Below is a semi-definitive list of what some Christian bloggers are saying, and of greater importance, doing about Hurricane Gustav.
First let’s start with a long-time online friend of mine, Don Elbourne, who emailed me just two weeks ago that his church, flattened by Katrina, was just getting back on her feet:
Rebuild Lakeshore - Evacuating for Gustav
We have evacuated Lakeshore. In the morning, I am taking my family, Jamie, Alison, and Zack’s Tulane roommate to Clifton Baptist Church in Franklinton LA where we will ride out the storm in their church buildings. We have done as much preparations in Lakeshore as possible. We expect to receive high winds and rain, but I do not anticipate any storm surge on the church property. Bob Turner and a small crew from VA plan to haul off the bunk houses and bring them to higher ground some time tomorrow. Our prayers are with those along the Louisiana coast where Gustav will more than likely make landfall. If I have internet access in our shelter, I will try to make further updates. For now its just a waiting game as we watch the storm pass.
We definitely will need help reconstructing much of what we dismantled over the last couple of days in Lakeshore. So, if you want to make plans to head our way after the wind dies down, we could use as many hands as would like to come. We have disassembled the kichen and housing will be limited, so if you come you will need to be self-contained. I’ll update conditions as soon as I return to the area.
Christianity Today - Responding to Gustav
World Vision is preparing to distribute hygiene items, clothing, and toys in Dallas and Jackson, Mississippi, for millions of people who are fleeing Hurricane Gustaf, spokeswoman Rachel Wolff told me this afternoon.
The Christian relief and development organization has been working with more than 150 churches and organizations along the Gulf coast, Dallas, and Jackson since Hurricane Katrina.
As thousands of residents of coastal communities clogged highways driving away from the coast, disaster response organizations were finalizing plans to respond when the storm arrived.
In the Gulf region, the Christian Reform World Relief Committee (CRWRC) is one of more than a dozen disaster response organizations that have spent the past few days securing current projects in anticipation of the storm.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), which works in partnership with United Methodist annual (regional) conferences and has been very active in the Gulf Coast since Katrina and Rita in 2005 has also prepared for the potential of Gustav.
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance which has invested in several facilities for disaster response volunteers, said Friday it had evacuated those centers after securing them against the expected storm.
State Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) have also put preparation plans in place so their members will be able to respond appropriately.
Just over three years ago, Lakeshore, MS took the brunt of Hurricane Katrina’s fury with strong sustained winds of 150+ mph and a 42 ft. storm surge. All the homes in this community were destroyed and the residents were not only left without food, shelter, and running water, many lost their lives or the lives of their loved ones.
Lakeshore Baptist Church had their buildings destroyed, but the church body continued to stand to help their community. In the aftermath of Katrina, Rebuild Lakeshore, a mercy ministry spearheaded by Pastor Don Elbourne and Lakeshore Baptist Church, has coordinated the efforts of many churches from all over that have come to help rebuild Lakeshore. I was blessed with the opportunity to serve with my church for a week last January in the efforts at Lakeshore. I was so moved after meeting the people in this community that they have remained in my prayers and dear to my heart.
Please join me in praying for not only the community of Lakeshore, but also, for every community along the Gulf Shores. For a little help on how to pray, please read the following excerpt from Albert Mohler’s blog originally posted in 2005 in regards to Hurricane Dennis.
Out My Back Door - 31 Aug 08 - The Reality Of Gustav
I got up and out at 5:15 this morning and headed to Walmart. I had to beat the crowd of frenzied folks still trying to get water, bread, batteries, and canned goods in preparation for Gustav’s arrival. For today, I just needed the regular, weekly groceries to get us from Saturday to Tuesday (which is the scheduled arrival for Gustav).
Somehow, we are supposed to balance moving ahead day to day with regular life stuff AND preparation for this looming storm
Out My Back Door - 01 Sep 08 - Gustav
IF there is electricity AND internet accessibility after Gustav’s arrival, then I’ll be back soon with some pictures of storm happenings.
IF there isn’t electricity OR internet accessibility after Gustav’s arrival, I’ll get back when I can.
Salvation Army to feed Bus Drivers
Jackson, Miss. (August 31, 2008) As Hurricane Gustav barrels toward the central Gulf Coast and evacuees flee south Louisiana and south Mississippi, The Salvation Army has responded to meet the physical and spiritual needs of evacuees and bus drivers.
Two Salvation Army mobile feeding units from Meridian and Laurel have responded to a request for feeding of evacuees at the Alabama Welcome Center on Interstate 20/59 in Cuba, Alabama. Crews are prepared to serve several hundred meals at a time. Salvation Army Emotional and Spiritual Care teams are also available to provide prayer and emotional support.
The Salvation Army asks people who want to help those affected by Hurricane Gustav to visit www.salvationarmyusa.org or call 1-800-SAL-ARMY.
It is early, but we have arrived at church. We announced that the church would be open if anyone wanted to ride out the storm here instead of on their own. I do not know if anyone will show up.The most recent forecast is that later today our town will experience 80 mph sustained winds. Right now it would still be considered breezy, but it is picking up. I think there are predictions of high rainfall amounts, but maybe not as much as would TS Fay left in Florida.I drove down the main drag this morning on my way to church and it is pretty quiet out there. Many businesses were boarded up. People here seemed to wait longer to board up than they did when we lived in Florida.
Sojourn - Hurricane Gustav Response
It’s becoming more and more likely that I will be leaving sometime Wednesday, with a truckload of emergency supplies, and traveling toward Pass Christian, Mississippi where we have an organization that’s been in place since shortly after Katrina. This organization has been rebuilding people’s homes and providing them with food and shelter during the building process.
They are preparing for the worst with Gustav. My plan, if they do indeed take a hit and need help, is to arrive Wednesday with supplies and stay until Sunday. If you would like to contribute to help purchase the supplies and provide on-the-ground assistance, you can send a check to:
Christ Community Church
1819 Midtown Drive
Columbus, GA 31906
memo line: Gustav ReliefIf you do decide to help with the relief by sending a check, send me an e-mail to let me know so I’ll have an idea of how much we can purchase.
Calvary Baptist Church, Ohio - Hurricane Gustav: Disaster Relief
Rev. Milton will be conducting workshops on Disaster Relief during our upcoming leadership conference. If you would like more information about the FBFI Lay Leadership Conference, please please click the icon below.
Please pray for those in the path of Hurricane Gustav. At this writing, the forecast is that this storm will strike the coast of Mississippi, Louisiana or Texas at more than 150 miles per hour. On Friday, I conducted a phone conference with a number of pastors from our area and from the Gulf Coast.
There is very great concern over this impending disaster. Many passages in the Bible remind us of how we ought to respond when such disasters are imminent. Our missionary, Rev. Jan Milton, the director of Operation Renewed Hope, is diligently preparing to alert and deploy believers all over the country. Click here for more information about ORH Disaster Relief.
Episcopal Relief & Development Standing by to Respond to Hurricane Gustav
Episcopal Relief & Development is standing by to provide emergency relief to communities devastated by Hurricane Gustav. The strong rains and 95 mph winds packed by Gustav have killed 16 people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. There has been significant damage to homes, infrastructure in the region and entire harvests of bananas, beans and vegetables are completely underwater in Haiti.
Concern remains high in the region. Meterologists fear that Gustav will become a Category 2 hurricane before passing over Cuba and Jamaica en route to the Gulf of Mexico, threatening off-shore drilling. Hundreds of people have already been evacuated from coastal areas eastern in Cuba due to heavy rains from the Gustav storm system.
Episcopal Relief & Development is in touch with dioceses in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, ready to supply assistance when it is needed. “Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone in the path of Hurricane Gustav,” says Abagail Nelson, Senior Vice President of Programs at the agency.
To help people affected Hurricane Gustav, please make a donation to ERD’s “Emergency Relief Fund” online at www.er-d.org , or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief & Development “Emergency Relief Fund” P.O. Box 7058, Merrifield, VA 22116-7058.
Blankets, bed linens & towels needed at Pinelake (updated 8/31/08, 9:23 p.m.)
A shelter in downtown Jackson is in need of blankets, bed linens and towels. Please bring them to the Pinelake Activities Center on Monday, September 1 between 3 and 5 p.m.Cots & air matresses needed (updated 8/31/08, 6:20 p.m.)
Cots and air matresses are needed at the temporary shelter that has been set up at Broadmoor Baptist Church in Madison. Approx. 100 people will be sleeping there tonight. If you have a cot or air matress to loan or donate, take it directly to Broadmoor (1531 Highland Colony Pkwy., Madison, ph 601.898.2345)
The Rev. Chuck Currie - Help Victims Of Hurricane Gustav
Hurricane Gustav has already caused great damage as it moves toward the United States. You can make a difference by making a gift to the United Church of Christ (put Hurricane Gustav in the comments section) or Church World Service. Plans are underway for relief efforts.
The Rev. Jane B. Bearden, an Episcopal priest from Massachusetts, is blogging about Hurricane Gustav from Biloxi, Miss. Bearden has been working and living on the Mississippi Gulf Coast helping the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer recover from Hurricane Katrina. An excerpt from her blog, posted (by BlackBerry, which accounts for the typos) on Sunday:
See Jane’s blog Gulf Coast Partners here.
See also Boston.com: Articles of Faith: Priest blogs from Biloxi as Gustav nears
See yesterday’s post on The Lead You got a plan? We will update as we get news. Please keep the people of New Orleans and the Central Gulf Coast in your prayers
Gustav - update on coordinating relief efforts #1
I’ve connected with Rob Wilton of the church plant Vintage New Orleans. His church plant is right smack in the middle of downtown New Orleans and he and a crew of about 5 guys that are riding out Gustav’s landfall and are about 40 minutes outside of Nola in Covington. As soon as Gustav hits and they are allowed back into Nola they will be heading back. Rob and his church have a real heart for the lost and are doing awesome work in the middle of a troubled area. We may be able to connect with them and assist. Check out his blog for updates and good pictures.
Rob’s blog: http://www.robwilton.blogspot.com/
Rob’s church: http://vintagenola.org/I’ve been in contact with Ed Stetzer, president of Lifeway Research. His blog has a reach of thousands and he will be posting updates and connecting those who are in the middle of the storm and those who want to help. Check back to his blog frequently for updates and opportunities to assist.
http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/Lastly, I’ve connected with PCA’s Mission to North America Disaster Relief Team and they will be forwarding details and opportunities to assist as the week unfolds. PCA Mission to North America Disaster Relief teams: http://www.pca-mna.org/
Most of all…please pray. We need to keep our focus on the supreme power of Christ in times like these. No matter what happens…God is in control
Lutheran Social Services Disaster Response
Hurricane Gustav is projected to make landfall Tuesday morning. The LSSDR Bethlehem Volunteer Center in New Orleans and the Volunteer Coordination work in Port Arthur, Texas are closed with the approach of Hurricane Gustav. The LSSDR staff and their families have evacuated. No volunteers are needed at this time.
If you wish to volunteer to help with rebuilding after Gustav passes, please call (800) 938-5777 and leave a voicemail. We will get back to you as soon as we have been able to assess damage and needs.
In the meantime, please keep the residents of the Gulf Coast in your thoughts and prayers.
We also ask that you prayerfully consider a gift to help the storm survivors rebuild their homes, lives and community. Donate Now!
Pastor Resource Council Advisory Update
Once again, there is an incredible outpouring of the Body of Christ. In response to our request, faith-based shelters are available at 43 locations with capacity for over 6,000 evacuees. This is above and beyond the shelters previously registered with parish and state government. Additionally, churches are serving as rest stops along the evacuation routes and ministering to the needs of people.
Please stay in touch with us and advise of your needs. Some supplies will not be available until post-impact but we will do our best to facilitate your needs.
If you have trouble reaching us on cell phones, please try these “land-lines:”
PRC Compassion: 225-490-9541
Louisiana Family Forum: 225-344-8533
Healing Place Church: 225-753-2273Mike Davis
PRC Compassion
Waiting for Gustav in SW Louisiana — Sunday afternoon
A couple of notes from Gustav land….
At this point, the weather is slightly breezy but certainly not foreboding. That is do to change as the day unfolds tomorrow.I had a difficult time getting home today as I needed to cross the two lane north/side highway that runs through our town. The traffic was epic, it occassionally included convoys of ambulances which I assume were transporting folks from hospitals and nursing homes.It was reported that the local grocery story announced it was giving away all refigerated items this morning. All you can eat….till your power goes out as well!Church this morning was interesting. Our attendance was likely about 40-50% of our normal crowd. This wasn’t a surprise based on what I had been reading from people’s facebook status bars. Many folks are quite concerned about the storm.
After the storm, local Catholic Charities throughout the region plan to open community resource sites. The bulk distribution sites will offer water, basic food essentials, cleanup supplies, personal care kits, and other items to meet the communities’ recovery needs.In addition, teams will be deployed into the affected areas to make damage assessments and identify unmet needs in the communities.These assessments will help Catholic Charities determine how best to tailor their response efforts in the days, weeks, and months to come.
To contribute to Catholic Charities USA’s response efforts:
Call (800) 919-9338
Visit www.CatholicCharitiesUSA.org
Send checks to
Catholic Charities USA
2008 Hurricanes
PO Box 17066, Baltimore, MD 21297-1066
Catholic Charities USA is unable to accept contributions of food, clothing, blankets and other relief supplies. Its federal ID number is 53-0196620.
The cancelations are rolling in. Formal Katrina remembrances are being replaced by an unstoppable barrage of unwanted, terrifying memories. Productive work is now on hold. All eyes are on the Gulf of Mexico and the unseeing, unfeeling specter of Hurricane Gustav.He has me churning already. His powerful winds and deadly aim at New Orleans are dredging up suppressed memories of midnight runs, stranded plans, and emotional partings.An emergency meeting to batten down the hatches turned into a torrent of tormented remembrances. Pets are a problem. The elderly need help. Temporary office accommodations are available in Montgomery, Alabama.
The post-Katrina newcomers are staring at me, maybe a little mystified. I am waving my arms too much. My voice is strained, and my animation seems bigger than the situation calls for.
Texas Baptists - The latest on Gustav relief
Texas Baptist Men teams begin feeding evacuees in many places yesterday. In Lufkin, the team fed more than 3,000 meals.
Baptist Child and Family Services has begun sheltering people with special needs in Baptist churches. The last count I have is that the group is helping about 125 people, but chances are that number has increased.
I’m hoping to have more details later today. I’ll update this space at that time. For those on the BGCT NOW e-mail list, I’ll probably send one of those out to you as well today.
Wade Phillips - Meridian, Mississippi
As you may have noticed, I haven’t posted in more than a week. Hurricane Gustav has kept me pretty preoccupied for the last several days, as we at the station prepare for what appears to be another doozy of a storm.
The good news for Meridian is that it doesn’t appear it’s going to be nearly as bad for us this time as it was during Hurricane Katrina.
The bad news is that this really looks like it’s going to be bad news again for New Orleans. Meridian is a prime location for evacuees from New Orleans, straight up Interstate 59. We’ve met people over the last day or two from the Crescent City who say they are not going back, ever. Katrina, then Gustav, are enough to convince them that it’s just not the place for them, despite the fact they’ve lived there their entire lives. It’s really sad, and I’m very concerned about how bad Gustav is going to be for them.
I’ve alerted my Sunday School class to be looking for ways to help people over the next several days.
Baptist Press - Baptists expand post-Gustav meal capacity
The American Red Cross and Salvation Army have asked Southern Baptist disaster relief volunteers to prepare for the worst.
The organizations’ requests for feeding capacity have now doubled from 310,000 meals per day to more than 600,000 as the Gulf Coast braces for the possibility of a Category 4 Gustav, which now is teetering between tropical storm and hurricane status but picking up power as it moves slowly toward the Gulf Coast.
Some 113 of 115 Southern Baptist disaster relief feeding units have been put on alert to mobilize along the Gulf Coast states within a day or two after hurricane’s landfall.
Greek American Community Expresses Concern, Pledges Assistance in Wake of Gustav
Ike Gulas, the national president of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), the nation�s leading association for American citizens of Greek heritage, issued the following statement on the approach of Hurricane Gustav to the Gulf Coast:
“As our nation braces for Hurricane Gustav, we wish to express our concern for those who will be affected by this dangerous storm.
“In the Hellenic spirit of philanthropy and good citizenry, we are activating the AHEPA Emergency Response Team, and placing our chapters on alert, in anticipation of the great need for assistance that will result from the storm�s landfall. However, we hope and pray for the best.”
AHEPA and its affiliated organizations contributed $50,000 for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts and Gulf Coast-area chapters donated countless volunteer hours assembling goods and materials to hurricane victims while helping communities rebuild.
Wheelie Catholic - How to Help During Hurricane Gustav
Ways to donate can also be found here.
MORE INFORMATION TO PASS ALONG
Also: travel advisories for those trying to get out of New Orleans and/or relatives on the phone trying to help them.
For Evacuees who reach Alabama:
The Alabama Emergency Management Agency has opened a hotline to provide information on shelter locations for those fleeing from Hurricane Gustav. The call center number is 1-800-206-0816.
Also, evacuees can dial 211 to reach a hotline set up by the United Way to help people find shelter locations.
Comprehensive MULTISTATE LISTINGS OF SHELTER INFORMATION FOR EVACUEES, storm updates - check this site for listings in TX, AL, MS, FL, etc. from this site information for cancer patients:
Cancer Patients: As Hurricane Storm Gustav nears the Gulf Coast, the American Cancer Society wants to remind cancer patients that: It’s important to contact your treatment facility to know whether it’s open or closed, Know your health information in case you are displaced by the storm, And take your medication with you if you are displaced. The American Cancer Society is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by calling 1-800-ACS-2345 or visiting www.cancer.org.Gustav Wiki page containing aid agencies, helpline numbers, animal rescue resources, relocation advisories, shelters, ham radio resources, ways to post offers of help or help needed and more
Angels in Action - Katrina’s Angel’s page - information about ways to find housing and other resources
Register with the Red Cross as safe and well if displaced by storm
If you have medical equipment you can donate for evacuees who lose theirs in transit, please contact an organization such as UCP. Here’s a link to UCP in Middle Tennessee, where they set up ways to donate equipment during Hurricane Katrina. Similar needs will arise now in states from Florida to Texas to Tennesse to Arkansas.
Finally, if you have other links to other Christian bloggers and/or church and/or para-church relief organizations - please feel free to leave a comment with all the vital information.
All that said, a little Scripture to inspire those of us not near Gustav, feeling peacefully warm and filled:
What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. - James 2:14-18
