Tears and Prayers and Friends

I woke up in the night concerned about a friend. I want to veil my reference as much as possible, but my heart is very heavy for a dear friend. He is torn between his great heart and an unwinable situation in his job. His work in hurricane relief has been exemplary. He doesn’t live in my town, but I wish he did. An additional stressor is about to be added to his life. I’m worried that he will not take his situation seriously enough. Pray for him and his family. God knows who he is. I did manage to get back to sleep. I got up a little earlier than usual and went to the church building to say goodbye to my friends from University Church of Christ, Conway, Arkansas. Their young people were awesome, and so were the older ones! I was already holding back tears this morning when two of the brothers took me to a room and offered to help further and to come back when they could. They held my hands and prayed with me. These brothers worked so hard and accomplished so much during their time here on the Coast. Thanks to Youth Minister Jason Turner and everyone who helped on the crew. I was especially touched when Matthew shared his faith journey with me. Incredible paths this man has walked … and his faith is strong. I miss them all so much, even now. We have two great crews here now. One is from New Jersey and one from South Carolina. We also have people here from Rhode Island, Kentucky, Indiana, and West Virginia. Today I worked on organizing some paperwork that is overpowering me! I didn’t get very far. Maggy and I volunteered to cook supper tonight, so we whipped up some Taco Soup. It was fun. Elsie England fixed a fabulous peach cobbler. It took most of our day to do the shopping, cooking, feeding, and cleaning. I think we fixed about three times as much as we needed. The rest is now in the freezer! I was just thinking about my friend Roger Mills, who called me one night. Roger is an elderly brother who is just a hero to me. He is so sweet and so faithful. He was the preacher for the Homestead church several years ago when Hurricane Andrew destroyed that town. And now here he is in Biloxi, going through it again. No one should have to live through this even once. He called me one night and we had the best conversation. Then he prayed with me over the phone as it got late that night. I thought to myself that one day when Roger is with our Lord, I will remember that prayer and his gentleness in the gospel. Roger’s health has not been great these past few months. Remember him in your prayers. He has led many people to the faith journey to which we are called. We will serve Thanksgiving Dinners to our immediate neighborhood. The Inner City Church of Christ in Mobile, Alabama led by Bill Draper will be bringing food and helping to distribute. Also Gene and Robin Bartlett of the Port City Church of Christ will be coming over to help. My family will be visiting my mother and dad near New Orleans. My daughter and her daughter will be traveling to North Mississippi to be with family there. CURRENT NEEDS: *Money is always a vital need. Our ability to purchase needed supplies as available is always a blessing. Also, we will need to purchase sheetrock, nails, mud, and tape supplies for repairing homes. These needs are ongoing, and will be for at least two years, as we see it now. *Manpower is always a vital need. Volunteers are keeping this operation running. Keep up with times when we need extra help by looking at the Hurricane Relief Work Crew Calendar, linked in the left hand column of this blog. Volunteer workers, both skilled and unskilled. Carpenters, plumbers, roofers, electricians, sheet-rock hangers, and painters can all be kept very busy! We can use ladies and those who are older to sort clothes, load the bus for bus runs, and go with us on the bus runs. *Ministers who can give up several days to come and pray with the community members, conduct Bible studies as available, and fill in on work as needed. *Youth ministers who can bring their teen groups (mature teens willing to serve, please) for one or two days on the weekends. *Small electric heaters *Towels, Sheets, Pillows, Blankets *Laundry Detergent in boxes or bottles we can give away easily. *Plastic tableware (forks, knives, spoons) and napkins. The FEMA trailers come with no items such as these. *Snacks, drinks, and other foods that can be kept in our Dining Hall for workers as they labor here on a volunteer basis. *Cleaning supplies (pine sol, dishwashing detergent, disinfectant wipes, mops, brooms, buckets, etc.) – small sizes of cleaning liquids are better / easier to handle and distribute. We haven’t had mops in a while. *We currently do not need diapers or pull ups, clothes, personal hygiene supplies, or food. *Don’t know what to send? Send Wal-Mart or Lowes gift cards. They can be used to purchase a wide variety of items as needed - and can be passed on to needy people on occasion. All of my contact information is to be found at http://www.123jesus.com/ My picture page is located at: http://community.webshots.com/user/jedobber

University Church of Christ, Conway, AR have some fun!