Christians worship a global God whose Son Jesus is present everywhere. This truth was brought home not long ago by the tsunami wave attack on the coasts of southeast India.

When the two mighty waves surfaced from their undersea journey off the coasts of Indonesia onto the beaches of Tamil Nadu, everyone was caught by surprise. Thousands died not knowing what had happened.

Four months later I sat in a computer classroom half-way around the world from the beaches of Tamil Nadu and watched a presentation by the Impact Club of West Washington High School near Salem, Indiana. The presentation featured photos we had taken on the beaches following the tsunami’s destruction.

The composition of these photos, along with Scripture verses, music, and commentary, made me cry. I wasn’t the only one. Even the sponsors of this club for Christians, Rhonda Johnson and Kim Chastain, were wet-eyed.

In minutes the Impact Club members had captured the essence of the tragedy and the importance of presenting Jesus to the survivors on the beaches.

The effect of the tsunami was between that of a major earthquake and a neutron bomb. Villages, urban slums on the beaches, and fishing settlements disappeared within minutes as the two great waves leveled everything before them—including the people themselves. Mothers were helpless to hold onto children, husbands helpless to save their wives and parents.

Estimates of how many lives were lost vary widely, but most believe the deaths in Tamil Nadu came to 125,000-150,000 men, women, and children, with about 70 percent being women and children.

I will never forget the horror of looking at so many bodies, all seemingly asleep, but not to awaken again in this world. The most distressing sight was that of little children who could not be awakened by grieving relatives no matter how loudly they cried.

Initially the main focus of the South India Church of Christ Mission was relief work, keeping the survivors alive. We were worried about two epidemics, one of disease and the second of suicide. Volunteer teams were embedded with the survivors to keep watch for any outbreaks and to provide a living witness to Jesus’ presence on the beach.

Through singing, helping the survivors boil water and cook rice, praying, and listening to their stories over and over again, the teams bonded tightly with the survivors. This bond became a critical link as the survivors increasingly decided to live, but needed leadership and help in reconstructing their lives.

The volunteers from Southern Asia Christian College, the mission preaching staff, and village congregation leaders faced many hard choices.

As aid on the beaches began to dry up, survivors began to focus on the most immediate of needs—the need for temporary shelter (built of thatch and trees), fresh water, and the need for boats and nets in order to return to fishing, the survivors’ only source of livelihood.

Government or private aid was to supply the necessary boats and nets. But they have not yet come and now we doubt they will come. The mission supplied 100 kattumarams, ordered two large fishing boats, and all the nets required for these vessels.

Kattumarams are traditional log rafts that allow a fishing family not only to feed itself but have fish to sell. A surviving family of 8-10 adults and children can become economically self-sufficient with one kuttumaram and three nets.

In early April, we asked the teams and the leaders of the survivor groups to tell us what was most needed for those we were shepherding. The answer came in response to prayer: 1,000 kattumarams with nets.

As they hear of the need, families from around the world are coming forward to raise the necessary funds for these 1,000 boats and nets, putting the survivor families back to work. The presentation prepared by the members of the Impact Club is the main tool we are using to spread word of this need.

Families donating a boat and nets (at a cost of $450) to a survivor family on the beaches give them back their livelihood and their lives. Meanwhile, we are fishing with our nets lowered, as it says in Luke 5:1-11, and the nets are full to overflowing.

What have we learned? We serve a mighty risen Savior and he is in the world today—from the beaches of South India to the schools of southern Indiana. We praise Jesus for giving us eternal life and hope in the midst of disaster. |L

OTHER COLUMNS:
August 20, 2006 - A Peruvian champion spreads the gospel