Category: 2015 OKC Team

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OKC 2016-Courtney, Amy, & Will Brackin

Courtney, Amy, & Will Brackin

 A Note from our leader, Craig
Chris and Craig thanking the Brackins for their generosity
Less than two hours after our arrival in Oklahoma City, the Lord demonstrated his goodness to our team.  Who knew that a team dinner at a fast-food fried chicken dinner restaurant in Moore, OK would lead to the first God moment of our trip.
 
As I entered the door to Chicken Express, I heard the voice of a man at a nearby table.  Since I was the last one to enter, he had seen our entire team invading the small ordering area and he quickly asked “Are you guys a team?”  I politely responded “Yes, we are from a church in Los Angeles here to work with Habitat for Humanity.”
 
“Well, that’s nice of you folks.  So, are you taking a week of vacation to come here and help?”
 
“Yes.  It’s something we’ve been doing for a couple of years now.  We first came two years ago after the large tornado hit this area.”
 
“Are you a church group?”
 
“Yes.”
 
Courtney introduced himself, his wife, Amy, and their son, Will and immediately I knew this was not an accidental meeting.  I noticed that Courtney got up from the table but didn’t think anything of it.  I made small talk with Amy about tornadoes and how their family was been affected by the most recent storms.  Courtney returned and stated that he had attended conferences for a few years at a prominent church in southern california, and shared that his family attended a small church in Norman, OK called Wildwood Church.
 
I said “It’s nice to meet you folks” and thanked them well.  “God bless you, Courtney, Amy, and Will.”  Before I left, other team members made their way to their table.  “Thank you so much” was the repeated phrase.  I had no idea why but I soon discovered that Courtney had paid for our team dinner.  What a wonderful blessing it was to receive this gift as a blessing from brother to brother.  More importantly, it was God’s way of telling us that He was present and taking care of us.  I am grateful to God for this moment.
Thank you, Courtney, Amy, and Will for you generosity and thoughtful welcome to OKC.
Courtney, killing us with kindness, with Jeff
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2015-Welcome the Newbies

We have a few new people on the team, three of them having never been on any of our trips before. We thought we’d have them introduce themselves to you.

 We’d like to introduce you to Virginia, Matt(hew) and Frank

Psst… note: 

  1. Habitat for Humanity actually is a Christian organization… although it is open to anyone to volunteer or to receive housing
  2. Sarge = Kelly
  3. El Guapo = Tommy
  4. Denise and Paul will be joining us from MS
  5. Exactly who is Matthew referring to when he says “Old People?” Hmmm… 

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2015 Children’s Message/Kid’s Church

A week before heading to OKC, we participated in two time honored traditions at our home church, Evergreen.

Frequently, missions teams will present something during the kids’ portion of our service. This year, Lorin ran our program both at the general service, and also the kids’ church.

After doing the lesson, the kids gathered around and pray for the team members.

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2015 Team Encouragement from Shirley

Shirley returns to the team, this time it’s OKC

To understand our trip, you should know our hearts.

It’s a mission. To help. To be part of the caring heart and hand of God.

Part of that role has been filled by Shirley, who’s helping us stay focused as our unofficial Team Prayer Leader/Prayer Reminder person . (no, it’s not a title, I’m just making it up)

Recently we on the team got another encouraging letter that we’d like to share with you:

Hello Fellow OKC Relief Team members,

 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. 

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, He shall not be moved. GOD WILL HELP HER WHEN MORNING DAWNS.” Psalm 46: 1-5 

I cannot imagine what it would be like to live through such a horrific disaster such as Moore, Oklahoma experienced. Those of us, who went last year, may have an inkling of an idea. I just reviewed a report of the tornado of May 20, 2013. I also recalled the 1995 domestic terrorism bombing in Oklahoma City, not far from Moore. I don’t know about you, but there are many times, I have thought about the “Big One” here in the L.A. metropolis. I beg for God’s mercy. I can imagine Christian Oklahomans, living in tornado country, doing the same thing – asking the Lord to spare them from a tornado.

It has almost been two years, since that tornado broke the hearts of many in Moore. I’m asking the Lord, that we be able to minister His love and bolster faith in those affected. I’m thanking Him for all the spiritual and structural recovery, He has brought to this area in the past two years and even the past 20 years, since the bombing of the federal building in downtown OKC.

As I wrote: “I can’t even imagine.” May the Lord help us minister in His Holy Spirit.

God bless you, my fellow teamers.

Shirley

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Here’s your 2015 Team!

Evergreen SGV Oklahoma Relief Team April 26 – May 3, 2015

Your 2015 Team
Row 1: Chris, Gary, Peter, Tommy, Craig, Lorin, Shirley, Pam, Art
Row 2: Tom, Frank, Jeff, Matthew, Virginia
(Kelly not pictured)
Here’s an excerpt from our Support Letter, which you can access by clicking here
Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  1 John 4:11
Once again, we are investing a week of our lives to share the love of Jesus with those affected by the devastation of an EF5 tornado, that caused loss of life and property in Moore, OK, in May 2013. We will partner with Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity to do whatever construction or refurbishment work is needed.
If God is calling you to support us, please consider our prayer requests:  
(1) team unity
(2) safe travel to and from Oklahoma City, as  well as safe travels while we are there
(3) protection from injury and illness 
(4)  protection for our families while we are away
(5)  most of all, that God would provide opportunities for us to grow in faith in Him and to share that faith with others we encounter.
Thank you for taking time to consider this opportunity to partner with us.
In His service, Members of the Evergreen SGV 2015 Oklahoma Relief Team
PS:  Before, during and after our mission trip, we will be recording reflections on the Team blog at http://sgvhabitat.blogspot.com
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Tommy’s Reflections on our previous trips-Part 1

Tommy’s been on all the trips

Tommy’s been on every one of the nine Relief Teams (he started without any grandkids and more black hair)… we asked him to take a look back …

Peter asked me to write about the previous nine Relief Teams. I decided to try and do it by memory. You can go back and fact check yourself by browsing back through the previous entries. Peter started this blog back in 2007 as we were preparing for our first trip. He specifically named it SGVHabitat.blogspot.com so that there would be a permanent record of all the Mississippi Gulf Coast (at the time) relief teams working with Habitat For Humanity. Little did we know at the time that we would return to work with Habitat For Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast (HFHMGC) for seven years, then in 2014 work with Central Oklahoma Habitat For Humanity (COHFH) and return there this year.

2007 – The first year. Steve Ogata, one of the ten members of that inaugural team, in describing that first year experience said, “You can only do something for the first time once.” In many of ways that perfectly summarizes what most of us experienced that first year. First time on a mission trip. First time doing relief work. First time in the South. First time at Waffle House. First time going to Wal-Mart every day. First time building a house. First (and last) time building a house with the wrong plans. I’m probably forgetting many “firsts”, but you get the picture. The blessing and take away for me was the incredible joy of working together with nine other brothers with the common goal of being a loving servant and whole heartedly doing whatever was asked and experiencing God’s pleasure. As 2007 goes further and further into the past, the joy of that first year gets fonder and fonder.

2008 – The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project (JRCWP) pre-build. Although Jimmy Carter didn’t start Habitat for Humanity (HFH), he did help bring it to the mainstream of America. For many years he and his wife Rosalynn would head a Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project. One year it would be at a local HFH in the U.S. and the following year it would be at one of the overseas HFH. People who want to “volunteer” at one of these (JRCWP)’s would contribute quite a bit of money for the privilege of working alongside the Carter’s. This helped raise funds and awareness for HFH. Little did we know that the week we arrived in Biloxi, Mississippi was the week prior to the JRCWP. Our task for the week was not to build any houses but to precut all the lumber needed to frame 60 houses for the following week. We were set up on a parking lot next to the beach by the Biloxi lighthouse. We were somewhat disappointed that we would not be building any houses but seeing that we would be instrumental in getting 60 houses framed the next week was somewhat gratifying. By the end of the week I was humbled by four young women from Ohio. These four had just finished their college term in Ohio, drove nine hundred miles to Biloxi, and paid for their own food and lodging. Here I thought that I had sacrificed a lot, but I had been sent and supported by my church. God told me it’s not about the sacrifice, it’s about obedience. “To obey is better than sacrifice” 1 Samuel 15:22

2009 – The Brad Holland story…. (Part 2 coming soon..)

Part 2