PDA VI - Day 2

Community... Presbyterians talk about it all the time.

I love the connectivity of the PC(USA). I have friends all across the country and in other countries thanks to this amazing body of faith. Still, where we pride ourselves is often where we have the longest way left to go.

This week five churches from one Presbytery have come together, in the spirit of Christ's love, to make a difference. We're interacting in ways that make our back-home interaction look pretty lame. In other words, we're interacting.

My hope is that these five churches work to share the good news of PDA, the good news of hard work, and the good news of coming together. Through the sharing and living of that good news, good shall come.

A few things I learned or relearned today...

- I am a beast at driving a 15 passenger bus.
- There is a lot of work still to go here.
- As churches, we must step out of our comfort zones and connect in ways we're currently too stubborn, ignorant, or fearful to do.
- Chaos is undeniable. But so is the love of God cutting through that chaos like light through any shadow.
- The "smarter than a 5th grader" board game can put you in your place....

PDA VI - Day 1

A few things to look for this week... Shorter posts after today, PDA Facts that come my way and Dialogue Questions for any and everyone to answer. There aren't really right/wrong answers here, so I hope anyone reading jumps in!

Day 1...

David Lamotte often talks about how we change the world just by being here, just by our breathing in and our exhaling out. How our actions change the world is, in many ways, up to us.

39 months ago, after watching CNN and seeing people dying on rooftops in New Orleans, I stood in the office hallway at Forest Lake Presbyterian Church and told our interim head pastor, "we need to go there."

I was 23. I had less than two weeks on the job. And he said, "let's do it." I'll never forget that moment. It was God at work in a way that defeats stereotypes (of the interim pastor and newbie youth director) and changes the world by sharing God's love and grace in new ways.

Reflecting three years later, I'm overcome. Who am I to be here? So many hands have scraped, hammered, painted, and caulked over these trips. I've heard unbelievable stories and seen sights I'll never forget.... George and Barbara describing how they were climbing onto their roof just as the surge subsided, the sight of cars resting on houses and houses on cars in the 9th Ward, Dallas's tale of hanging from a tree for hours... it goes on and on.

And here I am in Gulfport, Mississippi after our first day of work of my sixth trip to the Gulf Coast, once again amazed at how God works through disaster to bring steadfastness, brokenness to bring wholeness, and chaos to bring hope.

Today we began the rebuilding of the Pearlington, MS PDA camp where several of us have spent 4 weeks of our lives. The camp was heavily damaged by hurricanes Gustav and Ike (the reason we're staying in Gulfport).

With that I have to say it's an indescribably profound experience to rebuild a place that has changed your life and that has changed the lives of countless others. To God be the glory...

PDA Fact 1: Since Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the morning of August 29, 2005, 45,000 volunteers have worked, laughed, cried, slept, communed, and grown in Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) Volunteer Villages.

PDA Fact 2: Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) could have rebuilt 315 homes destroyed by Katrina/Rita from scratch had they used their funding to rebuild houses as a solo relief organization. By working with Lutheran Disaster Relief, the Red Cross, FEMA, TRAC (Houma, LA), and countless other local and national organizations PDA has contributed to the rebuilding of 3,500 homes.

Dialogue ?: Do these stats say something about how we should intend to "be the church" in the days, months, and years to come?

My Answer: I believe this is just one example that says we must be willing to join hands with the church, synagogue, mosque, and civic organization across the street and around the world to share the infinitely expansive love of God in an intentionally expansive and inclusive way. By joining hands we have more hands with which to reach out.

Buffett on Bailout

Warren Buffett is one billionaire who gets a lot of my respect since he doesn't come off as your stereotypical greedy billionaire (see Donald Trump). If you don't know much about him, at least check his wiki.

Yesterday on CNBC Buffett weighed in on the economic crisis, bailout plan, and more...

Last week we were at the brink of something that would have made anything that's happened in financial history look pale. We were very, very close to a system that was totally dysfunctional and would have not only gummed up the financial markets, but gummed up the economy in a way that would take us years and years to repair. We've got enough problems to deal with anyway. I'm not saying the Paulson plan eliminates those problems. But it was absolutely, and is absolutely necessary, in my view, to really avoid going over the precipice.

Click Here for the full interview in three parts.

It's Life in Pearlington

Christian Science Monitor recently ran a really good article on Pearlington, MS.

If you have something, you share it. If you need something, someone offers it. It’s life in Pearlington.

Check it out.

Gustav did cause damage and flooding in both Pearlington and Houma, La, but nothing as bad as the first reports I heard (which led to my last post). Prayers are now with Galveston and the surrounding area.

I have a laundry list of blog posts on the brain, just haven't had much time to put into creating them. Or, more accurately, I haven't taken the time. Hopefully more to come soon.

Hurricane Tracking

From Gustav to Hanna to Ike, 2008 has been the most interesting Atlantic Hurricane season since 2005. Growing up in Charleston, I've been fascinated with hurricanes since Hugo in 1989. Working with Katrina/Rita recovery has only intensified that fascination. The past few weeks I've been following Atlantic hurricanes closely on the web. Here are a couple sites worth checking out.

Jared W. Smith (out of Charleston)
Hurricane Track

Also, it looks like Ike may hit Louisiana as a category 4. I'll post more on this later, but if these projections are correct it could redefine the region just as much as Katrina.

Gustav Update

I'm pretty upset right now... I just heard that our friend Bessie in Houma, La may have lost her house and Pearlington, MS is/was under 5 feet of water.

Instead of rebuilding homes in October we may be rebuilding the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Volunteer Village.

We all know the levees held in New Orleans (thank God!) but as the media turns back toward the "real news" of partisan political campaigns, they'll ignore the small towns that need help the most.

Traveling to the Gulf Coast isn't realistic for everyone, but any donations can help...

Consider donating to the Red Cross to help with immediate needs or to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to help with long-term rebuilding.