On April 25, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Nepal at 11:25 AM with the epicenter in Lamjung, about 79 kilometers west of Kathmandu, the nation’s capital. The tremors destroyed homes, infrastructure, and centuries-old landmarks. To date, 2,430 perished from the earthquake, and more than 4,600 people have been injured. Here is a first-hand account from one of our missionaries in the nation.   Our missionaries in the area are all doing fine, and they are well accounted for. We experienced the earthquake in the middle of our church service. Except for one being injured, none of our church members were seriously hurt, or perished from the earthquake. However, their homes experienced varying kinds of damage.

We have a few days’ worth of food and water, but the grocery stores and banks are still closed. We also have no electricity. To keep cover from aftershocks, our Nepali church members are all sleeping in open spaces and parks in the rain, along with their families and communities. Our missionaries have opened their homes as temporary shelter to some of our Nepali church members.

In the past few days, we have bought and repacked relief goods for church members and started distributing to them. We will extend the relief operations to the Nepalis whom we are engaging, and to our immediate community.

Please pray with us for the following:

1. Electricity and water supply to be fully restored;
2. A power generating set for our relief operations center to handle scheduled power cuts in Kathmandu;
3. For our time to find wholesalers of relief goods that we need: noodles, water, rice, lentils, candles, tissue paper, and the like;
4. Suppliers of blankets, tents and mats for families who lost their homes;
5. Consistent transport vehicle services needed for daily distribution of goods;
6. More volunteers from the church and our outreach communities;
7. Identify contacts to families who lost their houses in different villages;
8. Strength, protection, well-being and safety of every missionary and volunteer as we administer relief operations to the affected communities
9. Wisdom for the leadership team as we plan and strategize for this initiative;
10. A consistent weekly schedule of our volunteer groups.

God is faithful to sustain us despite this tragedy. We are in faith that the nation of Nepal will rise up and stand strong amidst this trial. Thank you for your prayers and support! धन्यवाद! (Thank you!)