December 2010
Saving Lives in Jesus’ Name
As I write this, the island nation of Haiti is reeling from yet another devastating blow, this time from Hurricane Tomas. The storm brought high winds and torrential rains to hundreds of thousands of people still displaced from their homes by the January earthquake.
The flooding could not have come at a worse time. An outbreak of the deadly water-borne cholera had already killed over 400 people and infected thousands more. The people of this impoverished country need your prayers.
Over the past 10 months, Samaritan’s Purse has been on the ground helping the suffering people of Haiti. When cholera broke out, we were able to immediately mobilize a disaster assistance response team made up of medical personnel and public health and clean water experts, using our helicopter to rush workers and supplies to hard-to-reach areas.
ContinueWe quickly provided medical assistance to overwhelmed local hospitals, and set up an emergency treatment center in an area at the center of the outbreak. The treatment center was soon inundated with a flood of cholera patients, some unconscious and near death.
Our team is working long days in very difficult conditions, sharing the love of Christ as they minister to the sick. Dr. Kara Gibson, our medical director in Haiti, became very ill herself as she selflessly cared for the needs of others. Soon however, she was back on her feet treating patients.
Cholera is easily curable with antibiotics and rehydration, but it can kill within hours if not treated in time. By God’s grace, we were able to save hundreds of lives in the Name of Jesus Christ.
“I prayed over one elderly woman who was close to death as we gave her fluids through an IV,” said Mary Ann Way, a nurse volunteering with us in Haiti. “By the end of the day, she was well enough to go home.”
ContinueSamaritan’s Purse also addressed the need for clean water, proper hygiene, and sanitation in our fight against this deadly water-borne disease. We installed more than half a dozen filtration units to provide safe water in places where people were drinking from contaminated sources. Men, women, and children stood in long lines to fill up buckets with safe water from our units, many of them praising God for rescuing them from the deadly disease.
Please continue to pray for ministry opportunities in Haiti as we work in partnership with local churches to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. Early next year, we will be delivering shoe box gifts to 250,000 Haitian children through our Operation Christmas Child project, and I will be traveling to Haiti to lead an evangelistic crusade.
ContinueEach year, tens of thousands of volunteers like those in Haiti give their time and talents to serve the Lord through Samaritan’s Purse. We thank God for their sacrifice to work alongside us. Like the prophet Isaiah, they responded to the opportunity for ministry with an enthusiastic “Here am I! Send me” (Isaiah 6:8).
As we come to the end of the year, I want to thank everyone who has volunteered with Operation Christmas Child, our rebuilding projects in the U.S., World Medical Mission, and our field projects overseas. We are able to accomplish much more work in Jesus’ Name than we ever could without them.
ContinuePastor Harold Bennett of North Carolina rode with us the first time we responded to a disaster in the U.S., and he and his church have been serving with us ever since. “We don’t get tired when we work long hours with Samaritan’s Purse,” he said, “because in the end we know we’re going to get to tell people about Jesus.”
Harold has shared the Gospel with many homeowners through the years, and he has had the privilege of leading a number of them to faith in Christ.
ContinueSince 1977, our World Medical Mission has sent thousands of volunteer medical personnel to mission hospitals around the globe. Dr. Shawn Goodall is a doctor who has served with us at a hospital in Mali. After relating the story of a woman he had the privilege of leading to Christ, he said, “This small but significant example is the essence of why this hospital exists–to bring the light of Jesus to the darkness. It has been my pleasure to be a part of it, even if for two short weeks.”
ContinueThis Christmas season, over 100,000 people will volunteer with Operation Christmas Child. We are grateful to the Lord for everyone who selflessly gives their time and talent to serve Him with us. I am always humbled and amazed as I walk through the shoe box gift processing centers to see them working so hard. Many of them come to me to thank me for the opportunity to serve.
ContinueAs our staff gathers each morning for devotions, we thank the Lord for His abundant blessings and for the faithful believers who make our work possible. Because of people like you, we have the resources necessary to respond to emergencies at a moment’s notice and to reach out to suffering people with the life changing message of Jesus Christ. Thank you, and may God bless you in the coming new year.
Latest News
-
Jwaye Noel
Christmas miracles are taking place at Samaritan's Purse cholera clinics in Haiti
-
Home for the Holidays
Samaritan's Purse volunteers help a retired widow and her daughter move back into their once-flooded home just in time for Christmas
-
Reaching Bigger for God
The Children's Heart Project helps bring people to Christ in a remote Mongolian village
-
After the Storm
Samaritan's Purse disaster relief teams help tornado victims in North Carolina pick up the pieces
-
God Makes a Way
A couple is able to move back into a flood-damaged trailer after Samaritan's Purse volunteers make repairs
-
Five Years Faithful
Samaritan's Purse crews continue to bring hope to people in New Orleans on the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina