Three of my teammates and I arrived at our destination and pulled into the driveway ready to continue to clean up after the hurricane. The homeowners, a married couple in their 60s, were sitting in two chairs on their front porch. The grandmother was standing in the front door with a darling smile. It was a humble house painted in a pale yellow. Their neighbors were outside playing and dogs greeted us from the moment we got there. The homeowners were extremely friendly and met us in the middle of their front lawn. One of my teammates immediately took off to find the job we came to do. Not much time was wasted. As we proceeded to follow the homeowners to the back of their house - it was evident that their once pleasant and quaint backyard had been ripped to debris.

At this point, we were listening to the husband about what needed to be done in the yard and how we could serve him best. You could see he was overwhelmed with the amount of work there was to do to restore his backyard. We were eager to get to work - eager to help him and show him the light of Christ.

Then in a split second, the husband starts expressing just how thankful he is for us. He began to cry and threw his head into the shoulder of my teammate. A full emotional outburst. 

I was completely caught off guard.

We hadn’t done anything. We didn’t even start to clear out his yard. How could he be so thankful? all we did was show up. 

yeah there it is. all we did was show up. 

and the Lord was like “LAYNA - what if you greeted me in thankfulness just like this old man from Louisiana? What if you didn’t just rejoice when you see the work I am doing in your life but you cried in gratitude every time you realized I’m simply with you and I am continuously showing up for you?” 

okay God, you got me. 

HE SHOWS UP FOR YOU AND I EVERY SECOND OF EVERYDAY!!

PRAISE GOD!!

I've been praying for continuous reminders and deeper awareness of His presence. 

This is just one example of how I experienced the Lord over my time in Louisiana. and BIG NEWS… we are going back again this upcoming week!! My squad and I would deeply appreciate prayers as we head back into long days of hard work and prayers over the people we come in contact with. thank you !!