The Basics:
Each crew went to the same jobsite at yesterday: Tyler, Becky, Miss, & Neal to the warehouse and Austin, Bret, Brandon, Lauren, Erica, Nicole, Kim, Clare, & Casey to center city. The warehouse did more drywall work while the city did more lot care and roofing.
The Details:
Whenever teams come to serve with Crisis Response, most people come ill-equipped to do good work. Projects are not always done well the first time, and some need to be redone by another team. Both of our crews are spending some time correcting past mistakes, some from weeks ago, some from yesterday! The drywallers had to recut, retape, and respackle a lot of work. The roofers had to remove crooked shingles before laying new again.
Praise God for John Horst and Mark Lewis. They are experts when working with amateurs! They did a great job of teaching and equipping us for work…Ephesians 4:11-12??? They turned Miss and Becky into drywallers and Kim and Nicole into roofers. That’s awesome!
The City crew was able to lay out shingles on about one third of the entire roof today. The breeze and overcast sky kept things cooler, but the temperature deceived us in our sunscreen application. Austin and Bret are official rednecks.
A Reflection:
There’s only an aroma when there is contrast. The strange thing about smells is then when you’re around it enough, you forget that you’re smelling it. Whenever I spend time in Whole Latte Beans or Prince Street Café, I never smell anything while I’m in the café. When I sit with a friend, I don’t notice any smell on them when we’re in the café.
Outside the café, it’s a different story. My bag will smell like a coffee shop for days. I can tell if a friend was at Prince Street from their clothes. And the odd thing is, I don’t pick up on their scent if they stay in the café.
When 2 Corinthians tells us that we are the aroma of Christ. I think that’s true. I find that the more and more I spend time with Jesus, the more I end up smelling like him. The deeper I study his life, the richer the scent. The more I feast on his words, the more mine are flavored like his. That fragrance is strongest when I am closest to Jesus.
If I only spend time with other people who smell like me, who’s going to notice what I smell like? The aroma of Christ is most pungent in the smelliest areas. The words and deeds of our team stand out in greatest contrast when we’re outside Keystone’s walls.
I’ve loved getting to see our team love other people on this trip. They’ve served and sacrificed in ways I don’t notice during small group. There’s a generosity and humility I don’t pick up on on Sunday mornings. It warms my heart to see their patience and boldness with complete strangers. They are smelling like Jesus and I can smell it!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Work Day 1: Flooding New Orleans
A typical day serving with Crisis Response in Louisiana includes the following:
· A dimmer switch sunrise at 6:00am
· Massive hydration efforts during breakfast at 6:30am
· Pitting-out t-shirts while packing lunches and tools around 8:00am
· Hurrying up to sit in traffic on 10E before the Superdome about 8:45am
· Scampering for a bathroom after 9:00am
· Cruising onto the worksite around 9:30am
· Drinking two gallons of water before 11:00am
· Sharing packed lunches with neighbors around 12:30pm
· One on one cage fight with dehydration around 2:30pm
· Bumpy causeway ride home before 4:30pm
· Sauna showers around 6:00pm
· Pitting out t-shirts walking from outdoor shower to Trinity around 6:08pm
· Enjoying dinner at 6:30pm
· Getting seconds at 6:33pm
· Resting eyelids around 6:38pm
· Evening speakers at 7:00pm
· Group chores and free time after 8:30pm
· Light out at 10:00pm
The Basics:
There aren’t many typical days, but today was one. Our first work day ran incredibly smoothly. Four from our team helped Mark Lewis from Crisis Response with their new warehouse. Tyler, Becky, Neal, & Miss we able to hang drywall all day. The rest of the team headed to center city to clean up a vacant lot and remove shingles from a roof. The plan for tomorrow is to possibly rotate drywallers, finish the lot care, and begin laying out new tar paper and shingles.
Some Background:
After running operations out of Trinity Church for nearly four years, Crisis Response will be moving their New Orleans Headquarters to a new warehouse on Trinity’s property. Offices, meeting rooms, supply storage, and tool sheds will all be housed in this warehouse. The structure is up, and the interior is being finished now.
It sounds like Trinity Church will restore the church building to pre-volunteer condition: offices will be returned to Sunday school classrooms and “The Church of the Stained Carpet” will get something new. I imagine the facility will feel empty without the constant buzz of Crisis Response’s worker bees.
In center city, Castle Rock is the only other EFCA church in the state. With her ministry, Urban Impact, they are looking to flip New Orleans in a positive direction. A recreation center is part of their plan, but so is getting their congregation into homes in their target area.
Even now, fifty percent of homes are still vacant. Pre-Katrina, 1 out of 5 homes on our particular street were abandoned. Post-Katrina it’s 2 out of 3. There is massive work to be done! Urban Impact has purchased several lots on one street block to help turn the tide.
A Reflection:
What is the most pragmatic way of rebuilding New Orleans? Should we hire a handful of professionals or find thousands of unskilled but free laborers? Should we pay someone to do a job right the first time or give cash to a dozen people to travel hundreds of miles, stay in hotels, guzzle gas down route 81, and have them do work that needs replaced by another team later on? What makes most sense? When Crisis Response says it’s not about the work, believe them!
This has made me think about how Jesus decided to build his church. Jesus was a far better minister of the gospel than any of the twelve disciples. Peter was a hot-head, racist, fisherman. Matthew was a conniving tax collector. Simon the Zealot was likely a terrorist. These are not the guys I would have chosen to build my most precious possession. These are not the best people to do the job!
Somehow, the JV team pulled it off though! Jesus taught the disciples how to do ministry. When he fed the five thousand, Jesus performed the miracle, but who did the work of passing the food out? Jesus preached, but who did the baptizing? Jesus did not hire a band of professionals to preach grace and peace; he had a rag tag crew of people that couldn’t hack it as full-time religious teachers. Yes, they made mistakes; some were HUGE! Still, they were a Spirit-filled and Spirit-led group of people that were ministers of the new covenant like Jesus.
What surprises me most about Katrina isn’t the amount of water. The city is below sea level; her levees weren’t built to withstand a direct hit from a category four hurricane; she's surrounded by water! Of course water is going to come flooding in.
What I didn’t expect was the flood of Christians to New Orleans. Sunday school teachers teach our kids to avoid places like Bourbon Street. Our parents seek safe suburban neighborhoods to raise their kids away from crime and poor education systems. What’s attractive about New Orleans to a Christian? The short answer is nothing but the opportunity to show people the love of God.
The storm has provided a way for thousands of Christians to flood New Orleans to rebuild. I certainly believe our plan to restore buildings is flawed. We are not a team of roofers. For the amount of time, money, and effort invested, hiring a professional is a much better investment. BUT, if we’re looking to restore souls, then I say let’s draw out this process as long as possible. Let’s let the love of Christ soak into this area for years to come!
· A dimmer switch sunrise at 6:00am
· Massive hydration efforts during breakfast at 6:30am
· Pitting-out t-shirts while packing lunches and tools around 8:00am
· Hurrying up to sit in traffic on 10E before the Superdome about 8:45am
· Scampering for a bathroom after 9:00am
· Cruising onto the worksite around 9:30am
· Drinking two gallons of water before 11:00am
· Sharing packed lunches with neighbors around 12:30pm
· One on one cage fight with dehydration around 2:30pm
· Bumpy causeway ride home before 4:30pm
· Sauna showers around 6:00pm
· Pitting out t-shirts walking from outdoor shower to Trinity around 6:08pm
· Enjoying dinner at 6:30pm
· Getting seconds at 6:33pm
· Resting eyelids around 6:38pm
· Evening speakers at 7:00pm
· Group chores and free time after 8:30pm
· Light out at 10:00pm
The Basics:
There aren’t many typical days, but today was one. Our first work day ran incredibly smoothly. Four from our team helped Mark Lewis from Crisis Response with their new warehouse. Tyler, Becky, Neal, & Miss we able to hang drywall all day. The rest of the team headed to center city to clean up a vacant lot and remove shingles from a roof. The plan for tomorrow is to possibly rotate drywallers, finish the lot care, and begin laying out new tar paper and shingles.
Some Background:
After running operations out of Trinity Church for nearly four years, Crisis Response will be moving their New Orleans Headquarters to a new warehouse on Trinity’s property. Offices, meeting rooms, supply storage, and tool sheds will all be housed in this warehouse. The structure is up, and the interior is being finished now.
It sounds like Trinity Church will restore the church building to pre-volunteer condition: offices will be returned to Sunday school classrooms and “The Church of the Stained Carpet” will get something new. I imagine the facility will feel empty without the constant buzz of Crisis Response’s worker bees.
In center city, Castle Rock is the only other EFCA church in the state. With her ministry, Urban Impact, they are looking to flip New Orleans in a positive direction. A recreation center is part of their plan, but so is getting their congregation into homes in their target area.
Even now, fifty percent of homes are still vacant. Pre-Katrina, 1 out of 5 homes on our particular street were abandoned. Post-Katrina it’s 2 out of 3. There is massive work to be done! Urban Impact has purchased several lots on one street block to help turn the tide.
A Reflection:
What is the most pragmatic way of rebuilding New Orleans? Should we hire a handful of professionals or find thousands of unskilled but free laborers? Should we pay someone to do a job right the first time or give cash to a dozen people to travel hundreds of miles, stay in hotels, guzzle gas down route 81, and have them do work that needs replaced by another team later on? What makes most sense? When Crisis Response says it’s not about the work, believe them!
This has made me think about how Jesus decided to build his church. Jesus was a far better minister of the gospel than any of the twelve disciples. Peter was a hot-head, racist, fisherman. Matthew was a conniving tax collector. Simon the Zealot was likely a terrorist. These are not the guys I would have chosen to build my most precious possession. These are not the best people to do the job!
Somehow, the JV team pulled it off though! Jesus taught the disciples how to do ministry. When he fed the five thousand, Jesus performed the miracle, but who did the work of passing the food out? Jesus preached, but who did the baptizing? Jesus did not hire a band of professionals to preach grace and peace; he had a rag tag crew of people that couldn’t hack it as full-time religious teachers. Yes, they made mistakes; some were HUGE! Still, they were a Spirit-filled and Spirit-led group of people that were ministers of the new covenant like Jesus.
What surprises me most about Katrina isn’t the amount of water. The city is below sea level; her levees weren’t built to withstand a direct hit from a category four hurricane; she's surrounded by water! Of course water is going to come flooding in.
What I didn’t expect was the flood of Christians to New Orleans. Sunday school teachers teach our kids to avoid places like Bourbon Street. Our parents seek safe suburban neighborhoods to raise their kids away from crime and poor education systems. What’s attractive about New Orleans to a Christian? The short answer is nothing but the opportunity to show people the love of God.
The storm has provided a way for thousands of Christians to flood New Orleans to rebuild. I certainly believe our plan to restore buildings is flawed. We are not a team of roofers. For the amount of time, money, and effort invested, hiring a professional is a much better investment. BUT, if we’re looking to restore souls, then I say let’s draw out this process as long as possible. Let’s let the love of Christ soak into this area for years to come!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Travel Day 2: Cast into a hot place
Day 2:
6:30am…Continental Breakfast (Very satisfying)
7:15am…Leave Hotel (Austin still a master trailer-er.)
8:30am…Gas (BF takes the helm)
10:00am…Worship (Starfield leads praise & Chandler preaches)
12:30pm…Lunch with Wattersons (Smoked chicken and NASCAR)
3:30pm…N.O. International Airport for Becky, Tyler, Lauren, Erica, & Nicole (…so we left)
4:00pm…French Quarter (Doc Lewis reunion!)
6:45pm…Orientation (Starting to feel like a mission trip)
9:00pm…Papa Johns (College style)
Fun Fact:
The causeway is a 24.8 mile bridge that connects New Orleans to the north shore of Lake Pontchatrain. The ride is less bumpy with more people.
The sheer amount of time spent together is binding us together. Bill Hybels calls it the “be with” factor. If significant Christ-commending impact is desired, significant “be with” time is required. We are all getting to “be with” each other a lot!
It’s not often adults have sleepovers; at least not without getting strange looks. People don’t typically lay in beds and talk to casual friends into the night. A trip like this affords acquaintances the opportunity to break through the shallowness of the mundane and engage real issues.
At work it’s easy to stay on the surface about the details of your life during the 5 minute coffee break. People can even fill the daily half hour lunch break without divulging anything of any substance. Eighteen hour road trips, 15-passenger vans, and nightly sleepovers bring depth within the conversation. I praise God, I’m getting to know our team deeper this week.
We’re asking questions that make us think. We’re revealing parts of ourselves which remain hidden at the water cooler at work. We’re being vulnerable by exposing who we are and finding a tighter embrace as the response.
We’re laying good foundation for conversations later in the week. I’m looking forward to many encounters from God, but I’m looking even more forward to dialoguing about those encounters. It’s easy to observe and feel what’s going on. I think it’s hard to process what things actually mean.
What would it mean to love my neighbor in NOLA? What would justice look like down here? Why did God send me and not someone from NOLA? Is my involvement really making a difference?
Pray that we would think about what we see, not simply to retell when we return, but so that we would be changed by it.
Tomorrow is our first work day. The day all about hurrying up and waiting. It can be frustrating for those who just want to get to work. The coordination of worksites and unskilled laborers eats away time.
Pray for patience as we learn that this trip is more about loving others than building structures.
6:30am…Continental Breakfast (Very satisfying)
7:15am…Leave Hotel (Austin still a master trailer-er.)
8:30am…Gas (BF takes the helm)
10:00am…Worship (Starfield leads praise & Chandler preaches)
12:30pm…Lunch with Wattersons (Smoked chicken and NASCAR)
3:30pm…N.O. International Airport for Becky, Tyler, Lauren, Erica, & Nicole (…so we left)
4:00pm…French Quarter (Doc Lewis reunion!)
6:45pm…Orientation (Starting to feel like a mission trip)
9:00pm…Papa Johns (College style)
Fun Fact:
The causeway is a 24.8 mile bridge that connects New Orleans to the north shore of Lake Pontchatrain. The ride is less bumpy with more people.
The sheer amount of time spent together is binding us together. Bill Hybels calls it the “be with” factor. If significant Christ-commending impact is desired, significant “be with” time is required. We are all getting to “be with” each other a lot!
It’s not often adults have sleepovers; at least not without getting strange looks. People don’t typically lay in beds and talk to casual friends into the night. A trip like this affords acquaintances the opportunity to break through the shallowness of the mundane and engage real issues.
At work it’s easy to stay on the surface about the details of your life during the 5 minute coffee break. People can even fill the daily half hour lunch break without divulging anything of any substance. Eighteen hour road trips, 15-passenger vans, and nightly sleepovers bring depth within the conversation. I praise God, I’m getting to know our team deeper this week.
We’re asking questions that make us think. We’re revealing parts of ourselves which remain hidden at the water cooler at work. We’re being vulnerable by exposing who we are and finding a tighter embrace as the response.
We’re laying good foundation for conversations later in the week. I’m looking forward to many encounters from God, but I’m looking even more forward to dialoguing about those encounters. It’s easy to observe and feel what’s going on. I think it’s hard to process what things actually mean.
What would it mean to love my neighbor in NOLA? What would justice look like down here? Why did God send me and not someone from NOLA? Is my involvement really making a difference?
Pray that we would think about what we see, not simply to retell when we return, but so that we would be changed by it.
Tomorrow is our first work day. The day all about hurrying up and waiting. It can be frustrating for those who just want to get to work. The coordination of worksites and unskilled laborers eats away time.
Pray for patience as we learn that this trip is more about loving others than building structures.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Travel Day 1: Leaving Paradise
Day 1:
5:30am…Meet at Keystone (Brandon, Bret, Austin, Neal, Miss, Clare, & Casey)
5:59am…Leave Keystone (Plenty of room in the 15-passenger van & trailer)
9:00am…Stop for Breakfast (Note: Sheetz’ Schmicuitz don’t come with egg)
12:00pm…Stop for Gas (12.8 mpg)
1:30pm…Lunch (Punishments from road games = Austin eating alone, Bret standing to eat, Miss not talking during lunch, & Clare ordering lunch one item at a time)
6:00pm…Gas & add Kim (FYI: Church van drives with needle below E)
7:00pm…Stop for Dinner (Central time)
8:00pm…Arrive at Hotel (Austin parallel parks a van with trailer like it was a Mini)
Fun Fact:
Subways in the south don't use provolone cheese.
I love our team! Traveling with these young adults is a total pleasure! Conversation has been both lighthearted at times and meaningful. It’s been a very pleasant trip thus far.
Praise God for ample drivers to share the load and for his provision of safety! We’re resting in Birmingham, AL for the night and plan to make it to Covington, LA in time for lunch with the Wattersons.
Please continue to pray for great team bonding and safety. (The rest of our team is flying tomorrow afternoon.)
You can also follow some of us on Twitter. (@AJParmer and @Brandon_Fisher)
5:30am…Meet at Keystone (Brandon, Bret, Austin, Neal, Miss, Clare, & Casey)
5:59am…Leave Keystone (Plenty of room in the 15-passenger van & trailer)
9:00am…Stop for Breakfast (Note: Sheetz’ Schmicuitz don’t come with egg)
12:00pm…Stop for Gas (12.8 mpg)
1:30pm…Lunch (Punishments from road games = Austin eating alone, Bret standing to eat, Miss not talking during lunch, & Clare ordering lunch one item at a time)
6:00pm…Gas & add Kim (FYI: Church van drives with needle below E)
7:00pm…Stop for Dinner (Central time)
8:00pm…Arrive at Hotel (Austin parallel parks a van with trailer like it was a Mini)
Fun Fact:
Subways in the south don't use provolone cheese.
I love our team! Traveling with these young adults is a total pleasure! Conversation has been both lighthearted at times and meaningful. It’s been a very pleasant trip thus far.
Praise God for ample drivers to share the load and for his provision of safety! We’re resting in Birmingham, AL for the night and plan to make it to Covington, LA in time for lunch with the Wattersons.
Please continue to pray for great team bonding and safety. (The rest of our team is flying tomorrow afternoon.)
You can also follow some of us on Twitter. (@AJParmer and @Brandon_Fisher)
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Keystone Young Adult Exposure: LA Tour 2009
The devastating wake from hurricane Katrina is still rippling across New Orleans as the four-year anniversary of the storm creeps around the summer's bend. For the hundreds and thousands of volunteer relief workers from around the country who have poured time, money, energy, and love into the Big Easy during these hard times, it can be overwhelming wondering when the work will end. Though the hemorrhaging has stopped and the dizzied city has regained her footing, New Orleans still needs a lot of rebuilding and rehabilitation.
On Saturday, a team of Keystone Young Adults will enlist with the masses at Trinity Church in Louisiana and be deployed to worksites in the city. Austin Parmer, Bret Kurtz, Neal Rice, Tyler Kepiro, Becky Cox, Casey Diener, Clare Evans, Erica Horning, Kim Good, Lauren Fisher, Melissa Sindall, and Nicole Reali will serve with EFCA’s Crisis Response team from June 27th through July 5th.
Please keep us in your prayers in the following ways:
On Saturday, a team of Keystone Young Adults will enlist with the masses at Trinity Church in Louisiana and be deployed to worksites in the city. Austin Parmer, Bret Kurtz, Neal Rice, Tyler Kepiro, Becky Cox, Casey Diener, Clare Evans, Erica Horning, Kim Good, Lauren Fisher, Melissa Sindall, and Nicole Reali will serve with EFCA’s Crisis Response team from June 27th through July 5th.
Please keep us in your prayers in the following ways:
- See Jesus: It is my hope that both our team and the people in New Orleans would be mesmerized by seeing God work.
- Travel safety: A 15-passenger van pulling a trailer is like playing Russian roulette for 1200 miles. We also have five team members who are flying to meet us.
- Job safety: Eight ladies with no construction experience could be trouble. Five guys who think they have experience in construction will be trouble. The days are long, tiring, hot, and humid—an unhealthy combination when mixed with power tools.
- Spiritual stamina: The body will fatigue from work, but our faith will be tested as we interact with heartbreaking stories and dire situations. Where will our strength come from?
- Team chemistry: The suffering and difficulty that occurs during trips like these can temper the bonds within a group and galvanize their resolve forever.
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