But I also saw something else. I saw men nailing back sheets of tin on their roof. Ladies washing clothes. Kids cleaning the yards. Workers planting rice. Crews clearing the roads. Here and there, I saw some smiles. Filipinos are an amazing people. Although they have never seen a catastrophe of this magnitude, they know how to survive. And they will.
As bad as everything looks here, it still is not as desperate as Tacloban City, and parts of Leyte and Samar, that received the full force of the typhoon. All the major airports on this island are now open. Iloilo City, where I live, is almost back to normal. Food, water, and goods can travel from here to other parts of the island where they need it. Though severely damaged, travel and communication are slowly being restored. Most major towns hope to have electricity by Christmas. Still, for others, it will take many months.
Tomorrow I will travel west to the poorest province of our island. We will be bringing food and hope for more relief. While some parts of the island are experiencing food shortages, the overwhelming need is for building supplies. People want their homes back. Such materials will be costly because a major section of the country is having to rebuild. And because crops have been heavily damaged, what money they do have will have to go to higher food costs.
Pray for those areas that are still experiencing food shortages. Some families are desperate. Looting has been reported.
Pray for funds to help Filipinos rebuild their homes.
But most of all, pray that their present hardships will motivate them to call upon the Lord, to find their security in Him, and to seek after that which is eternal.
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