A Life Changing Weekend

On June 11, 2010 I woke up like it was any other morning.  I went to a friend's house where 3 mornings a week I am lifting weights and working out with several other friends. On my way there I began to hear bits and pieces about the Caddo flooding and that they thought maybe as many as 5 people were missing at Albert Pike.  We did half our workout and then set out in the truck to go look at the Caddo River which was higher than I have ever seen it and I've lived here for 14 years.  After talking to my friend, Penny, who was camping at the lake and her family are all Lodi first responders/fire dept. she told me that they might be bringing some families to their fire house.  I called another friend, Stacy, who lives out there as well and she told me she was going to get food for some of the families.  I offered to help and ran home to get changed.  Little did I know that the decision to go out and help with what I thought was a minor situation going on would end up being something that would change the way I view everything.

Within 10 minutes of arriving at Pilgrim Rest MBC, I could see that this was much bigger than what I initially was told.  Within a few minutes, I was asked to start finding families with missing family members and bring them one at a time to meet with the state police in a room in the back to give their information about their family member.  People were huddled in groups...some were crying, some were just in shock, some were excited to see someone they knew...a full range of emotions but you could feel the confusion and anxiety in the air inside and out of the church.  The first family that I found with a missing person and visited with while we waited in the hallway for them to be called in found out within a short period of time that their 7 year-old daughter's body had been found.  I had about 2 minutes to cry for this family and then had to stand with another couple who showed me their little boys picture (who thank the Lord was found safe a few hours later) and it began to dawn on me that this was going to be like nothing I had ever experienced before. 

Throughout the day I talked with family after family who were desperate to find their loved one alive...some multiple family members.  Over the course of 4 days, I grew to love many of these families and rarely has an hour go by that one of them is not on my mind.  The last 4 families to be at the church waiting on their families were all from different places, some already knew that they had lost part of their family and were waiting on the remaining members to be found...the agony of waiting was written on their faces and you could feel the desperation from them. 

Those of us there those days have had time now to look back and reflect and we have talked about how we were sleeping 2 and 3 hours a night over 4 days and yet felt like we had slept, when normally we wouldn't know what to say or do with someone in such a desperate situation...the words seemed to be there.  We know that the strength to get through those 4 days was not from us, it was God.  He provided all we needed to minister to these families in the worst hours and days of their lives. 

Since then, a small group of us attended 3 funerals and 2 visitations for 9 precious family members.  We have loved and been loved on by each and every member of these final 3 families that we waited with while they waited on word of their final family member to be found.  It is something that has changed each and every one of us.  We will not ever view life the same I hope.  God had a plan.  It is beyond our comprehension and I want to share what I have experienced and learned while attending these 3 funerals and loving these 3 families as soon as I can. 

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

II Corinthians 12:9