If you’d like to help…

Below is the substance of an email I sent to our church body this morning after the storm in Granbury last night:

Dear beloved Church Body,

The Lord last night demonstrated His power and authority, along with His grace.

During the storm, the words of Psalm 8 were going through my mind:

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;
What is man that You take thought of him? (Ps 8)

The work of God in the heavens takes no more effort on His part than little things that one might do with his fingers. However powerful the works above us in the heavens are, they are not strenuous to God. And yet, He also takes thought of us. In the vastness of the universe, we are at the center of it for His care. His looks over us and cares for and sustains us more than any other part of His creation.

And then this morning, when I arose to read my Bible, I found that the first reading for today was Psalm 121 (it’s worth reading the entire psalm) —

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.

The storms may come from the heavens, but our help comes from the one who is above the heavens and is the creator of the heavens and all that we see and all that is made. Our help comes from the Lord and he will not allow His own to slip — He will keep us and will protect our souls and keep us from evil. This God is our God and He is good.

In the midst of these storms, it’s good to remember these truths.

We know these truths, and while many have experienced loss, we have also experienced much grace from Him. Yesterday when the storm hit, many were at the church in the ministry building and though the building was pounded by softball-sized hail, yet no one was injured, the building was secure, and the Lord saw fit to direct the tornadoe(s) on other paths. Give thanks for His kind, protecting hand. And give thanks to the leaders who have been trained well and who are seasoned and mature believers who cared well for the children and prayed with and shepherded them through the storm.

To my knowledge, everyone in the church body was also safe, though several have experienced damage to homes and cars. One member’s home is in the midst of the area most severely hit by the tornado and while his home is damaged, he was safe and the home is still standing, while other homes around his were leveled. This morning he was not yet allowed to return to his home, so he is hoping to return this afternoon to assess the damage. Likewise, another member had roof damage on their home and they are returning around lunchtime to determine what needs to be done. The back window of one member’s car was smashed in, though she herself escaped injury. Please pray for these folks and any others who you might know in our body who need help.

Many have you have called, emailed, facebooked, or texted to see how to help. Here are a few ways you can help:

• If you have damage to a home or vehicle or have some other physical need, please call the church office (682-498-3014) and tell Cathy your need and she will coordinate sending some people to help you.
• If you would like to help people in our church body, likewise please call the church office and tell Cathy what you are willing/able to do and she will direct you to particular needs as we are made aware of them.
• Many of you would like to see this used in spiritual ways as well. Someone has made a significant donation that he’d like to see used to meet needs in the community to open spiritual doors and conversations.  If you’d like to help with that, please contact me directly and I’ll put you in touch with the people who are coordinating that effort.

Many of you have also expressed a desire to help in the community. While there undoubtedly will be more ways to assist in coming days, here are a few things that Cathy has found that we can do:

• Anyone wishing to donate food or clothing is asked to take their donations to: Stone Water Church, First Christian Church or Granbury First United Methodist Church.
• Those wishing to donate their time are asked to contact Granbury First United Methodist Church at 817-573-5573.
• Donations by cash or checks may be taken to Mission Granbury at 1310 Weatherford Highway (checks can be mailed to Mission Granbury, P. O. Box 1343, Granbury, TX 76048). Those wishing to donate by credit card may do so over the phone by calling 817-579-6866, ext. 12.
• First National Bank has also set up a general fund to help with community needs (817-573-2655), as other local banks also likely have.

If you are aware of other ministry needs or opportunities, please let us know.

And thank you for your trust in the grace of God, and the gracious way you serve each other and the community as expressions of your love for Christ.

You live out your faith well.

Grateful for the work of God among us and in us,

Pastor Terry