Louisiana... still trying to rebuild.

THINK ALL IS 'FIXED' IN AND AROUND NEW ORLEANS? THINK AGAIN... =(

Last month (February 17-23) I was in Louisiana, not far from New Orleans, leading a team of students from Long Island, New York. It was kind of funny... because I was there during Marti Gras – a holiday that pretty much shows how depraved man is – yet we as a group were there to show how great our God is. Because of His death (which Marti Gras sort of leads up to in a sad and ironic way) we don’t have to continue to be slaves to our sin... we are free!

(L–R) PHIL, ME, LESLIE, AND GREG... THE LEADERTREKS
STAFF MEMBERS ON-SITE IN LOUISIANA.
HOT? YES... HARD WORK? YES... DO WE LOVE THIS JOB? YES!! =)

Right before the team arrived in Louisiana, the LeaderTreks staff that were already there spent some time focusing our hearts by singing a few worship songs together. 'You Love is Extravagant' was among the songs we sang. One small, simple line from that song goes 'Your love, oh so intimate.' Those words echoed through my head and heart and became the theme of the week for me.

RUSSELL... ONE OF THE STUDENTS FROM LONG ISLAND
NOT ONLY LEARNS HIS WAY AROUND SOME DRYWALL...
HE'S LEARNING WHAT SERVICE AND COMPASSION
ARE ALL ABOUT AT THE SAME TIME.


YEAH... I KNOW ALL ABOUT POWER TOOLS! AND CRUTCHES... ASK ME. =)

As a team we worked to help rebuild a house that survived both hurricanes Katrina and Rita. But the electrical breaker was damaged by the flood waters and caused the house to burn down six months after the hurricanes. The family was left with nothing. Kerry, the dad, began to rebuild his family’s home all by himself. And now... almost a year later it is coming close to being finished. We were able to come help by putting up drywall thoughout the whole house for him. This alone will move up their 'move-in date' from June to late March! This family of four will then be able to move out of the FEMA trailer they currently live in, and pick up their lives in a home of their own again... putting these tragic events behind them. =)

But this family were not the only ones whose lives were impacted during the week. The student’s eyes were opened to many different things. They saw and began to understand how God can still be glorified in hard circumstances, as they saw others from all over the country coming to help and serve this broken community. Their eyes were opened to what an intimate, committed relationship with the Lord looks like as we studied the life of John the Baptist. Some of them for the first time, began to see how to build an intimate relationship with the Lord, as every morning they had their devotions for 45 minutes and began to learn what it meant to be 'devoted' to a King. And they began to believe that even as youth... they can make a difference in this world! Moments like these are why I am so committed to the mission of LeaderTreks. In my work with students, I am focused on building tomorrow's leaders... today! When God commanded us through His power to change the world… he didn’t leave out any age group. He called students to this task as well. Thank you for your support... so that I can continue to see students 'take hold' of that commission and make it their own. It is my joy and privilege to do so. =)