Adventures in Mission’s focus and theme for our work in New Orleans is “Rebuilding people, not structures.” I was absolutely blown away by the physical devistation of New Orleans. There are block after block of abandon homes. There are abandon community centers, schools, and even churches. So, the question has to be asked, if facilities that are used to invest into people are abandon, who is investing in people? Yes, structures need to rebuilt and there are some amazing groups like Beacon of Hope that are doing just that. Just as structures need time, attention, love, care, investment, and rebuilding so do the people of New Orleans who will soon make those structures come to life.
Our group was able to do just that; to give time, attention, love, care, and investment to help rebuild the people of New Orleans. Our focus was very holistic in nature, helping meet both the spiritual and physical needs of the people we encountered.
A core value of AIM is Listening Prayer and our group learned to practice that together. So often as Christians we do a lot of talking to God and talking at God but rarely take time to LISTEN to God. So, we helped teach our students to begin each day of our trip seeking the Lord, asking for the Lord to reveal where he was working and how we could join in.
It is amazing the things to Lord will reveal and the things he will speak to us if we will just take time to listen. On our first day, we went to our VBS site to pray over it and ask the Lord to prepare the hearts of the people we would encounter that afternoon. We split into three groups and sought the Lord and his leading. I believe the Lord speaks in many ways and often in the American church we are not acustomed to the Lord speaking through words, pictures, names, colors etc. As my group was praying Sara (see below) said the Lord gave her a picture of a man in all black clothing riding a bike.
As we began walking through the community we hadn’t even gone a block and a man in all black clothing on a black bike slowly rode by us. My group was dumbfounded because the Lord brought to pass what he had spoken to Sara. We began praying for the man and as we prayed he gave us one of the biggest smiles I have ever seen.
It was incredibly hot and humid during our time in New Orleans. At other times our group prayer walked through the community handing out watermelon and water to anyone who wanted some. It was a very easy way to meet a felt need as we walked and prayed. It also opened up the opportunity to hear the stories of people, to pray with them, and give them bibles.
In many ways the people of New Orleans are sort of forgotten. Many of our students echoed statements like “I knew Katrina was bad but I had no idea . . .” We never saw most of the parents of the kids and youth we worked with. The wandered the streets, played in and around abandoned structures, and hung out at our VBS site which was an abandoned school and play ground.
As our students literally rolled around in the grass with these kids, I can’t help but imagine this is what Jesus would have done. Luke 18:16 says, But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
Our students were Jesus with skin on to these kids. We laughed with them, sangs songs with them, taught them that our God is “a great big God,” and shared God’s promises in his word with them. The kids just soaked in the time, attention, love, care, and investment we made in their lives.
On our last evening we had a giant cookout and gave away 160 hamburgers and hotdogs, watermelon, and ice cold water to anyone we wanted to stop by. Through this simple act of again meeting a felt need we were able to hear the stories of many adults, to cry with them as the described how hard things have been since Katrina, to pray with them, and leave them with a bible of God’s promises and hope for all mankind.
The challenge we left our students with is that everything we did in New Orleans, we can do right here in Gainesville. We can prayer walk, we can hand out watermelon, we can talk and pray with the people on the public transportation, we can put on a VBS etc. Our students returned fired up and have made plans to do many of the things we did in New Orleans right here in Gainesville. We ask for your prayers for these students that this fire and passion would be sustained and that they will follow God’s leading.
Blessings,
Chad and Heather
P.S. Props to one of our students Jennie Dunnett for taking these pictures.
What an amazing God Adventure. Those kids, both those in New Orleans and those you took with you, will never be the same. Thanks to you and Heather for continuing to be such amazing leaders and for the lessons in learning to listen to God.
so encouraging!
A good word Chad…thanks for reminding us that life is more than stuff and busy schedules and programs…it is about people and about being available to God to serve them. Great pics too! We look forward to seeing you and Heather soon.
Chad & Heather – I am grateful for a good week of ministry for you and your team. Cherish them!
In my opionion so much of modern day ministry is so far from what you all were able to do in New Orleans that I wonder if the church has lost her way?
Reading your entry I reflected on James:
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27
May it continue to be so with you all!
Dad