I’m sorry to say I don’t have a new message for you this week, but instead, I encourage you to take a few moments to pray for the thousands of people who have been tragically affected by hurricane Katrina in the past week. I’ve seen the images on TV, as I’m sure you have, and as horrific as they appear on a small screen, I am confident they do no justice to what the scene looks like (or smells like, or feels like) in person. I’ve tried to imagine myself being in someone’s situation there, but it is beyond anything I can comprehend.

What can we pray for? Love, peace, comfort, encouragement, mercy, grace… food… water… shelter. Jesus understands every person’s hardship, and His arms are outstretched inviting all who are weary and burdened to come to Him (Matthew 11:28). We can pray that they find Him.

Beyond prayer, another way we can help right now is by sharing our finances with some of the organizations that are providing relief to the citizens of the Gulf Coast area. If you are looking for such an organization to support, here are a few charities that I know are accepting donations to help the hurricane victims:

American Red Cross (http://www.redcross.org/)

Salvation Army (http://www.salvationarmy.org/)

World Vision (http://www.worldvision.org/)

Samaritan’s Purse (http://www.samaritanspurse.org/)

May God bless you.