Dear brothers and sisters,

Nicknamed as “God’s own country” by the local people, Kerala, the southern state of India, is reeling under a great flood in most of its districts due to the monsoon rains. At the time of writing this article, according to news agency IANS, 114 people are feared to be dead due to the rains and subsequent floods across the state.

The disciples in Kerala are requesting the prayers of brothers and sisters across the globe, specifically, to pray that the rains relent and relief can reach many of those who are displaced from their homes. Among the people from the affected areas, many are either taking refuge in relief camps or in makeshift temporary shelters. We have 628 disciples across nine churches in the state of Kerala.

If the rains do not stop, this will snowball into a major disaster of great proportions.

Benny, the evangelist from Kannur, Kerala reports: “Calicut and Kannur are also affected just like every other district in Kerala. Many disciples have their houses filled with water. Some disciples are moved to their relatives’ houses or to other disciples’ house. Some of them are struggling without jobs and income. If the rain continues like this, chances of a major disaster are high.”

Shaijus Philip, evangelist in Bangalore, who is from Kerala, said, “Please pray that none of the dams will break due to heavy flooding. Especially one dam at Thekkady, called Mullaperiyar dam, that was built without cement in1895 that is 123 yrs old. Such structures can only have life for 60yrs.”

Saji Alex, lead evangelist for the Kerala region, said, “Please pray for our disciples Prakash and Liji and Kids. They are stuck on the terrace of a house along with many others and surrounded by water. So far no one has been able to help them or contact them. Please pray.”

Tomorrow, August 17, Shaijus is leaving along with another brother Ganesh from Bangalore to provide relief materials. We are praying that they will be safe and be able to provide relief and find out what more can be done to help.

The churches in India are going to be fasting and praying tomorrow to receive respite from this furious weather for Kerala from the riches of God’s grace.

We request all the brothers and sisters across the world to join us in prayers.

For more information:

From HOPE worldwide India:
Kerala Flood Relief Report: Disciples from Bangalore are in Thalappuzha, near Mananthavady. There have identified 108 people in need. Since the families in relief centers tend to get help our brothers are going door to door to reach the underserved. As we continue to gain a firsthand understanding of needs on the ground we hope to be able to send reinforcements and relief to about 1,000 families in the next few days.
750 relief kits are being distributed with contents of: Blankets, toiletries, clothing, (sarees, blouse, petticoat, lungis, nighties), towels, sanitary napkins, new undergarments, slippers, toothpaste, toothbrush, coconut oil, comb, hair bands, soap, water, rice and pulses.
More news will be coming.