Joplin Recap

So I fell behind on updating my blog after the first couple of days!  We were busy from 7:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. every day, so it made it hard to carve time out to update things.  I apologize for the length of this post, but there are so many things that I need to share that happened - things that God allowed us to experience!

Our Group before we left

I was unsure of what to expect going into this trip.  I knew that we would experience devastation, people rebuilding their lives, and despair.  I was not prepared for how MUCH God would use us and how much He would bless one person in particular through our efforts!

Our first curveball came when one of the parents that was signed up to join us on this trip called me as we were on our way.  Her daughter caught the flu bug the night before and was unable to attend, so the mom stayed behind as well.

Moving forward, I was excited about the diversity that we had on our trip.  Four adults and seven teens.  Six from Rhinelander, one from Tomahawk, one from Merrill, two from Hudson WI, and one from Farmington MN.

As I said before, I was unsure what we would experience on this trip.  The information coming from the church that we were working with was at best muddy!  So we walked in day one not knowing where we would work, or what we would be doing.

We went over to the Ellis home on Monday.  Their house was one of the many that was destroyed in the tornado.  They purchased a fixer-upper just outside of town.

We were able to help them out in a big way!  We did some framing and then sheetrock and mudding.  Part of our group jumped in and assembled and installed some cabinets for their kitchen.  The teens jumped in and painted three different rooms.  It was a full day and they were very appreciative of what we were able to do for them.

Each evening we had a Bible study on the book of James.  It was a great time for the teens to recap the day's events and see how to apply Biblical truth in their lives.

Tuesday was a day that we will all remember!  We were tasked with the house of a lady named Jan.  Jan's house was not affected by the tornado, but her life was turned upside down.  She lost her husband in the Tornado.  He was shopping at Wal-mart while the tornado ripped through Joplin.  Wal-mart was one of many businesses that was in the direct path of the F5 tornado, and his life was taken from him.  As I wrote in my last post, God pre-ordained our visit to Jan's house.  Because on this trip we had a Carpenter, a Woodsman, and an ex Insulator - just the very type of people that she needed at her house!!!

We walked in and saw immediately what the problem was with her garage.  Lines of water stains that were turning into mold indicated a severe lack of insulation and HVAC issues.  We started ripping down her ceiling and had to battle both the 114 degree weather and a TON of ants!  I was shocked to see the lack of insulation in the ceiling.  Very poor forethought proved to be the downfall in this area.  We were able to rip out the old sheetrock and insulation.



I can still remember meeting Jan at Lowe's that day!  I had talked to her on the phone and she was extremely excited that we were there and able to help her.  When she walked up to me, she gave me a huge bear hug!

The rest of our week consisted of working on the garage and one other project - cutting, splitting, and stacking wood.  There were so many trees down in her backyard!  Taking three and a half days of work to clear, we were able to cut, split and stack all the wood that was down in her back yard!

 As we came back everyday, we got to know Jan, her son Bobby, and her daughter better.  It turns out that she not only lost her husband in the tornado - she lost her first husband to a massive heart attack as well.  It was so sad to listen to her tell of her heartache - two times over.  It was amazing to me to see her strength as she told us the story of how her husband died and how she found out about it.  It was priceless for the teens to hear from her how this has STRENGTHENED her faith in God, not diminish it!  How she ran to God instead of running away from Him!

An emotional time was had when Jan came out for a picture and carried her husband's picture with her.  It was then that the teens really understood the gravity of the situation that we were in.  How great the loss she suffered.

This trip went exceedingly well, and everyone was in awe of how God used us.  The church in Joplin has committed to helping out for three years.  As soon as we heard that, and their invitation to come down again - we all knew what we would be doing next summer!  A big part of our hearts are left in Joplin.  My heart ached we we had to leave, knowing all the work that still had to be done.  All the hurting people that were still there.  All the rebuilding that still needs to be done as well.  I pray that you will join me next summer as we go back down to Joplin to help share God's love and hope to the people of Joplin.  As we help rebuild their homes and community, that He would rebuild their hearts as well.  That they would experience a radical encounter with Him that would be even more life changing than this tornado was!

Thank you for all the prayers and encouragement!  They were both needed and appreciated!  I can't wait for next year!!!