GBIM announces decisions concerning Tsunami Relief efforts:
(updated March 15, 2005)
Immediate Response (January – February):
Within days of the disaster, funds were quickly sent to ministries in Thailand and India. Personnel were sent to these regions to assist with tsunami relief efforts and to assess opportunities for continued ministries. The FGBC was alerted and many special offerings were received for tsunami relief.
Intermediate Range Response (March – August):
After careful consideration and prayer, we feel that God is leading us to pursue the following intermediate range ministry opportunities:
Thailand:
Two short-term relief teams are being deployed (March and May) to assist in clean up and restoration of villages destroyed by the tsunami.
Several additional teams are being planned for later this year. It is likely that they will focus on constructing new housing, evangelism and prayer.
$80,000.00 will be released immediately to construct twenty modest homes in the Phuket region. Up to sixty more homes have been requested. If you would like to sponsor a home, please see information below.
India:
$37,000.00 will be released to assist in outfitting villages with ten fishing boats. This donation is made in response to a request from the Hindustan Bible Institute. Each boat will be outfitted with motor and fishing equipment.
Long Range Response (September and beyond):
After careful consideration and prayer, we have decided to aggressively pursue an invitation to partner with Thailand Campus Crusade for Christ (TCCC), in evangelism and church planting in the tsunami-affected region. In many ways, this is a logical choice:
GBIM has been pursuing the possibility of ministry in Thailand for the past seven years. We have a good track record of partnership with CCC. Mike and Judy Christian (GBC of Waterloo, IA) are a part of the CCC staff in Thailand. At this time, it appears that few other mission agencies are targeting the area we have selected.
Our preliminary strategy includes the following elements:
Redeployment of a GBIM missionary family for one year to Bangkok, Thailand, to oversee our tsunami relief efforts and to investigate church-planting possibilities in this area and other areas of the country.
Deployment of numerous short-term teams to assist in tsunami relief efforts, evangelize and prepare for the arrival of a permanent GBIM team.
Recruit, train and deploy a church planting team to partner with TCCC staff in evangelism and church planting.
How can you participate in these ministry opportunities?
PRAY: We invite you to join us in praying earnestly that God will continue to make his will clear concerning these efforts. Pray for those who will be involved in short term teams to Thailand. Pray for funding to meet the ministry opportunities that have been presented to us. And pray especially that God will raise up a permanent team of church planters for deployment to strategic areas in Thailand.
GIVE: Finances are needed for intermediate and long term ministry development. Single family housing units can be sponsored for southern Thailand for $4000.00 each. Gifts of any amount can be used to help sponsor Thai relief workers and for the emergency redeployment of GBIM staff to the region.
GO: Several short-term teams are being scheduled for later this year to assist with various aspects of relief and restoration. Missionaries are also being recruited to form a permanent church-planting team. Please contact Kip Cone at kcone@gbim.org, or consult our website for additional information.