Hurricane Gustav

The 3 year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina just occurred this past week in the midst of preparing for an eerily similar storm, Hurricane Gustav. Please keep Katrina victims, residence of the Gulf Coast, evacuees, their family members, and the workers who are preparing for the storm in your prayers.

I've been keeping an eye on the storm and anxiously hoping that things will not be as bad as they look. As most of you know, last summer I visited the Mississippi Gulf Coast twice to help with the Katrina Recovery efforts and they were not even close to attaining any sense of normalcy in their lives. Now with Gustav lurking just around the corner, I can't imagine how the people who I met are feeling.

I am hoping with all the hope that I have that the government gets it right this time. That evacuations are being planned and aid is being sent to those who can not evacuate on their own. I am also hoping that people do not make the mistake of sticking around thinking that this will all just be a false alarm.

This afternoon while comfortably watching the first week of college football at Paul's house, he called his friend Matt who lives in Mississippi. While Matt is only an acquaintance, I had been thinking about his preparation for the storm. He owns a house a few block away from the beach in Mississippi and this is his second hurricane season in the area, but it is the first big storm that he has prepared for. He was getting ready to evacuate with all important documents and irreplaceables, including a cat. Without much idea of where he would go he was heading north as soon as he was done packing. Ohio is about 12 or so hours away, and he was thinking he might just come this way to be with friends and family during the storm. I pray that all will go well for him, and that no damage will come to his house.

Please pray with me for everyone, and keep your eyes on the weather and gulf coast. I will post here as there are more updates, and if I hear anything from Matt. You could do me a huge favor by posting here that you are praying, as just a little show of support for all of those involved in the storm.
Thank you.

P.S. You can go to campcoastcare.com to see any updates and needs that the camp I attended last summer might have. Keep the staff in your prayers as they pack up, they are all amazing people and really care about all those who have been victims and are potential victims.