expect the unexpected

Isn’t it funny how God brings unexpected thing into our lives? I was really looking forward to October as it was going to be my first “normal” month of work since May; a month where I wasn’t working 4-6 days in a row in order to get time off to travel to Seattle, the Philippines, or Oregon. Only one of those trips was a vacation, contrary to what my co-workers thought. Ha!

And then a major catastrophe hit the Philippine Islands and screwed up my plans. Not really…because plans are always meant to be messed with, right?

On September 26, the worst flooding in over 40 years hit the capital of the Philippines. At one point, 80% of the huge metropolis was under water…and this is in an area where overcrowding is normal and people barely eek out of living in their little shanty towns. Hundreds of thousands of people lost absolutely everything they owned. The rich will be able to rebuild, but for many of the Filipinos, their very life is threatened. As of last Friday, bodies were still lying around in some areas of the city, and some remote areas have received zero aid. This means they have no food and water, no medical help, no communication. Nothing. The director of ACTION asked if I would pray about going back to the Philippines asap and help with the medical relief efforts. Surveys done by those already there evidenced that medical help was going to be the most critical need. Of course I would be willing! I didn’t need to be asked twice! I asked my boss at work if I could take 2-3 weeks off and go assist with the relief work to which I received a resounding, “Yes!”

So here I sit in the Tokyo airport waiting for my next flight to Manila. I am sober knowing that this is not going to be a “fun” trip. The things I will see will be life-changing and I just pray that I don’t numb and desensitize myself to the blatant suffering and needs. In addition to being on the front-lines of relief, I will also be helping to coordinate US medical teams that are on stand-by waiting to come and assist. Right now the needs are so great that it’s hard to know where to start. This is where I come in. I will be meeting with local medical relief workers and leaders to set-up medical clinics in order to maximize resources. Please pray for wisdom and guidance for me during this process.

Keep checking back as I will post updates and pictures of the work.

Soli Deo Gloria!

PS - here's a good website to look at pictures of what's going on and here are some statistics of what's happening:
The statistics below from the NDCC website only reflect what has been reported to the government but we think the reality is much greater.
October 6, 2009, 4pm update from National Disaster Coordinating Council:
· Number of affected: families - 828,159; persons - 4,081,596. In Metro Manila: families - 150,733; persons - 757,201. The remaining balance are those from the other 25 provinces that were affected.
· Remaining in 527 evacuation centers: families - 69,404; persons - 339,251 (one evacuation center is down the street from our apartment)
· Casualties: 295 dead; 5 injured; 39 missing
· Damaged houses: 16,219 totally; 22,849 partially.
· Total estimated cost of damages on infrastructure and agriculture: P9.767 billion