Joel & Leah Chandler
Great Commission Ministry
Ball State University
Muncie, Indiana
Joel & Leah with L-R: Hope, Gabe, Lucas & Joshua
Below is the last update we will show here. To read the current update and more
information on the Chandler's check out their web site by clicking on this link:
http://www.revoweb.net/joel/?page_id=17
April Update
April ‘06
Spring Break
Spring has sprung forth in full force and we and our kids are loving it! The sunshine, green grass and bounty of flowers bring hope and new energy with them, though we’ve realized that our children did not need any more energy than they already had. None the less, it’s been great to play outside together, and Gabe learned to ride his bike without training wheels last week! Now if Hope would just learn to walk, rather than crawling around in the mud.
Joel started out the season with a group of our students and staff as they headed down to Slidell, Louisiana for a rebuilding spring break trip. A small team from the Revolution had gone down in October during Fall Break to help in whatever way possible. It was then that our pastor decided we would go down again for Spring Break. He saw clearly that the need would still be great and wanted to continue to offer help.
Of course, the need was still overwhelming. Our only regret was that we couldn’t have done more. First Baptist Church of Slidell hosted our team which they had break up into groups that worked on different houses. Some groups continued to gut houses that were severely water damaged and infested with mold, others, like Joel’s group, hung drywall in an effort to get these people’s houses to a livable state again. It was hard work, but fun to work together and offer free services to people who so badly needed it.
Piles of waste from gutted houses lay next to the
street waiting to be picked up. The house in the
background is boarded up and still unlivable.
If you look just above the crew members’ heads you
can see the water line on the walls and cabinets
from the flooding that Katrina caused.
Joel and the team were struck by how pitiful the whole area still looked. So many people are still without homes, businesses are just attempting to open and there is apparent destruction everywhere. The family that Joel’s team served had been out of their home for the last seven months. This family of five was living in the trailer home in their driveway which was provided by the U.S. government. Joel and his team finished most of the dry walling, so we hope that the family is settled into their home by now. Our hearts go out to these families for the suffering they have endured. We were encouraged to hear that the most help and support that these people have gotten has been from churches near and far reaching out to them to meet their physical and spiritual needs. We believe that this is how God desires his Church to respond.
Joel and his crew stand in the doorway of the house they
were rebuilding with the mother and two of her children,
This is the camper outside the house where this
family of five has lived for the past 7 months.
The students did a great job of working hard all day and then enjoyed fellowship and fun at night while they stayed at the church that hosted us. After a long hard week of work and a lot of time on the road, everyone was happy to arrive home and sleep in their own beds. While our family missed Joel tremendously, we were all glad that he was gone for such a good cause. We hope you are also encouraged by how God is using your investment of prayers and finances in this ministry. Thank you so much for making all of this possible. We are forever grateful for you!
Bound in Christ,
Joel & Leah
Joel, Leah, Lukas, Gabe, Joshua & Hope Chandler * 904 W. Cowing Dr. * Muncie, IN 47303 * (765) 215-8467 * joelc@revoweb.net
The Chandlers is proudly powered by WordPress
Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS).