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From Helplessness to Fruitfulness

Description: When a major flood hit the shores of Kedah in 2005, Pastor Kuilan saw the great need to reach out to the victims...

From Helplessness to Fruitfulness

When a major flood hit the shores of Kedah in 2005, Pastor Kuilan saw the great need to reach out to the victims. As he felt helpless for lack of resources and trained personnel, he decided that he had to do something for the future. After the floods have receded, he contacted the Crisis Relief and Services agency (CREST) and arranged training for his church members and other like-minded believers in his town. The he asked NECF to collaborate with him to buy a boat. He sounded like Noah then trying to build the ark in the absence of rain!

Nevertheless, his obedience to the heavenly vision paid off. Their training were put to good use in the massive flood that hit their town recently. The flood waters rose very fast after a few days of rain which caught many people unprepared - some did not have time to save even their personal documents. But not the Trinity Baptist Church (TBC) disaster relief team who was thoroughly prepared and well-equipped! They swung into action almost immediately, distributing food packages, and water to victims whose cooking utensils were either destroyed or washed away by the flood. The boat which had been gathering dust, also burst into action, ferrying people from their flooded homes to relief centres. At the point of writing, the TBC team is preparing to enter the next phase in providing clothes, kitchenware, and blankets to badly affected families. In response to his worthy initiative, the Council of NECF had contributed RM10,000 to assist this showing of practical love to our neighbors.

Besides Alor Setar, CREST has been conducting disaster relief training in other parts of the country including Kota Kinabalu and Johor Baru. Nevertheless, in view of the increasing number of natural catastrophes like earthquakes and hydro meteorological disasters, there is a great need for more trained personnel. The writer still remembered the lament of a church member when her house in Selangor was flooded many years ago - "The Buddhists came, the Red Cross came, but where is my pastor?" TBC's model has shown us that it is possible for the church to catch up. Will you do your part?

For more information on their next training, kindly contact them at:

Crisis Relief Services & Training Berhad
Tel: 03-77257299, 03-77256297
Email: crest@crestmalaysia.org
Website: www.crestmalaysia.org



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