Our Response to Rising Flood Waters in Midwest
Joyce Meyer Ministries continues to respond to the worst flooding the Midwest has endured since the notorious “Flood of the Century” in 1993. Rising waters have devastated millions of acres of farmland and have forced tens of thousands, spanning at least 6 states, to flee their homes.
Iowa has been hit particularly hard, suffering from not only rising waters but also from literally hundreds of destructive tornadoes that have hit in recent weeks. In addition to loss of life, the nation’s second-leading corn producer has lost huge portions of this year’s crops.
In response, Joyce Meyer Ministries has partnered with Convoy of Hope, an organization committed to disaster relief efforts and meeting the physical and spiritual needs of communities across the U.S. and abroad.
Volunteers have already distributed more than 380,000 pounds of water, POWERade, cleaning supplies and paper products to flood victims in Indiana, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.
“We Lost Everything”
"When all is said and done, the long-term impact of this could be as significant as [Hurricane] Katrina," said Convoy of Hope's Director of U.S. Disaster Response Kary Kingsland. "Several of the towns I visited in Iowa are submerged and…there are miles and miles of fields throughout Iowa and parts of Illinois that look like lakes.”
Kingsland was visiting with people holed up in an Iowa hotel when a distressed young girl told him she had been evacuated with her parents and other Carmen, Illinois, residents. Lying just across the river from Burlington, Iowa, this town of approximately 150, along with several other small communities in the region, was completely submerged.
“We had to evacuate our house,” said the girl. “Only 2 inches of the top of our house was showing—we lost everything.”
Convoy of Hope’s Pastor Donald Andreason met many of the flood victims face-to-face during a recent outreach in Indiana. "[The volunteers] didn't wait for the cars and trucks to come through the line...they went out to their homes all over the city...providing helpful assistance, leaving valuable supplies and praying with so many, many individuals. They ministered to the multitudes of those suffering without a home, without a bed, without a bathroom, without a fridge and without their possessions.”
What You Can Do to Help
There are so many families reeling from these floods…so many like the family mentioned above who have literally lost everything. At this moment, the 2 greatest things we can do are to pray and take action.
First, please pray for the physical safety of all those affected, as well as the relief workers and volunteers. Currently, mosquitoes and bacteria pose some of the greatest health threats in the flooded areas. Also, thousands have lost their crops and suddenly found themselves homeless, living day to day. Pray for the Lord to strengthen these precious people spiritually, emotionally, mentally and in every way possible as they endure such overwhelming circumstances.
Second, Joyce Meyer Ministries is able to send lifesaving financial help to these incredible organizations because of the continued giving of our faithful friends and partners. If you would like to help support these flood relief efforts in the U.S. Midwest, as well as our other vital outreaches worldwide, please make a donation now.