Hello My Internet Church Family,

I thank God that we finally got our electrical power back after 6 days. The Hurricane came through the Richmond/Petersburg area and knocked down trees over power lines and also over a lot of the country roads. I live in the rural areas and when we lose power, your wells don't work. I drove 30 miles to my mother's house after four days of taking alcohol sponge baths so that I could take a shower. She was without power but the water never goes off in the city. It will be so nice to take a bath tonight in my own house.

When the hurricane hit last Thursday, my car ran hot and I was stranded about 15 miles away from home, I thought I was going to have to spend the night in my car. I asked God "What are you going to do now?" A policeman drove up within 15 minutes of me being stranded and called someone to tow me. The people in the towing truck dropped me off at the Comfort Inn in Petersburg. I had my mind set on getting to my house but I suspected that God did not want me to go there. It had been raining continuously since I was towed. The hotel was without power, therefore it had no running water or lights. Also, I learned that business lines are on a different power grid, therefore, it didn't have phone service either. My cell phone signal strength was also poor. I called a cab still determined to get home. Some of them could not come because the dispatcher radio needs electrical power to operate. Through this whole experience, I felt the presence of God working which I hadn't felt in some months. This old fool had no idea that God was trying to protect him from being killed by driving down country roads during a hurricane. I could have been killed by trees falling across the road without warning. Flying objects like those metal carports you see advertised for $595.00 could have came out of nowhere and crushed my windshield. The day after the hurricane, I attempted to obtain cab service but all the cabs were not running. I was determined not to spend another night in that hotel when I am within 15 minutes of my home. It's been my experience that no matter how luxurious a hotel is, there is no place like my home. Therefore, I proceeded to walk 15 miles thinking that I could possibly hitchhike some of the way. As soon as I stepped onto this country road in front of the hotel, a man with a truck from N.C. pulled out of the hotel across the street. He offered me a ride. I normally don't get in the car with strangers nor do I hitchhike but I was willing to take a chance this time. I offered him $20.OO if he would take me home. He agreed. We got within 5 miles of my house and the road was flooded with water and he was unwilling to take the chance of driving through. I understood his sentiment well. I thanked him and then proceeded to hitchhike again thinking that certainly that since cars would have to slow down to pass through this flooded area that I would be able to get a ride.

Do you realize that some people slowed down and saw me with my thumb hanging out and said a few words to me like " Is it flooded that bad man?" or they looked at me an smiled. I got tired of that humiliation and proceeded to walk the 5 miles home. I thank God for all that happened. This hurricane experience taught me a lot about how wicked our "flesh" is truly. It also showed me the virtue in humanity . I saw both sides of the coin in human nature in this experience. I have a greater meaning for what it means when it says in the Bible that our righteousness is as filthy rags. I thank God for the intercessory prayer that Rev. Rogers gave for others like myself on September 16, 2003. We truly need to be constantly praying for one another and protection from dangers seen and unseen. Thank you Jesus for the lessons that I learned from this experience.

Jazzman

-- Anonymous, September 23, 2003