Samaritan’s Purse
 

“… But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” – Acts 1:8 ESV

On December 10, 2021, Jessica (not her real name), a single mom in her late 30’s, with 3 boys, was in Paducah, KY, 27 miles north of Mayfield, for job training. She had left two of her sons at home, one staying in her house in Mayfield and the other down the street at his best friend’s home. Her oldest son was out of town that night. She was struggling about whether or not to return home early because weather forecasters had been warning of potential dangerous tornadic conditions which would be present in the area that evening. Forecasters at the National Weather Service became increasingly concerned as the day wore on due to the worsening conditions.

Early that evening, as tornado warnings began being issued for the region, Jessica decided to drive the 27 miles back home to be with her sons, praying for their protection all the way. As she left, a warning had just been issued for all people in the Mayfield area to seek shelter immediately, a massive tornado was on the ground and headed directly for the town. She called her son at home who said that everything was fine, currently. A few minutes later he called her back and was scared, saying he could see the tornado coming and it was really bad, moments later the phone went dead; Jessica was still miles from home.

Later, as Jessica got closer to Mayfield, she was passed by scores of emergency response vehicles headed to Mayfield. As she pulled into Mayfield, she was shocked and terrified at what she saw. The once thriving town was no more. The tornado had completely demolished or damaged every structure in the downtown area. Debris, downed electrical lines and emergency vehicles blocked her path to her home which was in the path of destruction. Jessica then received a call from her son that he was ok and that his brother was ok as well. The family her other son was staying with lost their entire house and their pets; the only room remaining was the room they were sheltering in.

That tornado was one of the most destructive in U.S. history. It was on the ground for 165 miles, with a death toll of 90, including 24 in Mayfield, hundreds injured, thousands left homeless and over 1.5 billion USD in damage. Jessica’s story is not unique, thousands more like her lost everything – houses, cars, belongings, jobs and loved ones. In a matter of minutes, everything was gone. Within hours Samaritan’s Purse was on the scene providing disaster relief and temporary shelter for those displaced. Once the disaster relief phase was over, Samaritan’s Purse began a rebuild operation to begin rebuilding scores of homes lost in the storm. Their purpose is not just to bring physical relief but to provide spiritual relief as well. During the rebuilding process, numerous victims of the tornado came to salvation through the spreading of the Gospel by Samaritan’s Purse staff and volunteers.

In January of this year, we began planning a mission trip for our youth, and we wanted to instill in them that Jesus gives a definite order of focus for our missionary efforts in Acts 1:8. First, we must be missionaries in our own homes, then our communities and nation, yet, not neglecting other nations. We were able to partner with Samaritan’s Purse for the Mayfield, KY rebuild project, and in July we sent 14 students and adult chaperones to Kentucky to help rebuild the town of Mayfield.

The experience made a tremendous impact on all who went. The work was hard and most days the heat index was well over 100 degrees, but none of the students or adult leaders ever complained. In fact, our group left a profound impression on the Samaritan’s Purse staff on site. Our kids were constantly engaged, respectful and always going above and beyond what was asked of them. The work also provided a tangible sense of accomplishment whether it was building steps to the house, painting, doing trim work, installing railing or moving dirt from one area to another, we got to see and experience what it takes to actually build a house.

It was always a blessing when the future homeowners would show up to see the progress on their new house. All work would cease and we were encouraged to fellowship with the visitors for as long as they were there. You see, Samaritan’s Purse’s main mission is relational. They don’t want the work, while very important, to take precedence over the souls for whom they are serving. We were encouraged to share the Gospel with them or just listen to them while they were on site.

The locals would frequently express their gratitude to us for being there when out and about. At one construction site in town, a local man rode up on a bike and commented to a Samaritan’s Purse foreman that “these people don’t deserve these brand new houses you are giving them.” The foreman replied, “I agree with you, I didn’t deserve the grace that God gave me either,” and that was the end of the conversation.

Our group wanted for nothing the minute we showed up on site. Samaritan’s Purse covered everything except the expense to get us there. Their logistical operation was impressive and their staff, even more so. From the minute we arrived we were treated as family and not as just another group of people here this week and gone the next. The staff took time to get to know us and made us feel welcomed and a part of their “family” while there. It did not matter that none of us really had any construction skills, their foremen were very skilled in their craft and, also, very good teachers full of grace and patience. Every morning before starting work, we would pray for each other and during lunch, we would all share our testimonies with the foremen and staff, so by the end of the week, we really got to know each other well.

I know that Kimberly and I will be returning to another rebuild trip or disaster relief trip with Samaritan’s Purse, and I would encourage you to look into it also. You don’t need to be a part of a group or church to go on missions with them, you can go as an individual, if you’d like. If you are interested in participating, want more information on what Samaritan’s Purse does or just want to donate, please visit them online at samaritanspurse.org.

I will leave you with the rest of Jessica’s story. She was renting to own the “house” she was living in. I put the term “house” in quotations because her landlord led her to believe that it was a house she was buying. The tornado had picked up her house and rotated it on its foundation, breaking apart most of the floors inside. When a crew came out to assess the damage, they told her that she wasn’t, in fact, living in a house, but that it was a double wide trailer which had siding and underpinning put on to make it look like a house and that it was a total loss. The landlord refused to repair the damage or provide her with another place to live.

She still lives in that damaged trailer and the week before we arrived that area experienced the biggest flood in history, 11 inches of rain in a day and a half. Her whole street flooded and all the houses around her experienced flooding on the ground floor. Jessica, who loves the Lord, as she saw the waters approaching her ground floor, called Marsha, a Samaritan’s Purse staff member whom she was friends with and asked her to pray for her. Marsha got the other staff members to immediately pray that the waters would not flood her house. Jessica showed me pictures and video of the water that night and as the houses around her flooded, the water at her house never rose above the threshold of the top step. Her place was spared but her only car was washed away, a complete loss.

As Jessica recounts this story to me, she is full of joy, with no bitterness or sadness apparent. In just a short time, she will be receiving a brand new home, in a new neighborhood and handed a bill for the house which includes the total construction cost for the home. Stamped across this bill in large letters will be the phrase, “Paid In Full.”

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” Rom 8:28 ESV

In Christ,
Mark

The Need for Meaning in Life

The ever present search for meaning in life is something that scholars and philosophers have debated and searched for seemingly as long as written communication has existed.  Philosophers of old like Socrates and Plato believed that the pursuit of knowledge was the meaning of life while Aristotle held to a belief that simply being a good person was sufficient. He believed that virtue was the goal but there was no list of virtues because that knowledge should be instinctual. 

Modern philosophers have grouped the varying ways of defining meaning into three main views:  Supernaturalism, Naturalism (3 forms), and Nihilism.  Supernaturalism is the view that god (small “g”) exists in some form and we derive meaning from knowing and relating well to him/her/it.  Naturalism is the belief that meaning can be derived from seeking and obtaining various goals in life without the need for a god to define what meaning is or is not.  The final view, Nihilism, is a form of Naturalism. It states there is no god, but is distinct in that it holds there is no meaning to life.  Life simply is … and then you die.  We see the influence of each of these views in our lives today though usually not identified in a proper philosophical fashion. 

The Supernaturalist view makes its way into our world by holding to a vague acknowledgement of a god and to the principles laid out by the religion that is associated with that god.  These would include Eastern Mysticism (all roads lead to god), various forms of New Age thought (speak positivity into the world and it will return to you), Islam (earn your way to god), as well as the vaguely Christianized yet undefined moralism that has plagued our western society for centuries, referred to by Vic as “Country Music Jesus.”  Philosophers include biblical Christianity in this viewpoint, however, I will argue that it is entirely different.  The problem with the viewpoints outside of biblical Christianity is they are seeking after a “higher power” who is impotent and powerless to affect this life or the next.  This generally results from following a god of their own making who, while cloaked in divine descriptions, more closely resembles the golden calf created by the Israelites while Moses was on Mt Sinai than it does an omnipotent, sovereign Lord. 
   
The Naturalist views have been prevalent for about a century and usually take the form of statements like: “The meaning of life is different for each person.” “Do what makes you happy.” And the too often used, “You do you.”  The slightly more objective viewpoint may sound like “loving and caring for others provides meaning,” “contributing to the betterment of the world,” or possibly, “we have a duty to help others and that gives meaning to life.”  The problem that the Naturalist has is the word “meaning” has no meaning.  If there is no god, then anything goes. Morality and meaning are defined in a thousand different ways leading to utter confusion and the breakdown of a common understanding of concepts like marriage, family, right, wrong, or even what a man or a woman is with specificity. 
  
The Nihilist is the easiest, and to me most intellectually honest (albeit wrong), viewpoint.  There is no god, there is no meaning.  Life simply happens for some reason or no reason.  There is no morality.  You live it however you wish.  When you die that’s it.  While intellectually honest, the Nihilist has one glaring problem. With nothing governing the thought processes or actions, life becomes entirely about self.  This results in vile, wretched, miserable humans devoid of anything that looks like hope, love, peace, or goodness. 
We see this progression in our own country.  What started out as a strong influence of biblical Christianity in the early years of the US, evolved into a “man upstairs,” higher power,” “the big guy” view of God.  Little meaning or foundation could be gleaned from this fake god, so people began seeking meaning in viewpoints not associated with God.  Since the Naturalist view has no power and is based solely on what the individual deems most important to them, the societal norms eventually break down.  What is left is chaos and Nihilism.     

Each of these viewpoints promises to provide meaning in this life, or at least show that it doesn’t exist.  None of them, however, answer the basic question: “Why do I search for meaning in the first place?”  Why do all humans desire to live a life that rises above that lived by the animals?  To answer that question we need to go to Genesis.

As God formed the universe and everything in it, He made Adam and Eve as his crowning achievement in creation. They, and only they, were created in the image of God. 

“Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness …’”  -Gen 1:26

It is in our nature, as image bearers of God, to desire to live a life that means something.  Everything in creation has a purpose for its existence but it cannot provide meaning to something or someone else.  Since God is the creator and life giver, then, as the only sovereign, it is from Him that we derive meaning.  That comes from the one true God alone. 

If this is true, then what is mankind’s purpose or meaning?  God reveals to Isaiah speaking of the faithful remnant in Israel:

“Everyone who is called by My name, and whom I have created for My glory, Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”   -Is 43:7

“There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord, Nor are there any works like Yours. All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord, And they shall glorify Your name.  For You are great and do wondrous deeds; You alone are God.”     -Ps 86:8-10

 “Whether therefore you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”   -1 Cor 10:1

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”  -1 Cor 6:19-20

We see in these verses, and throughout scripture, that our main purpose in this life is to submit to the lordship of God and seek His glory in all things.  Paul stresses that our very bodies are His temple.  A temple has but one purpose and that is to house and facilitate the worship of the one to whom it is dedicated.  The Westminster Shorter Catechism states it plainly, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”              

As we continually seek meaning in our lives, and those of our family, we must believe and be committed to understanding that our very existence has one purpose, and that is to glorify the One to whom all glory belongs.  As we struggle with sin (ours and others’) we must remember that we battle against our flesh because it does not bring glory to God.  We fight and work for every ounce of obedience and maturity we gain, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to live a life that at its end renders the most desired response of all, “Well done good and faithful servant.”  That is our purpose. That is the true meaning of life.  There can be none higher.
 
-Clay