October 2006
The Mission Team wishes first to thank
all our brothers and sisters here at King of Kings for their prayers and
good wishes as we went about God's business down in Mississippi. Three
of our faithful servants arrived by airway on Monday afternoon October
2nd. Seven of us drove in three vehicles bringing tools and supplies to
the work site arriving also on the 2nd. Some of us took a tour on Monday
afternoon to see two of the three sites we were going to be working. Our
hearts went out to the home owners as we took in the devastation still
in existence after thirteen months.
On Monday evening after our meal
Sally, who does crisis counseling for the people going through this
trauma, shared her own story. She had moved from Tennessee with her
husband to be near the water and lived in a three story, six unit condo.
When Katrina hit land in brought with it a 32 foot high surge of water
that completely wiped out the condos. After the water receded they went
to their home and found only the concrete foundation, a couple of
pillars and bent I-beams. Later in the week we took a tour along I-90
and saw the same ruination every where.
In the every evening after our
wonderful meals we met for worship and God-sighting times. There were 9
people from Illinois who worked and bonded with our teams. God was
evident as we made new friends and shared our faith stories with one
another.
The folks we were able to work with
had so much faith and courage it felt like we were blessed to be of
service to them. Many of us received more than we gave. We painted,
scraped floors, installed windows, installed showers and toilets, did
electrical and plumbing work, laid tile and grouted. Many of us thought
we could never do the work but with faith in God and a right spirit we
did. We were blessed to meet and get to know and love Mr. and Mrs.
Jones, Cecilia, and Cassandra. As Friday came to an end we felt
unfinished and needed to keep going. The goodbyes were difficult because
there is so much yet to be done.
We were told that there were still 400
homes in this area of Long Beach/Pass Christian that needed assistance.
Supplies are hard to come by as well as workers to aid in construction.
The Team wants to go back to help once again. Would you like to join us?
The need is great and God is great.
God’s Peace
2006 Mission Team
