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

Greetings from Manila!

Note from our Director

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
Jitka Svozilova throughout the three typhoons. Nevertheless, even if we were not affected
Director, adversely, the reality of the many lives who suffered loss and damage led
ICPE us to focus our activities on providing typhoon relief in the past few weeks.
Philippines 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

No. 5 General Lim Street, San Antonio Village, Pasig City 1603, Metro Manila, Philippines
Tel:+63 2 6374998; Fax: +63 2 6873233; Email: philippines@icpe.org; Website: www.icpe.org
Bank account name ICPE PHILIPPINES FOUNDATION INC
Peso account 003-115250-040
Bank address HSBC
Ground floor, Discovery Suites
25, ADB Avenue Ortigas Centre
Pasig City. Metro Manila. Philippines
Swift code HSBC PHMM