Dear Brothers,
The following is a report from the elders in the church in Los Angeles concerning the wildfires that are burning in the LA area.
A brief report from LA, as of Wed 1/8 at 5:30pm Pacific time:
We thank the saints for prayerfully inquiring about the situation in Los Angeles. Below is a composite report based on what we know right now:
The fires have impacted large portions of the city in proximity to the saints:
—the Palisades fire (on the westside) is at 15,000+ acres with 0% containment; the evacuation zones are nearing where some of the Hall 5 saints live; we are closely watching this as UCLA is not too far away and the quarter has just begun. It is probable that at least one of the saints’ homes has been destroyed by this fire.
—the Woodley and Hurst fires are impacting the San Fernando Valley, where Hall 2 (Haskell Hall) is; some saints live close by but are not in immediate danger as far as we know
—the Eaton fire (impacting Altadena, the San Gabriel Valley, and foothill communities) is at 10,000 acres with 0% containment; we know many saints along these areas have had to evacuate.
In parts of LA where the fires are not directly threatening, the smoke is quite strong and the air quality is quite low (in northern LA, the AQI this morning was 436, and in downtown LA it was at 256). Saints have also had to leave their homes due to long power outages. Tomorrow, Thurs, 1/9, all LA Unified schools will be closed.
The brothers and saints in LA are praying to the Lord as the One with authority over the wind and the environment, for the preservation and protection of His persons, interests, and assets across not just LA but also adjacent areas, including Orange County and the Inland Empire (where Oak Glen Christian Conference Center is), all of which can be in harm’s way. We are praying for the Lord to be our wisdom and for Him to open our eyes to the needs among any saints who may be in dire situations, and also more broadly for our community and many friends and neighbors who are impacted (beyond the saints directly, most of us have colleagues or friends or acquaintances who have suffered material loss). We have prepared various contingency plans to care for the saints in different areas should evacuation orders advance, although at the moment it seems things have abated. May the Lord’s will be done, the gospel be preached, and His economy be furthered.
For the saints in other localities asking how to pray, we suggest prayers to:
1) Guard the saints, to bountifully supply them, and to be magnified in them in all circumstances
2) Cause the people of LA to know the Lord as their real refuge, and to not trust in storing up treasure on the earth.
3) Minimize any impact on the work with the college students, as the UCLA quarter just began, and we have a large number of positive, new contacts.
4) Protect the interests, assets, and properties for His move in this city, and in adjacent communities in the southland. There is a Southern California young people’s blending conference this weekend in Anaheim which we hope will continue unhindered with high participation.
5) Head up all things in Christ through His constructive economy amidst the destructive chaos.
The brothers are exercising to be vigilant in prayer to follow His leading to care for the church and the community, please contact any of the leading brothers in LA if you are aware of needs impacting your relatives or friends that we can help with. Jesus is in our boat. Thank you for your care and prayers.
The brothers in Los Angeles
亲爱的弟兄们，
以下是洛杉矶召会长老们关于洛杉矶地区野火的报告。
截至太平洋时间 1 月 8 日星期三下午 5:30，洛杉矶的简要报告：
我们感谢圣徒们虔诚地询问洛杉矶的情况。以下是根据我们目前所知情况得出的综合报告：
火灾影响了圣徒们附近的大部分城市：
— 帕利塞兹大火（西侧）面积超过 15,000 英亩，控制率 0%；疏散区接近一些 5 号大厅圣徒居住的地方；我们正在密切关注此事，因为加州大学洛杉矶分校离这里不远，而且本季度才刚刚开始。至少有一所圣徒的家可能被这场大火摧毁。
— 伍德利和赫斯特大火正在影响 2 号大厅（哈斯克尔大厅）所在的圣费尔南多谷；一些圣徒住在附近，但据我们所知，他们没有立即受到危险
— 伊顿大火（影响阿尔塔迪纳、圣盖博谷和山麓社区）已烧毁 10,000 英亩，控制率达 0%；我们知道这些地区的许多圣徒不得不撤离。
在洛杉矶部分地区，火灾没有直接威胁，烟雾很浓，空气质量很差（在洛杉矶北部，今天早上的空气质量指数为 436，洛杉矶市中心为 256）。由于长时间停电，圣徒也不得不离开家园。明天，周四，1/9，所有洛杉矶联合学校将关闭。
洛杉矶的弟兄和圣徒们向主祷告，求主掌管风和环境，求主保守和保护祂在洛杉矶和邻近地区（包括奥兰治县和内陆帝国（橡树谷基督教会议中心所在地））的人员、利益和资产，因为这些地区都可能处于危险之中。我们祈求主成为我们的智慧，求祂打开我们的眼睛，让我们看到任何可能处于危急境地的圣徒的需要，也更广泛地为我们的社区和许多受到影响的朋友和邻居（除了直接受到影响的圣徒之外，我们大多数人都有同事、朋友或熟人遭受了物质损失）。我们已经准备了各种应急计划，以便在疏散命令提前发出时照顾不同地区的圣徒，尽管目前情况似乎已经缓和。愿主的旨意得以成就，福音得以传扬，祂的经纶得以进一步发展。
对于其他地方的圣徒询问如何祷告，我们建议祷告：
1）保守圣徒，丰丰富富地供应他们，在任何情况下在他们身上显大
2）使洛杉矶人知道主是他们真正的避难所，不要信靠在地上积蓄财宝。
3）尽量减少对大学生工作的影响，因为加州大学洛杉矶分校的季度刚刚开始，我们有大量积极的新接触。
4）保护祂在这个城市和南部邻近社区的行动的利益、资产和财产。本周末在安那翰有一个南加州青年相调特会，我们希望它能继续顺利进行，参与度高。
5）在破坏性的混乱中，借着祂建设性的经济，将万有都归于基督的元首。
弟兄们正在努力保持警惕，祷告，跟随祂的带领，照顾教会和社区，如果您知道您的亲戚或朋友有需要，我们可以提供帮助，请联系洛杉矶的任何一位主要弟兄。耶稣在我们的船上。感谢您的关心和祈祷。
洛杉矶的弟兄们
