The effort to help our brother and sisters in Houma, Louisiana was an eye-opening experience. I had the opportunity to take the goods on Monday, October 4th. As I made my way down south, I began to notice the terrain change. With that change of terrain, I saw the change in safety. I turned off at exit 202 on Interstate 90 and was immediately hit in the face with a view I did not expect to see. I saw billboards and large signs for businesses blown down. The force with which those signs needed to fall over must have been great. I noticed trees, lots of trees. All of those trees were down and most were cut and stacked by the road waiting by the road to be picked up and disposed. The small town of Houma looked like a war zone. I next noticed roofs, or really a lack of roofs. Roofing crews were there and working overtime. These crews looked tired but knew they have several more weeks of work. I moved further down the Main Street in Houma and turned onto Hollywood Road to see more of the same. Tarps on homes, trash everywhere and small gatherings of people were everywhere. Pulling into the parking lot of the Hollywood Road church of Christ, I saw a large RV laying on its side. I also saw a part of the Disaster Relief effort cooking food for that evening. We then started the process of unloading the goods. After unloading, I walked around the building were the church meets. All the walls from about 4 feet down had no sheet rock on them. All of that was damaged by the surge of water and will have to be replaced. No carpet, no pews, and no roof on the preacher’s house made this all surreal to me. I was standing at ground zero. I could not have ever imagined the way this town looks still. I must have looked like a deer in headlights. I have seen damage from tornadoes. Imagine that type of damage being 60 miles wide.
So, what do they need now? PRAYER. Our brethren there need the prayers of the church. They are hurting and confused. They are picking up the pieces and putting it all back together. They also have a very rich opportunity for evangelism. Pray that God blesses those efforts in a way we can’t even see. Remember, we will be collecting a special contribution for this congregation on Sunday, October 17th. As the deductible is high for their insurance policy, we can meet this need. This is a great privilege afforded to us. I will stay in contact with this need and keep you up to date with the needs of the church in Houma.
0 Comments