A Display of Contrasts

Passing through some old photos as I try to find pics for a particular project my ADDness hit overdrive. Found myself looking through other pics unrelated. Couldn't resist posting this one. No. I didn't drug Mr.John Sabin and prop him up in the skid steer. He was a willing accomplice. Thanks for playing along. I think the picture reveals a bit of each one of us, a display of contrasts. I will show you my rough exterior but I secretly love daisies, puppies, cookies and milk, and a big hug.

Things at Lagniappe are so busy right now-March is full, June is full, and half of July is full! We are so thankful that God continues to bring volunteers to us to help with the restoration of the area. I am facing some serious personal trials and I would love for those who are faithful to pray to intercede for me in prayer for strength and God's mighty work to be done-to bring the lost to Himself, to right the wrong, and to bring a beautiful picture of His love to my life. That I would feel God singing over me and never doubt His goodness in my life, even when the clouds are so prominent. If you've been trying to reach me, I promise I will call ya back! I know there are many of you that want to come help do some work, and we want you to come! If there are dates that you want to come and they are full, please use that time to pray for us.... Thanks! Cammie

so what exactly do you do....??

This is one of the questions I am most commonly asked. The moment you say you graduated 2007, people look at you enthusiastically and say, "so! what do you do?" I usually begin by saying "I'm resource coordinator for Lagniappe" to which they respond, "hmmmmm, so what EXACTLY do you do?" (This is after I explain what on earth Lagniappe means) Well....I fumble around, it's something like "recruiting volunteers, raising financial support, and raising prayer support." Most people nod and leave it at that-at the most smile and say something like "that must be fulfilling." Those who venture to press further hear me fumble through "well, I email folks, I travel, I call churches, I write articles, I run errands, I work in the tool crib, I go to Lowes...." Some days I'm in my office all day making phone calls and writing emails; somedays I'm working in the tool crib. Usually what happens is I begin in the office around 8 am, writing emails and making phone calls, somewhere around 9 am I get a phone call saying "I have a flat tire; hook up the trailer and bring the flat-bed pick up truck...oh and by the way bring some wrenches with you when I come." I drive down some dirt roads, deliver materials, go to Lowes to pick up more materials, and I return around 10:30 am. I return a few phone calls, make a cup of tea, and go talk to Ruth in her office. From 11-12, I work on a slideshow presentation, quitting at 12 to each lunch and let off steam that's building from frustration with technology (I do better with quill pens and owl mail). From 1-4, I plan my trip to Texas, or Oxford MS, or one of the other exciting places I get to go. By 4:30 I'm wrapping up for the day, sending out final emails and clearing my office desk. Then I get a phone call, "We need insulation hung tonight; the house is being sheet-rocked tomorrow" so I leave my computer and head to the Foster home. We hang insulation in the dark till 7:30--listening to Journey, Shawn McDonald, and anything else on the random Ipod playlists....I'm an office girl who drives a flat-bed pickup truck and likes it. I'm a PR rep who hangs insulation (but you can tell I don't do it often because I'm not very good at it). I am a mountain lover who lives by the beach; I am a banker's daughter who loves working in a mini home-depot, and I'm a Christian who's learning I barely understand the Gospel I proclaim. That's what I do....I love my job, but if you ask me to explain it, it might take a while :)

"In His Own Words"

The title reminds me of the NPR radio program with the name "In Their Own Words". Actually, I wanted to share with you the words of Richard Fisher, a recent volunteer, who came with Covenant from Harleysville, PA. Richard wrote his prose after our morning worship service. During our service we have a time for prayer requests. It was at that time that a lady in our congregation asked for prayer that '08 would be her year for a home. This is what he wrote: From January 8-16 my church sent 18 people to the Gulf Coast for restoration work due to the horrific storm Katrina. Even after two and a half years the Gulf Coast struggles to live. To my eyes, it's like a man who has suffered a heart attack. His only hope is if someone who knows C.P.R. helps him breath again. People who have chosen to stay and fight still face overwhelming problems. May I tell you about one such lady. I don't know her name or what she looks like, but I heard her voice and recognized her pain and what I heard was this... "Mr. Preacher man, it's been 902 days since Katrina hit, God's still working one day at a time to fit My thinking, my desire, my longing to sit, On my own porch. Mr. Preacher man, would you be so kind to tell the Lord that you're a friend of mine, Would you tell Him that I'm still alone, Wishing and hoping for my own home. Could this be the year, two thousand and eight, That everything will be suddenly set straight? Can you hear? Will you answer? this mournful plea. Surely God is speaking to you and to me.

It's Hard to Let Them Go............

One of the greatest joys of being on staff at Lagniappe is the great privilege we have to get to know volunteers who come to serve from all over the country. However, it is also one of the great "hurts" we genuinely feel when we have to see them go. Shown here is a group of volunteers from the community of Whitewater, Wisconsin, a community which adopted Bay St. Louis shortly after Katrina. This group contributed 784 hours of service to Bay St. Louis this week! They also presented our public library with a check for $1500 donated by their Whitewater Library, they gave our Second Street Elementary School a check for $500 from quarters collected by their own Washington Elementary School, and they donated approximately $250 for miscellaneous building materials as they worked on Lagniappe projects throughout the week.

This group came to us from Covenant

Presbyterian Church in Harleysville, Pennsylvania. Richard and Sarah Fisher served graciously in our kitchen, assisting our chef, Elizabeth Holman, with preparing, serving and cleaning up this week, while the rest of their group worked on several houses nearing completion, doing drywall and flooring. Thank you, Covenant!

Restorers of Dwellings

"You will be called restorers of streets and dwellings..............." Isaiah 58:12 Thanks to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (known as MEMA around here) one of our regular church attenders, Shirley Hightower, moved into her MEMA cottage today! Shown here with Shirley on her beautiful front porch are NCCC staff members Jillian Amrich, Emily Buckley and Angie Caldwell.

NCCC is an Americorp group currently living and working with Lagniappe. Americorps National strengthens communities and develops leaders through team-based national and community service, and are a GREAT help to Lagnaippe in many ways. Today they graciously helped Shirley move into her new home.

Thanks, NCCC!

Welcome to your new home, Shirley!

Known as "The John Maudlin Group"

These group of guys are simply known as the "John Maudlin Group" on the calendar here at Lagniappe. That or when Lynne Sabin and I discuss them as my friends or your group. Notice that knowing some one here at Lagniappe at best gets you shoved in the bunkhouse that at the moment is being used for storage, great connection. Anyway, these guys have been coming around since before Lagniappe even existed and built sheds with Conrad, one of the contractors on staff with LPC early on, before much else was established. Gutting houses and building sheds are how we got started back with housing teams at Morrell on the beach with groups like this. If you ever run into John, Caleb, Andrew, and Ben ask them about the time the shed fell off the trailer while traveling down the road. It is a fun story to tell and hear but it is also a story of God's providence and grace. This week these guys laid tile in a house that Lagniappe built from the ground up and among other things moved a refrigerator into a repair that we took part of. From moving sheds to now an organization that builds houses, has the supervision and skill on staff to allow these guys to lay tile and lay it good and fast (thanks Clyde) and is still around two years later. Having groups like this return are a reminder of all God has done in this place. What they may have thought as a weekend trip to build sheds turns out is the foundation and starting point of what God built this church out of. They were the first to move towards brokenness out of brokenness for the declaration and demonstration of God's love here at Lagniappe and begin the practical application of how we were going to do this. Thanks for coming back guys and glad to hear you found crawfish.

Volunteer Says it all for 2007

As I pondered what to say to close out the year for 2007 we received this note from James Hildreth an RUF student from Auburn. It says precisely what I had hoped to say- Lagniappe has an amazing staff, the work is monumental, the Gospel is going forth and Christ's name is being lifted up in this city and in the lives of the volunteers- thanks James. *********************** 12/07 Dear Lagniappe Church, I was one of the RUF students from Auburn that came down to work on the blitz build last week. It ended up being a very special trip for me. I know that y'all put in a lot of work and preparation to take of all the visitors and actually get the construction done. The place felt like a home instead of a bunk house and the food alone was worth the trip, I thought that y'all did a great job of making Jesus the priority and not the house. My faith was definitely strengthened on the trip. I've done a couple of blitz builds with Habitat, and it's a great feeling to watch a house go up in a couple of days, but they did not touch my soul the way this past weekend did. It's amazing how God works. I went thinking that I was going to help somebody else, but I feel that I was helped as much as anybody. It was also real fun to get to know everybody down there. I had a great time meeting people from the staff, to the RUF students from other schools, to becoming better acquainted with the folks from Auburn. Our trip to New Orleans and bonfire at the beach were really a lot of fun, The sign in your church that reads, "Enter as Strangers, Leave as Friends" is very true. Thank you again for letting me come work and visit. Have a Merry Christmas and I will be keeping you and the community in my prayers. I hope that I can make another trip to Lagniappe in the future. Sincerely, James Hildreth

Just for Fun Photos-Part 2

Pardon me. Would you like to purchase a bank vault across from the beach? How about a bridge? Photo taken on a foggy day. It is unclear where the bridge leads. "Donate Blood." Very tasty promotion for Dracula's Kitchen. The itty bitty t-shirt contest shirt as displayed proudly by Jordan Sikkema.

You fill it out well. "Have you been lifting?"

Just For Fun Photos-Part 1

From a recent trip to Orlando. A sign near the baggage claim carousel at Orlando International. Is Ramada secretly embedding Biblical truth in it's marketing campaign? "You do your thing." That's what I tell myself when I run from God...and if I run far enough eventually wind up buried and bound in surprise and sorry.

"Looking for a sign? Tell her you love her." Someone visiting our website asked for us to pray for her marriage to be restored. The husband was looking for a sign whether or not to stay in the marriage or depart. After giving appropriate Biblical directives I sent this tongue-in-cheek reply. Please note three things in photo. 1. In the background the warning of a "Diesel" line underground. 2. The lit cigar. 3.The absolute, unwavering trust in God's providence. This Florida Hibiscus is now a true Steel Magnolia. "Giving the tongue"

A sign at the IKEA store in Atlanta

COs and so.

Today we finally got two COs, certificate of occupancy, on two of the houses we finished before Thanksgiving. Once your air conditioning unit is set a surveyor must come out and shoot your final grade for the finished construction elevation certificate. We finished all the work on these houses before Thanksgiving but it took a while to get all the paperwork in line to CO the homes. We also have the Howell's, Russo's, Gillum's, and Given's all at the same place, our work is done. Given's will just need an inspection, Howell's, Russo, and Gillum needs to pass electrical inspection, have power to the house, the city needs to install the sewer grinder, my HVAC guy will have to finish his work, and finally go through a final inspection. Thanks to the help of Russ, Josh, David, David, Doug, and J J we were able to finish these houses up. Of course Kenley, Clyde, and Andrew also worked tirelessly on these houses also but we met our goal, we finished what we had to before Christmas. Now to find work for the 70 folks coming in the 26th.

COs and so.

wanna see the finished product?

Here it is....the outside of a house completely finished. It looks amazing. To Jordan, Andrew, and Clyde...congratulations boys, you have done an incredible job! Thank you for your tireless work, incredible organization, ability to delegate and allow volunteers to do difficult jobs, wake up insanely early and go to bed insanely late...you guys are amazing. To the MTW leaders, thank you for your hard work and willingness to work so well with our Lagniappe staff. Thanks for being flexible with us! To the RUF students...thank you. Thank you for your fun attitudes, your hard work, your graciousness with mistakes, your vision for God's kingdom, and for coming here and serving as broken people loved by Jesus. We were blessed to have you. To everyone who prayed, to everyone who supported this financially, and to everyone else on the Lagniappe staff that worked to hard to make this happen, keep people fed, keep the place clean, and keep the rest of us sane....THANK YOU. Most of, thank you to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and his son who "did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but made himself nothing, taking on the form or a servant, being born in human likeness, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." Phil. 2:5-8. Thanks to everyone who modeled that method of ministry this weekend by entering into brokenness and seeking its redemption. Merry Christmas!!!

The Pictures

During Der Blitz over 500 photos were taken. Since we have so many ask for the photos we have made a web ablum for all 500 of them. Enjoy. Soli Deo Gloria http://picasaweb.google.com/JLarroux/RUFBlitzBuild

The Blitz Ends, but the Thunder comes

Sadly as fast it came, the Blitz is now over. Our RUF students on are going back home for Christmas, but as with lighting, the thunder will soon follow. We have already heard some of the thunder with work making the local news and newspapers, the sound of the car horns in support of locals. We here at Lagniappe are thankful for all the support all have given us, but we are most thankful for the support from God that He has given to us. Even thought we came to support victims from a hurricane, God came to us dead in our sin, and rescued us from death. We love because He first loved us, and His love compels us. We here at Lagniappe long to see; not just homes restored but see lives restored. We hope with this bolt of lightning, that people with come to see where the true source of the lightning came from and then come and hear the thunder. Soli Deo Gloria The house in the morning The last picture of the house, sadly could not get a picture of the finished house beacuse it was to dark

Our First Registrations for Holding on to Hope

We have received our first registrations for our women's conference February 22-24, 2007. Thank you for your interest and for those registrations. I am always blown away by the faithfulness of God in these things. After preparing over these past months and sending out the brochures, I must admit I have the fleeting questions, "Will anyone come?" Thanks be to God for His moving in the hearts of those who have registered and will be in the coming months. I am so aware of my own unbelief in trusting God in this event. Oh Lord, I believe, help my unbelief! Please call or email me if you have questions. We look forward to seeing you all face to face soon.

The Blitz Continues

The Blitz build continues here at Lagniappe. After a day of rest the build from the building on Saturday, we continued today here in Monday. We once again started at the crack of dawn and the blitz started up again. The blitz build has also gotten the notice to the local community with people horning their horns and waving their hands, support from the fire department, and the local newspapers and news stations. WE here at Lagniappe thank all of our supports and to the parents of the students of the college who came and gave up part of their Christmas break. THANK YOU! Soli Deo Gloria!

We passed Inspection!!! Bottoms Up? Around the work site Have a nice day Merry Christmas from all of us here in Lagniappe

Day 2 !!!

I will begin by saying that my post will not be as spectacular as Sam Berton's....let's just say I'm technologically challenged and getting anything posted to the web is miraculous for me! However...here's some progress from the morning!

If we feed them, they will come..............

Scared? Well he ought to be! Earlier this summer, John Sabin found a racoon in the tool crib and promptly beat him to death with a shovel, much to the horror of the tool crib girls. This week, after finding our cat food crate open and empty several days in a row, the search was on for the culprit, and guess who it was! This wiley racoon reminded me of a memory I have of our youngest son Reid, who at age 12, spent the night in our barn so he could stage an attack on the racoon tribe that incessantly raided the cow food tub everynight, causing Reid extra work every morning. When I went down to the barn to check on him, there were

dead racoons scattered around the barn floor, and when I asked him why he hadn't disposed of them, he stated that he was leaving them there as an example to all the other racoons who thought they could get a free meal at his expense. Well, since one of the tool crib girls' jobs this summer was to teach John Sabin sensitivity, they absolutely forbade him to ever again beat a racoon to death with a shovel, so he now has a more politically correct method of catch and release. Tool crib girls, be proud! Here Ruth offers wiley racoon a peace offering of green apple before he is released into the wild blue yonder.

Revive, Resource, Replicate

Mo Leverett, accomplished urban ministry entrepreneur and critically acclaimed singer-song writer, blessed an attentive crowd of RUF students with many of his songs tonight at Lagniappe. Over 50 RUFers from around the country are with us for 5 days to blitz build our newest Lagnaippe home. Mo's current ministry in New Orleans, Rebirth International, is another model of the church's call to participate in the restoration of creation as he seeks to replicate Jesus's ministry of word and deed among the poor, and we were so blessed to have him share his ministry and music with us. Thanks, Mo!