By Kimberly Snider
Have you ever asked yourself, “What would I do if I faced death or destruction? How would I act?” Amongst all the negative reports surfacing from the storm, the reports of looting, desperation, and tears, stories of great courage have emerged. And this is one I have to tell.
The following scene is etched on my mind forever. The large room was lit only by feeble light waving in through the sheets of rain which assaulted the windows and doorway. The insulation from the roof drifted down like a sort of tropical snow and settled on the shoulders of the three hundred women inside. And of course, there was the noise, the noise of iron roof sheeting banging like a percussion band on overload. Yolanda has arrived.
Here I was in Roxas in Capiz on the island of Panay, a speaker at the Women’s Radiance Conference sponsored by FARM (First Assembly of God Roxas Mission). Women from all over the Philippines, Australia, and the United States had gathered to celebrate, fellowship and worship. The event had been planned for months; women arrived early, women were still drifting in on the last day. In short, there was no way to cancel the long awaited Radiance Conference.
We had optimistically hoped the typhoon might dissolve, or reverse its path as many did every year, after all Roxas had not had a direct hit since 1988, but it did not. When the storm finally arrived, it was angry. It blasted the church where the conference was held with all the force of 200 mile per hour winds, slanting knives of water, and the roar of unleashed ecological fury.
So the question remains, what happened inside the church? How did Filipino women, away from their families and homes, face down Yolanda, the mightiest typhoon in history? How did they face possible death and certain destruction? They faced it standing on their feet, with peace, with confidence, worshipping God. It was one of the most amazing moments of my life.
I had been the first speaker that morning, calmly introduced by Rev. Zenaida Calusay, the conference director. By 8:30, I was halfway through my message and the winds were picking up. I kept expecting to be told to sit down but no one moved. Everyone listened to the message. By the time the second speaker, Rev. Helen Bates, came to the podium, the symphony of sound had picked up, the rain was harder but again everyone sat attentively in their chairs and listened. Rev. Zenaida sat in the first row. She kept a smile on her face and a relaxed attitude. She exemplified confidence. I took courage and copied her as did everyone else. Finally, another speaker, Josie Co began to speak. Her message was cadenced with drama and stories. As the storm strengthened and got louder, so did the drama of her message.
I kept wondering when panic and terror would set in. It never did. As the typhoon approached its apex, Rev. Zenaida requested the ladies to stand and together we worshiped the Creator, the Almighty, the Lord of the Wind and Storm, the Heavenly Father. We prayed for our families, our loved ones. At last, it became too dangerous to stay in the sanctuary. Women adjourned to smaller rooms, pressed against walls, texting loved ones, praying in small groups for the safety of their loved ones and their homes. Before we left the church that day, some still had no knowledge of their relatives; some had already lost their homes. But, nobody panicked. Nobody cursed God for the storm. We all knew that the peace that was in our hearts came as a gift of God and that He had held the walls of shelter up with His own hands.
So what do Filipino women do when faced with death and destruction? They face it with grace and with courage. And when we are tempted to believe that there is no hope for the Philippines, we need to remember the courage of these women, who like other brave Filipinas face the future with hope. Appropriately, the theme of the Radiance Conference was Psalm 34:5, “Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.”
