Hello out there!  How nice it is to be connected to the world again through our computer.  Yes, we are all safe and sound and now we even have our electricity back. 

Thank you for praying for us.  As you may have heard, Gustav was the worst storm in history for the Baton Rouge area.  I've been told that the media focused primarily on New Orleans and didn't really cover the rest of Louisiana.  Across the state there were 1.4 MILLION people without power.  Our electric company, Demco, was completely wiped out.  Today, there are still close to half a million people without power.  Neighborhoods within 5 miles of us may have to wait up to three weeks before their power is restored.  There is one couple in our fellowship who are still without power and she is pregnant with their second child.  Pray that the St. Julliens will be patient while they are waiting.

Most normal people in the world simply see Gustav as a terrible storm, but then, there is Mitch.  For him this wasn't about patching roofs and fixing fences, this was an opportunity!  First he set off meeting needs of many, many, people.  He tarped every damaged roof on our street, fixed fences, and powered up his chainsaw.  Through his service we met so many neighbors that we have never known before.  Now we have an open door to continue to build those relationships.  After that he decided we should have a block party on our street.  Where does he get all this energy in the midst of a crisis? I wanted to stay in my house and hide from the world and he's organizing a potluck.  The block party was a great success and he was the hero of the day. 

Right about the time I was ready to settle in and get busy in our own yard Mitch got a call from a pastor in Mississippi asking what he could bring us.  My list included things like bananas, lettuce, milk, eggs, etc.  Mitch asked him to bring 1000 burgers so we could do an outreach here in our subdivision.  Now remember, we have no lights, no AIR CONDITIONONG, no gas, two trees and tons and tons of debri to be cleared from our yard and the guy wants to do an outreach????  Is he nuts??  You know the guy I'm talkin about.    We jumped into scramble mode and started to prepare.  How do you design a flyer when no one has electricity?  We went from door to door distributing fliers letting them know about the free burgers and the work day to follow.  Mitch's plan was to organize the community according to people who needed help with their homes or those who were in good shape and could volunteer to help others with their homes.  It was a hectic 48 hours but the outreach was fabulous and we saw over 200 people from our neighborhood.  I thought after 15 years of marriage I was use to his visions of grandure.  Well, he even got me this time.  I thought he was crazy but once again he was just making the most of the opportunities God had given him.  We pray that the relationships we have developed will continue to grow and that we will have the chance to lead our friends to Jesus.

Thank you for your prayers.  We were well protected in the midst o