God's Love in Action Publicity Pack (with customizable brochures)
Price: $32.95

God's Love in Action Publicity Pack (with pre-folded brochures)
Price: $32.95

God's Love in Action Brochure--Customizable
Price: $5.00

God's Love in Action Brochure--Pre-folded
Price: $5.00

God's Love in Action Bulletin Inserts--Finding Care Receivers
Price: $5.00

Finding Jesus in the Storm

by Patricia Canty, Stephen Leader
First United Methodist Church
Lufkin, Texas

Disasters bring out the best in people. The Gulf Coast States have seen their share of hurricane disasters this year, and many people have stepped up to help those in need. It didn't take long for the Stephen Ministers in Lufkin, Texas, to organize a relief effort in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Led by local licensed professional counselors, Stephen Ministers from First United Methodist Church and First Assembly of God began ministering to Hurricane Katrina evacuees at the United Pentecostal Campground in Lufkin, Texas.

Working in shifts, the Stephen Ministers reached out to some 350-plus individuals who had lived in nightmarish conditions in New Orleans, Louisiana, following the brutal August 2005 Hurricane Katrina. They listened to the stories of horror, held the trembling hands, and gave reassurance to the brokenhearted. Under the guidance of professional counselors, the Stephen Ministers assessed needs and when appropriate made referrals to mental health professionals for those in need of a higher level of care.

Just when it looked as if things were headed in the direction of positive recovery, along came another vengeful storm, Hurricane Rita! Following a similar path across the Gulf of Mexico and building up to a Category 5 mega-hurricane, Rita took aim for the Texas Gulf Coast. Setting a destructive path with sustained winds between 100 and 120 mph, Rita tore through the Southeast and Deep East Texas counties, seeming to follow the Sabine River separating Texas from Louisiana.

Mandatory evacuations from Sabine Pass/Port Arthur extending beyond Galveston, Texas, preceded the storm, a mass exodus not seen in generations. Freeways from the coastline and nearby inland cities were congested with bumper-to-bumper traffic, well over a million people fleeing the soon-to-be-hit Gulf Coast of Texas. After grueling hours on the road, travel-weary people began to enter the safe refuge of Lufkin, Texas, and other cities designated as evacuation points. About 370 evacuees found the welcoming arms of First United Methodist Church in Lufkin ready to embrace them with food, clothes, and shelter.

Again, the Stephen Ministers of FUMC-Lufkin were called into action. Indeed, they answered the call even though Lufkin and the surrounding towns were also being hard hit with raging winds and torrential rains, loss of power for days on end, and huge oak and pine trees uprooted and blocking streets throughout the area.

In addition to listening to stories of long lines for gasoline, vehicles breaking down, and apprehensions about whether or not shelter would be found, the Stephen Ministers offered love, compassion, and encouragement. The body of Christ loved each evacuee without judgment or bias. Within a couple of weeks, the Stephen Ministers began to work with the evacuees to assess their needs for the immediate future. What plans did the evacuees have if they couldn't return to their homes for perhaps six weeks or more? What did they need to accomplish their plans? Was there life after Rita? The Stephen Ministers spent quality time with each family unit trying to help develop plans for the next stage of their odyssey.

Stephen Leader Patricia Canty (right) with Stephen Minister Bob Graham at First United Methodist Church, Lufkin, Texas.

Plans made, vehicles packed up, hugs, prayers, and best wishes extended in Christian love, the evacuees left Lufkin . . . beginning the next leg of their journey: A new experience for everyone. And--something unprecedented happened in an East Texas town . . . we found Jesus in a storm!

The story doesn't end here. It keeps going: Perhaps those who lived it will remember the love and compassion shown in those days of uncertainty. And, in turn, hopefully they will pay it forward, as in the movie Pay It Forward. If someone does a good deed for you, you in turn perform an exemplary favor for three other people, and so on, and so forth.

Needless to say, for every person a Stephen Minister reached out to, a multitude of blessings flowed around the care receiver and the Stephen Minister. We are humbled to have witnessed Jesus in many forms, both as the one giving and as the one receiving.

Yes, in Lufkin, Texas, we remarkably found Jesus in the storm!

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