Volunteers are helping to restore homes, from the floors to the ceilings. Photo: Kristina Peterson, PDA National Volunteer

At the October 8th early service at John Knox Presbyterian Church, a group of folks from John Knox and Reedy Fork Baptist Church were commissioned to carry out God’s work in the Gulf Coast where there is still much need after Hurricane Katrina. It was the fourth trip for John Knox and the first for Reedy Fork, who went along to “shadow” the work being done in hopes of taking future teams back. We were housed in separate Presbyterian Churches in the Mobile, Alabama, area but worked together on two job sites throughout the week. One was the home of an elderly couple whose house was devastated by floodwaters and the other was an old home being made into a new home for a single mother of three who lost everything and was basically starting over. All the folks we served are still living in FEMA trailers and were gracious hosts and truly thankful for our presence.

Our group had several skilled workers and many others of us who just had big hearts and wanted to help where we could. Our main tasks were hanging sheetrock, painting, hanging siding and plumbing. By the grace of God and with much patience and hard work, we were able to see that our labors had made a difference in just five short days.

It was my first mission trip and it was a week of many blessings for me. I received such a sense of accomplishment from learning to hang sheet rock, thanks to the patience of two Mission Team members that are also experienced Habitat volunteers! But the work was secondary in importance to the fellowship that we experienced as a team as we grew in Christian friendship throughout the week and to the knowledge that we were sharing the love of Christ with others through our discipleship. Perhaps the highlight of the week was the Communion Service which we held on the job site on Wednesday afternoon. The service was led by four ministers from three denominations (Presbyterian, Baptist, and Nazarene) and was attended by the entire work crew and some of the homeowners. The Reverend Van Pigate from Reedy Fork preached a wonderful sermon based on John 13. He talked about how difficult it was for Peter to accept being served by the Lord and compared it to the difficulty that residents in the Gulf Coast must have in accepting help. This was a powerful thought and one that I had not considered on my own. We sang “Here I Am Lord,” and had Communion by intinction, a new experience for our Baptist brothers and sisters.

Going to Bayou LaBatre gave me a chance to see firsthand the people of God working in the kingdom of God in a way that I have never experienced and will not likely forget. It gave me faith in America, as a country who never gives up and hope as a Christian to be a part of a church reaching out to “the least of these” when the need was great.