Joyful Transformation

What a great day. The weather is fabulous, if a little cold. The sky is such an amazing shade of blue; only God has that color of crayon in his box.

I arrived back at Central Church this morning after a stop at Wal-Mart for more supplies. In his sermon Sunday Gary Brantley talked about each of us doing small acts of service instead of only wanting to do the “big” stuff. I HATE to shop. Perhaps this is why I was allowed to offer this as an act of service. Today I didn’t mind so much. The work that needs to be done in Pascagoula and at the Central church building is largely “small stuff”. But with people pitching in and doing their part it is making a BIG difference.

Today it was my privilege to meet Julie, her husband Bill and their son Jacob from Kentucky. By the end of the day it felt like we were old friends. This is their second trip here and they know what they are doing. In my opinion one of the best things going on here is the bus ministry. No, the bus is not going out to bring people to the building, instead it is going door-to-door and delivering supplies to anyone who has a need. Julie took me under her wing and got me involved in loading this bus. Then when it was time to go back out into the community, I was able to go along. James from Tupelo was our driver. (I discovered that he and a buddy have a 50’s and 60’s act that travels to many places in Alabama.) Also on the bus was Stella. She is a member at Central. From what I understand she has been a volunteer daily. Today however was her first opportunity to go out on the bus. Did I mention Stella is 83! She could do laps around a lot of the people there. It was great for her to go out and call on her neighbors. She was able to offer more than help and an invitation to church. She was able to say, ”hey, I know what you are going through, I am living in a FEMA trailer too”.

The level of activity is so high that I did not even get a chance to talk to John until I was leaving this afternoon. That is truly how it should be. Here is a picture that John posted of me and a lady who received one of the coats I brought down. I feel a little like the UPS guy. I just delivered the stuff, why are you taking my picture? I don’t know who donated this lovely purple coat, but you brought this lady much joy.

I am looking forward to tomorrow, but finding it hard to believe it is time to go home already. I do feel like I will be coming back. Tomorrow I plan to take some pictures. Keep praying for the work that is going on here. The needs are still great.