1 This is Tennessee

May 6, 2010

THIS IS TENNESSEE

VOLUNTEERS ADD NEW CHAPTER TO STORIED HISTORY

 by Brent High

On May 1^st and 2^nd of 2010 a historic amount of rain, as much as 17 inches, fell on middle Tennessee and the city of Nashville in less than 48 hours. Historians are using terms like “thousand year flood” to describe what took place here. The Cumberland River, Nashville’s main waterway, crested at just over 51 feet, flooding iconic structures including the Grand Ole Opry, LP Field and Bridgestone Arena where the Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators play, Country Music Hall of Fame and the Opryland Hotel and Convention Center. The water rose so much, so fast and in places water has never been seen that thousands had to be rescued by boat. Dozens lost their lives. Thousands of homeowners lost everything they had. Thousands more are now trying to salvage what’s left. Most had no flood insurance because before May 1^st they didn’t need it where they lived. Early estimates are that the damage will top $1 billion and this storm will go down as the most devastating non-hurricane event in American history.  

This is Tennessee.

It’s Monday, May 3^rd. The rain has stopped, finally. What happens next shouldn’t come as a surprise. Almost instinctively, after a long night of restlessness, volunteers spring into action. It’s in their blood. They’ve been trained to do so by their parents and grandparents. From Waverly to Cookeville, Winchester to Cross Plains and in the capital city of Nashville the sights and sounds are the same.

Without being asked, fishermen launch their boats into the muddy soup, joining the rescue efforts. Business owners and supervisors tell their employees to take the day off and jump in and help wherever they can. Neighbors, many of whom helped empty entire houses in brigade fashion the night before, transition into cleanup mode. Sump pumps and generators whirr. Drywall, carpet and ruined floors are ripped out. Elderly ladies gather at the church to make lunches for workers. Teenagers distribute bottled water. Pickup trucks, trailers and storage units are loaded with what could be salvaged. Photos and documents are spread out in the sun to dry. Wads of $20 bills are slid into pockets of those affected. Checks are written. Hugs are given. Prayers are said. Tears are shed.

This is Tennessee.

Almost 200 years ago Tennessee first earned the nickname “Volunteer State.” In 1812 More than 2,000 Tennesseans volunteered to fight for Andrew Jackson and were the main part of Jackson’s army that destroyed the British three years later in the Battle of New Orleans. A generation later the U. S. Secretary of War asked Tennessee for 2,800 soldiers to fight a war against Mexico. 30,000 volunteered.

This is a state where faith comes first. We don’t ask why. We know there is a reason and look forward to it being revealed. We are guided by scriptures such as Philippians 2:3-5 which says:

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus.”

Family is a focus, not an afterthought. Don’t bother trying to do business with us the week of Christmas or July 4^th. We’ll be with family. When our kids have a school play we will be there. We throw big birthday parties. We teach our kids right from wrong and aren’t afraid to give them a whippin’ when they need it.

Here we say “Yes ma’am” and “No ma’am.” We try to leave a place better than we found it. We put our hand over our heart when the national anthem is played. We pull over on the side of the road when funeral processions pass on the other side.

We are savvy business people. We are farmers. We are teachers.

We drink Coke here. We like gravy with our biscuits and potatoes.

We are serious about our sports. We keep score in little league and we still have all-star teams and MVP trophies.

We are givers.

You won’t hear us wailing about where the federal government and insurance companies were in all of this. We’ll get by just fine without them.

Right now we have a lot to deal with here in our backyard. We will handle it with dignity and class. We will sacrifice for each other in ways that are unfathomable to most. We will stand together. We will stand tall. We will come out of this stronger than we were before it.

One day in the not too distant future a hurricane, tornado, fire, flood or other unspeakable disaster will strike your community. As you struggle to put the pieces back together we will be there.

We will volunteer.

We are Tennesseans.

This is Tennessee.

Brent High

brent@brenthigh.com

615.566.6023

0 Lipscomb Athletics Mission Trip to Honduras – Day One Update

Sometimes God shows up in the smallest of details. When you add them all up it begins to paint an incredible story that can only be explained with him.

As I write this update, all 27 of us have safely arrived at Mission Lazarus in Honduras. There are seven current baseball players (Ty Burstrom, Blake Fonfara, Jaesung Hwang, Chad Shannon, Aaron Spragg, Brandon Thomas and Jordan Zelhart) and one recent baseball alum (Gil Rehwinkel). There are five men’s golfers (Taylor Combs, Blanton Farmer, Nate Mueting, Ryan Terry and Dustin Wilder). There are two women’s golfers (Sabrina Ferreri and Sarah McFarlin). There are two cross country/track athletes (Katie Collier and Alexander McMeen). There is a men’s soccer player (Kyle Erickson). There are four other students (John Egger, Lacy Hartselle, Matt Johnson and Kaela Pennington) on the trip. We won’t refer to them as NARPs (non-athletic regular people). Samuel Montoya, a native of Honduras and a member of our Lipscomb event management staff, is here and going to be carrying a lot of the interpreting load for us this week. There are four old guys – Scott Spragg (Aaron’s dad), James Zelhart (Jordan’s dad), T.J. McCloud from Lipscomb missions and myself that round out the team.

Our team started the day split up in Atlanta, Nashville, Orlando, Tegucigalpa and Wichita. The fact that we’re all here together sitting around the fire in Jayacayan, Honduras is amazing in and of itself. So many things had to go right with flight schedules, connecting flights and the always arduous four-hour journey in four vehicles from Tegucigalpa to Mission Lazarus. We are indeed thankful.

It’s thrilling to already see fruit coming from this trip. For several of our trip members this is their first time outside the United States. For others it’s their first mission trip experience.

The first 45 minutes of the drive out of Tegucigalpa were largely silent. The sights, sounds and smells of Honduras bring you to a very still place in your soul. You are aware. You are empathetic. You are saddened. You are maddened. You are appreciative. You start asking a lot of questions that hopefully ultimately lead to personal growth and a changed world view that ultimately will lead to real change both here and at home.

All 10 of us from the inaugural trip last December (affectionately known as the A-Team) are back. Ryan Terry and Kyle Erickson were so changed by their experiences in Honduras this past year that they decided to spend the better part of this December including Christmas here. They have been here for three weeks working with Mission Lazarus and Jovenes en Camino doing a variety of construction and farming tasks.

Tomorrow we will attend a small Church of Christ congregation on an island just off the Pacific coast. Starting Monday we will be hard at work building a brick house for one of the local preachers and his family. Their old adobe house, like many here, was severely damaged by recent flooding. We’ve been told to expect lots of kids at the work site, just as was the case in August when the softball team served in San Marcos. They were overrun daily with dozens of children wanting to play.

Probably the most surreal yet encouraging thing that happened today happened as we were driving on the Pan-American Highway about an hour away from Mission Lazarus. Matt Johnson spotted a young boy walking on the right side of the road wearing a gray Lipscomb t-shirt with purple and gold lettering.

One shirt at a time. One brick at a time. One piece of candy at a time. One smile at a time. One story of the reason we have hope at a time.

Lord willing, the power and internet will stay up long enough each evening for me to send a daily recap. Check LipscombSports.com each day for the most recent update. We truly appreciate your prayers and encourage you to continue to lift the team and the people of Honduras up before our Lord.

Almost there,

Brent