Delivering Aid to Panama City

This is not a report of work done by a Disaster Relief team, but by two Disaster Relief people making a delivery of needed items for VOAD that I thought would be informational.

Our delivery of cleaning supplies, food, blankets and Christmas trees along with other miscellaneous supplies was quite an adventure.

Within the first hour we discovered our truck only had enough power to top steeper grades at 45 mph or less at times. As night enveloped us late the first day it became apparent, we had head light issues. After replacing the right headlight we are lit up and on our way. 

Arrived at our destination late on Tuesday and about eight people joined us at the Church. We spent two and one half hours working non stop unloading the truck. The Church suffered the loss of their sanctuary, their daycare building along with other destruction. Yet they are using their family life building to collect and distribute supplies to the community. Unless one has been there and seen the damage there is no way anyone can understand the destruction and that destruction spans miles of homes and businesses.

As we returned home mid afternoon on our third day, our heat controls all went out. The radio would come on without a button being pushed or a dial being turned.

After we checked in to our motel for the evening, I went back to the front lobby for a bottle of water. After getting into a conversation with a couple of employees, I asked and received permission to share the Evange Cube. One was a believer, but the other fought back tears through most of the presentation. At the end I asked if that person would like to accept Jesus as Savior. Unable to talk, she finally uttered, "no, not now." 

The Holy Spirit was drawing her, but her free will wouldn't let her make that choice. Twice she told me, "not now." I told her to please not wait until it's too late. I then told her she could do it without anyone helping her and left her with that.

On our fourth and final day we started the truck hoping our heating system would work. It didn't work on a cold morning in the upper twenties just south of Louisville Kentucky. The cab light was on and we could not turn it off and the radio continued to come on at random. I sent a text to eleven people explaining our predicament. We stopped for fuel about fifty miles into Ohio on I-71. We came back to get in the truck and Dale opened the passenger door with the key, which we hadn't been able to do the entire trip. When we started the truck the heat came on and the cab light was out. I texted to those same eleven people, I'd texted earlier about our issues, and I said, "someone's prayer's are working."

After that I received text messages that a group of (Secret Sisters) ladies were praying. These ladies aren't on my email prayer list, but had the original trip prayer request forwarded to them. This happened before I texted the good news that our heat had come on. I also had been getting text messages from members of our Mudout group saying they were praying.

Proof that prayer works and Dale and I would like to thank everyone for praying, those we heard about and those we didn't hear about. Normally we don't hear about folks praying. We heard this time because of some unusual circumstances. However, because of all the positive things that have happened over the past several years, we know you all send up many prayers for our teams and our families every time we go out.

Thanks for being a part of the team.