MySpace blog: New Orleans: first night

New Orleans: first night. May 20, 2006 01:12 AM CDT

My eyes are dry and my shoulder sore as I write tonight. I hurt my left shoulder chasing Bethany's dog yesterday, and now it's acting up. The room is filled with journalers, laying on sleeping bags. Bethany is singing in the shower at the other end of the building. We just got in a few hours ago, and were tired, after a long time traveling. Its weird being in a place where there are no wireless networks in range. Oh, wait. Maybe thats because my wireless was turned off.

There is some tension rising, as we are at the point where decisions are beginning to affect the immediate future. Differences are to be expected with any team.

Bethany re-enters the room, with toothbrush in mouth--it turns out she wasnt singing in the shower. "I cant find the frickin' light!" she exclaims.

Sheri is the first to say goodnight, and we all reply with tired voices, "Goodnight." The lights are still on, and the floor is hard.

I'm not complaining at all, just trying to be descriptive. I'm perched on a padded folding chair in the far corner of the room. We are staying at First Baptist Church in Avondale, LA--a suburb to the west of New Orleans.

"Can you feel the cold air?" Karissa asks, as she turns on her fan. That reminds me of the balmy temperature at landing. While it was only in the mid-70s tonight, it still was uncomfortably warm and humid. In fact, California was unusually humid today. We loaded and unloaded our many bags in heat and dampness.

Despite our stickiness, we won't shower tonight--we're all too tired (besides Bethany). I'm not quite sure why I'm writing at this hour.

I finally got the wireless to start working, so I'm checking the ol' myspace so that I can post what I wrote earlier, and then this journal entry.

I'm beginning to wonder what this trip is going to look like. The fear that we won't do any of the things we set out to do in New Orleans is encroaching. God seems to be opening doors for us in Baton Rouge, but not all of the team is as excited about all the same things. Particularly, Laura (my co-leader) has said that she would rather work here in New Orleans. I would rather work in Baton Rouge. The way I see it, there is more hurricane damage in Baton Rouge. There is not any physical damage remaining there, but there are far more people whose lives were forever changed by the hurricane.

We did not come to respond to an event, but to respond to a calling, to respond to a commission, and to take seriously our anointing to bind up the brokenhearted, preach good news to the poor, proclaim freedom to the captives, and teach them to rebuild the ancient ruins.

What good is it to repair someones house? A house built on the sand will be washed away! Restoration focused on physical rebuilding will be washed away. Restoration focused on a personal transformation is like a house built on a rock. There must be a physical element, but our goal is not to fix peoples' homes so much as it is to change peoples lives so that God may be glorified.

We will be in both places, but we do have to make a decision about how long we're in each place. The team will make all those decisions together. I do value house gutting, as it is a physical, practical way to show people that we care. However, I feel that the work to be done in Baton Rouge will not only teach us more, but will be a more effective investment in the Kingdom of God. The fact that I know Larry Lain and am especially confident in working with him makes Baton Rouge all the more appealing for me. In fact, Larry is trying to get me to take a position through their church and AmeriCorps for one year. Its a long shot, but its definitely something I am open to.

It's hitting me that a month is really a short period of time. But in some ways it's also excruciatingly long. I know there will be times that I'll want the month to be over because of how I encounter certain people on the team and in the community. But I also know that when I leave, I will feel like there is so much more to be done and that I have so much I could give here. I think that one of my problems is seeing the potential I have to serve in a place and viewing my ability to meet a need as reason enough to get involved. I guess that remains to be seen in greater detail. I'll just keep taking things one step at a time.