Desperate

The word of the day is 'desperate' ... and I think it's going to be that way for a very long time. I spent some time talking with some people today who really touched my heart. There was the lady who sat in the chair at the end of the table. The tale she related was not so unique, but her broken heart just crushed me. She sat with an endless supply of tears as she related the first days after the storm having no where to stay. With her first FEMA check she bought a tent for her family to live in. Her in-laws, who had an undamaged home, would not let her family live with them. The agencies that she thought ought to be able to help them turned a deaf ear to her needs. She has a FEMA camper now ... but here she sits ... nearly five months after the storm ... and she is desperate. Her flooded car barely runs. She has turned to every resource she knows and has come up empty. We gave her some food, an electric heater, a bunch of clothes that she picked out, and one of the workers from Pennsylania encouraged her to give her life to the Lord. While I was meeting with someone else, she left ... but she asked someone to tell me 'thank you'. We did so little for her, but she did have the chance to tell her story. Another lady got a nice check from FEMA. She also lived in a tent for a while after the storm. She had surgery on the back of her neck right before the storm. Now it is still giving her pain. Her check looks like a big amount, but once you spend a huge amount of money to secure a rare rent house, buy a few rooms of furniture and some clothing, and pay your bills, there isn't much left. She has bed frames for her children but no mattresses or boxsprings. She wouldn't ask for a bed for herself. Just for her children. We will help them soon. The look on her face tells me she is desperate. A couple has been staying at the building the past few days. We first met them a few months ago. She needed a coat, so we gave her one. They were displaced from New Orleans, had been flown to Idaho, and were back down on the Coast. They thought they could make it, but life has a way of beating you down when you're desperate. Very down on their luck, but willing to work, we allowed them to stay in our building. She is 42, pregnant with their first child - a very unexpected child. Today they got a job in Texas and we gave them a tank of gas and some food and sent them on their way. (Side Note: an unsaved person in another state sent some money in a sealed envelope via one of the Hope Missions guys. It was given to me today and I was told that I would find a good place for it. That was about 30 minutes before this couple needed a tank of gas and some food. God's timing is impeccable.) On the phone an elderly voice said, "I'm disabled and I need help with my home. I'm desperate." A lady in her FEMA camper has been off of drugs for two weeks, but the look on her face tells me it is the struggle of her life. A young couple has not touched their home. They still live in it as if everything is OK. They have a FEMA camper in their driveway, but do not want to live in it. In their world they are desperate and do not know it. Sometimes I feel desperate when I think about all of the needs in our area, and the most overwhelming of circumstances that afflicts people who cannot help themselves. But there were flashes of grace today in all of the desperation. Chris Lockhart came over today and accompanied me on visits, lunch, and the new coffee shop in town. He is a great encourager ... and a superb listener. The Hope Missions group planted a living gift in our church yard today. We will always remember them. The group from Pennsylvania (Hope Missions) had a final devotional tonight. All thirty of them each got up and offered a brief testimonial to what the week has meant to them. Common among the comments were things like, "we were the ones who were blessed" and "this is the best week I ever spent in my life." And then Robbie expressed his desire to be more than just someone hanging around the building - he wanted to be a part of the church. So tonight he was baptized into Jesus Christ, amidst great celebration. Out of the desperation, God's grace arises in the beauty of new birth and brotherhood. Below, Robbie smiles a brand new smile!