Massachusetts Tornadoes June 1st

Just a quick update since many of you have asked about our safety amidst the devastating tornadoes in western Massachusetts yesterday.

WE ARE FINE!  Actually we were on our way to southern Rhode Island yesterday when the storms hit.  We only got some wind and a bit of rain here.  In fact, we didn't even know about the event until a friend from Texas called to check on us!  We are living this year in Northborough, MA, about sixty miles east of Wednesday's devastation.

After hearing today from most of our Southern Baptist pastors in the area of West Springfield that was hit hardest, it appears that all of our churches except one escaped any real damage.  So far as we know now, the only church structure sustaining any damage belongs to the Slavic Evangelical Church in West Springfield, MA.  That congregation recently purchased a large Catholic church building and the adjoining rectory, and we understand that the rectory sustained some rather minor damage.  One of our senior ladies' classes at First Baptist of Longview has for the last couple of years been connected as Prayer and Encouragement Partners with Pastor Fedor Songorov and his congregation!  Thank you, dear ladies!  Please continue to connect!

(As a "bonus note" here----If any of you dear readers of this blog (perhaps your family, your class, or your small group) would like to be connected for Prayer and Encouragement with a New England church, please let us know.  We'd be simply delighted to help you do just that!  I think you'll find that you would be richly blessed.)

Praise the Lord for his protection!  Please join us in remembering in prayer the many people affected by these storms yesterday as well as those in recent weeks.   Certainly the might and power of God in nature has been on display lately, would you agree?

We understand that our Southern Baptist Disaster Relief teams from Connecticut are already working with the local officials in Massachusetts to assist with clean-up there.  As we write this, we are also aware that other SBC disaster teams from New England are also working in northwestern Vermont where there has been extensive flooding from Lake Champlain.  Despite all of the misery that results from natural disasters, they provide a unique opportunity for ministry and sharing the gospel and the love of Jesus.  Our own dear friend and New England Mission Service Corps coordinator, John Scoggins, serves tirelessly as the "White Hat" for the entire New England Disaster Relief organization.  Thank you, thank you to our many dedicated DR volunteers!