"Krewe of Fighting Okra", come back again!

Josh Martin brought this "krewe of okra" (in keeping with the mardi gras spirit) down for the weekend. Curt had them working in Jordy's absence and we had a great time with them. Ya'll come back when you can stay longer! Like I always say "we'll be here" come back as much as you like! Guy's it was great to see you all, and we do want you to come back again and again!

Leaving the Bay...

I am sitting in the Charlotte airport with a 4 hour layover on my way to Asheville to speak/ build sheds at a conference for youth interested in missions. After the weekend I will be on vacation and in Nebraska seeing my girlfriend. With time off before me the only thing that I want during the weeks leading up to being out of the Bay is to be gone. As the day approaches all I can see is all that I will miss and it is hard to leave. As always with me everything is last minute. This morning I spent running around finishing up all that I needed to do. I have actually spent the past hour at the airport emailing Curt and Sarah, our very capable and blessing from Jesus of a return intern from the summer to keep us afloat, the details of what has to happen to deal with the 90 volunteers for this Saturday and the 75 for next weekend. Good luck ya’ll. Much of this is brought on by the fact that you can stay busy at Lagniappe with distractions and everything but what you need to get done and still be productive and not wasting time just not getting done what you have to. O distractions, not always fun. In Philippians 1:21 Paul claims “ to live is Christ, to die is gain.” I don’t believe I am able to claim that same statement but I can relate now after being at Lagniappe. I think at times the only thing from keeping me from buying into that statement is the fact that I have a future someday outside of Lagniappe. At this point I can feel the tension. All I want is to be out of the Bay but when it comes close to that happening it is very hard to leave and I run out just barely making my plane never knowing quite sure what I packed. Jean and I talked about this tension and joked about our deal that neither of us can eject from the Bay without bringing the other with. This brought about talking about a sermon that Joe Novenson had preached while Jean was in Memphis that morning. He talked about that tension that as a Christian we are called to live in. I am 24, have no background in management, not much experience in building, hardly any “real life” experience and I am deeply involved with an organization that runs thousands of volunteers in construction, has over a million dollar budget, and on top of all that I am integrally involved in all of that. Continually I cry, “God I CAN’T do this!” God continually responds, “I know”. At my best I am simply a crooked stick that God is using to strike a straight blow with. I have to realize when I leave the Bay that the kingdom will advance without me and deal with my pride but at the same time that anxiety about leaving comes from that tension. I am definitely working and accomplishing beyond my ability, not because of anything I can do but because God continually answers my cry of incapability with I know you cannot, but I CAN even through you. Please pray for Lagniappe, the staff, the volunteers, and the ministry and thank God that over and over in-spite of those involved down here His Kingdom advances. Please also pray for endurance, perseverance, faith, and rest in that living in this tension is not easy and takes it toll but don’t feel sorry, after tasting what it means to live in such a manner I would have it no other way. Once tasting God’s grace you cannot live outside of that.

The 10,000 foot view

Andy Chapman emailed this photo to me earlier tonight. It was from Google earth or something similar and he pointed out that you can actually see our bunkhouse on the lower right hand corner. He noted is still 'not connected' together and that the hole in the roof of the main building is still visible.

It got me thinking (here is where you should get some coffee....) Lagniappe Church has been in existence long enough to have had a Google satellite photo taken of us AND there has also been enough activity since the time that photo was taken to make it VERY outdated. NOTE: the hole is fixed and presently there are 3 more completed bunkhouses on the Lagniappe 'compound'.

Interesting isn't it? The 10,000 foot view- it has a way of making the 'messy', 'unfinished' things look kind of cleaned up and making the progress seem somewhat irrelevant. Six months from now the satellite will pass again and all that will have changed in the photo will be some black and grey pixellated rectangles added for bunkhouses and a silver square noting a closed up roof. There might be some more cars in the Sicily's parking lot across the street but other than that no big deal, image updated.

I am usually not very focused on the 10,000 foot view. I am more prone to find myself in angst about the one foot view- the details in the office, or the kitchen, the nursery (yes, we have a nursery), the copier or whatever. At any given point in my frantic self-reliance the satellite will pass again and 'CLICK' the 10,000 foot photo is snapped with anxious, fretful me not even visible to the lens. My fears and obsessing become somewhat irrelevant don't they? The 10,000 foot 'big picture' puts things in the right perspective.

I like the 10,000 foot view, it's like a providential rear view mirror. It's like a chance to look back by looking down from a higher vantage point. Thing are clearer in the rear view mirror, aren't they? Jesus promised that HE was building His kingdom and that the gates of hell would not stand against it. Roofs DO get closed up. Bunkhouses DO come together. A bit of cold spaghetti at dinner DOES get heated up, right? From the throne of heaven the picture isn't one of a Lagniappe 'facility update' it is one of a Divine KINGDOM moving forward.

Dream for a moment. You are in the war room, the 'oval office of heaven' if you will. (P.S. If you think we shouldn't allegorize images of heaven take two C.S. Lewis' and call me in the morning!) As the angels and archangels strain to see the troop map there are pins and markers and placeholders in and around the Bay. "The troops are holding!" cheers erupt! 'The troops are holding!" Just then, wet from the darkroom and pungent with the aroma of developer, an updated photo arrives- another 10,000 foot view- "roof closed! more room for teams! materials moving out! teams coming in! residents worshipping!" Like rain on a tin roof, shouts and cheers fill the room! "To our God and to the Lamb! From every nation tongue and tribe!" TO OUR GOD AND TO THE LAMB...

And at the one foot view were out of toner. What words are shouted? "Who was supposed to order that?" Ahhh, typical. Right then I have a one man pity party for the martyr-like existence I live. It is difficult being the ONLY ONE WHO EVER refills the toner, right? Where are my notes for orientation? I can't find anything around here! There's dust on everything, on EVERYTHING! As I throw my head back on my chair I need to hear what I CAN'T seem to hear only looking at the one foot view of Lagniappe. I DO need a one foot view, but NOT of Lagniappe- of the war room! I need to look from here to there and see something bigger than me, than houses, than Lagniappe or the Bay. I need to hear sounds louder than my sighs, to hear the peals of heaven, to hear the coronation trumpets of the King!

We had a home dedication today. Another family was restored. The Gospel was proclaimed there. We rejoiced in being able to participate and God was given the glory. The oval office cheered again and for a moment you could hear it, even from the Bay.

It is good to hear it, isn't it? It is. Please keep us in your prayers. Pray that we can, 'see Thee in the heights' though we dwell in the depths*. Thank you Father for the 10,000 foot view. Amen and Amen.

-Jean F. Larroux, III Lagniappe Church

P.S. Don't forget we still need you. Come if you can, give if you are able and skip both of those if you will REALLY pray.

*Reference: The Valley of Vision

Lane gets a new home!

Homecoming Week at Lagniappe

Computer people, lookout, for "the times, they are a-changin'!"

Staff-house, take oneStaff-house, take two! Re-vamping the kitchen.

As a teammate prayed, "Thank the Lord - one year later we're still here!"

Bradford Home Dedication

When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, "Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight." So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, and said to them, "Go over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever." - Joshua 4:1-7 "May this house be a memorial to what God has done"

The Bradford Family

Twelve Stones

Sunday's sermon was on the Isrealites crossing the Jordan River into the promise land. The trick was that the priests had to step into flowing water before it would part, which is very much what happened here at Lagniappe. Once they got into the water on faith the water would stop and the nation could walk over on dryland. Immediately God commanded Joshua to set up a memorial of stones because the nation would forget. They would forget the who of the whole deal, they would forget that God is who is doing it all. So rather than setting up stones I wanted to list twelve of the events or blessings that I don't want to forget that remind me that God is doing it. Here in no paticular order is my attempt. 12. The amount of teams that come and keep coming, especially the return folks that can't get enough of what God is doing down here. 11. Assembling a staff of close 15 to 20 people crazy enough to come down and do this type of work. 10. Running into the Winslows the day we needed HVAC work and getting the work done that day and the next. Winslow now does all our HVAC work, comes to church, and is a friend. 9. Participating, the fact that part of our mission statement is to participate and to be able to work alongside of all sorts of other organizations and volunteers who are down here because of Christ's love working and being a part of the resident's lives. 8. Clyde and Conrad, it is amazing how many other groups that do not have professional contractors to guide, answer questions, direct, and do good work. Other organizations come to us for technical support all the time and we have two incredible builders who work with us. 7. The messiness of it all, working with a staff of 15 of all who are highly motivated and not the easiest to get along with always, jobs that don't go completely right, families that are difficult, teams that are difficult, grants that don't go as planned, it is never easy or clean, this is a daily reminder that God is doing the work and using as Jean always says crooked sticks to strike straight blows and condescending to use us in His plan. It is a great example of grace to keep funtioning as a community and love each other with all that goes on. 6. Countless, countless blessings to get us through the day, concrete arriving when we shouldn't have been able to fit into the schedule, bunkhouses getting done by teams that show up late at night to sleep in them, teams that show up can lay carpet the day carpet gets delivered, jobs that pop up that fit a teams exact skill the day a job doesn't go as planned, new shoes from a team after mine were destroyed while unloading a trailer of rotten chicken due to engine failure, etc. etc. etc. 5. You know who you are. 4. Our trucks and trailers. After a donnor tells us to call back after we have our theology straight after asking for used trucks we recieved a donation to buy what we needed rather than the "left overs" after a 15 minute conversation on the phone, God is bigger than left overs. As Curt always encourages, God has blessed this ministry to much not do something incredible. 3. The fact that my Lowe's card always works, I get to spend and spend at Lowe's to get families back in their homes and keep teams busy. 2. Dick and Maggie, Kenley and Sarah, Dr. Tom and Lois, Doug and Becky; couples that keep coming back either to volunteer in the community, be relieable contractors for Bay Saint Louis residents, encourage and keep in contact, fill in the cracks where needed, and trouble shoot and finish up the small stuff that needs to be done on our jobs to keep us functioning. 1. Prayer, this may be cliche and the Sunday school answer but having a team stop me during the middle of the day to pray when they are waiting on me to get materials or job assignments or have folks remind you that there are people outside of the Bay whose name I don't even know praying for us is humbling and a great encouragment. Prayer is very powerful and God has blessed us by showing us the power of it. I set out to write twelve so I will stop here but the list goes on. I pray that Lagniappe will always be a place where it is too evident that we need to pile up stones. Not because I want God to keep blessing this place but because God always blesses and I do not want to be one of the nine leapers that does not return to say thanks. God continues to amaze and lead us through Rivers on dry ground, just as He has always done and will continue to do, here but also in my personal walk.

Christ Pres, Oxford, MS

Keep "X" in Xmas...

Someone commented to me the other night that they disliked the use of 'Xmas'.... I understand that. At first glance 'Xmas' seems to 'X' Christ out of CHRISTmas doesn't it? X (the Greek symbol Chi) was acutally used to abbreviate the name of Christ. Xmas is actually just an abbeviated rendering of Christmas. I think that Jesus might be more in favor of Xmas come to think of it....Jesus wasn't flashy and in your face. I think He would have preferred to come under the radar. After all didn't He choose Bethlehem? Wasn't He from Galilee? Wasn't He the one who was almost coy when Herod questioned Him about being King?My personal experience with Christ has been more like that...subtle and profoundly subversive. He always seems to be at work but not in flashy ways, more like the stock guys at Home Depot- working from Midnight to 8 a.m. restocking, moving things around, changing the setup of things and then 'all of the sudden' the electrical department is moved clear across the store.In reality Jesus likes to restock my heart, move it around and change the setup of things. I dislike it. I like the electrical department where it was. I put it there. In alot of ways that is a good description of my life for 2006- subversive movments of God that change everything. I wonder what 2007 holds. Will the electrical department be moved back again? Will the garden center move to the other side of the building? Who knows. It is a wild ride. I know what I'd like, but I'm beginning to learn that the suggestion box isn't checked too often (if at all). I was praying with Jordan this morning before he left for home and asked God to strenthen us, to make us more like Christ. Presently we are tired- retreating from the crowds, trying to rest, trying to see Jesus again- My prayer was that God would allow us to incarnate in the Bay, to be a picture of the Gospel in this place.Ironicaly, I think that while we're seeking to do that in the Bay, Jesus himself has been doing that very thing in our lives. He has been 'incarnating', becoming more real to us, taking on flesh in our daily lives. That means less of me, more of Him, less of me, more of Him (lather, rinse, repeat.) Pray for me this year. Please do that. Pray that all I'll want for Christmas is Christ.I'm frightened how that might be answered- I want it to look like victorious spirituality, exponential growth and a renewed devotional life. If 'X' shows up it will probably look like repentance, faith, tears, struggling and true joy. That frightens me and at the same time excites me. Narnia is thawing. God is at work. His ways are not our ways. His plans are not our plans. Exery day is Xmas- the incarnational reality of Jesus himself. That seems to be the Lagniappe way. I guess not the Lagniappe way, just His way. Merry Xmas.

Christmas at Lagniappe, "An Endless Summer"

While most families will be celebrating Christmas Monday, December 25, Lagniappe celebrated Christmas with the residents of Bay St. Louis/Waveland Thursday, December 21. What started Wednesday as an invitation to bring a team of volunteers to carol at Waveland City Hall, resulted in Lagniappe inviting the City Hall event to our facility. The reason for the change was an unexpected deluge of rain which flooded streets, neighborhoods, and prevented a number of our 200 volunteers from performing their assigned construction tasks. "Why would God send the showers? Why come this far to work and have God do something like this? Doesn't He know we devoted hours to planning, giving up vacation time, and driving so far for this?" These were the questions everyone must have been thinking. I certainly did. Then came the call from the city of Waveland. "We can't host the event in our parking lot as we planned. Could we use your facility?" The questions we previously asked, the mystery of providence, quickly became known. God planned all along to have Lagniappe host this Christmas celebration but He only revealed it to us that day. What existed in the mind of God from eternity past was revealed to us at 10am Thursday morning. Because it was planned, orchestrated, and executed by God it was nothing less than spectacular. Over 500 residents, volunteers, and staff ate, danced, and celebrated to the glory of God. It was like nothing I have ever experienced and probably never will. At one point Kenley leaned over to me and said, "It's Summer again." How profound. I knew exactly what he meant. Last summer was the summer of defeated self effort, thwarted human plans, and the display of God's glory. No one could claim credit for any of it then and no one can claim credit for any of what occured Thursday night. May the future of Lagniappe be one of "Endless Summers." Sola Deo Gloria

The Warner's "Getting Down." Richard, "You still got the moves brotha"

Smiles from families for whom this would be their only Christmas A little Lagniappe for Christmas. It was reported by WLOX, our local CBS affiliation, that $40,000 worth of toys were given away that night.

Don and Sandra Oja-Dunaway, friends from St.Augustine, Fl

Over 500 residents, volunteers, and staff. Special thanks to Grace Fellowship Church from Snellville,GA (Atlanta) for bringing 100 students and adults to serve Thursday-Saturday. We had no idea what an integral part they would play for this event. Neither did they. As Barbara Warner said, "We couldn't have pulled this off without them." Thanks again.

More Christmas At Lagniappe

Newsworthy

Jean Larroux III was interviewed on the local news tonight regarding tonight's Christmas party at Lagniappe. He was quoted saying, "We are a church, and at Christmas, we are sensitive to those who had 'no room at the inn'." This quote was in regard to the fact that the Lagniappe Christmas party was planned TODAY, to help out the city of Waveland, which got rained out. It was fun-lots of food, guests, and dancing!

Merry Christmas

Andy Chapman and Jean Larroux pose for a quick Christmas photo during the Waveland Christmas party at Lagniappe tonight.

MaxCast a look over here!

LPC Video now on MaxCast The Lagniappe video which has been seen by so many of you at orientation and also received by DVD is now available in high quality format on the internet. Thanks to a new technology called MaxCast, you can pause, play and rewind all with NO buffering, reloading or jumpy picture quality. Tune to our 'channel' called: LPC Videos and see for yourself! Please share it with others after clicking here to be taken to the page!

One of the Things I'm Praying For...

Today, Kenley, pictured above, did a punch out list on one of the houses that we are close to finishing. It was as follows: Electrical:

• install switch in bedroom
• install range hood
• wire three way switches in living room
• install AC outlet covers
• install kitchen light
• hook up water heater
• Plumbing:
• install water heater
• install tub and shower fixtures
• Miscellaneous:
• install cabinet knobs
• hang medicine cabinet

The point of this story, this is not necessarily a list you can put a team on to finish. Often teams will come with one or a few folks skilled in building. If I put a team on a list like this one guy will work and all the rest will be sitting around not accomplishing much. However, this is probably the most pressing work order I have, accomplishing this list will allow Ms. Tomasich to be able to move into her home. Kenley, Dick, and Dr. Tom, all pictured above are retired men that came down with their wifes, lived in the back of the Lagniappe property at our RV hook-up sites in trailers, and have worked and stayed at Lagniappe for weeks and months straight. Given, Kenley has often wanted to be fired because he finds it hard to not to work to hard, but these type of commitments have made the work at Lagniappe possible. Men that have owned homes and can accomplish or through the advice of Conrad accomplish such a list and check off the "small stuff" that HAS to be done. Dr. Tom had to leave after a month of service, Dick will be back soon for two weeks to do drywall finishing, and Kenley, although he is back, has been drawn into working to hard again on big picture stuff such as home blue prints and permitting issues. Helen has recently gotten over $100K on grants to finish out homes, this means many homes that will have punch lists very similar to above. Moral of the story is I am praying for folks that want to make atleast a month or longer commitment to come specifically to help out on houses and work on such lists. With the wau prayers are answered down here I would just like to thank the Lord for the folks that will soon be punching out these lists and say I am looking forward to meeting and working with you.

Under the Radar

"I'm in! I'm in, and that's what important for those to know who follow my blog," reads the first line of Mary Perkins blog on msnbc. Mary Perkins is a home owner with whom we partnered with to help build her house. We framed up the house and put on the roof. Mary hired out the siding and between her and her nieghbor they put the plumbing and electrical in. We came back and hung the drywall and started taping and mudding. Mary took over from there and for someone who didn't know how she was going to be able to get into her house last June she is now sleeping under the roof of her own home. I got to go see Mary's home today. We found out Mary was in her home because I ran by her house and saw the Christmas tree in the window. Today we also got a Christmas card from Ralph and Erin Henton, a elderly couple on our webpage. Their home is not completely finished but is close enough that they are able to live in it. The vital workings are there. Slowly but surely work is paying off in the very practical sense of people moving into their home. Thank the Lord for this and continue to pray that volunteers will continue to come and we can here many more of these stories. There are new pictures of Mary's home on our website under her photo album. If you would like to read more on Mary's blog and see her pictures her most recent post click here.

Highlands Pres Youth Shed Weekend!

 

Poetry Lady Gets a House

ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN SEA COAST ECHO 12-6-2006 (see link below for original story) Lane Shaw will begin again very modestly, in what has become known as the Katrina Cottage, a 12 X 24 little dynamo of a house, that can withstand hurricane force winds. Builders Without Borders of Houston, Tex., are building the home and Lagniappe Church in Bay St. Louis linked them with Lane. Most people would probably say they remember Lane as the "poetry lady," and if her plans go well, she hopes to be known as that once again. Before the storm, Lane was the keeper of a collection of poetry books and a mentor for local poets. The books and the poetry center went with Katrina when she blew through, but Lane survived, barely, in a room with neighbor Darlene Casanova, just one house off the beach in Bay St. Louis. The upstairs room and the stairwell were the only part of the home that stood. Lane had been talking with Darlene about buying the 80 year old home, she said, and when the storm came, Darlene refused to leave. The house, after all, had survived Camille with little more than a scratch. But this wasn't Camille. "The winds that came with the surge were amazing," said Lane. "Roofs were flying by and then we saw a car – it flew through the air just like someone was driving."

Assistant Pastor of Lagniappe Church in Bay St. Louis Curt Moore consults with Lane Shaw about plans for her Katrina Cottage.

While the women struggled up the stairs, the roof came down, breaking Lane's arm. They sat in a shower stall and sang "Jesus Loves Me," Lane said, the only thing that seemed to calm Darlene. When the storm passed, sheriff's deputies rescued the women. Lane found her dog Kai, who had survived on a cedar chest that had floated on top of debris. The women were taken to a shelter at Bay High School. A place, Lane said, not equipped to deal with the elderly or injured. With many wheel chairs and supplies commandeered by other relief efforts, the elderly had to be carried, she said. "But there were many heroes at the shelter, many people who volunteered to help others," Lane said. After six days she was able to help Darlene get to Mobile. Darlene passed away this past summer, Lane said. Lane went to New York to be near her daughter. Now she is home and floating between friends, she said. With most of her money going to medical expenses over the past year, Lane wasn't sure how she would find her way into a home of her own, but in the meantime she discovered a wonderful spirit, she said, at the Lagniappe Church in Bay St. Louis. "We try to present that it is okay that you are not perfect," said assistant pastor Curt Moore. "Everyone is broken." The church has a five-year plan to help in the rebuilding, Moore said, and so far the church has helped put over 100 residents back in homes and helped over 1,000 people with supplies. With two general contractors, a social worker on staff, and the capacity to house about 300 volunteers, the church is serious about the business of recovery. The relationship with Builders Without Borders is a new one, that Moore hopes will help to transition people out of trailers. It also gives people the opportunity to help, even if they can't make the trip to Mississippi. Lane's cottage will be built in a parking lot in Houston and trucked to its final resting place on Sycamore St. The 300 square foot home will be equipped with a stove, microwave, and a refrigerator, two bedrooms, a bath and a kitchenette. The cottages usually range from 200 to 900 sq. ft. it is designed so that it can later be turned into an addition or a mother-in-law cottage, said Moore. The church inherited equipment and supplies from the Morrell Foundation when they left the area, said Moore. After rehabbing the old West Lumber building, the church also became a construction business, hotel and restaurant, of sorts, Moore said. Since then the donations and outpouring of assistance has been amazing, offering a large number of people who have never had the opportunity to offer assistance and volunteer their help the chance to do so. You don’t have to be a church member to receive help, but of course, Moore says, everyone is welcome at services which are held at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday. Information on Builders Without Borders can be found on their website at www.builderswithoutbordersoftexas.org. The group has been involved in relief efforts since it delivered the first truckload of food donated by the citizens, churches, and businesses of Friendswood, Tex. in September 2005. Link to the original Article