September 19 - “It sucks to be the receiver”

We faced another crisis today.  To begin with, since Nathan had to be on duty during the storm, April moved in with her aunt who lives in Manvel (just north of Alvin on Highway 6 between Galveston and Houston).  They had power and now it was possible for Nathan to leave the island, see his wife, get a hot shower, eat a real meal, sleep on a mattress.  Definitely a scenario he was anxious to commence and continue.  Ah, but hence cometh the dilemma.  Manvel is 40 miles or so from Galveston.  And Nathan’s truck really enjoys drinking gas.  OK.  Facts of life so far.  But here’s the crisis.  Being fully immersed in the culture of technology, Nathan and April relied totally on their debit card to make retail transactions (i.e. gas purchases), and they did all their bill-paying by online banking.  His pay was electronically transferred into his account.  They rarely wrote a check.  They never carried cash.  In fact, the only cash they had was the hundred dollars I gave him when we evacuated “just in case” he needed to buy food for a few days.

And now.  There is no power, so ATM machines don’t work.  Neither do gas station computers – cash only accepted, please.  In fact, the bank, itself, had a boat in the parking lot and didn’t know when it would reopen (the bank, not the boat). 

As Nathan’s money dwindled, so did his spirit.  He has always been an “I can do it myself” guy, and now he couldn’t do it.  And he honestly had no idea what to do next.

So his big brother Josh jumped into action.  Our little family unit in Mansfield pooled resources and decided we could send him $400.  Then, while we were discussing it, a lady from Josh’s church said, “Absolutely not.  You need your money.”  She pulled out her checkbook and wrote a check for $400 right on the spot.  So problem one was solved.  We had the money.  But we still had to get it to him.  No mail.  No overnight express.  We could drive down and drive right back.  That’s the only option we saw until Josh jumped up from the table, grabbed his cell phone, and said, “I‘ll be right back.”  As it turned out, he made a call to a friend in Sugarland who agreed to front Nathan the money out of his own pocket until we could send him the check.  In fact, he was already on his way!  Problem solved, end of story, right?

Not exactly.  See, a few minutes later Josh’s friend called back.  He said we didn’t  need to send him the money.  His church had already agreed to provide it.  And not only that, his church had just received a shipment of two loads of bottled water “to help people.”  And they had no contact in Galveston to deliver it.  So they were not only going to fill up Nathan’s truck with gas, they were also going to fill up the bed of the truck with water.

How did Mr. “I can do it myself,” strong-willed firefighter handle this?  Like the rest of us, he was overwhelmed with that all-too-unfamiliar sense of humility.  His soft, reserved comment was, “It sucks to be the receiver.”

Yes, it does, Nathan.  But Ephesians 3:20-21 kind of says it all.  And it’s the only appropriate prayer right now.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever!  Amen.”