A state of emergency has been declared in British Columbia, where torrential rain and mudslides have destroyed roads, cut off several mountain towns, and displaced 18,000 people. At the time of writing there has only been one death, but the death toll will probably rise as the Canadian province grapples with what its premier, John Horgan, called a once-in-500-year event. Pray for neighbours and authorities working to save people and animals, secure supply chains, and ensure that essential goods and emergency services can reach hard-hit communities. Pray for the thousands of people forced to leave their homes in regions under evacuation orders. Ottawa is sending hundreds of air force personnel to aid the recovery, and thousands more are on standby. Pray for the affected towns in remote mountain areas with limited access and freezing temperatures. Many are cut off by road closures and mudslides.

It has been thirty days since two planes flew 545 persecuted Christians and at-risk Afghans out of the country. They are now temporarily housed in Abu Dhabi. They have been given ninety days from when they arrived to leave the country and re-settle. They boarded these flights with nothing more than a handbag. Everything was left behind as they fled to safety. While they are all grateful to be alive, they now face uncertainty; pray for those assisting them with paperwork that must be completed for their resettlement, arrangements for flights out of Abu Dhabi, and temporary housing and living expenses when they land in their new home country. Brazil has emerged as a potential new home for these Afghans. Their rescuers have strong contacts in local churches, and the community there is ready to step up and serve as the Body of Christ, welcoming this group of refugees.

A renowned and well-established research institution found only 5% of pastors/priests in every worldwide Christian tradition have theological training with a recognised degree. 90% of pastors only have some kind of informal or non-formal theological education. Formal theological education has a clearly defined programme, curriculum, exams, degrees, and associated accreditation processes. The thousands of informal programmes have nothing similar; there are no guidelines, no standards, and no outcomes that could be globally accepted. Each one does what it considers best. Often the concepts and beliefs of the founders or leaders of each denomination or mission agency determine how the various training programmes are carried out. One teacher and missionary leader stated publicly that he had personally trained more than 15,000 pastors for ministry; each pastor received about six weeks of training, and were then ordained as pastors. He and his board believe that such training is sufficient.

As of 9 November there were 89 new cases of the Zika virus in the city of Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh (UP). This is the first time they have found Zika in UP. Health officials said it can quickly spread through the population of 204 million. Mosquitoes spread Zika, and it can also be sexually transmitted. There is no cure, so they must rid the area of mosquitoes quickly. Symptoms include fever, joint head and muscle pain, rash and conjunctivitis. Pregnant women who catch Zika can have babies born with severe disabilities, such as abnormally small heads or underdeveloped brains. Zika is also linked to an auto-immune disease that causes the body to attack its immunities. Pray for healthy babies to be born to women in UP. Several teams are trying to contain the spread with very aggressive contact tracing, and there are additional teams eliminating the mosquitoes’ breeding grounds.