Hearts and hands For Texas

The news out of Texas is both heartbreaking and something that we in Western North Carolina can relate to all too well after Hurricane Helene; rapidly rising flood waters left dozens dead, including many precious kids from a Christian summer camp. One of the co-owners of the camp lost his life as well while trying to rescue many of those kids.

It should go without saying that those dear families, and all of Texas, are going to need both our prayers and our support.

Earth itself is hurting; it has been for thousands of years now. Here is how Paul described it in Romans 8:22, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” Since the moment man fell in the garden, earth has been “off.” In theological terms, it is under a curse, Genesis 3:17-18. Sin was allowed entrance through us, judgment followed, and a once-perfect world was broken and has been deteriorating with each passing year. There will come a day when all of creation is restored, a day when Christ Himself sits on the throne in Jerusalem for a thousand years, and the world gets to experience what an unbroken world can be like.

But what are we to do until then?

Obviously, and in contradistinction to those who love to mock it, we need to pray. Prayer both moves the heart and hand of God on behalf of others and keeps us mindful of others rather than always focusing on ourselves. I have experienced multiple times of being awakened in the middle of the night, burdened for someone and not even knowing why, praying for them, and then the next day finding out that they were going through some danger or hardship at the exact moment that God woke me to pray. And go ahead and block the inevitable God and faith haters who love to use tragedies as a way to mock both; they do not deserve an audience for their ill-timed spewings.

We also need to simply be there for people. When Job’s world was shattered into a million pieces, three friends came and sat quietly with him for a solid week. It was only when they opened their mouths that trouble started; in situations like that, people need friends, not lectures. Anyone who is connected with someone experiencing devastation from all of this would do well to go see those people and just sit with them for a while.

Once we know the material needs, we need to step up in that arena as well. I will never forget tractor-trailer load after tractor-trailer load of materials pulling into our church parking lot, materials that we then loaded onto smaller trucks and carried into the hills and hollows of the mountains of North Carolina. There will doubtless be many needs that come to light in the days ahead, needs that can be helped by supplies or by funds with which to buy supplies.

Physical help will be needed. Here, we and many others carried heavy equipment and lots of manpower to the disaster-stricken areas and helped to clear roads and paths and driveways. I rather suspect the same thing will be needed in Texas as well.

There will be a need for counselors and listening ears. People will have questions, and lots of them. Being able to open a Bible and give good guidance will be crucial in helping people make it through all of this.

We should also be learning and looking ahead. Each disaster provides an opportunity to make systems and dwellings and topography better in anticipation of the next potential disaster. When we were cutting trees off of houses and driveways after Helene, we and many others were also cutting others that could have been a problem later, building up barriers, and strengthening weaknesses in structures. Anyone who has construction or grading skills will be very helpful in things like this.

Be careful of scammers. Disasters like this inevitably bring out low-life, scumbag, sub-human, evil devils in the flesh, wastes of perfectly good oxygen, who will try to profit off of the misery of others. So do not give to anyone or any group that is not verifiably legitimate, and on the ground in the area. Local churches right there in the area are a great choice, and will doubtless be doing the bulk of the helping on behalf of their neighbors. Samaritan’s Purse is another good choice. The random, unknown “helper” on Facebook, probably not so much, unless you want your money going to some crook living in his mommy’s basement and spending your money on porn.

This one is crucial: don’t forget. In the days and weeks to come, things in the news cycle are going to return to “normal.” Politics and sports and world affairs will take top billing, other disasters will occur elsewhere, and if we are not careful, Texas will be left to fend for herself alone. This cannot happen; we need to hold the ropes for and with them for a very long time.

When the world hurts, we must help.