February 6, 2008
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Last night, a series of severe storms and tornadoes swept across the southern United States, killing more than 50 people, injuring many others, and destroying dozens of homes and buildings. The damage stretches across Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky.
Lutheran Disaster Response is currently assessing the situation across the affected areas and gathering information from partners and local Lutheran leaders. While preliminary assessments are just being made, it appears as though the impact is significant and widespread. Though the full extent of the damage is not yet known, LDR has made contact with affected ELCA synods and LCMS districts to learn that there does not appear to be any Lutheran church facilities directly affected.
At this time, Lutheran Disaster Response anticipates involvement with the long-term recovery efforts which link individuals, families, and communities with the resources needed to restore their lives and livelihoods.
As we await further information, we pray for those who have been injured or experienced loss in these devastating storms. We join Bishop Floyd Schoenhals of the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod of the ELCA in a prayer he shared with pastors and congregations in his synod this Ash Wednesday:
O God, where hearts are fearful and constricted, grant courage and hope. Where anxiety is infectious and widening, grant peace and reassurance. Where impossibilities close every door and window, grant imagination and resistance. Where distrust twists our thinking, grant healing and illumination. Where spirits are daunted and weakened, grant soaring wings and strengthened dreams. All these things we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. (ELW, p. 76)
In service,
Rev. Kevin A. Massey
Acting Director, Lutheran Disaster Response
Lutheran Disaster Response
Bringing Help and Hope...
Phone: 773-380-2748
Fax: 773-380-2493
Visit us on the Web at www.ldr.org
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