Waveland 10/27/05

Today started off like yesterday with our team opening the distribution tent. Matt, Rick and Patrick were then assigned to install electrical wire/conduit for a small FEMA trailer park in the church's front lawn. I joined up with the Indiana team once again to hang sheetrock.



After lunch, we drove down to the beach area once again. These pictures speak for themselves.




This evening the team from Washington state returned from a stint in New Orleans. Rick and Matt helped lead a time of worship. Manda and I talked with Syd and Angie who are living in a trailer behind the church. Their home in Pass Christian is better than many but still uninhabitable for a while. Pray that they get a fair settlement from State Farm (the company has not been the "good neighbor" of their advertisements). This trip, for me, has helped me connect real faces, people and stories to this mass catastrophe. I encourage everyone to pray for these remarkably resilient people as they piece back their lives.

Waveland 10/26/05

The church that we are staying at is actually on the line between Waveland and Bay St. Louis.

This morning after breakfast our team hit the clothes tent again. There was a steady stream of folks coming through all day - some were repeat customers looking through the newest "merchandise".

Here is a picture of the Waveland Elementary School - notice all the desks, chairs and other supplies outside.

I spent most of the day at the home of another church member. Billy's home had sustained 5-7 ft. of flooding during Katrina and a leaky roof during Rita. I worked alongside a group from West Terre Haute, IN hanging sheetrock on the kitchen ceiling and on the lower 7 ft. of wall space.

Both Billy and his wife shared some of their post-Katrina experiences and frustrations. Many in this rural area feel that the media has overlooked their experience. They both joked that the news media gave the impression that Katrina hit New Orleans and Mobile,AL and nothing in between. FEMA came in for some criticism - mainly for the slow and confusing communication - it took Billy over six weeks to get his trailer. And we heard more stories of trouble with the insurance companys. A member of the Indiana team asked Billy's wife about coping with the loss of material posessions and with the stress of the recovery. She replied, "You choose your own attitude." She and many other locals have shown remarkable inner strength. Their grateful for their health, their families and for the assistance they have received.

Being here and hearing the stories, makes you wonder how I would respond if this happened to me. How would I respond to the loss of most or all of my material treasures? What kind of attitude would I have? Where would my hope and faith be placed? How would I begin to rebuild without insurance? Would I be angry? depressed? distraught? Or would I be thankful? hopeful? faithfull? joyful? Back home, our pastor has been taking us through a series on the book of Hebrews - with the theme "Jesus Is Better". We've been exploring where we put our treasure (for there is where our heart is). Is my stuff my treasure or is my treasure found in my relationship with my Lord? Very tough questions that are made more clear through my experiences here.

Tonight, we went to the beach where we saw what was left of the luxury beachfront homes. The owner of this home was a collector of John Deere tractors - if you look closely, you can also see the remains of a classic corvette that was flipped upside down.

Our team went to Sicely's Italian Restaurant in Bay St. Louis where we enjoyed the Italian Buffet. This is one of three or four eating establishments that are open in this area (Waveland's Sonic drive-in is constantly slammed).

Waveland 10/25/05

This morning we traveled across the 24 mile causeway across Lake Pontchartrain and then onto Waveland, MS. We are headquartered at the Word of Faith Church along with teams from Washington, Indiana, North Carolina and California.

Our first assignment was to help organize the distribution tent. People can pickup food, toiletries, cleaning supplies and clothes. The clothes are particularly challenging - imagine organizing your local thrift store and you'll get an idea of what they have here. It is amazing to see firsthand the generosity this nation is capable of.

After a lunch supplied by the Salvation Army, Matt and I were assigned to assist a church member pressure wash the interior of his home. The ruined furnishings, carpet, cabinets, appliances, and drywall had been removed this morning and piled up at the street. It is stunning to see the possessions people have spent their entire lives acquiring in a heap....

All the drywall and insulation that was below four feet had been stripped off. We then applied a bleach solution to all of the wood studs and pressure washed any visible mold off of the wood and the concrete and ceramic flooring. Then the homeowner, Brandon, applied a second coat of bleach solution to all of the exposed wood.

Conversations with the locals reveal trouble with insurance companies. Many folks lost everything, but because they didn't have flood insurance they won't receive compensation. And even when they have flood insurance, the adjusters are playing games (depreciating paint!!!). One couple had flood insurance for their home but discovered that it did not cover the contents of their home.

This evening we ate dinner with our new friends and had a beautiful time of worship.

P.S. Here is a satellite image of the Word of Faith Church (pre-Katrina)

New Orleans 10/24/05

We left at 6am this morning and had a pretty uneventful roadtrip through Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Interstate 10 just reopened recently with one lane in each direction on the eastbound lanes. This picture shows the westbound lanes which are still missing massive sections. As we drove into the city, we saw many cars that had been submerged and evidence of the waterline on the buildings. The scale of the devastation is greater than the tv is capable of conveying.

Tonight, we are in the River Ridge neighborhood on the west side of New Orleans. We arrived around 4pm and after a quick orientation, we jumped in to help serve dinner to around one hundred people.



Tonight's meal was red beans and rice with corn bread. Apparently it is the traditional Monday evening meal here in N.O.

We are headed to the Gulfport, MS area on Tuesday. Internet access is questionable, but hopefully I'll be able to check in again soon.

Headed to the Gulf Coast

I'll be in Covington, Louisiana next week with a group from church. We will be participating in relief efforts under the auspices of Thirst No More. Your prayers are welcome. I'll try to blog if I get an opportunity.

Mercy and Truth

The following was written by my father as part of a weekly newsletter he does for the school he administrates. I thought it was blog worthy.

Nobody at CFC has asked me so far, but I am going to tell you anyway. I have been questioned in the past as to why I sign off with “mercy and truth.” “Why not ‘mercy and grace’?” I was asked once. That sounds a lot more gracious and friendly and loving and all those nice things. I truly do not have anything against ‘grace.’ It is a wonderful word. It is amazing. I was saved by it.

The reason I use ‘truth’ is that it reflects balance. I started looking one day, and it became increasingly clear that mercy is to be balanced with truth. Proverbs 3:3 states it plainly enough, “Let not mercy and truth forsake thee, bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart.” The Psalmist says, “Oh Lord, let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me (Ps. 40:11).” Micah urges us to “do justly and to love mercy (Mic. 6:8).” Wherever I look I see this linkage between God’s love and God’s truth. Take time to do a word study, and it is amazing how many times these two themes are set side by side in Scripture.

Unfortunately, these themes are really a combination of oil and water that we have a hard time intermingling. How a holy God can love sinners is truly the scandal of the Bible. And I, in my flawed humanity, have a hard time hanging on to both at once. Most of the time, I readily embrace the love thing. It doesn’t take long in any week for me to realize again how I need the mercy of our God. And I love how His mercies are new every morning. Love, love, love. All we really need is love. The Beatles almost got it right. We surely are all sheep who have gone astray and are in desperate need of the Good Shepherd’s tender voice.

Preaching God’s love is an easy and popular message. Who doesn’t need to hear it again and again? And yet, there is that troublesome other half of the message, God’s truth. Our God is a God of righteousness and justice, and we are to be held accountable to His standard of holiness. Occasionally, I must confess, I take a certain amount of perverse satisfaction in applying God’s standard of truth to others who are drastically missing the mark. In East Tennessee, we would call that ‘whupping up’ on someone. And in certain circles and at certain times in history, God’s judgment is even the prevailing and popular message of the day.

We teeter and totter to one extreme or the other depending in part on our natural propensities or whatever is easiest or is the mood of the moment. Some of us are born ‘sticklers.’ Others just naturally ooze warmth and affection. But as parents, we are to reflect the whole image of God. To hold up God’s truth without His mercy is to fill young hearts with fear and despair. To hold up God’s love without His truth is to create a libertine spirit that cheapens the grace of God and makes a mockery of His law. Parents whose only concern is ‘truth’ can spawn frustration and bitterness. Parents who only show love with no standards of accountability can reap a whirlwind of out-of-control behavior. Administrators and teachers stand equally strung between these equal poles of tension. Discipline without love is cruel. Love without standards is meaningless.

I pray Godly wisdom for you as you raise up children in the fear and admonition of the Lord that you will know that perfect balance. Pray that also for me as I attempt to uphold standards in an atmosphere of love.

Mercy and Truth,

Mr. Moe

Underdogs week 8

I was 0-3 last week despite Notre Dame's valient effort to knock off USC.

This week I'm picking against the Longhorns yet again and I think it is Baylor's year to go bowling....

OKLAHOMA 14.5 Baylor
TEXAS 16.5 Texas Tech
LSU 6.5 Auburn

I am aware that I didn't pick my Vols who are 3.5 pt. dogs to 'Bama. I love the Vols, but I'm not too excited about their chances to score points. Maybe the defense will come up with enough to put Bama in their place.... No serious trash talk from this nervous VOL fan. Here's hoping they surprise everyone with a knockout performance.

Blog Patrol

If you haven't noticed, I have created a new area for links to other blogs. I hope you will check out these sites and meet some fun and interesting friends of mine. Here's an introduction to what and who they represent:

First, Scott Rushing is the one who got me hooked on this blog thing. He is a PhD student at Baylor and has lots to say about theology, philosophy, politics, movies and sports. Formerly known as Theology Journal, his blog is now called Confessions.

aka Pastor Guy is Mark Jackson, pastor of New Life Community Church in Fresno, CA, wife to Sherri, father to two boys, and a freak about board games.

This Beautiful Mess features Mike Thomas who keeps my in-laws on the straight and narrow as pastor of Rockcreek Church in Derwood, MD - our church home away from home.

Missionary Musings features Mark Puckett - a Southern boy who is communicating God's love in the frigid Northeast on Prince Edward Island.

Filmchat features commentary on popular culture by Peter Chattaway - a fellow Daniel Amos fan and a regular contributer to Christianity Today.

Zion Red's Head is written by Paul Durham - a friend from the former Church at Hickory Hollow and a fellow 77's fan.

Scott's brother Jeff offers witty commentary on life, culture, politics and his lackluster love life at Thanks for Noticing Me.

My brother-in-law, Isaiah Surbrook, offers the Ministry Musings of a freshly minted seminary graduate.

And cousins, Jacob & Karen will periodically post pictures and stories from their adventures in Indonesia at Closing the Distance.

Photo geek

I love HP's photosoftware - it the most user friendly photo program I've ever encountered. These are a couple more pics from our trip to Percy Priest Lake on Saturday.

Discovering beauty in my own backyard

We often take for granted the things closest to us. I was reminded of this Saturday night when our family enjoyed a cookout at the lake that is only 15 minutes from our house.

So I married a....competitor

Congratulations to my wife, Janell, for competing in her first 5K race on Saturday!
Here's the photo finish.

Underdogs Week 7

I'm coming off my best week (2 out of 3 for 13.5 points) so my picks this week will either be really good or really bad.

Point total: 38

TEXAS 18 Colorado (a big win last week over OU could lead to a letdown)
USC 11.5 NOTRE DAME (A USC loss could upset the BCS - Go Irish!)
Tulsa 7 RICE (I have no clue about this one ;-)

And UT gets a much needed week off to figure out how to score points - if they can't get it together next week against a resurgent 'Bama team then it will be time to start up the Fire Randy Sanders campaign.

Silly Underdogs Week 6

Week 5 picks/results:
Florida 4 ALABAMA W (The only time UT fans are happy with a Tide victory)
(I came close with these other picks - too bad this isn't a game of horseshoes)
usc (Southern California) 16.5 ARIZONA STATE
Boise State 10.5 HAWAII

Point Total after 5 weeks: 24.5

Week 6 picks:
TEXAS 14 Oklahoma (It's probably the year Texas finally wins, but....)
IOWA STATE 9 Baylor (This pick is for Scott, Mark and Mark)
PURDUE 4.5 Iowa

GO VOLS!!! Crush those dawgs!!!

Home Improvement Blues

(Or How I Learned to Love Do-It-Yourself Plumbing)

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

That's the sound that has bugged me for several weeks now. Our kitchen faucet was dripping and it bothered me every time I sat down to eat or watch TV. Furthermore, that sound taunted me for my lack of knowledge and experience in fixing such problems. The incessant dripping challenged my manhood.

So Saturday, I was determined to do something about it. Of course, I don't consider myself to be a handyman, so I called my Dad for consultation. I dis-assembled the faucet and thought I had identified a suspect O-ring. So I figured I'd replace the O-ring, re-assemble the faucet and problem would be fixed. It was a good theory anyway....

I purchased a variety pack of O-rings (you never can have too many spare O-rings, right?). The one that fit this particular fixture was slightly larger than the one I replaced, but I thought the difference was negligible. My second mistake was to try to re-assemble the faucet at 11:00 p.m. As I tried to re-assemble the faucet, I encountered resistance. It seems that O-ring wasn't the right part. Now one of the cardinal rules of home repair is to never use excess force when putting things together. I ignored this rule. The result was a jammed up faucet assembly. And I broke it even more trying to undo what I had done.

So Sunday I was faced with a broken faucet instead of a dripping faucet. There would be no Sunday afternoon nap for me.

Armed with a crescent wrench, I proceeded under the sink to disconnect the water lines and remove the old fixture. This isn't an easy task. First your lying on your back in a tight place with a garbage disposal and other pipes obstructing your view and impeding movement. Second you have to work with your hands above your head for extended periods of time. And third, the space between the wall and the sink tub is extremely tight. Using a traditional wrench is nearly impossible. I did manage to disconnect the water lines by turning the nut one quarter turn at a time. The plastic wing nuts that hold the fixture to the sink were a different story. They were stuck on too tightly to loosen by hand and the space was too constricting for the wrench.

So I made another phone call to Dad. He enlightened me about a technological wonder called a basin wrench. It's a wrench specifically made to work in this tight place. So I sent Janell out to pick out a new faucet and to acquire this most necessary tool. Once she returned I was able to remove one of the wing nuts with relative ease. I thought to myself, this isn't so bad now that I have the right tool. So I proceeded to tackle the second nut. One by one, each of the nuts' wings broke off - leaving a nut with no surface for the wrench to take a hold of. Why do they make a nut out of a breakable plastic material and then provide no fail safe to the design for instances such as this?

I was stuck once again. And I was angry and frustrated. I was ready to take a crow bar to the entire sink assembly and do some real demolition. After a brief cooling off period, I called my father-in-law for a consult. His advice: chisel the nut off with a screwdriver and a hammer. So I proceeded to vent my frustrations out on this nut and enjoyed every moment.

Once the old fixture was off, the new one was relatively easy to install. Of course, the old supply lines wouldn't fit the new fixture, so I had to make one more trip to the store before the project could be completed (My dad says all plumbing projects require a minimum of 3 trips to the store).

So after a couple hours of toil and frustration and $100, I no longer hear that drip. And I can console myself with the knowledge that a plumber would have charged me twice that.