November 2009
Greetings from Christian Life Center, a.k.a. Camp Katrina.
It has been too long since our last e-mail update on the Christian and Missionary Alliance relief efforts in South Mississippi and Louisiana. The delay was not caused by lack of activity but rather resulted from a tremendous flow of volunteers and ministry activity. God has been intensely at work in each of the CMA outreaches on the Gulf Coast.
Construction Ministry Status: Despite having approximately 900 volunteers in Waveland alone in the last twelve months, and between 8000 to 9000 volunteers at the CLC in Waveland since Hurricane Katrina, there is still much to do. Waveland and Gulfport on the South Mississippi Coast, Baton Rouge and Gretna in South Louisiana, are all still in dire need of volunteer support teams from across the United States and Canada. The Church has responded in a magnificent way to meet physical needs during the more than four (4) years since Hurricane Katrina. But please understand, the real work here is repairing lives, and that work does not cease. God has called us to the Gulf Coast to work in lives more than in buildings. Rejoice with us because where He calls, He empowers, and where He empowers, He provides the harvest. Through your efforts of partnership, support and prayer we are seeing the fruits of that harvest. Lives are being changed!
The Alliance e-magazine ran a recent article, August, 26, 2009, on the CMA relief ministries on the Gulf Coast entitled “Katrina Four Years Later”. If you have not seen this article, or would like a copy you can find it at:
The ministries of the Christian Life Center in Waveland have expanded. Our new Thrift Store facility is now located in a normal building at 200-D Highway 90, Bay Saint Louis (Bay Saint Louis is the neighboring town to Waveland). The renovations of that building took several months. Please accept a big Thank You to each one of you who came and made this transition possible! The new store facility opened on October 8th and the outreach to and connection with new segments of the community resulting has been a real blessing from God. This new location enables us to reach people who did not feel comfortable coming to the Church property or shopping in our prior temporary Quonset hut facility. The people flow has increased considerably and the lingering and talking times have been very exciting. Members of our staff have been busy establishing new relationships with a wide range of people, and we are praying that these will grow into an ALPHA Outreach and some other small group opportunities. Already there is a football centered group that has formed between some staff and some local people as a result of this new location.
We still have over two hundred construction/repair requests of various kinds waiting on our list for help. One of the difficulties that we see now is that the FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Association) Trailers and MEMA (Mississippi Emergency Management Association) Cottages are in the final stages of removal. These trailers and temporary cottages both had built in furniture and appliances. This combination of events presents five significant needs for our ministry.
1. The people who are able to move from either their FEMA or MEMA housing, into either a house or apartment, are without the ordinary furnishings and items of daily life. Examples are:
A. Furniture of all types, i.e. beds, couches, chairs, tables, dressers, bureaus, lamps, desks, shelves, washing machines and dryers, etc.
B. Additionally they are without the small appliances, toasters, coffee makers, benders, clocks, radios, etc., that most of us are used to in daily life.
C. Furthermore, they lack the knick-knacks and other decorative items that change a house into a home.
D. Books, particularly Christian books are in great demand. The storm and flood destroyed most of the books that people along the coast had. Books are a major seller at the thrift store, and Christian books provide an excellent avenue for discussion and relationship building.
Clothing is not a major need at this time for the thrift store!
THEREFORE, We need your help in three ways for the Thrift Store ministry.
First we ask for you suggestions, your knowledge, and your advice for possible sources of materials to help us stock and sell in the Thrift Store.
Second, we need your help in making actual donations of things to sell in the Thrift Store.
Third we need volunteers who can come and help out in the Thrift Store, either on a weekly basis or for any term longer than that. This is very different than our construction ministry since people connection skills, organization skills, and a willingness to “be there for and with the local people” is a primary focus. Yes if you have physical and manual skills we can use you too, but that is not a primary criteria for this ministry. We need compassionate and listening hearts to connect with local people. In the Thrift Store, as well as in each of our other Ministries, Kingdom purposes are primary, the physical tasks are secondary.
2. We are still operating the reconstruction Ministry. We still need people who are willing to do all forms of manual labor. This can range from grass cutting, to licensed labor trades, and everything in-between. All are equally valuable. Our list of people who need help never seems to shrink despite the jobs we complete. This is because when we get one project done, other requests for help have already come in. Most of the other relief groups along the Coast have come to the end of their time here due to a lack of volunteers. We frequently have questions from local people regarding whether we are going to leave them also. However, we have emphasized to the local people and to you that we are here to carry the rebuilding work to completion, if God continues to provide the resources necessary to do that. We assure them that as long as God provides volunteers and resources, WE WILL STAY. Our continued presence here can only occur with your help. If you have been to Waveland before, you may recall that we stress that the physical jobs are secondary to connecting with and listening to the local people. Keep in mind that like in each of our other Ministries, Kingdom purposes are primary, while the tasks are secondary. There remains a long path before us in Waveland. However in the Construction Ministry, the physical jobs are the door that God provides into the lives of the local people whose homes we work on.
3. In connection with the construction Ministry, sources of available construction materials or donations to locally purchase construction material constitute the third significant area of need. Along with the volunteer help, this is necessary for the continuation of much of the work we are asked to do. We try to screen the jobs that we provide materials for very closely. Keeping in mind and heart, Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:31-46. In response, we seek to continue to be able to help the “least of” our brothers and sisters with the construction Ministry.
4. Our vehicles that are used in the construction and thrift store work are all near the end of their useful lives. You may remember the “Larry II” van and the “ELIM” van. They have served us well since the donation of each of them to CLC in early 2006. They are still running but just barely. Replacement with well functioning work vans would be quite useful and appreciated. Appearance or age is not a primary factor, but functionality is.
An additional work truck would be very helpful. One that we have had the use of for the last two years will be leaving at the end of the year.
5. While listed last, but not by any means the least is a need for additional staff. This can and has taken the form of people who have volunteered to come for an indeterminate time, until God calls them elsewhere, or people who have come for a fixed time of a month or more. While we are all volunteers who work for CLC and hence there is no salary in worldly terms, CLC does provide a place to sleep and meals for long-term volunteers and staff at CLC cost. If you are currently in-between employment, or able to take time away from employment, or can raise your own support for personal expenses, or are retired, please consider whether God may be calling you to something more with your life than what is currently happening. If you hear His voice calling you, feel free to contact me so that we can discuss whether Waveland might be the place for you. I know from personal experience how rewarding it is to say yes to Jesus and allow Him to refocus my life on to His path rather than my own.
Do not think that you would not have the skills or abilities to do what Jesus calls you to. He will provide the right person for the specific job He has in mind. He will provide all of the skills and gifts necessary to fulfill what He wants you to do. Keep in mind Matthew 23:12. Also remember Jeremiah 9:23-24 where Scripture states:
“23 This is what the LORD says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom
or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches,
24 but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the LORD.”
One of the main Staff/long term volunteer needs we have is in the kitchen area. This job works best if we have two different people filling it. One for breakfast and the bag lunch and one for dinner. Barbara, one of our long-term staff has been filling both positions since April 1. She needs a respite. Peggy, who has filled the position for the past three winters has returned. However we would like to have Peggy fill one of the cook positions and a new staffer to fill the other. It is time for Barbara to return to her regular position. If you are interested in this or any other volunteer position, please contact us at CLC.
In His Service,
Tom Barbour
Contact info: Tom Barbour, Director 856-305-2371 or jtbarbour@comcast.net