The reports coming from our Hope Force (HFI) family serving in Lake Charles, LA depict a community in dire need. Hurricane Laura was a real gut punch to this community; however, this is a resilient population — many with a strong faith who turn to the Lord in these difficult times. What a “terrible privilege” it is to put our love of God into compassionate action — meeting the practical needs of survivors, while offering both emotional and spiritual care.

We were honored to be featured on the debut of WGN America's "News Nation" last night! This news network is hoping to bring a balanced approach to newscasting -- advertised as "just the news" -- in direct competition with CNN and Fox News. WGN is out of Chicago, and has one of the largest audiences in the United States, but this was their inaugural newscast on a cable network.

Click here to watch:
WGN NEWS NATION Story on Hope Force relief efforts in Laker Charles, LA

Brian Wagner is one of HFI’s newest staff members and is on the ground in Louisiana. Here is a typical day in a HFI disaster responder’s day, seen from Brian’s perspective:

“…A prayer we always pray when deploying is for God to lead us directly to those He wants us to serve. With sights set to serve a neighborhood that was severely damaged…we began providing emotional and spiritual care at what we thought was the start of the identified neighborhood. Turns out, we were a few clicks off — yet exactly where God wanted us. From a perspective of most good for the most people, these homes have been slowing us down. Though they are small, older homes, their ridgelines necessitate greater time spent securing valleys and ridges. But what we have "lost" in the eyes of human effort and productivity, we have gained in divine perspective and Kingdom reality. We will be tarping roughly 25% of this neighborhood, or about 10 homes, which could be three-fold if we were to do the easier homes.

…We could be doing more in the realm of good works, but it is here on Ike's and Kingsley Streets that we see the good and patient love of God. Tucked away in this small neighborhood, hidden from the main sightlines of the city, are lives that will forever be remembered and relationships cherished.  Had we not miscalculated, we would have missed the stories of people trying to catch their breath after this storm, and in turn, would have missed the opportunity to come alongside them.…  These past couple of days, our team was willing to have our plans redirected and disrupted in order to allow God to connect us with the plan He had all along.”

We are looking for immediate availability, and are uncertain as to how long the deployment window will last.

HFI RESERVISTS:  If you are available, please contact:
deployment@hopeforce.org

If you are not yet a Hope Force Reservist, come and join our ranks!  Our next training is scheduled for October 9-10 in beautiful Franklin, Tennessee – just outside of Nashville.

Click here for more information

Finally, We want to take this opportunity to thank those who have prayed for the survivors and HFI team members serving in Louisiana, and those who have given financially. Your partnership is an integral part of this ministry.  Please pray that God will enable us to do the most good possible, for the safety of our team members…and for guidance as we seek out those who are in great need.