
Hundreds of thousands of people find themselves in the path of oncoming Hurricane Florence. The storm is making landfall now as a category 2 storm with winds of 100 mph. Christians everywhere should pray for God to protect those in harm’s way. As we pray there are some believers who are heading toward the disaster zone. I want more people to know about these amazing acts of kindness so they will have reasons to glorify God and so they will see there are ways they can help as well.
Times like this are when it is so critically important to belong to a strong community of faith. The community of faith I belong to is made up of many churches across Ohio and the US all partnering together to bring aid in crisis situations such as Hurricane Florence. When life’s catastrophes are bigger than life it is comforting to know that we are part of something bigger than life and bigger than the hurricane. The North American Mission Board Disaster Relief army is on the way to bring aid and Southern Baptist churches across the country all have a hand in making it happen.
Convoy’s of heavy equipment and trailer trucks are staging themselves just outside the disaster zone ready to enter with aid as soon as local emergency departments give the all clear. Hundreds of thousands of people in North Carolina will have lots of needs after the storm passes. Now more than ever is the time for followers of Jesus to make His love known to them by meeting their needs.
The Southern Baptist Disaster Relief network is the third largest relief organization in the US. Their leaders are working side by side with FEMA directors in Washington D.C. to coordinate resources for affected areas. There are twenty mobile kitchen units contained in 18-wheeler trailers that will begin cranking out 300,000 meals per day as soon as they get fired up. Crews will also deliver aid such as bottled water, generators, and facilities for people to take showers and communicate with family members.
This massive relief effort and tons of resources are made possible by the faithful giving in church offerings all across the country every Sunday, our church included. Every week throughout the year a part of those church offerings is sent to the North American Mission Board where the Disaster Relief teams are funded and trained. At a moment’s notice those teams from each state are called up and made ready to go deliver aid.
Please pray for the victims of the storm. Pray also for the relief workers heading into the disaster zone. Also, rejoice that there is such an outpouring of love caused by the outpouring of our Savior’s love for us. Rejoice that victims will feel the love of Christ followers who are there to lend a hand. And you can also give to help fund the effort. Just go to www.namb.net and click on how you can help. And to read more on this story go to this article.