Dear PEACE RELIEF and missions team members,
I'm hopping on a plane in a few hours with Don Herr, Don Thompson, and Chris Sharon to assess the scope of the Burmese cyclone crisis.
What we know so far...100,000 feared dead...1 million homeless...widespread waterborn disease outbreaks from rotting corpses being disposed of in local rivers...Myanmar is a very closed...very hostile military regime that hates all-things-Christian and all-things western, so we are going into Myanmar under cover...not as pastors or relief workers. We'll be reporting back in 9 days about what God shows us and what we believe our church response can and should be.
Please pray for our team, that the Lord gives us favor and insight and discernment. A number of you have asked if Saddleback folks can go and give...the answer is yes and yes. We'll return with partner churches (embedded and underground churches) we can work with, and a gameplan for the days ahead, just like the tsunami, Katrina and the recent Kenyan crisis.
You can give to RELIEF through the on-line giving site at Saddlebackfamily.com This is a gigantic OPEN DOOR for the Good News of God's Love to penetrate a closed culture with the Gospel.
PLEASE PRAY ...expectantly...for victory in the midst of chaos.
Pastor Steve Rutenbar
