I came to Joplin thinking that I would jump in and help clear rubble, help families retrieve items from the devastation. I’m sure that I will at some point do some of that. However, my first day presented an opportunity of ministry that I couldn’t pass down.
Bryce Hansen was my youth minister during High School. He recently moved back to Joplin to be the youth minister at College Heights Christian Church (CHCC). CHCC has really stepped up to respond to this disaster. The entire church has been transformed into a distribution center serving over 3,000 people since the tornado struck. The church has clothes, non-perishable food, hot meals, toiletries and supplies to help these families recover. CHCC has also become a hub for coordinating and send out work teams to help the city dig out from under this destruction. The church body universal has mobilized to meet the needs of this entire city.
On Thursday I was able to meet up with Bryce. I figured that I would go out and work on a team with him, not quite. Starting Thursday CHCC had asked their ministry staff to start focusing shepherding the 70 some families from their church that were affected by the tornado. The goal was for these ministers to connect with families, make sure they had the resources and support they needed. The shepherd teams also gave some financial assistance to help these families, and then we prayed with these families. I jumped at the chance when Bryce asked if I wanted to join him.
We spent most of the day trying to find these families, figuring out where they were staying. From the first family we met to the last, the thing that struck me the most was the one line that I heard from every family: “I wish that I could be out there helping people.”
We heard this from the first lady that we went to go call on. She had lost her home, every single thing in it. She had narrowly missed being killed as this massive tornado ripped through her house. And more than anything she wanted some stability and normalcy, not for herself, but so she could help others. We heard it from the family whose son is blessed to be alive.
I thought that working alongside Bryce, his wife, and another minister at CHCC, I thought that we would be doing more physical work. However, the thing we did most, the greatest contribution he had was love and listening. These families just wanted to tell their story. To testify to the hand of God that brought them through this storm. We listened to these people and we loved them. Our hears and our hearts seemed to be the thing they needed most, and I’m sure that in time myself and others will help these same families rebuild, recover, and re-flourish.
Grace and Peace,
Justin Friel
2 comments:
Wow, Justin, reading this gave me the chills. Thank you for sharing it. It's incredible that these families that just lost everything aren't focusing on themselves but on helping others. Thank you for being open and available to be used by God in helping them!
I second that, It's a beautiful act of rebellion against pain. Keep doing what your doing Justin you are a great tool in the hands of God!
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