Social Media’s impact on Floods

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Joy Argow

Water inundated this house half way up the roof. See the debris line.

Yesterday was a bit of an emotionally daunting day… (thus the failure to blog!) We came over to my bros house for power and brekky… The floods waters had begun to subside and I got really restless and hated the thought of sitting around and doing nothing. The night before I had posted a blog including this video of a house completely under water in Karalee. Through twitter and facebook, two different strangers – Adrian and Carly from Karalee found the youtube video and asked if I could go and shoot some footage and take photos of their homes to prepare them for how bad their situation was because they were unable to get close enough to asses themselves… And to see if I could see any stray chooks wandering around the neighbourhood. I found one person who had spotted them… but they are yet to be found… hopefully they found a good home!

Wandering around neighbourhoods I met more people in MY community then I ever have and heard story after story of hardship and loss. I met ‘Pete’ and ‘Andy’ in the shop carpark up the road. They had made their way out of their isolated quarters on dirt bikes… I broke the news to them that the grocery store was out of power… thus out of food, KFC and smokes. We ended up having a great chat. Andy’s house was completely under water and Pete was housing them. Funny story – I spoke to Pete tonight and he’s now wired his house to run off a generator! Must look pretty funny being the only house in a neighbourhood with power!

Today, around lunch time I visited ‘Adrian’s’ house. The site was repulsive…

Personal belongings turned to landfill. Onya Mark!

overwhelming and seemly impossible to clean up. I offered to take some clothes to wash and my parents and a good friend Mark stayed to clean up. By the time I got back you could see the floor boards. People from all over the place (maybe 20 people), unaffected by floods had turned up and just kept knocking on doors till they could find someone to help. It was truly amazing.

As I said in early blogs, my brother in North Ipswich had power the whole time. So we hit up his neighbours to help wash people’s clothes. This morning Tim and I return a basket of clothes to an elderly lady he had met the day earlier. She just held the clean clothes up to her face and shed tears of thankfulness. It was tear jerking for sure… somehow something so taken for granted every other day mean so much today! It was inspiring! I just want to thank the ‘mums’ in North Ipswich who chipped in (and still are) washing horrible, muddy clothes… I’m sure you never want to see another load again… and you may never know how much your help is immensely appreciated. One teenager was grateful she didn’t have to wear the same t-shirt for a forth day!

Imagine returning to your office and seeing it in this state...

The second home I visited was Karlie’s. Her two story house went under up to the eaves. She was devastated to say the least. Thinking the water couldn’t possibly get to the second floor she left all her precious officework and business papers behind (and everything else) and escaped with her animals… only to come home today to find them not only saturated with mud and water but also covered with dirty, soaking insulation that had fallen everywhere when the ceiling collapsed. It was ghastly. Anyone that goes through this deserves a medal I reckon. I can’t comprehend it. Seeing all worldly possessions ending up over the balcony railing in a pile of rubble!

Carlie put it right though when she said, ‘It’s just stuff’ as we were looking down at the growing pile of rubble. It really is. We have our lives… and the stuff we’re blessed with along the way is just with us for a season. At some point we’ll all leave it behind. These guys have just all had an early ‘spring cleaning’. Makes you refocus on what truly matters. People. Humanity. Love. Sharing. Serving.

In some ironic way this flood has been a blessing. I’ve watched introverted people who dont like hanging out with people be forced to reach out or allow people to love on them. No human should have to deal with a crisis like this alone. And I don’t think we were made for that. Community. Sometimes I think the third world countries have this worked out better then us. They might not have much… but they live together, eat together, farm together… they KNOW each other. It takes us a natural disaster for us to realise we even have neighbours! I don’t know how many times I’ve heard the statement – “We’re gonna have to have a street party after this to celebrate!” And that’s what will happen. Queenslander’s are resilient! We will fight for each other. We will survive… and we will know how to LOVE better and SERVE better. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to meet so many ‘troopers’ in Karalee. I hope and pray God blesses you in your loss and provides in ways you could never think possible.

Love how twitter, facebook and youtube actually connected me to stranger who are now ‘real people’ who are becoming friends!

On a POSITIVE note… today I got to visit my new beautiful niece! She was born last night in Ipswich hospital. Thankfully the waters had subsided enough for them to get to the hospital safely. Congratulations Cherie and Matt.

Ipswich flood Peaks 2011

Posted on January 13, 2011 by Joy Argow

Talking to locals on the Warrego Highway between Dinmore and Mt Crosby exit. Spoke to at least 5 people who'd lost their homes. Some had to be boated out!

It’s so surreal saying things like “The flood peak is expected 5 hours from now in the Brisbane river” and “now is the time to evacuate” … Scott McDonald

Last night, Ipswich was inundated with the murky, brown sea of water. At 2am, the two guys stranded at my house (Dave – Easterfest work colleague and Andrew his friend from Melbourne, here for a few weeks holiday/Easterfest prepping) and I decided to go for a walk around our house. It was a dark, dark eerie night. Power off… very few cars around and the sound of water and boats in the distance. The grocery store up the road had about 20 or 30 people sleeping (stranded from their homes) in the carpark. We then wandered down the Warrego Highway to follow the sound of the water… till I got a bit too creeped out and suggested we go home!

At first light this morning (or should I say… when we awoke!) we ventured down the Warrego Highway towards Brisbane to see the massive body of water that had engulfing the Warrego highway and all the land surrounding it. Within ten minutes of being there we spoke to probably five different families who’d lost their entire homes. Women were in tears… men just stood in shock looking across the sea of water they’d been rescued from trying to stay strong for their families. It was surreal.

We then headed down another nearby street (Junction Road in Karalee) and found more water. Only the antenna of a home sticking out of the water. The water stealthily crept into the city of Ipswich and invaded 1/3 of the city. (Land value of these homes are 350K to probably around 650K so enormous loss)

This is footage I shot of a local explaining where houses where… here.

I’ve posted more pics on my facebook page here of my ventures around Ipswich the City I live in.

Raw footage here of Ipswich as the sun arose. Despite the beautiful sunny day… devastation everywhere to be found.

Tonight Brisbane City is bracing for their worst flood possibly in history. 1000′s of people have been evacuated… the city is being flooded. So sad to think just a week ago my brother and I road along the awesome River front bike paths around the city. All completely under now… the floatable bikeway floated off into the bay tonight joining the rest of the debris (including many expensive boats!)…. thankfully it missed bridges as it escaped. Here are some aerial views of Brisbane as of this afternoon here. It will get much worse then this by morning.

Horror stories are now coming out of the town of Grantham as the waters subside and attempts are made to find all the missing people from that community. This video is a graphic representation of what that community is going though. Here.

Great explanation of how the Toowoomba Flood happened on Monday’s doom day – despite it being 700m above sea level. here.

ABC news photos here.

INSANE pics of cars been thrown around like match sticks in Toowoomba here.

I’ve been speaking to a couple of my American friends during the past couple of days. Interesting to see they are experience crazy snow storms… I’m glad to hear though that this ‘Australian’ news is actually making it into international news. As I’ve shared though, it seems like it’s been minimal. No one has really been aware of how intense the situation is over here. I hope this post paints a more realistic picture of how catastrophic things really are here. About 3/4 of this state have been affected by floods – an area about the size of Texas. Drastic floods began in other parts of our state just before Christmas… so we are all overwhelmed as daily we are hearing about a new town or city being inundated – especially as it now upon us so close to home. Thousands have lost everything. Farmers have lost their crops… many for second and third times this year… Fruit markets in Brisbane have been flooded making fresh produce even harder to come by. Shopping centres are running dry… or being made impossible to get too. Withcott has no water and other towns are being told they need to conserve or boil to kill eccoli. The flood is now moving south into New South Wales. When will it stop!?! Will you pray for us as a nation… that God will have mercy on us and that our people (including our atheist leaders) will turn to HIM in this tragic moment.

¹⁴ if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 2 Chron 7:14

Think of it like this… every person has a story of how they or someone they know has personally been affected by this flood. It is literally that wide spread. We can only hope and pray that people we know haven’t lost their lives… and our prayers and deepest sympathies are with anybody that has lost someone in such horrific circumstances.

Hoping to get out somewhere and help tomorrow… feel so helpless watching it all on the news. Thanks for praying and sharing your love. If you’re an Aussie and want to volunteer click here. I you can donate PLEASE do so by clicking HERE.

From Africa to California – YOU!

Posted on June 29, 2010 by Joy Argow

I’m sitting at ‘Classic Coffee’ in the quaint city of Glendora grateful to see the June gloom clearing and the sun beginning to shine and California become all that it known for!

I’ve been back in the United States from Sierra Leone now for just a couple of days recovering from jetlag and catching up with friends in Newport Beach in the ‘OC’. The contrast from Sierra Leone, Western Africa is stark. You can catch up on previous posts here. Almost feels wrong to try and compare. I will admit though – I am the first to be grateful for ‘Western luxuries’… running water, hot LONG showers, flushing toilets, power not operated by a generator, GREAT roads, owning a car, being able to camouflage into the crowd, NOT being consistently asked for ‘small money’, being able to drink water from the tap….able to eat salad… and the list goes on. Not only am I grateful… I like these ‘normal’ luxuries. They make my life easy. They make it possible for me to pursue things I like and want. A career… relationships… adventure… new clothes… Think about it. Having the ability to jump in a shower in your house, grab some water from the tap, eat food from your fridge allows you to then jump into your car to go to the job you need to have to pay for all of the above! Luxuries more then most of the world don’t have.

We’ve all heard the poverty statistics. Actually, I think most of us have gotten numb to them. I might have even told you that out of 1000 babies born in Sierra Leone, 270 die before the age of five – http://www.unicef.org/india/media_3896.htm.

Let’s bring that stat home. The beautiful, smart little girl in the pic was adopted by ’mumma’ Ruth from LWI when her mother died at 18 days old. Her family didn’t want her to become another statistic. Already out of the ten children born to her mum, five had died! Staggering!

This past two weeks, I got to see the impact fresh water actually has on a community. The band I work for Alabaster Box partnered with the non-for-profit Global Benefit to raise funds. Below is a village that received clean water for the first time in 25 years. ’Glady Glady’ means happy! As you can see… this grandma is still VERY happy that they have clean water close walking distance to their house!

This was the well Alabaster Box helped restore. I don’t think I could lift that bucket…. let alone get it on top of my head without getting baptised!

America, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, England… comfortable. Even amidst an economic crisis. We are blessed beyond measure. So easy to commit the ‘sin of omission’ as spoken about by World Vision President, Richard Stearn in ‘A hole in our Gospel’.

Lets think about what we as individuals can do. An seed for thought… get a group of friends together and have a ‘House gig’ in your back yard. Invite your neighbours… (lets get to know our locals a bit!) and friends… get an acoustic artist to play. (I’ve seen it done with a hip hop artist before… didn’t go down to well with the locals who weren’t attending!) and throw a bit of a ‘party with a purpose’. Share the vision of a great need in the world. If you are interested in raising money for a well in Sierra Leone… PLEASE talk to me! Let’s get some more clean water for people who don’t have any.

If you’re passions are elsewhere raise funds for them. It’s a good start to become familiar with a country and a cause. We have a responsibility to do something. And how fun is it ‘having a party!’ YOU absolutely can make a difference in someone’s world!

Be blessed today friends!

The transformation… unhealthy to clean

Posted on June 18, 2010 by Joy Argow

I’m writing tonight from the ‘Harmony Hotel’ (highly recommend this place if you ever come here. Its close to the airport, run by a honest Christian man who understands Western Culture) in Lungi, Sierra Leone. I’m lathered in mosquito repellant and have just finished watching the British tie in the World Cup against Algeria with a bunch of Brit miners who are here working for African Minerals. I’ve also found myself addicted to these ginger nut biscuits I bought from a peddler on the ferry this morning! Almost demolished a whole packet already! Hopefully I see him again tomorrow! Also made a fool of myself trying to carry a bucket on my head. Thought the Sierra Leonean’s needed a laugh!

Today I got to see a well refurbished by Living Water International and a village given clean water. It was an amazing to see the well owner so so grateful. I believe the man and his family are Muslim… but he got to see first hand the love of Christ this week and hear the truth. While we were there, at least five different people came up to us to talk to us about their dry or ruined wells. The need is overwhelming. Below is a before and after shot of the well we worked on.

: Before Shot

: Well Refurbished and Clean

So clean water truly makes a difference in peoples lives. The team visibly see a difference in children’s health. Snotty noses and unhealthy coughs clear up as the village embraces the clean hygiene techniques taught and drink clean water. Check out Living Water International’s work all over the world here.

On the home front, tonight Ruth bid her husband goodbye. He had to fly to the states to be with his ill dad. Ruth will stay on to keep the projects going. We’re going to spend some time at the Mercy Ship base and work from there. I’m sure there will be some big time reporting from there! Please pray for the family. It’s certainly been a tough couple of days… especially with this added stress. Please pray for God’s supernatural protection and provision for all of our needs. I thank you for joining me on this journey. I so am aware that I am completely surrounded by prayers. Know that you are here with me in Spirit!

In Africa for International Day of the African Child

Posted on June 16, 2010 by Joy Argow

Today I got to visit a school for the International Day of the African Child.

In Soweto, South Africa, thousands of black school children took to the streets in 1976, in a march more than half a mile long, to protest the inferior quality of their education and to demand their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young boys and girls were shot down; and in the two weeks of protest that followed, more than a hundred people were killed and more than a thousand were injured.

To honour the memory of those killed and the courage of all those who marched, the Day of the African Child has been celebrated on 16 June every year since 1991, when it was first initiated by the Organization of African Unity. The Day also draws attention to the lives of African children today. Read more…

It was a really interesting day. The school we went to was in a slum area. I’m not sure those roads are ever driven by a car. The bumps woke Mariatu (Ruth’s adopted child) up!

Hopefully I’ll be able to show some videos soon… but the preschool had about 90 students and had only been opened 18 months. The building was incomplete… one room had tiled floor but the rest was mud packed… extremely limited resources. No toilets… kids literally relieved themselves right out in front of the doorway to the school. It’s sickening to conceptualise such limited understanding of basic hygiene.

The celebration at this school basically just had a select few students dressing up in traditional African dress and dancing. I’m not sure how they chose who performed. I was shocked to see how these kids (preschool age mind you) danced. So sensually! It was like watching nightclub girls dancing. Apparently, they learn this kind of dancing from a very young age. The children looked like puppets. Showing no emotions at all. No smiles… just moving their bodies around in such unchildlike manners. The teacher put out a bucket and parents were encouraged to donate money. It was rather disturbing to watch. Who can really know who’s pocket the money would go too. Hopefully towards further progress on the schools development.

Children are taught to beg for money at an early, early age. We drove out to the bush today to take some guys out to continue digging a well. We probably came to four different barricades (rope or bamboo) across roads with children trying to stop traffic to bribe drivers for money… encouraged and endorsed by parents. We had to explain to them that we were building them wells and tried helping them understand that they were getting clean water for free and that it was unnecessary for them to be begging all the time. You don’t get to see many children play. You see a lot of children’s toys (second hand ones that I imagine have been donated to the country) for sale.

So today think about Africa and the many children, mums and dads that have so little. Teach your children to be generous and grateful for the blessing of life, the blessing of toys, the blessing of health, the blessing of toilets… showers… God is so good. And if you can sponsor a well… or a child… make a difference in someones life by working with one of the many selfless organisations working in Sierra Leone or other African countries.

I pray personally for a deeper love for people… and for the gift of tongues How good would it be to just speak and understand the native Sierra Leonean tongue! Thank you for your prayers and intercession. Some rough stuff is going on back home for the family I’m staying with. Will keep you posted.

High Resolution Press Images:

[+] icon_razz.gif

On the way to Sierra Leone… how it happened!

Posted on June 10, 2010 by Joy Argow

The story of how I ended up on this flight to Sierra Leone, Western Africa…
Ever since Mark Warren from Global Benefit made me watch the movie, Blood Diamond and getting to know ‘Robert and Ruth Searches’ who work with Living Waters International (LWI) in Sierra Leone I’ve felt a stirring in my heart to do something in this country. Unsure of what that looked like, my ears pricked up at every mention of the country.

You might remember a few years ago I had a ‘Party with a purpose’ and worked alongside ‘Global Benefit’ to raised money to restore a well in Africa. Turns out the village that received the water hadn’t had clean water in 30 years. Read more.
Early this year, Alabaster Box did a benefit concert with ‘The Chapel at Crosspoint’ in Buffalo, New York to raise funds for work being done in Sierra Leone. These guys along with Global Alliance group have a bunch of different work happening in the country and were planning trips over this summer. I thought maybe I was meant to join them.
A few months ago, the band I’ve been working with for six years, Alabaster Box, decided it was time to take at least a six month sabbatical. So I’ve excitedly been seeking God on what that means for me. Where would I work and what country would that be in. The only real clear sense I felt was that I needed to go to Sierra Leone on a short term trip. So I started pursuing options to go in June. The Alliance Group from Buffalo were planning on heading over on June 10. Looked perfect. I had flights booked to Australia July 2. So I thought I would spend the first week working with them and seeing the work they were doing and then the second week split and go visit Robert and Ruth to check out the work LWI and then travel back to the US alone. This seemed like a safe option… flying into a country I’ve never been too with people I knew…etc.

So with nothing yet concrete… the passion in my heart to go to Sierra Leone still burning I continue to ‘plan’ this trip and prayed the call was from the Lord. Not just my adventurous spirit and the thought of traveling to another country driving me.

Saturday almost three weeks ago, I was talking to a friend about my ‘possible adventures’ and we worked out we would possibly be able to connect when I flew home via Los Angeles late July. He ‘happened’ to be driving to Los Angeles. I had this crazy idea to see if he could fit two suitcase in his vehicle so I wouldn’t need to fly back to Nashville or cart three unnecessary bags to Africa! He thankfully let me!

Then Monday, I found out the Alliance group had to postpone their trip till July! I didn’t feel a peace that this was a close door. The timing and circumstances just all seemed right. I sent a text something like this to a couple of my girlfriends. “Trip to Sierra Leone in June has been postponed till July when I can’t go. Not sure if this is a closed door or God redirecting my steps and I’m meant to go alone”. I got two different responses – “Maybe God is shutting the door” and “I love how you’re not seeing this as a closed door”.

I’d being communicating with Ruth about coming the second week and really felt to see how they felt about me traveling alone and coming and spending the entire time with them. My fleece was if they gave me the green light and had no hesitations on me flying alone I would go and believe God for the funds. At that stage close to $800 dollars had come in and I was planning a ‘Party with a Purpose’ the following week to pray with friends and to try and raise the rest of the funds. (Airfare alone was over $2200) Auny Gill and Mandy DeSutter actually felt to organise the party for me. That day I had Auny calling me asking whether it was still happening! I couldn’t yet say…

Tuesday night I finally got an email from Ruth. She’d just got in from the field… it was really late at night there so it was short and sweet and basically said, “Come, we’ll pick you up from the airport. We’d love to have you! We’ll talk more soon!”

Wednesday I began researching flights and found a great deal with Flight Centre. (BTW they are a company that originated in Australia who will match any flights you find online and beat it by at least $10!) I also found out I needed to have a yellow fever shot and the flight itinerary to even get my visa and that it all needed to be FEDEX overnight the following day to even have a chance of getting it on time.

Thursday (two weeks before take off!) I booked a shots appointment in Smyrna, TN and bolted there. Got the yellow fever paperwork, filled in visa application and made it to the FEDEX office in Columbia TN, to overnight the visa application with 20mins to spare.

Friday I breathed a sigh of relief and then tried to comprehend what had just happened. I was on my way to Africa. A place I always imagined ‘missionary’s’ went too. When I was eight I remember surrendering my life to Jesus and to going wherever he sent me. The verses that called me Isaiah 6:8 – …I heard the voice of the Lord say, Whom shall I send? Who will go for me? Then said I ‘Here am I send me’. I always thought God had a sense of humour sending me to America!

So Sunday the ‘Party with a purpose’ happened at my house. What an incredible day. I am SO INCREDIBLY grateful and honoured to have so many dear friends. The time of prayer was so tangibly lead by the Holy Spirit. Different words, scriptures and prayers that were spoken were right on… actually beyond what I could imagine. It was so evident that I was meant to be heading to Sierra Leone.
Funds were raised above and beyond what I personally needed so I think we’ll get to see another well restored or money put towards another need that may come to my attention over there.

Some friends donated a small sound desk and microphones. This will be used to allow the gospel to be shared after the ‘Jesus film’ is shown. They may even be able to show this while I am there!

I am beyond excited… slightly daunted and unsure of all that will transpire in the next two weeks. But I am honoured that the Lord would allow me to go and I can’t wait to share with you what all happens. I absolutely would value your prayers and am so thankful for those who are already praying and fasting for this time. I am absolutely NOTHING without Christ. May more of him be shown and less of me!
Join me on this journey. I hope to blog as much as I can!

From O’hare Airport, Chicago

Whats happening today in Nashville

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Joy Argow

Today, my roomate Mandy and I joined ‘Hands on Nashville’ to help clean up Nashville after this past weekends notorious flood. Potentially over one billion dollars worth of damage! It’s so unbelievable driving through ‘normal’ neighbourhoods and seeing basically entire contents of people’s homes in a sopping, decaying mess out on the curbside awaiting disposal. Everything gone.

Check out the video

The water came to the ceiling of these homes… so many of these owners didn’t have ‘flood’ insurance. Apparently over here you have to actually be somewhere that potentially ‘could’ flood to even be eligible! This flood was the worst on record for like 500+ years they are saying… so no one’s even seen before what a storm of the weekends caliber could do, so many people were caught off guard! So, many of these home owners have lost everything, have no insurance and face the potential fact that their home may not even be salvageable after being under 10feet of water! Saw one guy talking on TV tonight about the fact that he DID have flood insurance but his contents weren’t insured because the insurance company failed to tell him it existed and for even just a couple extra dollars a month!

So today we took about two hours working on two homes clearing debris and major mounds of smelling, water logged, lifelong investments… memories… hobbies… collections… furniture… Everything basically reduced to rubble. So so sad. One of the houses literally had hundreds of old records! I’m sure some of them would have been worth a mint.

We joined with lawyers – who’s carparks were flooded… teachers who’s schools were still closed… musicians who play for big time country artists… ‘full time volunteers’…. anyone… who could spare a few hours to lend a hand. It was awesome to see. People who were unable to attend their own jobs because of the flood… came out to help out someone they don’t even know. It was incredible. Nothing appealing about it… one girl I was with shared, on the brink of tears, the fact that her house just a street away from where we were was safe and sound, like nothing had happened!

Nat in Nashville at the Opryland Hotel pre-flood

Another of the most impacting moments for me was last night driving over to the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. This hotel has almost 3000 rooms and is a ‘must visit’ tourist destination in Nashville. I’ve been there SOOOO many times and with so many out of town guests! It normally has tree’s and beautiful rivers and waterfalls and all natural growing plants… inside. At Christmas time it is a fairy light wonderland with millions of lights everywhere. So beautiful. This picture above was when my great friend from home, Natalie visited in 06 INSIDE the hotel. An absolute masterpiece.

Now it looks like this … ten feet under water! The cop I was talking to last night down near the Opry said that they may be forced to look at rebuilding. They only had 50 million in ‘Flood’ insurance and apparently the damage here could be in the hundreds of millions! Apparently the food storage area is in the basement…. arg… imagine how nasty this clean up will be! The Opry Mills mall has runaway Piranha’s on the loose after ‘The Rainforest Cafe’s’ fish enclosures smashed!

There’s lots of talk about the limited ‘national’ news coverage about this ‘State of Emergency’. I wonder why? Is it because there’s barely been any looting reported…. or because ‘The people of Nashville’ (and surrounding areas) have rallied together like an army to help a neighbour out? It’s pretty surreal seeing the city I’ve lived in for the past four years turn into such a disaster zone… AND have 12 people lost their lives in flood waters! Many houses are still underwater… so the clean up is going to take months.

If you’re not from here please help by donating to Red Cross or get a team of friends together and come on down on a little ‘mission’ trip! Let me know I may be able to help facilitate this.

Volunteer. Hands on Nashville has an incredible system and you can come for three hour shifts. Everyone living in Nashville should have a go… even just once. Reality will sink in once you drive out there and see whats going on. Your soul will be messed with…

For those of you who have been affected by Nashville’s Flood my heart goes out to you. And I pray you will find your source of strength and provision in the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is some encouragement for you

Isaiah 43:2 (New International Version)

² When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.

We are all going to have the ‘When’ moments in our lives at some point or another… but God promises to be there for us amidst our storm… whatever that looks like for you.

See previous Nashville Flood post here.

Nashville’s Flood2010

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Joy Argow

Well, this past weekend I’ve been with Alabaster Box in Buffalo and Rochester in Western New York – about 800 miles from the devastation hitting Nashville, Tennessee and surrounding areas. It seems to have made national and international news all around the world… The photos here are taken out the window driving through… the river was still rising… peeking at over 10 feet higher then levy’s! My house was safe… even my garden seemed to somehow miraculously live through the indulgence of water!

If you’re only now finding out these are some great sites to check out for the a bit of a picture of what’s going on.

Montage of Nashville’s Flooding by Michael Deppisch view here

The Tennessean for photos from all over the place

The famous Opryland Hotel (with all the gardens and river inside!) filling up with water from outside – here

The Titans Stadium looking like a bowl of water – here

If your house was flooded go to Chris Crimmin’s website to see his ‘So my house flooded, now what?’

My pics of our drive back into town – here

Keep the crew here in Nashville in your prayers.

To help out you can donate through Nashville’s Red Cross or volunteer with Samaritan’s Purse.

Thanks for your prayers for Nashville this week and coming months. It’s crazy to see so much devastation so close to home… in places I frequent… Friends houses flooded… Streets turned to rivers… Parks turned to dams and shops turned to slop. We certainly cannot hoard our treasures here on earth… they can all be washed away in an instance and not be worth a cracker.

Treasures in Heaven

¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matt 6:19-20

Gas station underwater

An apocalyptic disaster – how can you help?

Posted on February 14, 2010 by Joy Argow

We’ve all heard of the tragic earthquake that hit Haiti over a month ago… but have we thought of the implications of such a horrific disaster? Not sure if you’ve seen this or know how bad it really is down there but this sermon by Mark Driscoll called Helping Haiti is highly worth watching. It’s a somber recap on his visit firsthand to see how the Churches of Haiti – now many of which are reduce to rubble – are surviving. One person they first met told them to prepare themselves to witness an ‘apocalyptic disaster’. Many, many Christians were killed in the Earthquake because they were already in Haiti helping rebuild, restore and share Christ with them. They came across a Haitian Pastor with four little boys who was on his way home from his wife’s funeral. Somehow despite the pain and obvious sorrow he still had the ‘joy of the Lord’ glowing from his face.
Something so hard to understand. So hard to put yourself in a Haitian’s shoes… think about how hard it is to loose someone close… Imagine finding out you’d lost a family member or friend (or many!!!) and then rocking up to a church for help only to find it in ruins… and people tragically killed within the ruins! Such a somber reality. A reality that lives on now a month later… and could live on for many more as efforts to rebuild the country slowly begin. Before this tragedy Haiti was one of the poorest country’s in the world… now even those not affected structurally by the earthquake are economically as the banking system had collapsed (literally) so access to money isn’t possible.

Last night I went to Brock and Auny’s house for a Party with a Purpose to help raise money for Compassion’s Efforts in Haiti. The Gill’s put on a 5-course meal… turned their home into a restaurant and asked us to all come dressed in style. So much fun! They encouraged people to give and educated us on the looming need.

Maybe you could think about how you can help… raise awareness and financial aid. I’ve just been checking out Flowerdust’s blog. She’s currently there… see for yourself what is still going on. This country is not going to be rebuilt overnight… the church is who was there from the beginning and I believe the church will be there till the task is completed! Last night I heard stories of streets being filled with people worshiping GOD. Praise Jesus. Haiti’s major religion before this quake was Haitian Vodou.

What can you do?
1. Get educated… watch or at least listen to the video below.
2. Support financially… whether its $5 or $500 000. One dollar will go far in a country like this. Some places I can recommend – Compassion, Compassion Australia or an organisation founded by a young guy in my church during his college years – Restore Haiti.
3. Sponsor a child – through any of the above links!
4. Attend a fundraiser event – Feb 27 – Restore Haiti is putting on their annual Haiti Benefit Ball. Grab a ticket here. Magician Brock Gill will be showing off some of his MAD skills!
5. Run your own party with a purpose to raise funds.
6. Go to Haiti. (Comment if you’d like more details on this)

Let’s do something friends. We can’t just forget. It will be old news soon. We’ll go on with our lives wasting cash on worthless stuff while REAL people in Haiti will try to keep their children alive by feeding them literal mud pies.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQo76Itl6cw]