Kerala floods: Dozens missing in deadly India disaster

[with reporting from BBC and others]

More than 20 people have been killed in floods in southern India after heavy rains caused rivers to overflow, cutting off towns and villages. Several houses were washed away and people became trapped in the district of Kottayam in Kerala state, not far from where Pastor Paul and his wife live. While he and his family remain safe, they are asking us for prayer.

In one tragic incident, a family of six—including a 75-year-old grandmother and three children—were confirmed dead after their home in Kottayam was swept away.  The bodies of another three children—aged eight, seven and four—were also found buried under the debris in Idukki district, where the search continued for at least five other missing people.

The Indian military has joined rescue efforts, flying helicopters with supplies and personnel to areas where people have been trapped under debris by the landslides, officials said on Sunday.

Pastor Paul, only recently released from hospital, continues to need prayer for a full recovery as well.

While we rarely can fully understand the ‘why’s’ of our lives here on earth (see recent post: Enduring faith), we can pray to be used when calamities strike. Who knows: our prayers and/or our actions may have a huge impact in helping others find the faith that holds us firm, even as the ground beneath shifts constantly.

“God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
though the earth change,
though the mountains topple into the heart of the seas,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains quake at their swelling.”

—Psalm 46:2-4, Tree of Life version

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