Letter to the Editor
- Feb 12, 2008 - comment
Dear Southern Baptists,
My name is John. For the past two-and-one-half years I’ve introduced myself as Refugee, since I was one of several hundred thousand displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Living eighty-five miles away from your church field for two-and-one-half years can be a challenge, but this former Refugee can indeed testify with conviction that with God’s help we can do all things.
In the aftermath of Katrina, I’ve seen both misery and miracles! One miracle is the continued effort of Southern Baptist leaders as they encourage and exhort volunteers from across the nation to rebuild and restore 2,500 homes and 25 churches in Louisiana’s hurricane devastated areas. First Baptist Church, Chalmette, the church that I have served for the past seventeen years, is the largest of these twenty-five volunteer-church-rebuild projects.
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The first purpose of this letter is to simply say “Thank you!” to Southern Baptists across the nation for your continued prayers and for your continued support for our reconstruction and recovery. Here’s a miracle: In the last ten months God has blessed FBC Chalmette by sending 2,500-3,000 volunteers from 224 congregations in 31 states to help us with the First Baptist project. We can never say “Thank you!” enough to the many volunteers who have come.
A second purpose of this letter is to share that the work is not yet done. First Baptist Chalmette, at this writing, is about sixty percent complete. In St. Bernard Parish, where our church is located, only one of our SBC churches is meeting in its original sanctuary, and they rededicated that facility a full two years after Katrina. Our church currently meets with a sister church in a high school cafeteria. Another fast-growing mission church actually meets in the pastor’s garage. The body of Christ lies wounded in our beloved St. Bernard Parish. More than half of all Christian evangelical churches have been destroyed and will never return.
There is still great misery here, brethren, still great misery. It is impossible to describe the damage that remains in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina or the volume of work that we are attempting in reconstruction. For more than two-and-one-half years, many, many people have been and are still living in FEMA trailers, under bridges, in tents, under the stars in public parks and/or in vacant, uninhabitable mudded-out houses.
Which leads me to share the third and final purpose of this letter: As your church, association or other mission groups begin looking for places to serve this year, your consideration in coming to this area would be very much appreciated.
For further information, you can go online to FBC Chalmette’s Web site to see pictures of that project, or you can contact Gary Morrow, our Onsite Construction Coordinator (a Missouri Baptist lay volunteer) at fbcchal_gary AT bellsouth.net, or call FBC at 504-277-2939. Our state convention’s Louisiana Baptist Builders contact is Jeff Woodrich, Mission Builder Director, Jeff.Woodrich AT LBC.org, 225-975-0848 (cell).
Still Running The Race, In Christ
Dr. John Dee Jeffries, Pastor
First Baptist Church
Chalmette, Louisiana
If you would prefer to work through the North American Mission Board, Operation Noah Rebuild is a three-year partnership project (through August 2009) between New Orleans churches and associations, the Louisiana Baptist Convention, and the North American Mission Board to help New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Volunteers are needed to rebuild homes; start, restart, or strengthen churches; and reach people with the good news of Jesus Christ.
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