Pirates Take Over Cedar Rapids

Youth from St. Louis sport pirates eye patches in their fun closing worship after a productive week doing flood recovery.

It was a great way to wrap up a spirit-filled time with our new friends. We had a celebration BBQ tonight complete with cheeseburgers and hotdogs on the grill, Bill's famous peach cobbler and ice cream, capped off with a unique worship planned by the youth themselves. We watched a bit of Johnny Depp's "Pirates of the Caribbean," sported eye patches, and gave thanks to God for transformed lives in Christ.

In perhaps their most challenging day yet, the youth broke up concrete with sledgehammers and shovels. They are paving the way for a new sidewalk to be poured which will beautify the formerly flooded neighborhood. Tonight they got to meet some of the people who have been helped by their type of work in the neighborhood and celebrate with food and fun. At last check well over 50% of homeowners are back into their homes; more and more continue to come home every day. Our community continues our journey on the mend and it's thanks in part due to the hard work and Christ's compassion of our new friends from the south.

Action Photos Requested!

You asked for more action photos and we answered! Check out more photos like these on our flickr site. You can click on the photo slide show playing at the top right or click here: action photos. Check back again later today & tomorrow as I'll be adding more as the week goes on. Today doesn't look to be quite as hot as yesterday. I think more yard work is on tap. I'm off to pay them a visit right now.

Taming the Jungle

The youth group from Lutheran Church of Atonement near St. Louis prepares for a blistering hot day two of flood recovery.

The heat index is supposed to flirt with 100 degrees today but that didn't seem to damper the spirits this morning of 13 young adults and four fearless leaders. Our friends from the Show Me State are doing more yard clean up today. Deb called a few minutes ago to say they are busting through what appears to be a junge with a home somewhere in the middle! It's hot, backbreaking work to be sure but it is SO much needed all throughout all the flood plain. Houses quickly turn into eyesores after a disaster. Think how much your lawn would grow after just a few months without cutting it; now think about not tending it for two years! The vines and weeds may be tough but they will prove no match to the power of God's love through these kids.

Missourians Invade Iowa!

Girls from Lutheran Church of the Atonement in Florissant, MO near St. Louis get ready to get squeaky clean after a busy and dirty day one

There are here! Our fourth flood group looks to be a lot of fun. They invited me to dinner with them Sunday night. After gulping down some of Bill's spaghetti, I rapped with them a bit about the upcoming week and my experience with the 2008 Flood. I told them they are an answer to our prayers; now it turns out they may be the answer to someone else's prayers. They worked on gutting out a basement today and cleaning up brush from a couple of yards in Cedar Rapids. In the afternoon Block-by-Block officials asked them if they would be interested in driving up to nearby Lake Delhi which suffered devastating flooding this past week when their dam broke. Read that story here. Whatever the week holds, they are sure to be in for a spiritual education in showing Christ's love to others. I'm so glad they are here and it's nice to have some authentic Cardinals fans around. :)

Youth Redefine "Staycation"

Amanda Halvorson and Tim Draeger paint on a universal sealant to keep moisture out of the walls at a flooded out home on J street in Southwest Cedar Rapids

One of the things I love about serving God is that every new day is full of surprises. It’s a lot like my former life as a TV News Reporter actually. One day I find myself knee deep in flash flooding helping to relocate a basement floor and the next I’m talking to a young man who is considering becoming a pastor. Today was such a day. All this week the younger members of our church serving God by rebuilding flooded homes right here in Cedar Rapids. They are having a “staycation” of sorts. They are sleeping in our church basement at night and busting their tails during the day on several houses destroyed by the great flood two years ago from last month. I can’t say enough about the heart of these young people to give a week of their busy summers (let’s face it – kids are busy these days) to help others in need. It’s Christ at work in us. And trust me, they feel God’s presence.

I stopped into a house today on J street SW and happened upon Amanda Halvorson, who is going to be a junior at Kennedy, and Tim Draeger, a future senior at Linn-Mar, laughing and having a good time. Hey, why not, right? The pair were slapping on white universal sealant with paint brushes on the inside of a bare wall on a day that’s predicted to reach a heat index of 106 degrees. Maybe the heat and paint were making them loopy or perhaps it was their good natured love for life. I’m going with the later.

I asked them if they could feel God with them while they work. Amanda emphatically nodded her head ‘yes’ and said, "We were working in a basement and there wasn’t any sunlight at all. Then suddenly a ray of light broke through from the floor above and we knew He was with us. It happens all the time." Tim asked me a few questions about seminary and said he was considering becoming a pastor. It was such a joy to discover. I can’t say enough about First Lutheran financially supporting Christ’s ministry that allows days like this to happen. Amanda and Tim’s lives are being shaped by this experience. Our community is being brought back to life. A future homeowner will be blessed. It's all because of God and it's because of you!