· Pray for the group of believers in Tikalaan as they go through great grief at the sudden death of a new mother last week. She is the daughter-in-law of the couple whose house the church meets in.
· Pray for the baby girl whose mother died after giving birth. The baby’s name is Abigail and here she is in the picture being held by her Aunty who is caring for her.
· Pray for the new father who wants to end his life because he doesn’t feel like he can face life without his wife.
These were some of the prayers points in church last Sunday shared by the bible teachers who teach each week in Tikalaan. We prayed and we were sad for these fellow brothers and sisters in their suffering even though we have never met them and we didn’t know the young woman who died.
But later on in the afternoon, I was able to witness the Christ-like love of the 21 women bible teachers who wanted to be part of the answer to our prayers for that suffering family. They had already given their offering at church during the morning meeting, but during their afternoon bible study, they took up a collection of 600+ pesos – almost 7 days’ wages – for the mother-less baby. This was very sacrificial giving by these 21 ladies in a community where money is very hard to come by.
They took this money and bought baby formula and bottles from the Clinic, and they also wrote a letter to the grieving young widower and sent it the next morning with the bible teachers who were heading out to Tikalaan:
“Dear brother......and your family, (it read)
We want you to know that we prayed for you this morning and for your baby girl, and we weep along with you. And we want you to know that the Lord had already numbered the days of your wife, nothing could have stopped this day of her death from coming, so do not blame yourself or allow anyone else to blame you. No man can stop the days of our death as it says in Ecclesiastes. There is a time to be born and a time to die and this was the time that God has already planned that your wife would die. The most important thing now is that you accept this from God’s hand and you let Him comfort your heart as there is no other way to get through this. Look forward to the day that all of us will be taken to the Lord.
We know what it is to grieve, we have also lost loved ones. We have experienced God’s grace that He will never give us more than we can bear and you too can bear this as you trust Him.
Look on your baby girl as your wife’s last gift to you. Care for your baby and love her because she is part of your wife and she is your responsibility and a gift to you from God to care for........
Above all, cling to God as He is your refuge and the healer of all your pain.....
Accept this gift that we send to you. It comes from all of us.
This is sent from your sisters in the Lord in Lapoc.”
As well as helping the mother-less baby, they are also supporting
a young lady whose mother died last year and whose father
has abandoned her.
John 13:35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
