Day Four...
Tuesday October 16, 2007
“He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.” Proverbs 14:31
“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:40
Our devotions this morning reminded us anew of our purpose on this mission trip, God calls us to have compassion for the poor and needy. It is not a suggestion, or just a good thing to do; it is a mandate. He will hold us accountable for how we treat the poor.
The weather today was fair. Temps were in the lower 80s with fairly high humidity, but it was still pretty comfortable with afternoon clouds giving us a reprieve from the sun. We also had a light rain which cleared things nicely.
Most of the work done today was once again at Mr. Mike’s house, siding, tiling, painting trim and rooms, and washing windows. Outside we noticed traffic on the street where not all that long ago there was not a car to be seen. Inside, it does not look at all like we would currently imagine a house in New Orleans to look. The rooms are light-filled, with new flooring, new fixtures, new appliances, and brightly painted walls. (The granddaughters chose bright pink and bright green for their bedrooms.) There is still much to be done, but one can see how anxious the family is to move out of the trailer parked beside the house, and into the home. What a blessing it is to be a part of not only rebuilding a structure, but also changing someone’s life.
The other site where we had workers today is a place called The Quad.. This is a house with four units which, when finished, will house Urban Impact staff members. Thieves had stolen all of the copper plumbing pipes running beneath the house by going into the crawl space and cutting or ripping them off. Before the plumbing can be finished in this house, all of the pipes need to be replaced with plastic pipes and must meet government standards. (Did you know that Pastor Dave was once a plumber?) The team here from Hershey, Pennsylvania, is also working on the Quad, doing painting and other finishing work.
Tonight we had some scheduled free time, which was spent in various ways. A few went out to eat, a few went to the French Quarter, a couple went to Starbucks. We did laundry, made space in our bunk rooms for tonight’s incoming team members, and prepared lunches for tomorrow. We are ready.
Stephanie and Jorge working on Mr. Mike's back porch 
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New Orleans Mission 
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