Open the Floodgates

This past weekend, Nashville was hit with historic amounts of rain. That rain caused flooding in many of the low-lying areas, and some areas just got hit with flash floods and didn't have time to react.

It's crazy because you can't even tell it rained at our house. My flowers perked up a little from all the water, but that's about it. The area we live and work in is almost completely unaffected. I'm amazed at God's watch over us and our home. Then, there are some people who lost everything just a few miles away from us. Some even died on the road because they were swept away in their cars and could not escape. The Opryland hotel sustained billions of dollars worth of damage. The historic Grand Ole Opry is destroyed. That's just the start of it.

Matt & I met up with some friends last night to help out the family of a woman with MS. They were cleaning out her home which had been flooded with at least 3 feet of water. It was gross. It smelled terrible. And there was plenty of stuff to fill so many Glad bags to the brim- this woman must have a QVC frequent buyer card.

Yet here's what I loved about it:
-That our friends were turned away at their originally intended stop because they already had enough help, and they didn't stop there. They walked door to door, knocking and asking if there was any way they could help. And finally, they came to a home that said 'yes.'
-That while we were working there, a random guy walked by, telling us that Texas Roadhouse was providing free meals up at the neighborhood's club house. Hundreds of free meals. That makes my heart smile.
-That a 21 year old boy would spend his 21st birthday cleaning up his relative's flooded home

This all taught me something. Just showing up can simply be an act of service in and of itself. You show up, not necessarily knowing all the details, but expecting God to show up and point you in the right direction. Nashville has a long way to go in its efforts to clean up and rebuild, but we're fortunate in that our government, water supply, and grocery stores are all still intact. More importantly, our spirit is still alive and well and that is something to celebrate.