New Orleans Day 2

New Orleans Day 2

11:54 pm

It's Christmas Eve and I am typing my thoughts of this days work. All I can say is thank you Lord for all you've done for me! Today, the team got up, ate breakfast together in the fellowship hall and prepared for morning worship service. It was a different experience because I am definitely used to a more "spirited" service. Nonetheless, I was encouraged by the message the pastor preached concerning allowing your light to shine. It was not something that I had not heard before but it was simply a reminder that I need to always keep things in perspective, not take myself so seriously and live right so that others can see Christ in me.

I've met some good people in the brief time of being here. One woman, with her adopted children, has a non-profit organization in upstate New York and distribute supplies to those in need. Another woman, a physician from Chicago, travels around the world on mission trips and has a tremendous burden for those in need. Both women are spending Christmas here in New Orleans with their families.

We worked on the same home from yesterday and continued to remove nails, drywall other hard stuff. It's amazing that a house can take months to build but one flood or natural disaster can destroy it in a matter of minutes or hours. After several hours of working, the rain began to pour. Fortunately we were about 95% done so we will pick up the pieces on Christmas. I'm excited about our next two projects. One is about 40 miles away in Monroe or Murrow, Louisiana (not sure) and the second project is in the lower 9th ward. Anyone who knows me knows that I have been itching to get down to the 9th ward to help. For me, that's where so many resources are needed. I'm hearing stories of communities in the 9th ward fighting to stay together but it's hard when some of your residents have left and you're dealing with red tape. My prayer is that God's will be done. While working off of Canal Street on Day 2, there was about half and half that were rebuilding. There are so many "construction companies" seeking business opportunities. So many people have pickup trucks with a sign stating, "We Specialize in Drywalling, Gutting and Roofing". I hope that these contractors are not here to make a quick buck off of the needs of the residents. Only time will tell.

Well, it's time for me to catch some z's and prepare to get some work in during daylight (Christmas Day). My main motivation behind this trip was to offer service to others in need on the day that we celebrate Christ's birthday so you know that this is an emotional time for me.

I'm trying to figure out how to load my video and photo pics from my camera phone into my laptop...when I do that you'll have some visuals. Take care