Greetings from Tulsa, Oklahoma!
It’s Thursday, exactly one week after the roof project began and the catastrophic flood occurred. A week ago, Brother Sam Kelly ran through the sanctuary praying that his heroic efforts to save the lives of countless musical instruments weren’t in vain. While he carried the lifeless bodies of water-logged keyboards to safety, water poured from the suspended speaker cluster and projection equipment. An epic downpour flooded the church and school within minutes. A challenging, but much anticipated, roofing project had instantly become an unimaginable loss that could threaten the Mile High Conference. The extent of the damage became more apparent over the next day.
Many times during an emergency, people panic and fear is overwhelming. I’ve always known that fear was contagious in these events, but I never knew the same could be said of faith and courage. I had the joy of seeing the church body feed off the strength of one another. Under a devastating attack, everyone helped as if we were one. When one failed and couldn’t go forward, two were quickly with him. It clearly wasn’t just us helping each other. As hard as it was to see at the time, God has been comforting and encouraging us this entire time.
I know how liability claims work in these situations. Help is hard to come by and the only source of money is reluctant and painfully slow in taking responsibility. Typically, more time is spent blaming and pointing fingers than in moving forward. There is a long road ahead of repairs, decisions and tedious work. But there’s one amazing, indisputable fact. We should not be where we are today. We should not look like we do. I looked at a church this evening that looks brand new (at least on the outside, see attached finished roof). The list of repairs before the conference is down to five items and they will be complete in plenty of time. Everything will be in place for a wonderful revival and the future looks brighter than it ever has at CAC. We’ve made new friends that we never would have known otherwise. We’ve had our knowledge strengthened yet again that God is always working for our good. With Him we will always prevail, make it through the storm and somehow be better for it. Once again, everything really is going to be alright. Let’s celebrate, keep our eyes on the Lord and see what He’s got planned next!
Bro. Tom signs off by saying:
…….That’s an update, Sir! I hope some of us give you something you can use or at least help inspire you! So looking forward to your return! (look at that photo…..you have to see it in person…..that color and material is more beautiful than any roof I’ve ever seen!) Thanks – Bro Tom
Now, (drum roll….!), check out the beauty of our new roof!
