By Will Hall, Philip Timothy and Brian Blackwell, Message Staff
ALEXANDRIA — “The need is great,” according to John Hebert, responding about the massive flooding which struck the southern part of the state after record rainfall began August 12.
Hebert, state mission director who also oversees Louisiana Baptists’ combined disaster relief efforts, said the flooding has been historic, citing statistics from emergency management officials that 40,000 homes have been impacted, so far, and in some places 75 percent of them destroyed.
“Some folks on the ground are suggesting upwards of 60,000 homes may be affected,” he told the Baptist Message.
“Importantly, this disaster comes just a little over four months after the record spring floods which devastated the northern part of the state,” Hebert said. “This is significant because about 70 percent of Louisiana Baptist volunteers are in that part of the state, and they dealt with losses while simultaneously helping others for weeks. Now, they just got their homes in order and we are asking them to step up, again, for this recovery effort.
“We need more volunteers, we need donations to purchase supplies and we need more prayers,” Hebert emphasized.
RAINS FELL, WATERS ROSE
As much as two feet of rain fell within 48 hours on parts of East Baton Rouge, Livingston and St. Helena parishes, a “1,000-year rain” event in these areas according to the Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center. Other parishes saw a two-day rainfall determined to be a “100-year” event — these included Tangipahoa, East Feliciana, Washington, Ascension, Lafayette, Iberville and St. Martin.
The result of this August 12-13 inundation was historic flooding in southern Louisiana with tens of thousands of homes and hundreds of thousands of people impacted, including more than 60 Louisiana Baptist churches and the houses of at least 20 Louisiana Baptist pastors.
Lonnie Tucker, pastor of Still Water Baptist Church in Ponchatoula, saw 10 inches of water flood his Hammond home. But he was upbeat and grateful in the midst of the disaster.
“Thanks to our heavenly Father, my earthly father, and a neighbor with a dune buggy that rescued us from our flooded subdivision,” he wrote on Facebook.
These LSU BCM students take a moment to pray in the rain as they assist people getting out of their flooded homes.
Likewise, Weldon Moak, pastor of First Baptist Church in Broussard, showed a positive spirit even though “a few inches of water” had entered the worship center. “I am hoping to save the carpet,” he told the Baptist Message. In the meantime, the church has already met and begun “to send out teams to help clean up.
“Pray for safety in cleanup and good weather,” Moak requested.
BAPTISTS RESPOND
Like Moak, many Louisiana Baptists already are responding to immediate needs, or preparing to be part of the long-term recovery effort in the state.
Resetting Perspectives
The Way Church in Denham Springs escaped the deluge which engulfed so much of the city’s businesses and homes. Pastor Joshua Spinks told the Message this gave his congregation an opportunity to minister to so many in the community.
He said the church committed to the city Aug. 12 to take in 100 evacuees, and by Saturday morning the actual number of people in the makeshift shelter topped 250 before easing to 190 that night after other locations opened up. Sunday brought even more change as a city well failed, leaving the church building without water and causing the evacuees to be relocated – but not before Spinks and his congregation shared breakfast and worship with their guests.
Spinks said these events have given him and his neighbors a needed reset of perspectives.
“Last week I was worried about running out of space on my hard drive,” Spinks reflected, and now “this community has become laser-focused on what really matters.
“God has a way of making us see one another the way he does,” he continued. “We are all tattooed with the image of God.”
War Zone
“I don’t think it really sinks in how bad this is, until you get here,” said Ron Thompson, a Louisiana Baptist disaster relief volunteer and director of missions for District Eight Baptist Convention, a group of five associations in the state.
“See it. Smell it. Feel it. Hear the National Guard helicopters or see the National Guard caravans. Then it sinks in,” he explained.
“This is a war zone,” he said, but clarified it is “not against flesh and blood, nor against rain and floods.
“God has asked us to engage the hurting. Push back against the adversary. Take a dark time, and shine His light,” Thompson declared.
Thompson spent the first week after the storm performing mud-out work in flood-damaged homes.
“Seeing their hurt,” was impacting, he said. “I made a point to connect with each person I spoke to – in a shelter, store, restaurant, gas station, wherever – and call them by name if they offered it. I smiled. Told them it’s going to be OK, and tried to find some encouraging word to share.
“I’m humbled to be here,” Thompson added, “amid the pain, just trying to help in any way I can.”
Command Center
At Louisiana Baptists’ state mission center in Alexandria, there is an ‘all hands on deck’ atmosphere in the building, in particular in the missions and ministry team offices which host the command center for coordination of the recovery efforts.
From early in the morning until late in the evening there is a buzz of activity: fielding phone calls from individuals in need; holding conference calls to deploy teams and resources to hard hit areas; and, serving as a crossroads of sorts for planned and informal face-to-face meetings of various sizes making sure assignments are clear across the spectrum of this large volunteer effort.
Along the walls are maps of Louisiana and dry erase boards updated in real time, and tables are lined up with banks of inboxes as well as laptops to assist in the operations.
Keith Manuel, evangelism associate for Louisiana Baptists, answers a telephone call at the state disaster relief incident command center in Alexandria.
On one whiteboard, the team lists the already 22 Louisiana Baptist churches which are serving as mobile feeding centers; hosting disaster relief volunteers; serving as shelters for evacuees; responding to mud-out requests for areas where waters have receded; distributing food, water, clothes and other essentials to sustain families displaced by the high waters; providing mobile shower units; and, performing training for ‘walk-up’ volunteers.
Another board shows the teams of Southern Baptists from Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, and Tennessee who have come alongside Louisiana Baptists for the immediate crisis and long-term recovery response.
There are numbers listed for the several points of contact with the North American Mission Board which is helping coordinate assistance across the Southern Baptist Convention.
There also is a list of Louisiana Baptist churches and pastors’ homes damaged in the flood and needing immediate assistance.
HOLDING HOPE, NEEDING HELP
Hebert asked churches in unaffected areas to set up prayer vigils for those impacted by the floods as well as the volunteers who are heading into difficult circumstances.
“God knows the need, but He expects us to humble ourselves and bring those concerns to Him,” he said. “Pray for the people in need, but also for the volunteers who will reach out to help.
“Remember this is an opportunity to restore lives, but also to win souls,” Hebert underscored. “Pray the lost will see Christ in us and allow us to share the Gospel with them.”
Along that line, he urged Louisiana Baptists to volunteer for a disaster relief team.
“This is mission work you can complete without having to go out of state,” he offered. “Bring a strong back and a willingness to share the Gospel.”
“In situations like this, we need a lot of warm bodies and we are prepared to qualify ‘walk-ups’ to serve on a disaster relief team with brief standardized training on-site. Then we pair them up with a certified volunteer to ensure safety and efficiency,” he said.
Hebert said some worksites will be able to outfit workers, but he urged volunteers to come prepared to be self-sufficient with work gloves and boots and such, but that meals would be provided.
Finally, Hebert asked Louisiana Baptists to be generous in giving financially to the disaster relief fund at LouisianaBaptists.org.
“We need your help to stand in the gap for those affected by these historic storms,” he said. “The need is great.”
Donations may be mailed or made electronically: visit LouisianaBaptists.org for more information. Persons wishing to volunteer may call (318) 448-3402. Follow updates on BaptistMessage.com.
