By Lorenzo Salinas

l.v.salinas@panews.com

 

God may work in mysterious ways, but the volunteers with We Care Ministry work long, hard and very meticulously.

After Procter Baptist Church in Port Arthur sustained floodwaters of two and a half feet during Harvey, the church and everything on the first floor was ruined. Pastor Rick Erwin said it had gotten into the sanctuary, family life center, offices, nurseries and “everything” on the lower floor.

“Just seeing the water come all the way up to the doors … it was really tough to see that, knowing that when we’d get back in here, we’d see such devastation,” he said.

Nevertheless, Erwin and members of the congregation knew what had to be done in order to get their holy place right again.

“We just gritted our teeth and said, ‘You know what? We’ve been here a long time and … we would keep on worshipping,’” he said.

Erwin credited the people with We Care Ministry, a volunteer program within the church that goes out and helps people in the surrounding neighborhoods fix their homes, with the tremendous work that has been done on Procter Baptist Church.

“Our people have been here for many years and are hardworking,” he said. “As we get older, we’re not as active as we used to be (but) we still got up and worked. It was just natural that we got up and went to work.”

That work included removing the mold-filled pews from inside the church. It was an effort that required some heavy-duty equipment.

“It required cutting them in two with chainsaws,” Erwin said. “The water came up on the pews and mold became apparent immediately. The only way to get them out was to cut them up and carry them out by pieces.”

Erwin said he and volunteers took out everything, including the carpet, tile, bottom four feet of sheetrock and all the flooring in the nurseries. It was a similar scenario in their gym and family life center as well.

However, all the hard work would seem to be paying off.

“For the last week and a half, we’ve been straightening up,” Erwin said. “We’re going to worship in our sanctuary on Sunday, even though it’s not completely finished. We’re ready to do music, preaching and to worship together.”

Erwin continually praised the volunteers, calling them a “wonderful group of people” that amazed him.

“I was talking to one man—he’s 80 years old—and he was here every day, from early in the morning to late in the afternoon…” Erwin said. “Loving the Lord, loving your church—it’s a joy to see these people work so hard.”

In another anecdote about people’s dedication to the church, Erwin related how one plant manager in Houston, a former member, took a week off and worked at the church the entire week to help get it cleaned and ready for services again.

“This is just a church that loves each other,” he said.

Other churches would seem to share that love as well.

Erwin made it a point to thank First Baptist Port Arthur on FM 365 for allowing them to hold their worship services in their building.

“They were just wonderful,” Erwin said. “After we had the flood, they were the first ones to call and say, ‘Our church is your church.’”

In getting Procter Baptist Church back up and running again, Erwin said it would also help free them to help others.

“I believe a church is alive when it looks beyond itself to help others,” he said. “It has been a joy to others. It’s the first time we’ve been in need and people have stepped up to help us.”

Erwin said when people help others, God has a way of turning that around and reciprocating the good deed.

“We don’t fret about these things. We trust Him and keep working.”