June 13, 2010 oil spill prayer trip
This was posted earlier in the week at not one sparrow (a Christian voice for animals), my day job. I thought I'd share it here as well, following up on with those who's previous posts on the oil spill ...
Maybe you caught our posts on the catastrophic Gulf of Mexico oil spill, "The Oil Spill and Animals, Kyrie Eleison" and "Prayer for the Oil Spill." The latter mentioned Oil Spill Prayer, an effort to rally Christians around the country in prayer for the spill, launched by our board member Scott Williams who heads up Creation Hope. Scott is embarking on a prayer journey along the Gulf as part of this ministry, and graciously invited me along on behalf of not one sparrow. Here's Scott's introduction to our trip, with a few more comments from me:
(image credit below)
I want to thank you all for your support and prayers. We are so excited that over 3,000 people have formally committed to pray for the effects of the oil spill through our Oil Spill Prayer initiative in addition to the countless others who are praying as well. These last 45 days have been filled with much tragedy and devastation, but the way that you have stood together to pray and entrust the situation to our Lord has been a bright spot and a great source of encouragement. We believe that our prayers do make a difference because our God is sovereign and listens to our prayers. So, thank you for standing up and making a difference in an impossible situation.
Unfortunately, I have to report that the flow of oil has yet to be stopped. Each effort that has been tried to stop or even slow the leak to date has failed. Furthermore, the estimates of how much oil shoots out every day has more than doubled. The gulf is filled with major plumes of oil. Beaches and marshes have now been infected with oil. Seagulls and sanderlings, Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles and dolphins have been injured and killed as a result. Families are struggling to put food on the table as a result of lost wages. Words can hardly describe the destruction.
The situation is dire, but our God, who is the Redeemer, has revealed Himself in difficult circumstances time and time again. Let us continue to call upon the Lord in this difficult time.
I want to announce to you that we will soon be embarking on a prayer journey across the Gulf Coast. I will be traveling with Ben DeVries, a Creation Hope board member and the director of Not One Sparrow, throughout the affected areas. There we will gather in prayer with those on the ground to pray for this tragic situation. While our primary purpose is to be in prayer, we hope that this will also be a source of encouragement for those who live in the affected areas and that it will create a new level of awareness for those of you around the country and the world. Finally, we pray that it will be an opportunity to share the hope we have as Christians. We must not trivialize this situation, but neither can we ignore that our faith is placed in the Creator and Redeemer. The prayer journey will take place from June 14th – 21st. We will frequently be sharing our adventures with you via the Oil Spill Prayer updates page and the Creation Hope blog. We are really looking forward to how God will use this.
We are excited to know that we are backed by your support and prayers. I hope that in addition to praying for the spill, you will be praying for us during this time. If you happen to be in the area we would love to get together with you for prayer and possibly a meal. If you are not, please pray with us and encourage us from wherever you may be at. Finally, if you would like to further invest in what we are doing, we ask that you consider supporting our trip financially (even if that is simply through a Starbucks gift card). Please contact us if you would like to find out more about how you can be part of this exciting work.
Scott has also previously posted some compelling reflections on the spill in "A Prayer for the Gulf Coast Oil Spill," "Wrestling with Oil," and "Praying Confidently in the Midst of Disaster." As Scott alluded to, we're leaving one week from today, and I hope to share some updates on our trip from not one sparrow's blog as well. I'm not exactly sure yet what sites we'll visit or the access we'll have, but I hope to report back in some way on the impact of the spill on wildlife, and some of the rescue efforts underway.
Please feel free to contact me if you would like to connect or help with the trip in any way. I'm very grateful to Scott and to Creation Hope for the opportunity, and for making it possible for me to go. As Scott mentioned, we'd both be very grateful for your prayers accompanying our travels and the different stops along the way, as well as for our families at home.
("Oil Spill Prayer Journey" originally posted on not one sparrow's blog; Scott William's "Oil Spill Prayer - Update & Prayer Journey" originally posted on Creation Hope's blog; "Gulf-Oiled-Pelicans-June-3-2010" photo courtesy International Bird Rescue Research Center/Flickr, via Wikimedia Commons (Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license); video courtesy NASA)
Ben DeVries
Recaps and photos, as well as some video, of each memorable leg of our trip and the meaningful encounters we had along the way are available at Creation Hope and at not one sparrow, starting with "Oil Spill Prayer Journey: Choppers, Marinas and Shelters."
Reader Comments (2)
Thanks for going Ben. That's kind of overwhelming.
~K
Thank you, Kelly, I feel the same way - Ben