new orleans part II

so we're here. (here being baton rouge)

we arrived on monday night at about midnight after a 15 hour drive. good stuff. slept about 5 hours and woke up with the sun because we slept outside . . . naturally. had a quick bite to eat for breakfast and then started working on the grounds. we are staying at a vineyard that has 13 acres of land behind it. its actually really cool because they didn't bulldoze the land to make parking lots. they are in the middle of nature. its hot.
There people from the different Vineyards such as Cincy, Philly, Fort Myers, Evanston and a few others sleeping in tents and cots under a circus tent. Our group is the only one that is comprised of different denominations.

here's how some described out tuesday work -

"We set up a few tents the other volunteers slept on cots under a large circus tent.
Our Tuesday started with breakfast and worship. Lots of groups were formed and were sent to different locations with specific task. Our group stayed in the staging ground which is also a receiving camp for supplies coming from different sources. Our group were divided to serve as sorters, loaders of trucks to be delivered to another distribution center. We helped out in the construction of a trailer bathroom for the volunteers. This particular center has their own sets of volunteers to receive and distribute to the local people. The locals line up with their cars and the volunteers load their trucks with supplies. Some people went to Slidell, LA to cut trees and to clean up people's yard.
FHL group provided salad and spaghetti for everyone for dinner.
At 7:00pm, FHL group had a worship service and a few other volunteers from different churches joined us. we shared our stories about our day. We were all blessed to hear different stories and how the Lord spoke to different people in different ways. It was a hot a humid day and we had to take regular breaks. There are about 70 volunteers altogether in the camp."

yesterday(weds) was the big day. we went to kenner to unload trucks full of food, water, toiletries . . . whatever. we unloaded them at another distribution point that people in their cars came up and we gave them what they needed. it was about 95 degrees with 500% percent humidity. they're saying that it is has never been this hot for this long for as long as they can remember. we were in kenner for about 6 hours and then we left to go to slidell. kenner in on the south side of lake pontchatrain and slidell is on the north side. we were able to drive over the causeway, but you could only drive one way on it. they other direction had been destroyed.

we were also able to drive around new orleans on the highway. all of the exits were blocked by officers. it was a ghost town. cars overturned everywhere with a white film on them. buildings torn apart. the devastation was phenomenal. we also saw a wild boar and a gator on the side of the road when we drove through the bayou. that was crazy.

once we got into slidell, there were just piles and piles and piles of trash on the sides of the road. and they weren't all from homes. a lot of it was stuff that was cleared from the road. in slidell, we were able to help a family clear some trees from their property. that was awesome, cos we got to use chainsaws, and i believe that chainsawing is a spiritual gift of mine.

the thing is, insurance covers trees that hit homes, but not those that are on the property. and then tree removal companies come along and charge and arm and a leg to remove the stuff. we were really able to bless a family and pray for them after we cleared all the trees.

spiritually, this trip has been amazing. this is such an eclectic group of people. we got young punks like myself, moms and dads, grandpas and grandmas. it really is like a family. we all work hard together, and well together and there is a true sense of the joy of the Lord among us. we all get along. we all laugh and have jokes. its been amazing.

i've made some great friends, and grown deeper with some that i already knew.

we covet your prayers and thank you for them. be blessed.

be good to each other. look at christ. peace.

new orleans

i'm leaving for new orleans tomorrow with a group to help with the clean-up and recovery. we're really going to the new orleans area, but i don't know specifically where. i guess its wherever they need the most help.

i'm kinda nervous, scared, anxious all rolled into one. physically it just feels like a funky stomach ache. anyways, please pray for a safe trip for all of us going. i think there is 25 in all.

we were supposed to leave saturday morning, but lovely rita(meter maid) delayed our departure.

i'll definitely write when i get back. . . . share stories, pictures, etc.

be good to each other. look at christ. peace

"there were two kinds of people to june carter cash, those she knew and loved, and those she didn't know and loved." - said by rosanne cash at june's funeral

dinner

dinner gives one an opportunity to relax and just be.
dinner allows for conversation that goes for the mundane to theological.
dinner gives one an opportunity to practice the art of listening, which is good especially if i suck at it. (but i'm working on being better)
dinner allows for the the opportunity to drink good sangria.
dinner brings the following : dessert. (grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream are key)
dinner gives one the opportunity to try new recipes, such as a drub for filets.
dinner is good.
dinner gives one a glimpse of someone else in a new light, hopefully its good. (it was)
dinner shows you exactly what someone else is like away from it all, and hopefully its good. (it was)
i like dinner.
i hope you did too.

new shoes

i love shoes. especially new shoes and shopping for them.

i could spend all day in dsw, finish line, footlocker . . .wherever and not buy a pair of shoes and still feel like i had a great day. they are my greatest impulse buy weakness. for example, i just found a pair of nike flightposites on ebay for $80. now, these are the most comfortable basketball shoes around. they stopped making them a few years ago. and now i can get them in carolina blue and white? for only eighty bucks? why haven't i bought them yet?

because of a vietnam vet.

on the corner of of the eastbound exit of I-465 onto Keystone Ave. stands a man with a semi-toothless grin, a dirty baseball hat and a sign that reads "homeless vietnam vet - anything helps - God bless."

and i want a pair of flightposites.

i knew he would try and make eye contact with me, so i just hoped that the light would change to green, so i could drive by him and not have to look him in the eye. as i drove north on keystone, my heart sank as i remembered, "as you have done for the least of these, you have to Me." there was no guilt. just the sinking feeling that this guy has given up his pride asking for help, and i drive by in my Jetta GLX VR6.

quick left turn on to 96th street to get a whopper value meal and take in back to him. not because i feel guilty, but because the man has to be hungry, and i'll be damned if no one is going to do anything about it. we all have to eat.

so i drove back down to the exit, pulled my car to the side of the road, put my hazards on and took him over some dinner. he took the bag with a smile, said "God bless," and i hurried back to my car afraid someone might notice me . . . what a bitch move on my part. i was scared that someone might see me and then there goes my reputation. oh wait, why should that matter.

how many churches are in this area, and we have a homeless man asking for food?

are we not giving them food because they don't come to a church asking?

i almost cried the other day thinking about it. these are the men and women who need the love of Christ in such a real way that i can't put it into words.

in 15-20 years are there going to be gulf war vets and irag vets with the same issues?

what then?

risk

risks. we will face them in life. its guaranteed. (not RISK, the boardgame . . . which is awesome by the way)

i like risks. i mean, at least i like to talk about risks. talk about taking risks, when in reality its so much nicer to stay where i am safe. to stay in the comfort of my own safety net. don't stray too far out there, don't put yourself on the line quite so much, don't put yourself in a position where you might lose your reputation, don't say anything that might cause others to think less of you.

in an effort to put our best foot forward, how often do we not put any foot forward?(unpack that statement marc. sure, no problem)

we want others to see our best. to see us without our blemishes. forgetting sometimes, that our blemishes are what have molded us into what we are today. our blemishes have molded and reveal our character. but that involves risk. so we stay where we are. we might take two step forward, then one step back. making sure that we do not let someone completely in. because then they might really know us, and they won't like us, and then they'll reject us.

i'd like to think that i'm honest about who i really am. i'd like to think that i'm honest with others and that i don't put up walls so that others don't see the real me, or they only see a part of me. but that is what i do. its one of those things that i want to break, but sometimes, i just can't.

i think that being honest with others has to start with me being honest with me about me. am i willing to look in the mirror and accept the dark spots of my complexion? have i allowed myself to believe lies that are whispered in my ear by those beings that are not visible? who am i in the eyes of God.

He calls me friend.

He calls me son.

He calls me priest.

He calls me beloved.

He calls me.

When we know who we are in the eyes of Christ, when our self-esteem and image is wrapped up in the love of the One who has created and continues to create in us, can stepping out in faith and trusting others become natural? because as we take these emotional risks, we can know that Christ is continuing to stretch us and form us.

i think it would have been much easier for Jesus to stay in heaven. He wouldn't have had to endure rejection, pain, humiliation, and the emotional agony of being separated from his Father. but if He hadn't . . . i don't know if i could even imagine what that would be like. so as we are made in the image of Christ, we are asked and pushed to step out and risk being seen for who we really are, knowing that others may turn and run.

i also don't think that everything comes out right up front. we have a filter that we have to use too. people aren't always ready to hear all of our screw-ups immediately. but that doesn't mean we hide them either.

i guess its a fine line that we have to walk.

but we have to keep walking.

be good to each other. look at Christ. peace.

ps - if my theology is wrong here, feel free to correct it.