There are needs both in this state and in Alabama (we're just 50 miles from the Alabama line). I've been involved in various efforts: clean-up, serving meals, and purchasing and delivering food/supplies. I'm now spending about $1000-$1200 per day in providing help. Of course there is a great deal of duplication and waste to be seen, with mountains of unused bottled water, etc. So here's what I do.
I call the community relief centers (often fire stations if they are undamaged) and ask for a specific list of what they are needing that day.
One day it was children's socks, grits, sugar, diapers, etc. Another place it was mops, brooms, sugar, cleaners, laundry detergent, flour and benadryl for the men clearing trees and catching poison oak. I fill the orders at a Sam's Club outside the infected area, and then deliver my load.
I'm also distributing "Hope in the Storms of Life" CDs. I've ordered 3000 more for future distribution. The relief centers are eager to place a
quantity of them for distribution. I'm also writing a small booklet specifically for the tornado-ravaged areas to present the gospel.
When you talk to the people in need, generally you have one of two responses. First, what church are you with (denominational names are on
everyone's frontal lobe here)? My response is to say, "Well, we're just followers of the Lord Jesus. He did something for us that we couldn't do for ourselves when He died for our sins at Calvary. When something like this happens, it makes us think about eternity, doesn't it? If you hadn't survived the storm, would you know where you would be right now? Have you personally received Him as your Savior?"
If they say, Yes, as they are often quick to do, then the question is: "Can you explain to me how a person can be sure of heaven?" This is a great diagnostic question to see where a person's hope lies. The second response is usually a giveaway. If they start telling what good
things they have done, how they have been involved in "Christian work," it often is a good clue that their hope for heaven is in what they have done. I encourage them to realize that good works are a good thing but no replacement for the good news. Do they know what the good news is? Again, their answer provides a good diagnosis of their heart condition and an indication of the way forward in the conversation.
Whatever the case, at present everyone--military, FEMA workers, power crews, local residents--everyone is wide open to spiritual discussions, especially because we're arriving with needed help. It's interesting that almost all the volunteers that have come to help seem to be true believers; sadly, I have heard no one else sharing the Good News with the people here. Maybe they haven't been shown how.
I have received substantial funds already through the gracious help of MSC Canada which has allowed me to be right in there where the immediate need is. People are overwhelmed to hear of Christians from other areas, many far away, who care about them. Good works is certainly a true handmaiden of the Good News. It makes the gospel winsome to these souls in need.
Several have contacted us to see if they could help. The best way would be to send any funds payable to Uplook with a memo "for Tornado Relief Fund" I have an Uplook credit card which I use for purchases. That way we have an easy method of accounting. Many thanks in His name. I expect these efforts will be going on for some time, and now with the flooding on the west side of the state, I can see there are endless opportunities. I'm grateful for the pickup truck Uplook has let me use for this purpose. It has been very useful.
Are some people taking advantage of the situation? Many are. One lady we helped told us that a bulldozer operator offered to push a large tree off her driveway. When she agreed, he returned a short time later--with a bill for $3,300! Looters are going into houses with walls missing and helping themselves (so owners are sleeping in their shattered homes to prevent it). And some are driving from relief center to relief center, filling up their cars. But one verse that has helped me is Proverbs 19:17, "He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord." The Lord says, Don't shut up your heart of compassion; sometimes you will be taken advantage of, as I was when on planet Earth. But if you give to the poor, I'll take it as a loan to Me.
Don't worry. I have you covered.
All for Jesus, all for Jesus!
Jabe
