Posted on 05/27/2015 3:10:33 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
With flash flood warnings waking residents of America's fourth largest city today, yesterday's hope of receding waters have hampered volunteers who are waiting to descend on the city to help.
"The water has to go down before we can do anything, but when it does we will be quick to mobilize our recovery and feeding units," Scottie Stice, director of Disaster Relief Ministries for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention told Christian Examiner early this morning.
Floodwaters had begun to recede in Houston, according to reports by the city's Mayor Annise Parker. But the rivers and Bayous needed at least 24 hours of no rain after massive flooding Tuesday morning stranded motorists on congested highways, leading to dramatic water rescues and gridlock.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, in a news conference with the mayor and state Sen. Ted Cruz, pledged prayer for those affected by storms statewide, and for the families of those dead and missing.
Stice said the 50 volunteers units affiliated with the SBTC disaster relief ministries around the state have been on alert for a month, due to flooding, but that flash floods bring a unique challenge to the 5,000 who have trained for various relief operations.
"We can't predict 12 inches of rain in six hours," Stice said. "Everything is spread thin because we are trying to be where the 'hot spots' or high water is."
Thankfully, Stice said Southern Baptists network with the American Red Cross to provide food it can distribute in emergencies, and with other regional state Southern Baptist Disaster Relief teams situations which call for more hands on deck.
And the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board through its disaster relief network in Alpharetta, Georgia, can coordinate equipment and personnel from across the country for major storms or events that require even more intense volunteer efforts, he said.
Southern Baptist Disaster Relief is the largest network of trained disaster relief volunteers in America.
"God always provides for us," Stice said. "We always have what we need at just the right time."
About Houston, Stice says although there are currently no units or teams based in churches in the Houston area, there are plenty in surrounding areas. "We are ready," he said, but waiting for the water to go down.
Once his office receives the all clear, teams are equipped for various operations including feeding, recovery with chainsaw, mud out and blue tarp duties; communications; chaplains assessment; shower and laundry operations; water purification and more.
"Our motto is 'serving Christ in Crisis,'" Stice told the Examiner. "We are about ministry. We go out to meet needs and share the love of Christ in disaster scenes like the kids at the border in Brownsville or wherever we are needed. We want to serve every one. It's the compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ that drives us to do it."
For more information about SBTC Disaster Relief or how to contribute to their efforts, go online.
Houston’s dyke mayor will turn them away because they oppose gay “marriage.”
They are an excellent group. I get emails from them with information about trips, how many have been fed, etc. I am very happy to be a member of my SBC.
I was wondering if liberals would welcome this help. People of faith help quite a bit in times of need and natural disaster. They don’t often get publicity or seek publicity for their work.
But in the current social cultural environment liberals tend to condemn religious institutions over homosexual marriage or abortion. They condemn religion as useless or dangerous for not having liberal views.
Soon the Mooslims with their prayer rugs will be rushing in to help.
How many Muslim groups are helping in this disaster? When disasters strike Muslim countries the U.S. is first to help.
My experience with the 2013 Southern Alberta floods that caused 100,000 evacuations: While Center Street Church was an emergency evacuation center, lefties only complained AFTER the emergency declaration was recinded, about those terrible Christians being involved, ‘forcing their religion’ onto the poor, unfortunate victims of the flooding. Of those who complained, the usual response was that the government should have taken care of it. Surprisingly (not), no one who used the facilities at the church during the evacuation, had anything but glowing comments about all the church volunteers.
The same thing happened with Samaritan’s Purse’s work. They were the first, and only organisation requested by the Chief and Band Council of the Siksika Reserve, to coordinate recover efforts on the Reserve. Lefties whined to high heaven about those evil Christians polluting the minds of the Blackfoot Band. Despite the whining, Council continued with SP coordinating both recovery and rebuilding efforts at Siksika. In fact, SP is still involved, coordinating some of the rebuilding efforts in the City of High River, a non-Native bedroom community near Calgary.
Lefties moan, cry, whine and gnash their teeth, begging the government to do something... Christians roll up their sleeves, get into the trenches and get to work helping others. ‘Twas ever thus.
The lesbian mayor there probably doesn’t want help from the Baptists. They should go where they are both needed and welcome.
Not going to happen.
When emergencies happen, politics are set aside.
Not by militant, Christian hating homosexuals. Perversion always comes first for them.
After some thought but not to much. Baptist in general and especially Southern Baptist should be very anxious to help with rising flood waters. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief was stared in Texas.
1967 — Texas Baptist Men respond to victims of Hurricane Beulah in the Rio Grande Valley. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief is born.
God Bless what they do.
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