New Orleans

I was part of a 17-member team from the Pulaski Baptist Association to tour reconstruction of New Orleans this week.  The drive down there was about 8 ½ hours so we spent 17 of the 39 hours of the trip on the road…in a bus…with preachers.  We preachers like to talk and tell stories and tell jokes.  I figure I have 6 months’ worth of sermon illustrations and outlines.  We solved difficult theological problems like creation, the rapture, eternal security, and KJV vs. NIV.  With these issues settled, we’ll have much less to talk about from now on.

Solving the problem in New Orleans won’t be as easy.  Arkansas Baptists have been on the ground since the hurricane hit 16 months ago.  We have fed workers and refugees, we have cleared debris, we have shared the gospel, and we are rebuilding homes.  Our project was to tour the area learning about the work managed by Arkansas Baptist Builders.  We saw devastation left by the flood waters and hope in the eyes of people watching there homes being restored and thankfulness on the faces of those benefiting from the work.  Now we’ll all go back to our churches with the mission to motivate our people to be On Mission.  Our churches have prayed and they have given.  Arkansas ranks 2^nd in the nation in charitable giving per capita.  This is in part due to the higher percentage of Christians living here than in other places along with our proximity to the affected areas of 2005’s disasters and our desire to help.

Praying and giving are important.  Now we need to go.  We need to go to New Orleans putting our muscle into the mission.  Anyone can help.  Everyone can do something.  It’s an affordable trip.  It’s worthwhile ministry.  The volunteers don’t have to be skilled carpenters, electricians, plumbers, etc.; just willing to help.  I hope to motivate and mobilize our church to take at least two trips to New Orleans before August.

One trip of adults to hang sheet rock, staple insulation into the walls, and run new wiring.  Again, these people don’t have to be skilled in these trades.  Another trip will be for youth during the summer.  This trip can be more of the construction work or conducting VBS.  This is a great opportunity to demonstrate that we are sheep, not goats.  (See Matthew 25)