ALWAYS CHASE AFTER THAT WHICH IS GOOD

Baton Rouge—How do you begin to heal?

(Jer 33:6) 'Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them; and I will reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth.

We are just one of many Southern Baptist Disaster Teams operating in and around Baton Rouge in the aftermath of horrific flooding. It is the Holy Spirit that draws us to this task, this mission. The best of God's humanity seems to flourish during such tragedy. Wouldn't it be great if this wondrous spirit and character could be present at all times?

Our team consists of two Assessors, (specially skilled in structural issues and remediation), and one or two Chaplains (specially gifted in spiritual issues and spiritual remediation). Our job is to make the initial visit with the victims, asses the damage, make recommendations and schedule methods of intervention and remediation. While the Assessors inspect the structure, the chaplains asses the spiritual health and intervene with hugs, prayers, more hugs, more prayers and share moments of tearful joy in learning that they are not alone. Help is here.

Our day begins at 5:30 a.m.; Prayer, devotions, insuring that we are filled to the brim with the Holy Spirit, as we ask our Lord for His direction, His will, not ours. Breakfast at seven, on the road usually by eight. Here are a few snap shots of how the Lord delivers His love to His creation:

---Family of three, Dad, Mom and Son. Water mark inside the house is 38 inches. By themselves they have removed a great deal of sheet rock, but struggle with the wooden floors, all of the appliances, personal possessions, and are exhausted because of the heat, the humidity. Mold is everywhere! Their neighbors suffer the same. The assessment is completed, and a schedule is made for another team to come and help them complete the job to a point where the home repair and renewal can start. As we pray with the family of three, they all three, in unison, hand in hand, pray asking Jesus to come into their hearts, to forgive them, and they confess with their mouths that Jesus Christ is Lord. There was not a dry eye in our team.

---We discover a older woman wearing a night gown digging through a huge pile of debris in front of her tiny house. She looks so lost, and over night it had rained again and she was wet head to toe. We stopped to assist. She said she was trying to save some important papers, buried somewhere in that soggy mountain of wet insulation. I came up to her and introduced myself. With tears in her eyes she grabbed hold of me and sobbed, and sobbed, and we rocked back and forth for a long time just hugging each other, both of us crying. This was her home of 28 years. All the physical representations of her life and events were in these piles. She said that until this moment, she had been unable to cry, to let it all out. We talked about how God sometimes helps us to clear out all the material stuff so that we can get back to storing our treasures up in Heaven, never to tarnish, rust, or be stolen or flooded. We shared how even in the most difficult of trials, Jesus always seems to deliver the needed rays of sunshine, right on time, right when it is needed. Our meeting that morning was not by happen-stance. The team took special care to assure her that help is here.

---A business man who owns a small restaurant just finished building his family home. Just after moving in, here comes 4 feet of water in the darkness of night. They barely escape with their lives. His wife is just weeks from delivering their first baby. He is overwhelmed, tearful, proud but in need of a helping hand. We schedule him. Help has arrived.

---A single mother struggles as she pulls wet sheet rock across the threshold to the pile that now adorns her front yard. Her 4 year old daughter rocks back and forth in a small chair, singing to herself. The young mom states she has been helping her sister who lives a few blocks away, also suffering, and her wheel chair bound mother now showing signs of advancing dementia. She and her daughter are all alone, but the mother's spirit is so bright, so positive, and a remarkable peace surrounds her. She relies heavily on her faith, and her love for Jesus. She admits that without this spiritual bond, she would not be able to survive. We pray, we hug. As we leave, I give a thumbs up and quack like a duck to her daughter. Who replies to me; “I love you”.

We do 10 to 15 of these missions each day. This is day 4 of the operation. Somehow, God provides just what is needed at the exact moment it is needed, and He does it with such beauty, power and grace. Each day brings true miracles. Godly events that we are so privileged to witness. To share. To experience directly. Truth be known, it is the Lord's mercy on us, the team members, as He teaches us His ways, His Love, His character and His Strength. He teaches us as we learn His love that is unending. Our Lord is very, very active here. God is very active where you are too. Just look! You will see.

Have you read your Bible today?