Hurricanes come and go. If I’m being honest, my interest level depends on the proximity of my loved ones and their possessions to the storm’s projected cone of impact. I pay more attention to a storm threatening my dad’s Florida condo (occupied or vacant) than a typhoon that threatens the lives of thousands of people in Indonesia. I value all human life, but it’s difficult to become emotionally invested in the fate of complete strangers on the other side of the planet.
As a major storm makes landfall, I watch reporters get pounded by the wind and rain during live updates. It is an exciting and interesting spectacle…the ultimate in reality television. Always a news junkie, I stay glued to my television as the eye of the hurricane makes landfall.
In the days that follow, I hear reports about the devastation and loss of life. I see before and after photos of neighborhoods wiped off the map. I hear inspiring stories of first responders rescuing victims and neighbors helping neighbors. I watch politicians and community leaders offer “thoughts and prayers” and promise to rebuild.
By about the third day after the storm, a funny thing happens. National media coverage stops. They have moved on to the next news story of the day. People outside of the destruction zone have moved on with their lives. That’s to be expected, given our busy lives and short attention spans. As we return to regular programming, we tend to forget the short-term and long-term suffering and hurting of those whose lives have been turned upside down by the storm.
That all changes when you travel into the zone of destruction. My wife and I have had the opportunity to do so in Biloxi, Mississippi (Hurricane Katrina), Beaumont, Texas (Hurricane Harvey) and, more recently, Panama City, Florida (Hurricane Michael). While we build our RV travel calendar around sojourns (sojourning.org), we look for opportunities to do disaster relief when we’re able. It gives our traveling a purpose.
In case you’ve “moved on to the next story,” I’d like to refresh your memory of Hurricane Michael and share four things I’ve learned during our week in Panama City. Hurricane Michael was the third-most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in the contiguous United States in our nation’s history. In terms of maximum sustained wind speed, it was the strongest storm to strike the contiguous United States since Andrew in 1992. It was also the strongest storm on record to ever hit the Florida Panhandle.
With winds reaching 155 miles per hour, Michael made landfall on October 10, 2018…less than a month ago. It caused 60 fatalities and over $11 billion in damage. Those are facts…statistics. They register for a few seconds…we shake our head…and then we move on with our lives. Or, we can travel to a disaster area, see the devastated property and shattered lives first-hand, pitch in to help with recovery, and be forever changed by the experience.
Lesson Learned #1 – A Badge of Love. One of the neatest aspects of doing disaster relief is the opportunity to meet and get to know the storm victims and your fellow relief workers. One such volunteer is John Powers, a retired firefighter and paramedic from Big Bear City, California. I look up to him physically—at 6’ 7”, he was unable to “fit” inside my Honda Fit! More importantly, I look up to him spiritually. He has a heart as big as his frame is tall.
During a morning devotional, John said that during his firefighting career, his badge meant something. It gave him instant credibility. Whether he was talking to schoolchildren about fire prevention, checking smoke alarms and fire extinguishers, putting out a fire, or rescuing victims at an accident scene, he wore his badge. It mattered. Everyone who saw it knew that John was “legit” and could be trusted, even with their own lives.
John told us a Christian’s “badge” is our love. It gives us instant credibility. We are called to love one another as Christ loved us. (John 13:34) That’s a high standard. If you want someone to listen to what you have to say about God, they must first see Christ at work in your life. They must see the love. If a Christian isn’t consistently demonstrating love (wearing the love badge), he is nothing but a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. (1 Corinthians 13:1) In short, he’s wasting his time.
We won’t win the world for Christ by building fancier church buildings, winning doctrinal arguments, or rendering judgment on the eternal destiny of our neighbors. However, our neighbors might pause for a moment and listen to what we have to say if they notice our badge…a badge of love.
Lesson Learned #2– The Five Phases of Disaster Relief. Each relief worker “processes” these experiences differently. Here are the 5 phases I go through:
- Phase 1 – Shock. Driving south on Highway 231 toward Panama City, the damage got progressively worse. Downed trees. Crushed homes. Demolished businesses. Debris everywhere. I have never seen anything so devastating over such a wide area, and I am shocked by it. This can’t be real.
- Phase 2 – Sadness. As you start to meet victims and hear their stories, you can’t help but be profoundly impacted by it. Their tales break my heart. With each one, I give the person a hug, but I really want to wave a magic wand and make it all better. One guy lost his home, his job, and most of his possessions. He’s here living at the church building, volunteering to help others, and starting to rebuild his life. I’m proud of him, but also sad for him.
- Phase 3 – Dismayed & Disheartened. You start to realize the scope of the damage. What do you say to the person who, in an instant, lost their home, possessions, and job? When there is severe damage on every block in town, and nearly every structure, where do you begin? I would describe it as someone taking one hundred identical 2,000-piece puzzles and dumping them all together on the floor. How will you solve them all? Where do you begin? There are too many pieces! It’s depressing to the core.
- Phase 4 – Resolve. We got this! We can do this! We have lots of talented, dedicated volunteers from around the country. The Church of Christ Disaster Response Team has an organized process and a semi full of chain saws and every tool imaginable. The Church of Christ Disaster Relief Effort has shipped a wide range of needed supplies for the impacted community. There are portable showers and air mattresses for volunteers to use. Every meal is provided for us. There are scores of other relief organizations around town as well. We’ll solve the 100 identical, mixed up puzzles known as Panama City one piece at time…but solve them we will!
- Phase 5 – Faith. Wait a minute…God’s got this! God can do this! God is the Conductor and we are merely 4th trumpet. This is not about our talents, abilities, supplies and processes. This is about a God who is bigger than any storm…who knows the thoughts, struggles, and needs of every victim…and who is uniquely qualified to heal the broken-hearted. We can’t do diddly squat without God. However, with God, all things are possible. (Matthew 19:26)
Case in point: I had the unique privilege this week to join with several other volunteers in cutting down trees and clearing debris in the yard of 81-year-old Stanley Laidler. Master Sergeant (retired) Laidler is a faithful Christian, Vietnam War veteran and former Forward Air Controller (“Ground FAC”) who was awarded TWO Bronze Stars…one from the Army and one from the Air Force! After finishing our work for the day, our group (including a dozen students from Freed-Hardeman University) circled up to pray for Stanley and his wife. After the prayer, he talked to our group and shared some life lessons. With tears flowing down his cheeks, he said, “You’re going to have some problems in life. Things won’t always go your way. Things like this storm. But listen to me, young people. God is bigger than any problem! Never give up on God!”
I share these 5 Phases because Phases 3 & 4 are time-consuming, energy-sapping, and unnecessary. Give yourself a few hours for the inevitable Shock & Sadness, then put your faith entirely in God and get to work!
Lesson Learned #3 – Adjust to a New Normal.Tim Neal, the preacher at Palo Alto Church of Christ, preached a powerful sermon this morning. He told the audience, many of whom had lost all or part of their homes, that they would need to adjust to a “new normal”. “As surely as sparks fly upward,” man can expect trouble in this life. (Job 5:7) This town has experienced trouble in the form of Hurricane Michael. For many, the “new normal” would include neighbors they might not see again, different places to shop/eat/get gas, new activities (debris removal vs ball games), possibly new jobs (some worked at Tyndall AFB, which was effectively destroyed), etc.
Rather than fight the “new normal”, we need to find a way to embrace it and go with it. Even those of us who haven’t been impacted by a hurricane can become very comfortable in our routines…and agitated by anything that upsets them. We all face “new normals”—the effects of aging, moving to new places, deaths of loved ones, etc. Will we boldly face the challenges in faith, or cower in fear?
Lesson Learned #4 – Orient to New Opportunities. Tim shared that our “new normal” includes new opportunities. Many people were meeting (and even helping!) their neighbors for the first time. Many had encouraged their friends and neighbors to get free food/clothing/supplies at the church building and to fill out a form to get help with other needs (tree/debris removal, mucking out houses, etc.) Although God wasn’t “behind” the storm, could he be using it to open doors of opportunity for folks to share the gospel? Yes!
In fact, earlier this week, we cleared debris and mucked out the home of a man and woman in their 70’s who will remain anonymous. After circling up and praying for the couple, the man teared up and thanked our group. He then pulled me aside and said that they had a long road ahead toward recovery, but that they weren’t giving up. He also said that he and his wife wanted to “return to church” and asked me several questions about the local congregation and what we believe. I answered his questions, and told him we were helping him because we love God and want to share that love with others. He seemed eager to learn even more, and I couldn’t help but think that maybe our group, collectively, had shown him the love badge that John talked about.
As Tim finished his sermon this morning, I noticed a man standing in the doorway listening. The man is not a church member, but rather an election official, there to help Bay County residents vote in an adjoining room. (Yes, this congregation offered up a room in their building for voting to occur, which is somewhat humorous given all the emphasis on “separation of church and state.”) I got to thinking about the man in the doorway. If the hurricane hadn’t happened, voting wouldn’t be happening in this church building. That means that man wouldn’t have been in the doorway, listening to a fine gospel sermon.
After services, I went over and introduced myself to the man in the doorway. I asked if he needed anything to eat or drink. “How about a Diet Coke?” he asked. “Coming right up,” I answered. I could be wrong, but I sense an opportunity.
