Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 20)

Today was a day to finish well my responsibilities and farewell some great people!

It continues to amaze me how you can make such strong connections with like minded people in such a short period of time. To Daryl, Clive, David D, Andrea, Eric, Robbie, David S, Robert C, Vicki & SAMIS team, Alistair & crew, you are awesome people and a great team, doing a great work to contribute to the recovery of Christchurch. It has been an absolute pleasure working with you all over the past three weeks.

This has been an amazing learning experience that has made a huge impact on my life and leadership. I have appreciated the many opportunities I have had to serve, care, observe, plan and lead in an environment that presents new challenges each day. It is my hope and desire that what I have experienced and learnt from this trip will contribute into our leadership and ministry at the Noarlunga Corps. Although, we have a very different context to what is being experienced in Christchurch, we minister daily to the lost, hurting and broken in our community.

By sharing my daily thoughts with family and friends throughout this deployment, I wanted to invite you to join with me in my journey, include you in this ministry, and in turn invest into your lives also. Thank you for your kind thoughts, prayers and support throughout my time away. It has been an enormous encouragement reading your good wishes each day! Stay happy, healthy & holy!!

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 19)

I had a relatively early night, for me, last night which made all the difference, as I have been running on fumes (Black Coffee & Red Bull) the last few days! I even woke up before my 6 am alarm this morning!!

Getting ready for my departure on Saturday is mixed with a variety of emotions. I have thoroughly enjoyed my stay and contribution to the relief effort and have worked alongside some amazing people. Yet, I look forward to returning home to reconnect with my family and reengage with our mission at Noarlunga. I am passionate about IES ministry to disaster affected countries but am also passionate about the local church and love being a Corps Officer. I enjoy being abroad, but in the words of a famous movie line, 'there is no place like home'. Working with a new team of friends in New Zealand has been personally enriching, but God has blessed us with an awesome team at Noarlunga that are empowering my life and leadership. I have seen much human suffering over the past few weeks, which only fuels my determination to respond to the very real needs in our community.

So, I gladly embrace this tension that allows me to share my affections and passions across a variety of ministry opportunities that contribute to the international mission of The Salvation Army.

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 18)

Amidst the many stories of tragedy emerge inspirational stories of triumph from people who refuse to allow their very real loss and pain to define their future. I was deeply touched by the story of a young family I met during a home visit yesterday. They lost their own home and business during the September earthquake. Their children were traumatised during the first quake, with their 4 year old son too petrified to stay inside or sleep alone. They became very angry with the world and withdrew behind closed doors of their new rented house, refusing to engage with anybody. The February quake has now made their current house unlivable and their 8 year old daughter has withdrawn into herself and is losing control of her bodily functions. Anger subsided into depression; the husband was on the verge of a breakdown while the wife was also falling to pieces.

Within the space of a week, after receiving timely help from The Salvation Army and connecting with counselling services, the family I met yesterday were positive, objective and planning for a better future. I'll never forget the wife's comment to me in a determined voice, "I'm tired of living as a victim." The husband returned home while we were visiting from a promising job interview, and they were getting ready to go and find a new home. They had determined that it was time for them to invest into other people's lives and contribute to the recovery of their city (and I'm tipping of themselves also). After secluding themselves from the neighbourhood, they now call in on their elderly neighbour regularly and interact with street gatherings. While acknowledging their journey of pain, they have an extraordinary outlook for their future!

There are many things that happen to us in life we cannot control. However, the way we respond to our circumstances is a choice. This couple has faced circumstances completely outside of their control, yet they choose to live life!

I am reminded of the words of the prophet Habakkuk who faced his own trials:

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Saviour." (Habakkuk 3:17-18)

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 17)

Today, I travelled back into an area that was being covered by our door knock teams for the first time since February 22nd. Seaside town/suburb of Sumner is situated between a beautiful coastline and the side of some spectacular rocky cliffs. What I find extraordinary about Sumner and surrounding neighbourhoods is that they are built up the side of steep slopes with many houses literally cut into the hillside. Although, these homes offer some stunning coastal views, one would have to wonder how much this view is worth in such a vicarious location where earthquakes are commonplace.

As we travelled along the coastal road, the devastation of the earthquake became immediately evident as we passed rockslides with boulders the size of cars laying on the side of the road. In several locations where the cliff face is still unstable, shipping containers filled with concrete blocks are stacked up to protect motorists from falling rocks. When I drove through this town the other day to deliver a Care Card, I only had my phone camera and got a few dodgy photos. Today, I had my Canon EOS 300D :) and was able to capture some amazing photos (this is where I live with tension between being a curious photographer and concerned humanitarian).

One particular house that is situated hard up against the base of a cliff was completely wiped out down one side. It is believed that one of the listed missing people may still be in there, but the area is too unstable to do any serious excavation. If the boulders on the side of the road weren't big enough, I saw an astonishing sight in the middle of town, with a boulder the size of a house laying alongside some clubrooms. The sound of these rocks and landslides coming down the hillside into this peaceful township must have been nothing short of terrifying!! I heard stories of rocks not just tumbling down the side of the hill but being catapulted into the streets, leaving massive craters from their initial impact. A local surfer was out on the surf when the earthquake hit and witnessed these landslides while feeling the effect of the quake out on the water.

Just when I thought I had seen the full effect of the damage in the suburbs, Sumner has redefined the devastation of this earthquake.

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 16)

I found myself getting a little emotional this evening during the group debrief as I heard amazing stories from each team after their first day on the job. I think what struck me was the immediate impact that a new group was making and their adaptability to a very challenging situation, working alongside people they have only just met. The team spirit after one day was quite extraordinary, the creative thinking and ingenuity was impressive, the patience and grace demonstrated when things didn't quite go to plan appreciated, the genuine concern and response to human suffering moving!

I love working with teams and seeing them accomplish life changing results. These last few weeks have been a rare privilege to see this manifested in the most exaggerated of circumstances. From Pete and Jenny out in the streets, to Dale and Wendy at Linwood, to the leadership of Daryl and David, and the support of Vicky and Andrea; I have been deeply blessed to work alongside of some of the most amazing people I have ever met!! We have known each other and worked together for a couple of weeks but have accomplished things that take some teams years to achieve.

The NZ Territorial leadership should be very proud of what their people have accomplished and the leadership and ministry they have provided to the people of Christchurch. We have been reminded often of the amazing reputation The Salvation Army has earned during this disaster. I can't help but to think how this will elevate the mission of The Salvation Army in NZ for years to come. Although disaster relief is not evangelical in the moment, it provides a significant springboard for the gospel as people have come face to face with the love of Christ through His faithful servants during their time of need.

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 15)

At the end of a busy day seeing off the weekend crew and welcoming the new teams from AUS, AUE & NZ, I stopped into McDonalds with Major David Dalberg to discuss the agenda for the morning briefing over coffee. The store was busy as usual and while we were enjoying a relaxing moment we were rocked by a 5.1 aftershock. This was by far the worst I have felt since being here and it gave the building a really decent shake. You could literally see it move from side to side and back and forth. I have never seen or experienced anything like this! Everybody in the store stopped and you could see the very real concern in people's faces. There was that awkward moment - do we stay, or do we get out of here? Strangely enough, despite the initial fear, everybody went back to business as usual when it was over.

I couldn't help but to wonder how the locals who had experienced both earthquakes in Sept and Feb were feeling in that moment. The reality is they live daily with the uncertainty and fear that it may happen again. We have encountered so many people who are not only dealing with what they have lost but are unsure whether to rebuild or relocate. For many, the impact of both quakes has taken its toll and they have abandoned Christchurch. For others, they are still navigating their way through the broken pieces of their lives. After every significant aftershock you wonder if the emotional and practical support we have provided to date is being undone by the constant threat to people's emotional and physical well-being?

Imagine the workload of the authorities who have the laborious task of inspecting damaged buildings. What was given a green sticker may now be unsafe, those given yellow may well be too dangerous to enter. It seems like an endless task. Then there is the City Council busy doing street repairs. Will their hard work be in vain? It is a massive recovery process that will run into the billions of dollars and will take years to restore this beautiful city to its former glory.

No words can capture the extraordinary effort that is being made by government and non-government groups who are working tirelessly to respond to this crisis. From my vantage point, I think the NZ people should take a lot of pride in their resilience and responsiveness to this disaster. We often get praised by the locals for coming over to help, but I want to praise the locals for not giving up and for their determination to "rise up" above their circumstances.

Christchurch Earthquake Relief Journal (Day 14)

Another crew from New Zealand was briefed this morning to cover the weekend shifts. They were divided into what we are calling "Flying Squads" to follow-up the contacts made during the week. They take the referrals made by the rapid assessments of the door knock teams and spend more concentrated time with people providing financial, practical and emotional support.

I love hearing their stories during our daily debrief sessions of the impact being made, not only upon the lives of those we are assisting, but those who are providing the assistance. We come together as strangers and leave as friends with a shared experience that has changed each of our lives. Something happens deep within your spirit when you journey with people through times of suffering and survival.

Although I am feeling pretty tired after two weeks of long days pouring out physical and emotional energy, I am strangely energised by the knowledge that our presence really matters to the people of this city. I walked into McDonald's in Riccarton tonight to wind down and was greeted by the the guy serving in the cafe, "Long black mate?" (I have already filled two coffee cards LOL). When I tried to pay, he just thanked me again for serving the people of his city and politely declined my money. It goes way beyond a "Thank God for the Salvos" mentality, but extends from a heart that has embraced us as brothers and sisters in thier time of need. I've said it before, but I am humbled and honoured by the grace that is shown to us daily by everyone we meet.

We welcome another team of Aussies from both territories tomorrow. I'm looking forward to meeting them at the airport and embarking on another extraordinary week of ministry in Christchurch.