see this happening, as I’m sure most of you were, too. It was hard to imagine then the impact this would have on all our lives. Likely most of you also remember where you were and what you were doing at that moment 15 years ago.
The world has certainly changed a lot in those 15 years. For me it has changed from flying an airplane and helicopter in the Philippines to focusing on the safety and security of our staff working in Asia. Even with all the crisis events through these years, I'm extremely grateful to the Lord for all the good things we have seen accomplished and underway across Asia. Many people have received the Word of God in their language, audio and video recordings have been produced and distributed, and many people are able to access their Scriptures via the Internet for the first time. Countless people across Asia have come to know the Lord as their Savior.
There is so much to be thankful for in the midst of concern. The Lord has not called us to lives of fear. Instead, we recognize and prepare for these dangerous times, trusting in the Lord as we seek to serve Him. Mickey and I are very thankful for each of you who have been with us on this journey through these past 15 years. You have each been a great blessing to us as we have sought to see God's Word in the hands and hearts of all people across Asia and see their lives transformed by Christ. Your prayers for us keep us focused on assisting our teams across Asia to deal well with the safety and security issues that face them daily as they work to bring the Word of God to those who are still waiting to see, hear and read it in their own languages.
2. RISK MANAGEMENT NETWORK (RMN) MEETINGS – Thank you for your prayers as I (Al) traveled to Texas for this round of meetings. The travel went well, the meetings were excellent, and relationships with others attending were begun and others strengthened.
The RMN meetings provide a great opportunity for me to build on my knowledge and skills as I seek to serve our teams in Asia. It is also an opportunity for me to help others in roles similar to mine in other mission and church organizations as they care for their staff in similar situations. Your prayers and encouragement were great blessings through these days on the road.
3. FINANCIAL NEED – We are thankful for some special gifts that we have received this past month. These have been a great encouragement and blessing in meeting our financial obligations and caring for medical expenses. A heart-felt thank you to each who prays and gives financially for us to continue this work.
PRAYER ITEMS:
1. BANTOANON SCRIPTURE AUDIO RECORDING PROJECTS – Praise God, the recording of the Bantoanon New Testament in the Philippines has been completed and sent to Faith Comes By Hearing for the final edits and addition of sound effects. Please continue to pray for the team as they are now working with SIL recording specialists on the audio recording of Genesis-Exodus. They hope to complete the recording by Oct. 18. Pray that their computers and software will work well, that everyone involved will stay healthy, and that there won’t be heavy rains on their tin roof during the recording sessions (because that would make a LOT of noise)!
2. IVATAN JESUS FILM – Praise the Lord, the master copy of the Ivatan Jesus Film has been completed and our SIL colleagues in the Philippines are making copies for distribution. A premiere showing of the film was tentatively scheduled for November in Batanes province but may need to be rescheduled because a super typhoon hit that area on September 13 -14. The infrastructures and agriculture have been devastated, leaving the people without food, water, or electricity. Praise God, however, reports indicate no loss of human life and the Philippine government’s relief efforts are underway. Pray God will use this difficulty to soften hearts so they will be eager to hear the Gospel.
3. MICKEY’S HEALTH – Thanks so much for your prayers! As it turns out, I ended up seeing an allergist (who put me on a nasal spray to help my nasal congestion) and an ENT (Ear / Nose / Throat specialist) who said my productive cough and postnasal drip were because of something called LPR (laryngeopharyngeal reflux), so I’m taking my stomach pill (acid reducer) twice a day now and am doing better. Praise the Lord!
1. SEPTEMBER 11, 2016 – On that September morning, I (Al) was at the Harrisburg airport waiting for the flight that would take me to Atlanta and on to Dallas, Texas for the Risk Management Network meetings. I couldn’t help but think back to that evening in Manila 15 years ago when I was watching CNN and saw the reports of the airliner hitting the World Trade Center and then seeing the second airliner hit the second tower. I was shocked to see this happening, as I’m sure most of you were, too. It was hard to imagine then the impact this would have on all our lives. Likely most of you also remember where you were and what you were doing at that moment 15 years ago.
The world has certainly changed a lot in those 15 years. For me it has changed from flying an airplane and helicopter in the Philippines to focusing on the safety and security of our staff working in Asia. Even with all the crisis events through these years, I'm extremely grateful to the Lord for all the good things we have seen accomplished and underway across Asia. Many people have received the Word of God in their language, audio and video recordings have been produced and distributed, and many people are able to access their Scriptures via the Internet for the first time. Countless people across Asia have come to know the Lord as their Savior.
There is so much to be thankful for in the midst of concern. The Lord has not called us to lives of fear. Instead, we recognize and prepare for these dangerous times, trusting in the Lord as we seek to serve Him. Mickey and I are very thankful for each of you who have been with us on this journey through these past 15 years. You have each been a great blessing to us as we have sought to see God's Word in the hands and hearts of all people across Asia and see their lives transformed by Christ. Your prayers for us keep us focused on assisting our teams across Asia to deal well with the safety and security issues that face them daily as they work to bring the Word of God to those who are still waiting to see, hear and read it in their own languages.
2. RISK MANAGEMENT NETWORK (RMN) MEETINGS – Thank you for your prayers as I (Al) traveled to Texas for this round of meetings. The travel went well, the meetings were excellent, and relationships with others attending were begun and others strengthened.
The RMN meetings provide a great opportunity for me to build on my knowledge and skills as I seek to serve our teams in Asia. It is also an opportunity for me to help others in roles similar to mine in other mission and church organizations as they care for their staff in similar situations. Your prayers and encouragement were great blessings through these days on the road.
3. FINANCIAL NEED – We are thankful for some special gifts that we have received this past month. These have been a great encouragement and blessing in meeting our financial obligations and caring for medical expenses. A heart-felt thank you to each who prays and gives financially for us to continue this work.
PRAYER ITEMS:
1. BANTOANON SCRIPTURE AUDIO RECORDING PROJECTS – Praise God, the recording of the Bantoanon New Testament in the Philippines has been completed and sent to Faith Comes By Hearing for the final edits and addition of sound effects. Please continue to pray for the team as they are now working with SIL recording specialists on the audio recording of Genesis-Exodus. They hope to complete the recording by Oct. 18. Pray that their computers and software will work well, that everyone involved will stay healthy, and that there won’t be heavy rains on their tin roof during the recording sessions (because that would make a LOT of noise)!
2. IVATAN JESUS FILM – Praise the Lord, the master copy of the Ivatan Jesus Film has been completed and our SIL colleagues in the Philippines are making copies for distribution. A premiere showing of the film was tentatively scheduled for November in Batanes province but may need to be rescheduled because a super typhoon hit that area on September 13 -14. The infrastructures and agriculture have been devastated, leaving the people without food, water, or electricity. Praise God, however, reports indicate no loss of human life and the Philippine government’s relief efforts are underway. Pray God will use this difficulty to soften hearts so they will be eager to hear the Gospel.
3. MICKEY’S HEALTH – Thanks so much for your prayers! As it turns out, I ended up seeing an allergist (who put me on a nasal spray to help my nasal congestion) and an ENT (Ear / Nose / Throat specialist) who said my productive cough and postnasal drip were because of something called LPR (laryngeopharyngeal reflux), so I’m taking my stomach pill (acid reducer) twice a day now and am doing better. Praise the Lord!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)