Who am I?

(pt.2 of previous post)

We had a several difficulties during our clean up mission. One included getting dumpsters out to several of the home sites. The private dumpster company would not cooperate with us for some odd reason. The account was made by the church willing to pay for it, the dumpster bins were already paid for, and home sites were already noted to where to deliver them to. However, there was still difficulty getting them out there. Only later in the week we found out that the homes we wanted to send the bins out to were managed by another dumpster location (same company) but in the next county. So we call the company in the other county and they gave us more problems. So frustrating! We did all we could in the week were there to get those bins out to the homes we were helping.

Another issue we had during clean up was communication. My cell phone didn’t work (stupid AT&T) but Verizon did (stupid AT&T). However, Verizon didn’t work well when we were helping with the homes that were hit on Summit Rd. Our group was split up during 2 different home sites: one on top of the hill and one on another hill several miles away. Neither of our cell phone services worked as well as the radios we had. The radios were most effective when they were line-of-sight. One time I was used as messenger by being dropped off at an intersection (a dirt and dusty one). I was instructed to wait until the other people in our team drove by the intersection that I was sitting on. Imagine this: waiting in the middle of a burnt forest intersection, no cell phone service, no radio contact with anyone, alone. We definitely need to get satellite phones next time.
Despite all the difficulties we had, I do believe we did make an impact to those we were around during this week. One couple helped out had several cars and trailers along with their home destroyed due to the fires. The girlfriend of the homeowner who lived with him was not handling the current situation well. We helped the homeowner collect the ash, sort the bricks, and move several large objects on his property with the front-skid-loader. We even helped find 2 cups of melted gold and other fine metals. The spot that we found them in may have been where the jewelry box was in their home. After we were finished, he said that he believes his girlfriend would be able to come up the mountain to see the progress that was being made towards starting a new home.

Another person waved me to talk to them at another home. He asked me how much we were being paid to clean up the burnt down home. I told him it was free. This person was surprised and said, “For free?” I began to tell him that it was God that lead this team to come out and help those were not able to help themselves because of this fire. I told him about our week and the different places we went to. He just kept repeating, “For free?” I guess some people can’t believe people would do all that work for absolutely nothing.

Volunteering my time also made an impact on me. God answered my prayers about signing up on this clean up crew for the week. I had a lot of things on my mind that I needed to sort out about myself, my relationships with others, my motives, my future, and my walk with God. While working the shovel, shifting through the ash, and by driving around the front-skid-loader, I was able to listen to what God had to say to me. He showed me that serving others really makes you humble. The sifting incident really helped me learn that. I also learned that our actions really speak louder than words. It would be too easy to say, “I hope you make it out ok,” but actually taking the time out to help someone really says something. It shows concern, kindness, thoughtfulness, and selflessness. This was also an opportunity to share Jesus with others. We would talk with the owner not only about where to stack the pile of metal and ash, but also if there was anything we could pray for them about. After each job site was completed, the team that finished the site gathered in a circle of prayer with the homeowner, with the homeowner’s permission. With prayer, having our team chaplain speak with the homeowner, and leaving a tract about why the SBC Disaster Team does what it does, we made a difference in Santa Cruz county. I pray that the souls of those we talked to come to know Christ Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Some melted gold we found

Before

After