Responding Quickly to an Unanticipated Need

In Sunday's sermon, I encouraged us to prepare for the unexpected by asking "what if?" more often, in various situations.  Here is a real-life situation where such preparations allowed people to respond well to an almost unimaginable need in West Virginia.

Over the weekend, a chemical spill into the water supply made water unusable for 300,000 people in nine counties, including the capital city of Charleston.  This week, Week of Compassion sent out a report from the West Virginia Regional Minister, Thad Allen, about the coordinated response to this unforeseen problem.

I encourage you to read the report here.

I hope, as you read, that you notice a few things.  First, it is unlikely that anyone ever imagined that this specific event could occur, so there is no single plan of how to respond.  

Second, notice the coordinated response.  Congregations were told of the need by a Disciples congregation at the epicenter (communication, including knowing who to call), they collected supplies (like a mission or "hands on" offering) and got volunteers to transport the supplies (like a sign up sheet on the bulletin board), and they worked with a larger organization, the West Virginia Council of Churches, to better coordinate the effort (because this religious organization has experience responding to emergencies around the state).

Through their activities as church, these congregations had prepared (more than they knew) for a situation like this.  Like them, so are we.  Still, I encourage you to imagine -- if this happened nearby, how would you respond?  What should Eastgate do?