Kelly (32), a single mother of three who lives in a community in the Peruvian jungle, used to wake up at dawn to work her small banana crop—her only source of livelihood. One morning earlier this year, after torrential rains, the river swept everything away: her wooden hut, her tools, her ready-to-harvest bananas, even family photos.

"The water rose to my waist. I grabbed my children and ran to higher ground. When we returned, only mud remained ... and silence," she recalled.

For weeks, the family survived on one meal a day—boiled yuca shared by neighbors. The family wasn’t alone in their need. The floods devastated infrastructure, damaged crops, killed livestock, and destroyed homes.

“My youngest children cried from hunger,” Kelly shared. “They’d say, ‘We’ll eat tomorrow,’ but I didn’t know if that was true.”

Though she was hoping for help from the local government, it wasn’t quick to come.

“I felt abandoned by everyone... but not by God,” she confided. “Something in my heart told me He wouldn’t leave me.”

When the floods came to this part of Peru, local Nazarene churches began to respond to the emergency. The district organized volunteer teams and dispersed funds provided through Nazarene Compassionate Ministries to provide food and supplies to impacted families in remote areas.

One afternoon, while looking for firewood near the remains of her home, Kelly heard motors approaching—it was the local Church of the Nazarene’s boat, loaded with rice, oil, mosquito nets, and other supplies.

“I saw church members getting off the boat and hugging the children. I couldn’t believe it,” she recalled.

“Sister, you are not alone,” said Carlos, a Nazarene pastor, as he handed her a large food kit, bug repellent, and a mosquito net.

That night, for the first time in weeks, Kelly's children went to bed with full stomachs. What moved her the most, though, was the prayer:

“They knelt in the mud and water and prayed for us. I felt like God wrapped me in something warm, like a hug.”

Kelly’s connection with the church continued after this encounter. Now, her son, age 9, attends the church’s child development center where he receives holistic care and support.

“Mom, I want to be a pastor like Carlos,” he tells his mother regularly.

Church leaders in the area are already preparing for future, similar responses to emergencies. They’re planning to broaden what they can provide, including items like flashlights, diapers, buckets, soap, and water purification tablets. Volunteer training systems are being developed, both to help volunteers navigate the challenges that come with floods and to empower them to better share their faith with those they encounter. For local residents, the district plans to offer workshops on how to purify water at home, essential hygiene practices to prevent diseases, and how to find resilience after disasters.

Through this practical help, offered one person at a time, the connection between local Nazarene churches and their surrounding communities has grown.

“The project holistically strengthened and supported the local church’s work—enhancing service capacity, Christian witness, and building bonds of fellowship with neighbors and non-believers,” reported one project leader. “It provided an opportunity to demonstrate God's love to those in need.”