Days of heavy rain triggered landslides in the Marrah Mountains, reportedly leaving only one survivor. The scale of the debris and the disaster’s remote location limit information. Civil war, raging between rival militaries since 2023, further complicates recovery efforts.

“The area hit by the landslides is also a hub for displaced families fleeing the fighting,” says John, a Gospel worker focused on Sudan.

“They were trying to escape that (fighting) in El Fasher. They went up to this area, and now [there is] a landslide.”

Authorities say between 300 and 1,000 people were killed, but the actual death toll could be higher.

John’s partners fear the worst as attempts to reach their friends go unanswered. “Even though it’s an Islamic area, there are house churches that have been planted over the years,” John says.

“We know there are some Christians among [the affected people.]”

Pray for wisdom and discernment as church planters determine how they will respond to this disaster. John’s organization supports frontline Sudanese church planters throughout the Islamic nation.

“We’re not a relief organization, but because of the network of believers on the ground, getting $200 someplace has a huge effect,” John says. “We’ve done targeted relief in many, many places.”

(Photo courtesy of Spoken Worldwide)

Pray that Sudanese Muslims will find truth, comfort, and peace in Jesus Christ.

“I have met so many Muslims that, in their desperation of finding inner peace and hope, had God meet them in a dream. So many Muslims have come to Christ without someone leading them,” John says.

Frustration with Islam leaves many Sudanese open to the Gospel, he adds.

“The whole nation is in trauma, and that trauma cuts to the core,” John says.

“These are non-Arabs, but they’re still Muslims, so they’re trying to deal with the fact that ‘The Koran says we’re brothers, and yet, here’s my brother trying to kill me, take my land, drive me from my land, because I’m not Arab.’”

Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Franklin Peña Gutierrez/Pexels.

“It’s been sporadic at times, [our] communication from our ministry partners in Nepal, but we are hearing and also getting some videos and pictures of the flooding that’s going on. [The damage has] just been devastating,” says John Pudaite with Bibles For The World. 

Nepal has seen rapid urbanization in recent years, but not matching development. Pudaite says that their partners are among the nearly 2 million people in the hard-hit capital of Kathmandu. 

“[Nepal] just never planned to have a city with this many people in it, with the necessary flood controls and water runoffs and things like that. So they (our partners) are sheltering hundreds and hundreds of people, also feeding them,” Pudaite says.

Bibles For The World works in areas where there is restricted access to God’s Word, where copies are scarce or among peoples where Christianity is beginning to take root — such as Nepal, Cambodia, areas of India and other Asian and SE Asian nations.
(Photo, caption courtesy of Bibles For The World)

“These are people who just have nowhere to go. Their homes are still underwater. You know, they’re probably lost pretty much all of their possessions because of the flood damage.”

Bibles For The World primarily distributes Scripture to local pastors and missionaries. Their warehouse appears to have escaped damage, but many of their partners’ churches and ministry centers have been flooded. 

The challenges are steep, but for local Christians (who make up less than 1.5 percent of Nepal’s population), Pudaite says, “This is a incredible opportunity for them to show Christ’s love and reach out and just pray for the people of Nepal, predominantly Hindu, who may respond to this outpouring of love from our brothers and sisters.”

Pray that more Nepali people will hear the gospel of Christ even through this disaster. 

To sign up to receive a free prayer guide for the Hindu world from Bibles For The World, visit our resource page. 

Header photo of the Himalayas from Kathmandu, Nepal  (Photo courtesy of Bigyan Khanal via Unsplash.)

At least 158 people died, and many are still missing. It’s the worst flooding Kerala state has seen in six years.

Flooding in India’s Kerala state, July 2024. (Photo courtesy of Mission India)

India is in the thick of monsoon season, and other parts of the country are feeling the impact of surging rains. The capital New Delhi also saw massive flooding last month.

Regan Miller with Mission India explains, “In India, everybody lives in such tight quarters. People live in homes that are on top of each other and attached to each other and side-by-side and the neighborhoods are so crowded that when something like this happens, it affects hundreds of thousands of people.

“There’s really a great need for prayer right now, and there’s also great opportunity to share the hope of Christ when people are struggling.”

Mission India works with local believers across India to run Children’s Bible Clubs and share that eternal hope with kids and their parents.

Families at one Bible Club in a flood-affected area have been impacted. “All of these parents of the kids have not been able to go to work, and they’re already in a really poor area. So that’s been difficult to hear about as well,” says Miller.

Children’s Bible Club (Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Please pray for Indian families out of work due to the flooding that they will find support through the local Church.

Miller says, “We are asking for prayers that our church planters will be able to get back to the field [and] that communities would find hope in the Good News as they rebuild homes, rebuild roads and all the things that have been damaged in the flooding.”

Also, ask God to comfort the grieving communities in Kerala state.

Learn more about Mission India’s ministry programs.

Header photo of the flooding in India’s Kerala state, courtesy of Mission India.

The waste littering Cap-Haitien’s streets is a long-standing issue, exacerbated by a lack of dump sites and an increase in plastic use. The issue prompted a recent $34.8 million waste management project. 

This government-led clean-up project was approved five years ago but only kicked off at the end of 2023. 

Additionally, the heavy rainfall experienced in Haiti often produces mudslides. 

“​​The people cut down the trees to make charcoal,” DeHart says. “In the end, there’s the problem with a mudslide going through town, and then taking all the trash with it, and then leaving it in town.”

In June, more than 37,000 people were affected by flooding and landslides. Many lost their homes and belongings. 

For Haiti With Love is making efforts to clean up the trash and debris so that by the next big rainfall, the flooding won’t be as much of a problem. 

Cleaning up Cap-Haitien is just part of the work For Haiti With Love is doing to share the hope of Christ with people. 

(Photo courtesy of For Haiti With Love)

DeHart says For Haiti With Love also has a program through which they bring food to people in their houses who can’t get to the market due to flooding. 

“They always want to ask, why are we doing this? And we always tell him that it’s all because Jesus loves them, and wants them to have a better life,” DeHart says. 

In December, the organization also hosted a Christmas party in northern Haiti. More than 250 children heard the story of Jesus’s birth and were given food and presents. 

DeHart asks that people pray for For Haiti With Love and donate and contribute what they can. 

“The contribution is what makes it able for us to be able to continue to help the poor in Haiti,” DeHart says. 

Pray for the team’s strength, wisdom, and courage as they continue to clean up their community and help their neighbors. 

Header image depicts the city of Cap Haitien. Photo courtesy of samu3ld via Unsplash.

Eta made landfall on the western coast of Florida yesterday after winding its way ponderously through the Caribbean. The storm comes during the most active hurricane season in recorded history, with at least 29 named tropical storms spawning in the Atlantic Ocean.

Five tropical storms at one time in the Atlantic. Picture taken September 14, 2020. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, public domain.)

At least 200 have died throughout Central America, though the number is most likely higher. One landslide in Guatemala left 100 indigenous Mayans buried; only 8 bodies have been recovered.

AMG’s disaster relief

AMG International works in an area of Guatemala affected by the flooding. Bill Passons says “It’s already been a difficult season, trying to minister to people when you have limitations on being able to meet and just all those other requirements that COVID-19 brings. But now, these people who are already in a pretty vulnerable situation get hit by this and it just makes it an even more difficult situation.”

AMG works in several countries around the world, and whenever a disaster like this happens in a country they serve, they mobilize to help. Passons says, “What we’ve done is gone into the community that we’ve already been working in. We’ve identified about 200 families who are extremely vulnerable now because the mudslides and the water have basically eliminated their harvest of crops. That is going to put them behind for several months. We’ve identified a couple hundred families that need our help. We’re going ahead and starting getting them some support to them to meet their daily needs during this time.”

Want to help? You can donate to AMG and help with the ongoing disaster relief. Visit their website here.

Pray God will be with the people of Guatemala, and pray many Guatemalans would find hope in Jesus Christ.

The header image shows Eta on November 11. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

Typhoon and Earthquake Destruction

Reports say the violent winds pulled Houunmaru, the 89-meter-long fuel tanker weighing in at over 2,5000-tons, from its anchorage and slammed it into the only bridge connecting the Kansai Airport to Japan’s mainland. Combine the damaged bridge with flooding from a storm surge and officials had no choice but to close the airport and bridge. The closures stranded around 3,000 people at the airport.

Aftermath of Typhoon Jebi (Photo courtesy of Muzina Shanghai via Flickr)

The day after Typhoon Jebi hit, people trapped at the airport were evacuated on buses while others chose to be ferried by high-speed boats.

Then, two days later, the country was struck again. This time it was a 6.6 magnitude earthquake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, though the Japan Meteorological Agency rated the quake at a 6.7 magnitude. The earthquake triggered landslides and rattled Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido. At least seven are dead, over 150 are injured, and more are still missing.

Joe Handley with Asian Access says the people the organization works with were thankfully able to weather the storm.

“They [Japan] just keep getting battered with these conditions that [over]….the weather. Things that are just hitting them one after another after another. And it’s a great opportunity for the Church around the world to rally and pray. And it’s a great opportunity for the Church in Japan to rise up and be the hands and feet of Christ in the midst of all that’s happening,” Handley explains.

Japanese Christians Answer Needs

Asian Access empowers and equips Christian communities. In times of disaster, this also means helping these communities respond to great need.

In 2011, Japan was hit by the infamous Great Sendai Earthquake, which triggered a massive tsunami and led to meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear plant. It was labeled as the most expensive disaster in human history. Following the triple disaster, Asian Access mobilized resources. These resources helped local churches share the persevering hope of Christ.

Typhoon Jebi over the Osaka Bay on September 4, 2018 (Header photo and photo courtesy of NASA via Wikimedia Commons)

Earlier this year Asian Access did the same by mobilizing teams and coming alongside local churches following a previous earthquake and flooding. Handley says the organization will assess churches in see how it can best come alongside and empower them following Japan’s most recent series of natural disasters.

“Most recently we tried to raise funds for some of the flooding, and that’s ongoing. If people want to give towards Japan, we’re happy to redirect those resources to help the neediest that these churches are trying to reach out to,” Handley says.

“But at the end of the day, Asian Access is really trying to empower local leaders to be able to reach their communities for Christ, and this has created a change in the atmosphere, a spiritual temperature change in Japan.”

Lending a Hand, Impact for Christ

Asian Access is not a relief and development agency, but it is assessing churches in the affected areas and how to come alongside them and help them serve their communities.

“In fact, in most of those communities, it’s only Christians that are still on the ground in these centers where people are living to this day. And this whole scenario has led to response rates to Jesus seven times that of normal,” Handley explains.

A missionary’s graveyard; that’s how some describe Japan. However, Handley says church leaders in the country are confident Japan is at a Gospel tipping point. He’s heard younger leaders share their vision for the country which includes hopes of seeing the Christian population rise to 2 percent or even as high as 10 percent.

Be Prayerful, Be Active

However, that vision is accomplished by local Christians being the hands and feet of Jesus. Pray these Japanese Christians would be a tangible expression of Christ’s love and the hope that’s in Him.

Ask God to reveal himself to the Japanese people and to heal them. And finally, pray for the perseverance and empowerment of the local Christians, so that they can continue to serve their communities in Christ’s name.

Give to help church relief efforts in Japan here.

Adrian Quevedo of Compassion recently spoke to us through a translator, sharing his story of one such disaster in Peru. By late March of 2017, Peru had received 10 times its normal amount of rain. This caused widespread flooding and mudslides. According to Compassion, at least 94 people were killed and 700,000 people lost their homes.

One of the regions hit was Pedregal Grande in Piura where Compassion is active and, at that time, served 240 sponsored children.

Emergency Response on the Mission Field

Quevedo says, “On March 27 of last year,  I received a call from Pedregal Grande. One of the volunteer staff from the survival program called me and she informed me that the river had overflowed and it had drowned all the community in Pedregal Grande.”

(Photo and header photo courtesy of Compassion International)

Quevedo alerted their headquarters in Lima, spoke to a local project director to get more information, and then Compassion workers began the first aid rescue process as they organized response teams.

“We had lots of difficulties to reach that area because it was very risky due to the flooding. The flooding did not only occur in Pedregal Grande but also all around Piura,” Quevedo says.

A lot of the communication happened through social media, and it allowed the rescue teams to get up-to-date information on the children and their families who still needed rescuing.

“The following day we continued helping the children and we received calls all night long from the project staff and the volunteers because their lives were at risk,” Quevedo says.

“Actually, the river flooded the entire houses—all the first floors were flooded and the children and their families, they were on the top of the houses, on the roof. And their lives were at risk because if river’s flow volume was going to increase, then something could happen to them.”

Because there were several surrounding communities also affected by the flooding, the government was unable to respond immediately to the situation in Pedregal Grande. In fact, Quevedo says, “No one knew that Pedregal was also affected by the flooding.”

Not only that, but there weren’t enough resources to go around to help everyone who was in need. So, for the time being, Compassion had to work on their own.  But by 3 pm on March 28^th, they were able to rescue all of the children, their families, and the staff who had been trapped on their roofs.

“We were not only able to help our own sponsor children, but we also helped the people in the same community with the support of volunteers from other churches.”

(Photo courtesy of Compassion International)

After three days, they were able to confirm that all of the children in their programs were safe.

Following the rescue efforts, Compassion coordinated with their head office to get medication, food, water, and clothes for the children and their families. These items were made possible through gifts made to Compassion’s Disaster Relief Fund.

Over the next several days, the team would have to overcome several challenges, including closed roads that made it difficult for aid to be delivered and for medical help to arrive.

Even after they were able to help the people in Pedregal Grande, Quevedo says they were concerned about isolated communities in the highlands of Piura. The Villa Batanes en Chulucanas was surrounded by the river water, Quevedo says. They knew of another church in San Miguel de Faique, located four hours from the city. Here too, the government was not enabled to respond immediately.

“In this place, there were two rivers and three gorges that were closing all the roads to get to this program. Now in this specific area in the highlands, the heavy rains started in January. We had a contact that worked for the air force in Pedregal Grande and he helped us to rescue the children there.”

Altogether, they were able to transport three tons of food to the people stranded in the highlands.

In Jesus’ Name

Everything Compassion does, even in the midst of disaster, is done in the name of Jesus. Because of this, their work has had an impact on people not only physically and financially, but spiritually as well.

Quevedo explains, “Actually this natural disaster became an opportunity for many churches and for our own projects. People received help through our local churches. And, those same people in the community, they started to put their trust in the pastors and the volunteer staff. Now it has been a great opportunity for people to get closer to the churches so they can know more about Jesus so they can have a personal encounter and a personal relationship with Him.”

But the staff at Compassion was also stretched in their faith through this difficult time.

“This experience has taught us that we need to trust in the Lord despite all the challenges that might come our way. We have seen God’s hand throughout the whole situation. He has lifted us up, and also the communities as well.”

The Rebuilding process continues

(Photo courtesy of Compassion International)

Even over a year later, the recovery process is ongoing. Compassion has been able to help most of the families get housing again. However, they still need financial support to rebuild some of the classrooms.

“We are very grateful to God because we have been able to help many projects. But we still have other projects to continue helping,” Quevedo says.

Will you pray for God to provide the resources? And also, keep the affected families in your prayers, as well.

“’Now when people are interviewed about the situation and how they feel now, they start crying. They really have a deep pain in their hearts because they lost all their belongings. They lost everything they had. And even though we are now helping them to recover, it’s still hard for them.”

If you’d like to partner with Compassion, consider giving to their Disaster Relief Fund, here. This will help the ministry respond quickly to the disasters that take place near their operations around the world.

Half-Mile Landslide

(Photo courtesy FMI)

The landslide destroyed a lot of buildings and, in his last report, FMI’s Bruce Allen says at least 300 people have been displaced. Furthermore, about 30 people remain missing, buried under approximately 56-feet of mud and debris.

Following the initial landslide, there have been numerous other landslides through the island as well.

“The beginning of this month, in April, Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency recorded 251 landslides across the country so far in 2017. That’s a lot,” FMI’s Bruce Allen shares.

Combined with widespread flooding, Indonesians have been warned of the potential for more landslides. About 17 percent of Indonesia’s population lives in landslide-prone areas. That’s about 40 million people.

For perspective, 40 million is nearly twice the population of Australia and is still more than the entire population of Canada. Furthermore, Java is home to many of FMI’s partner churches.

In fact, FMI partners in this area are trying to assist landslide prevention by educating local farmers about sustainable farming practices. Trees are often clear-cut out of areas to make room for farmland. As the trees leave, so do their roots which were keeping the soil in place.

Indonesian flag. (Graphic courtesy of FMI)

When landslides do occur, Indonesia’s Christian community is there to help.

“After a landslide, obviously the Christian community wants to be known for being a help to their neighbors. So, the good thing is that the Christians are in these various areas and they’re already mobilized because they already live there,” Allen explains.

“They make up the rescue teams, they make up people who try and help the survivors in an aftermath. The Christians are right there in the thick of it.”

Helping After the Landslide

Indonesia’s Christians are being the tangible hands and feet of Jesus in their communities, thus opening doors to share the Gospel. Specifically, in east Java where the landslide occurred, FMI supports six church planters in the area.

However, these same church planters also need immediate financial support to propel them to serve, share the Gospel, and meet the needs of victims of the landslide. Would you consider giving to help FMI’s partners? To donate to FMI’s Overseas Partners funds, click here!

But, regardless of if donating is a possibility, please pray.

“Pray about these weather conditions. Pray that these churches would be able to educate the villagers about sustainable practices as well as to have the resources they need to help come alongside in very compassionate and tangible ways to help victims of these natural disasters,” Allen asks.

“In 1 John 3, we read that if anyone has material possession and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him. So FMI is looking for a flood of Christ followers, in whom the love of God truly resides, to offer a flood of support for the people of Indonesia.”

(Photo courtesy of World Mission)

He says, “Things actually are going quite well, considering what they endured. The flash floods of January 2017, it was literally one-in-a-thousand-year event. So, it was pretty devastating and affected thousands and thousands of families.”

World Mission’s national partner operates in some of the areas that were affected, so a response chain was quickly set up to distribute relief aid. In addition to food and temporary shelter, this partner distributed The Treasure, an audio Bible.

“The people were so grateful. I mean, if you can imagine, so many of the people lost everything. Every worldly possession they have, these floods… it took it from them. And there were a number of people who lost their lives as well.”

Kelley says the outpouring in response to the sudden disaster was great.

“It was beautiful to see the Body of Christ in the Philippines respond and be a blessing and just be the hands and feet of Jesus to those people.”

(Photo courtesy of World Mission)

The flooding was followed by an earthquake in February which also took lives and caused destruction. Aftershocks went on for weeks afterwards. Kelley says it delayed the rebuilding progress as more buildings were damaged and businesses closed.

“There are a lot of people even today who are still sleeping outside in fear of their homes and the buildings they reside in falling down. So that’s really where our efforts are at now.”

World Mission continues to provide temporary shelters to families who have lost their homes. They are also helping gather food resources.

“But things are improving,” Kelley says.

Generous giving, timely response, a major impact

(Photo courtesy of World Mission)

Emergency funds enable ministries to react immediately when crisis strikes. For World Mission, stepping into a trial like this is a matter of urgency.

Kelley says, “For the Church to engage in those moments when there’s crisis creates that much more of an opportunity for that hardened heart to receive the Good News. So that’s why anytime World Mission, when we do a response, a humanitarian response, we always include a Gospel presentation.”

This is true not only in the Philippines but in countries in the 10/40 Window as well. The Gospel presentation, which is usually done by distributing the audio Bible called The Treasure, let’s people know the motivation behind the blessing. These recorded Bibles are in the native tongue of the recipient and also have discipleship training recorded on them.

“We can’t just preach Jesus and not be there in their most desperate time of need. We have to also through our actions demonstrate that we love them without strings attached.”

So, how can you be part of important relief work that demonstrates Christ’s love? There are a couple of ways.

You can support World Mission financially either in their regular work or emergency work. And, you can pray.

(Photo courtesy of World Mission)

First, ask God to use this ministry to impact people in a big way — that they would embrace the Gospel and also have their physical needs met as well.

And, Kelley urges, pray for the national workers all around the world who are ministering to people and distributing Treasures.

“These people are literally working around the clock, running from one community to the next. They’re tireless, they’re fearless, they’ll go into places where there’s great persecution. But we need to be praying for them because they are precious, precious people who are giving up, literally they’re sacrificing everything.”

(Photo courtesy Vision Beyond Borders)

Myanmar (MNN/VBB) — Eight days ago, heavy rains came as another blow to the village of Mawchi in Kayah State, Myanmar.

Already dealing with the country’s worst floods in 100 years, which struck from late July to August, the deluge caused a river to flood a bridge, wash out roads, and slow down emergency personnel dealing with deadly landslides in the area. Local authorities are relocating those living in disaster-hit areas to relief camps.

Dyann Romeijn, a spokeswoman for Vision Beyond Borders, says, “It’s in a village that our contacts work with, out of the refugee camps, and it’s predominantly a Christian village. I believe that there are 792 victims that are now displaced that are staying in a church, a middle school, an old hospital, and a high school.”

Why has there been next to nothing on the disaster in the news? “They don’t have technology. They don’t have electricity. They don’t have a lot of those things to get the word out. So, it’s been about a week since this happened, but our contacts are working to get aid into these people.”

(Photo courtesy Vision Beyond Borders/Landslide rescue)

Local authorities, army personnel, and police teamed up with residents to carry out rescue operations. Romeijn explains, “There [are] medical needs. They’re trying to get food and temporary housing to these people. It’s a very poor village. [Communication is] difficult because this is a village that is in a very remote area in the mountains.” Aid reached some of the victims, she adds, but it’s likely not everyone got help. “In a lot of these areas, the Christians are highly persecuted, so a lot of times there’s not a lot of outside assistance that will come for Christian believers, because they’re already kind of ostracized.”

VBB relies on their partnerships to provide a needs assessment. “It looks like, from pictures, that a lot of bridges may be taken out, so it may be very difficult for them to get to all of the people. Just pray for wisdom in how to get to the people they need to get to.” Although there’s a team heading to the area in December, says Romeijn. “It sounds like a situation where the needs are pretty immediate, so we will probably just send the funds for our contacts there to be able to purchase the items that are needed and get them to the people right away.”

(Photo courtesy Vision Beyond Borders)

Romeijn says the affected village has a lot of Christians in it, but it’s still a Gospel opportunity for the community. “It’s important for the Church in America to come alongside them because there isn’t a lot of support for them in their own country.” Plus, a visit means the believers haven’t been forgotten. “It’s for them to see the Body of Christ come alongside them, to be reminded and strengthened in their own faith that God loves them and is providing for them.”

Click here for Vision Beyond Borders’ Web site.