Jeanie's Blessing

Today we mostly rested. We drove down the beach strip to Perdido Key and ate a late lunch at The Reef. John Robert swam in the pool. We could have gone to the beach, but I can't really stand around or walk around there for a long time. The water is beautiful blue-green today and there are lots of people out enjoying themselves. The weather is perfect for a day at the beach. Tomorrow we look forward to meeting with the church here and then heading home. Back in Pascagoula, all of the out-of-town groups left this morning. A new group from Florence, Kentucky came in this afternoon. Crews from Lexington, Kentucky and Tulsa, Oklahoma will arrive tomorrow afternoon. It'll be a pretty busy week on the Coast. Tomorrow Ron Webb will be speaking at Central during morning worship. If you haven't been receiving Al Sturgeon's daily hurricane update, you've been missing a treat. Al is the Preaching Minister for the Ocean Springs Church of Christ. For years before the storm we met weekly for lunch and encouragement and talk about ministry. I miss that more than he knows. Maybe one day we will be able to get back in the groove. But the following story from Al is not only a glimpse of the recovery effort in West Jackson County, it is also a reflection of Al's heart for people. At the end of that story is information on how to subscribe if you would like to do so. This is a great eye-opener about how hurricane relief work touches hearts. **************** Jeanie Gray is just plain sweet. My wife became friends with Jeanie when we opened a business several years ago now, and my wife instantly fell in love with her. Jeanie has a big heart, and it is a good heart. Jody couldnt help becoming her friend. Along the way, we discovered that Jeanie cleaned the house of Hal & Lou Ann Baugh, some of our good friends from church, too. We thought it was ironic the connection that existed there; Jeanie spoke so highly of the Baugh family. When Katrina came, Jeanie and her husband, Scott, decided to stay in the Ocean Beach Estates neighborhood (where my family lived before the storm). They started the storm in a brick house, but when the floodwaters rose, they waded/swam back to their house which was up on pilings. They watched helplessly as their neighbors homes filled with water all around them. As they watched, Jeanie received a text message from a friend about a mile away that they were climbing into their attic as the floodwaters continued to rise. Instantly, Scott and a neighbor got in his boat, and in the middle of a stinking hurricane, took off to rescue their friend. I forget the final count, but Scotts heroics saved the lives of many people (and animals!) during Katrina. When the storm subsided, the entire neighborhood was stranded. Every car had been flooded. When my wife and I drove out on Tuesday to see our house for the first time, we dropped by Scott & Jeanies and heard their story. We went back to the church and loaded up supplies that had miraculously arrived Tuesday morning from Taking It To The Streets ministry in southwest Florida and carried them out to the Grays. Over time, Scott & Jeanie got the shaft from both FEMA and their insurance companies. Eventually, through the generosity of many of you, our church was able to get some financial help to this sweet family. And as we would have suspected, Jeanie was trying to take care of their whole neighborhood, too. So we were also able to help just about her entire neighborhood as well. Scott & Jeanie came to our fellowship night last night with their two sons. They brought desserts. Jeanie had never come to church with us before last night, though she is a religious person. Scott had never been to church in his life. When the slideshow was just getting good and started, Scott had to leave. He just couldnt handle it. But Jeanie stayed. And after the show ended, Peggy Shaw (one of Jeanies new best friends) asked if Jeanie could get up and speak. And she did so in such a powerful way. She told us all that this was the first time her husband had entered a church building, and that it was because of the love he had seen since Katrina. She was so thankful for the seed that has begun to sprout there. And as she cried and thanked us all, she simply said some of the most profound and wonderful things anyone could have ever said. One thing I remember in particular. She told us all that not everyone would thank us for what we might do for others, but the reason is that many do not know how. I thought that was so very true. And I also thought that Jeanie knew how to say thank you better than just about anyone I had ever met. To subscribe, send an email to: OceanSpringsChurchofChristHurricane-subscribe@yahoogroups.com