We are off for an adventure this week! A group of nine Central folks and friends will be participating in the Week of Compassion/Disciples Volunteering Blitz Build in Slidell, Louisiana next week. We'll be participating with more than 50 other volunteers from Oklahoma and Texas as we begin construction on a new community outreach center on the grounds of First Christian Church in Slidell. The project is anticipated to take 6-8 weeks to complete (but you know how that goes), with new mission teams coming each week from across the nation to move the project to its next stage of completion. Click HERE for their on-going blog posts about this project.
It’s been 4 ½ years since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the resulting flooding in the New Orleans area which decimated the region. Although the existing structure at First Christian Church was only mildly damaged, it was buried in massive debris. Out of the rubble and the dark days and months to follow, First Christian Church became a beacon of light and hope to the surrounding neighborhoods as it was transformed into a mission center to host groups from Disciple churches throughout the country, traveling to help with on-going recovery efforts.
As is so often the case with catastrophic situations, the Slidell congregation has been transformed since those dark days of 2005. Through much prayer, intentional preaching and listening for the voice of God’s amongst the chaos, the tiny Slidell congregation has grown more than 30% in membership and participation. Their offerings and mission giving have more than doubled. They have added new Sunday school classes and prayer groups and have become more involved themselves in mission and outreach. Pastor Susan Lasalle writes, “Whereas, pre-Katrina and post-Katrina, this church was merely maintaining itself, heading for slow death; now this church has new life. It is breathing and growing and developing into something beautiful. The mission station served as a catalyst to open our eyes to new possibilities of being involved in our community. Now, we are out in the community almost every week doing something. Our people are getting re-ignited in their personal faith journeys. The whole ethos of this church is changing; truly a transformation is taking place. And truly we are very thankful and excited about what is happening.”
Once completed, this new building will serve as a larger and more functional mission station for groups in the future and for as long as recovery efforts continue. After that, the congregation has a great vision for how this facility will be used within the community to provide hospitality and space for civic groups, ecumenical ministries, service organizations and needed social and spiritual services. Again, Susan writes, “It is our hope and prayer that his project will further the message of the gospel and will turn out to be a source of joy, refuge and strength for our community. We know God is the one who has sparked the life we are experiencing and we are humbly enjoying the journey.”
Please be in prayer for your missionaries from Decatur this week and next as we join in the journey of First Christian Church in Slidell. We will have many stories to share of the work of our hands and the work of God’s Spirit throughout the week. We invite you to share the week with us through daily postings and pictures on this blog. Thank you for supporting this mission trip through your prayers and financial gifts and for entrusting us as your missionaries and ambassadors.
Blessings, Pastor Gretchen
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