By Ingrid Turcios, Graphic Designer
As a graphic designer for Samaritan’s Purse Canada and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association of Canada, I rarely have an opportunity to see our disaster relief work firsthand. The flooding in southern Alberta gave me the chance to be the hands and feet of Jesus in a brand new way.
Last week, a co-worker and I volunteered with Samaritan’s Purse in a flood-devastated neighborhood of Calgary called Bowness. We approached a big, beautiful home and spoke with the owner, letting him know of the services Samaritan’s Purse provides to affected homeowners (clean-up, power-washing, sanitizing to prevent mould growth, and complete readiness for rebuild). The owner gave us a tour of his home-and as we went down the stairs, it got darker and muddier. I felt like I was in a dungeon.
We met the owner’s wife in the basement. She told us they had been so overwhelmed by what had happened and by the damage to their home, that they had been ready to just walk away from it all-but that the helpfulness and work of the volunteers made them change their minds.
Our group prayed with the couple and then a team of Samaritan’s Purse volunteers swarmed their home, cleaning mud and muck off of all of their personal effects.
How great is our God, that He would send us at a time when this couple was ready to walk away, so that we could provide prayer, hope, encouragement, and tangible proof of God’s love. And how grateful am I that I got be a part of that love in action.
Help Samaritan’s Purse strengthen the impact of local churches in communities recovering in the aftermath of disasters. As caring Christians are trained and empowered to walk alongside individuals and families to find solutions to complex needs, God opens doors to share the Gospel.