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Dear friends in Christ,
I believe in angels! Not only do I believe in the major messengers of God
whom we know by name, such as Michael and Gabriel. I also believe in the
anonymous angels, the unnamed angels, such as the ones who ministered to
Jesus after he left the wilderness.
I heard on the news that a second "angel" had offered to contribute
additional millions of dollars to distribute to the families affected by
the flood waters in Grand Forks. I am grateful for this person's
generosity, and the good that will be accomplished by this donation. But I
am much more thankful for the tens of thousands of "unnamed angels" who are
ministering to those who are coming out of the wilderness left behind by
the flood waters in North and South Dakota and in Minnesota.
Yesterday I spoke with the wife of a Fargo pastor, who described how her
family has been displaced by the flood waters. She told me the mold now is
beginning to grow on the soaked walls and woodwork in the first level of
their house, where the water reached a height of 36 inches. In some
Midwest congregations virtually every member's home has been damaged. Many
of our brothers and sisters in Christ will be out of their homes for weeks
or months, and will face long and extensive clean-up and rebuilding. And
the angels minister.
I saw a letter from Immanuel Lutheran Church, a small rural congregation in
Kimball, South Dakota. A check for $298 was enclosed, including a note
stating that five dollars of the contribution came from a third-grader' s
allowance. She had seen the flood devastation on TV, and she responded.
I believe in angels. I can see them, busy, across the country. They are
sending special offerings and individual contributions to ELCA Domestic
Disaster Response. They are volunteering their physical labors. The
angels are ministering - spiritually, financially, physically, emotionally
- bearing the message that God does not abandon the people; that we are a
people of hope and new life; that Lutherans are people who care; and that
God's angels have charge of us, and the wicked one has no power over us.
ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
PO Box 71764
Chicago, IL 60694
In Christ,
Gil Furst
GILBERT B. FURST (written on Fri, May 9, 1997, at 11:03 am)
Associate Director, ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
Internet address: [log in to unmask]
For more information, click on our web site: www.elca.org/dcs/disaster
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