Churches Hit Hard by Philippines Typhoon

|PIC1|The Philippines fears as many as 1,000 people have been killed after entire villages were washed away by landslides and floods triggered by Typhoon Durian and now the churches join many others in the tough challenge of rebuilding everything they have lost.

The US-based SEND International has worked for years in the southeast Manila region which last week found itself on the receiving end of 165 miles-per-hour winds.

The organisation's Frank Severn has reported that all of SEND's missionaries stationed in the area are safe. "We thank the Lord for that," he said.

The island of Marinduque, where SEND has worked for many years, received a direct hit by the typhoon. Witnesses report that 80 per cent of all the houses on the island are now without roofs, a devastating prospect for the more than 100,000 people affected on the island alone, a Mission Network News report has told.

SEND runs a number of Bible camps on the island, one of which has now been completely destroyed, meaning that all plans for Christmas, including their planned retreat, have now been cancelled.

"I'm sure church ministries have been tremendously affected," said Severn.

While it is still too early to know the full extent of the needs, Severn has established the immediate needs.

"The camp will need to be rebuilt and I'm sure many of the churches will face structural damage in their churches, as well as believers without homes," he reported.

The financial stability of the island has also been thrown into doubt in the wake of the typhoon.

"The coconut crop, which is really the primary economy of the island, as been destroyed, and it takes about five years for them to renew, after a typhoon like this," reports Severn. The devastation of the coconut crop could even have a negative impact on locally funded work.

Severn is appealing to Christians to pray for the islanders as they come to terms with the massive devastation and difficult process of reconstruction.

He said: "The island has been quite resistant to the Gospel in the past, but in the last 10 years they've seen significant growth and it's totally in the hands of the national church. Pray that God would even use this to open men's hearts to the Gospel."