OK, Some Photos After All

I know that last night I just typed up a thing wondering whether photos were really all that helpful. But here are some that I think are important for you to see.

The first is a picture of Lawrence, one of the elders here at Berean. The guy has a real passion for the people of this city. He ministered in the streets in some of the toughest, most dangerous parts of New Orleans for five years. He spends a lot of time in the French Quarter, sharing the love of Christ with people with drug and sex addictions, voodoo practitioners, and anyone else he comes across. Yesterday he took a few of us down to the Ninth Ward. Here we saw devastation like we had never seen before. Houses were on top of cars, cars were on top of houses. Houses that had been swept out onto the streets have been bulldozed back off to the side. It looks like the hurricane came through yesterday. He explained that formerly, we would not have been able to set foot in this area because we would have likely been killed. Now, it is a ghost town. I could show you a picture of a house that is totally ruined, but unless I could show you the same thing, house after house, block after block, mile after mile after mile, and then you would consider that most of those who lost these homes cannot afford to rebuild, you would not even begin to understand the magnitude of what we are talking about.

So I will show you only this picture of Lawrence, weeping and praying for those who lived in this neighborhood before their lives were shattered.



I'd also like you to see a glimpse of who else is stepping up and helping out. Just in the first day we were down here, these are the states I saw represented among those who were sacrificing time, money and energy to serve the people of New Orleans becuase of the love of Christ. Some came from across the state. Others came from across the country. And these are only the ones that drove. And only some of them.

What Was This All About?

Several people have said how much they appreciate the pictures, and I am happy about that, but tonight as we had some debrief time with the team, I got to thinking that maybe the pictures I have shared with you all might have been more of a hindrance than a help. Most of the pictures I have posted have been pictures of the devastation from Katrina, as well as people working on houses. I think these are important to see in trying to understand the situation down here, but I fear that maybe they will lead you, as part of the home team, to miss the point.

This whole thing is not about the buildings. It is not about the devastation. It is not about houses being destroyed or cars flipped upside down and abandoned or levees breaking. This is about the people. All of us on the team - those doing gutting, those doing electrical work, those hanging drywall, those working on roofs, and those going door-to-door - we all agree on that.

So I will leave you with this: pray for these people.

Pray for the homeowners: Chris, Mary, Charlie, Pam, Dennis and others. Pray for those we met on the streets and when going door-to-door: Andy, Anja, Leah, Florence, the Mexican roofing workers, and all the dozens of others we were able to listen to and share with. Pray for all of those who don't know that they can have eternal life by placing their trust in Christ. Pray for those at Berean Bible Church, who are here to minister for the long haul. The pastors and elders can't do it alone. Pray that the congregation will rise up and minister to their communities and that the love of Christ would be evident among them. Many families have been torn apart, due to school and work changes, and marriages are facing incredible challenges. Pray for the strengthening of families and marriages. Pray for the volunteers who are coming from literally every state in the country, that God would be preparing their hearts for what they will experience, and that they would find fertile soil for the Gospel among the people here in New Orleans.

But I don't want you to think that we are just praying, praying, praying, and not seeing any answers to these prayers. Let me say this clearly: God is at work in New Orleans, and we have seen it this week. We have seen homeowners' hearts being softened to the Gospel after years of resistance. They feel betrayed and let down by many in these post-Katrina days, yet evangelicals (the least likely to help them as far as they were concerned) keep flooding into New Orleans, showing genuine concern, respect and love, and they are scratching their heads, wondering if maybe there is something to this whole Jesus thing. I trust that those we met this week caught a glimpse of Jesus.

Praise God for the things He allowed us to be a part of this week. And pray. Please keep praying.

Day of Work / Evening of Fun

Yesterday the construction and demolition teams continued on at the same locations as the day before. The gutting crew finished up their work on the home they have been working on, and those doing roofing and electrical work at two other houses plan to finish up today. So far, everyone has stayed mostly safe and healthy, and for that we are fortunate and grateful. Thank you for praying and please continue to do so as we finish up.

In the morning, Anita and Rebecca went back to the laundromat with more clothes and to talk with more people, while I stayed behind to update the blog. While there, they had a few good conversations. One woman, when asked what she would say to God as to why He should let her into heaven, said that it was a really good question that she wasn't sure she had an answer for it. She then asked Anita, "What would you say to Him?" This was clearly a great opening for the Gospel in this woman's heart, so thank you for praying. Also, they met a man and his son who moved from Florida recently because he was promised a good job (which ended up not panning out). They used to be involved with an Episcopal church, but hadn't attended in quite a while, and didn't have any sort of a church here in New Orleans. When invited to the Easter outreach at the Berean, however, he sounded excited and said they would be there.

I did a video interview with Christopher as well yesterday. He is the owner of the home that we have been gutting the past couple of days. I really can't wait for you to meet this guy. He even taught us some New Orleans slang and told us about all the different kinds of gumbo you can get around here. I took down his address for his new home in the town of Thibadaux, which we will pass along to the church. Pray for him, as the church will be following up with him.

Last night we headed into the French Quarter for dinner at Bubba Gump's Shrimp and to walk around that part of town. We rode the ferry across the Mississippi on the way over, but were perplexed to find that despite signs assuring us of ferry runs up until midnight, the last run is actually 8:30. A few guys caught a taxi across the bridge and then they picked us up with our vehicles about an hour later. So it was a late night, but we are back in action this morning.

I think now would be a good time to inundate you with photos from the day of work and the evening in the French Quarter.

Photos From Yesterday

Past the Half-way Point

Tonight I am unable to post from my laptop, as I am having some wireless connection issues, so photos of the day will have to wait.

Demolition continued today along with drywall, electrical work and roofing. Aside from a couple nails in feet and some sunburn, everyone came out OK. Please continue to pray for safety. Also, pray for the homeowners of the places where we are working, that they would connect with Berean Bible Church if they haven't already, and that those at the church would be able to continue to minister to them long after we have gone. Most face uncertain futures as far as jobs and finances are concerned, and many continue to wrestle with tough spiritual questions.

We had some good conversations at the laundromat while waiting for our clothes to dry. One woman said she lost her Bible because of the flooding, so she asked for two, one for herself and one for her daughter, which we were happy to give. We also wandered over to a retirement community where we met Leah, a 90 year old Jewish woman. She is very sharp, and she actually prefers the stairs to the elevator. At 90! We gave her a Bible and some literature, which she then proceeded to leave at the front desk, telling the receptionist that these were for Catholics. She then showed us her room, and while there we left a copy of the Gospel of John, so hopefully she will read it. Pray for Leah. Pray also that the Bible and the literature at the front desk will find its way into the hands of someone who needs it.

Construction, Demolition, Conversation

Yesterday we continued on with more construction and demolition work. We split into a few different work teams and headed in different directions to different work sites. Some gutted a house, some did electrical work, some put up drywall, some painted. Thanks to those of you who prayed for Deb Tucker, who got some plaster in her eye. She was back to work yesterday, and it don't think she was even slowed down. The construction/demolition teams put in a full day of work, and are back at it again this morning as we speak (or as I write, I guess I should say).

Meanwhile, those of us on the evangelism side of things walked through the neighborhood adjacent to the church, chatting with those who were out working in their yards or whatever. We passed out copies of the Gospel of John and tried to point the conversations toward spiritual things. One guy said he appreciated what we were doing, with the construction work and talking to people. He said he goes to church daily for mass and communion, and when we said things about a relationship with Christ, he nodded but didn't say much. Pray for him, because only God knows where his heart is.

I actually had the opportunity to talk with some Mexican roofing workers in Spanish while they were sitting under a tree on their lunch break. I found out their hometown was not far from Guatemala, where I grew up. They have been working in the US for 5 years, and in New Orleans for a year. They gave us cans of ice cold soda, which was a very kind gesture on their part, and I ran back to the church and brought them Gospels of John in Spanish because their English wasn't all that great, and they said they would be interested in reading part of the Bible in Spanish. I gave them extras and told them to share with family and friends, and they seemed to appreciate it. I wasn't able to discuss spiritual things with them very much, though, because I'm not completely fluent in Spanish, but pray that God would be working in their hearts.

Last night we went over to the part of town near the London Street Canal levee break, a very devastated area. We met with a couple who live there, and they said they could see their house on national news after the storm. They have since had their house raised 10 feet, and are living in a FEMA trailer until they can move back into their home. The neighborhood is like a ghost town though. They said five of their neighbors will be coming back, and apparently that number is more than what was expected. They told us about people who lost their homes who now have two mortgages to pay - one for their old home which is now destroyed, and one for their new home. Pray for Charlie and Pam Wang, as they rebuild their home and reach out to their neighbors with the love of Christ.

Getting Underway

Today was our first full day of work here. Most of the team got their hands dirty, doing all kinds of things: gutting a house, wiring lights at the church, painting, carpentry, drywall, hanging doors and hanging fiberglass wall panels. The house that was gutted belongs to a woman named Mary. She runs a perfume store in the French Quarter and does a good deal of her business online. One of her customers is a woman from Calvary, believe it or not, and this is how she got connected with Berean Bible Church, and we are now the second team that has worked on her home. She shared with us about how her world has been completely turned upside down, but that it has given her a better perspective on life. Pray for her, that she would be a light to those around her, and pray for her family as they recover from the chaos of Katrina. Also, please pray for "Demolition" Deb, one of our team members, who got some plaster in her eye and is now at the emergency room seeking treatment. It can be hard to find good medical care here in New Orleans in these post-Katrina days, so pray that she would be able to recover in order to continue with her work.

This afternoon, the evangelism part of our team headed to the French Quarter to see who might be hanging around, willing to have someone listen to them. We found Andy, a guy from Barbados, sitting on the sidewalk looking out across the Mississippi River, watching the barges go by. We talked with him for quite a while, about all sorts of things. We learned that he has lived in Philadelphia for a while and when we mentioned Lancaster he immediately said "Oh, Route 30!" Anyway, he is a lapsed Catholic (no longer practicing) who says he prefers not to think about what might happen when he dies. At first he didn't want to accept the copy of the Gospel of John that we offered him, but he let his guard down by the end, asking some questions about spiritual things, and ended up accepting the book. He told us that God didn't want weak people, implying that he was out of luck, but we assured him that if God didn't want weak people then we were certainly hopeless ourselves. Pray for him, that this seed that was planted today would someday, in God's time and in God's way, bear fruit.

We then met a Welsh man from Paris who was sitting on a bench in an alley behind some shops, conversing with a bronze statue of a woman next to him. His name is Anja and he struck me as one who was incredibly intelligent and kind, though it was very clear to us that he was not mentally well. We didn't get to share as much with him as we did with Andy, and he said he already had the booklet we offered, but pray that God would be working in his heart, drawing him closer to Himself.

4 I's, 4 S's, a Pair of P's, etc

Today, after attending the Sunday morning service here at Berean, we heard from Lawrence, one of the elders here at the church. He spends much of his time ministering to people and sharing the gospel with them. A lot of times he goes to the French Quarter and hangs out in hotel lobbies with his Bible and has conversations with people. He told us about how before Katrina no one really had a heart for evangelism and no one really saw a whole lot of people coming to faith. But now, great things are happening and though it is exhausting for those committed to ministering to these lost and hurting people, they are excited about the things God is doing through them and around them like never before. Please pray for Lawrence and all the others who are pouring themselves into the ministry here. Pray that God would fill them as they flow to others.

This afternoon we headed over to Mississippi, to Biloxi and some of the places hit hardest by Katrina. I hesitate to even put pictures up here because pictures of these sorts of things have a way of jading people to destruction. But for most of the afternoon, as we drove along the coast of Mississippi, destruction was all that could be seen, 360 degrees around, mile after mile after mile. But this is just the architecture and infrastructure. These things matter, but the lives represented by this devastation matter a great deal more. Pray for those whose lives have been torn apart as a result of the storm.

These pictures are all in Biloxi and the surrounding coast region in Mississippi, giving you a little bit of an idea of what things are still like, seven months later.

Safe & Sound in the Big Easy

We have made it here to Berean Bible Church in New Orleans, where we will be staying for the next week. We have staked claim to floor space, inflated air mattresses and turned the air conditioning on, so we are good to go. We had dinner at Shoney's, which is apparently a southern favorite. The LSU game is on out in the lobby, being projected onto the wall, but UCLA is running all over them, so we have a bunch of unhappy Louisianans here.

Tomorrow we will be at the church for the morning service and then we will head over to Mississippi to see some of the other areas that were hit hard by Katrina, to get some perspective before this week's work. Photos of that will be forthcoming, but here are a few to hold you over.


it is tougher than you think to get everyone smiling and looking forward at the same time.


a minimalist view out my window on the plane


the superdome, on its way to recovery