“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day," and He called the darkness "night." Evening came, and then morning: the first day” Genesis 1:1-5 (HCSB).
It all begins with God. What a joy it is to serve the almighty God, the creator of the universe. As we face the first hurricane of the 2010 season, let us remember that He is in control and He knows the master plan.
Hurricane Alex
The first named storm of 2010, Alex, made landfall Wednesday night around 9:00 p.m. about 110 miles south of Brownsville, Texas, in Soto La Marina, Mexico, as a category 2 storm with top winds at 105 mph. Now that Alex is inland, the focus has shifted to heavy rain and flood threats in northern Mexico and southern Texas.
News as of yesterday, before landfall, was that Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) assets from Southern Baptist Texas Convention (SBTC) and Texas Baptist Men (TBM) were staged to respond. Monday, TBM moved their equipment to San Antonio.
SBTC also moved resources to San Antonio in anticipation of the needed response in the Rio Grande Valley. Jim Richardson, disaster relief director for SBTC, reported Wednesday that volunteers were on standby to provide feeding support for the American Red Cross.
SBDR and Baptist Global Response are ready to address needs in Mexico, as 20 inches of rain is expected over northern Mexico.
American Samoa Tsunami Rebuild
Randy and Rhonda Corn continue to serve as the incident command team for American Samoa. Presently, they are assisting a team from Tennessee and working with other disaster relief organizations in completing the home repairs that have been assigned to SBDR and these organizations.
The American Samoa response will likely not continue into September, as initially planned, due to lack of funds and materials. Even so, the work continues. The teams have had numerous learning opportunities as the pace of life, culture, government procedures, and even the construction materials are not the same as those found at home. For example, mixing mortar requires screening coarsely crushed black basalt sand before mixing it with cement. The island sand also absorbs more water than mainland sand.
Photo above: Don Owen and Wayne Hubbard (Tenn.) mix mortar in Masefau.
The Tennessee team recently built a seesaw for some local children, and now a request has been made to build two more seesaws for the children at Happy Valley School.
Photo right: Bryan Collins and Don Rhoades, both of Tenn., do a little "quality control testing" on the seesaw the team built.
Over the upcoming weekend, a specialized SBDR children’s ministry team will arrive on the island to help children as they continue to deal with the tsunami events of last September.
Haiti Earthquake
Every report from teams in Haiti reflects two things: SBDR volunteers are serving faithfully and as God pours out His spirit, people are coming to faith in Christ. Whether a team is doing demolition work, building a structure, or conducting VBS or a revival, Haitians are eager for the gospel.
A Florida team played an audio Bible Proclaimer while working on a foundation Wednesday. The neighbors heard Matthew, Mark, Luke, and part of John before the team stopped for the day. At the end of the day, the team left the Proclaimer with the local pastor.
A team from SBTC conducted VBS Wednesday morning and led 24 children to faith in Christ. In the afternoon they engaged in direct evangelism, and that evening they participated in a revival service. Fifty-four Haitians who woke up Wednesday morning without a personal relationship with God went to bed as new believers as a direct result of the ministry of Southern Baptist volunteers in Haiti.
Buckets of Hope are being disseminated from distribution points all over Haiti. Pastors and churches are coming to warehouses; loading trucks, vans and cars; and taking the buckets back to the churches to be distributed.
Photo left: Haitians get their first look at the food inside a Bucket of Hope. Photo by University of Florida Associate BCM Minister, David Wood.
Haitians begin to carry Buckets of Hope home - read the Baptist Press story posted June 30.
Please continue to pray for out teams, for the Haitian Baptists, and for the people of Haiti.
Minnesota Tornados
Teams have finished their recovery efforts in Wadena, Minn., where a powerful tornado tore through on June 17. The volunteers completed 10 chainsaw jobs and reported 19 ministry contacts.
Photo: A Minnesota/Wisconsin chainsaw team member prepares to fell a damaged tree.
Thanks to Southern Baptists who pray faithfully for the work of Southern Baptist Disaster Relief. You are an important and essential part of the team.
Support Southern Baptist Disaster Relief
Southern Baptist Disaster Relief responds to disasters across the US and around the world. Donations are fully tax deductable and 100% of all gifts are used to meet the needs of hurting people in the wake of disasters. Donations can be made online, by phone (866) 407-6262, or by mail - checks should be made payable to "North American Mission Board" and sent to Disaster Relief Fund, P.O. Box 116543, Atlanta, GA 30368-6543.
Donate via Text: If you like the simplicity of making a donation via cell phone and text message, you can now do so to Southern Baptist Disaster Relief. Text the word nambdr to 40579. A $10 donation will be charged to your cell phone account and sent to Southern Baptist Disaster Relief.
2010 Disaster Relief Activity Reported to Date
Professions of Faith
|
1,384
|
Ministry Contacts
|
43,296
|
Gospel Presentations
|
11,081
|
Volunteer Days
|
17,964
|
Meals Prepared
|
142,776
|
Chaplaincy Contacts
|
331
|
Chainsaw Jobs
|
115
|
Mudout Jobs
|
958
|
Repair Jobs
|
128
|
Roofing Jobs
|
3
|
Children Cared For
|
24
|
Water Purified (gallons)
|
3,808
|
Messages
|
15
|
Showers
|
1,590
|
Laundry (loads)
|
1,201
|
Patients Seen
|
30,717
|
Buckets of Hope
|
155,000
|
National Disaster Relief Leadership
- Bruce Poss, Disaster Relief Unit Coordinator
- Terry Henderson, Disaster Relief Operations Consultant
- Karl Ragan, Disaster Relief Planning Consultant
To contact the Disaster Operation Center, call 1.888.462.8657 or e-mail dr_offsite@namb.net.