God Sent Bananas

As my husband and I were finalizing vacation plans, Hurricane Katrina struck, wreaking havoc for thousands of people. Suddenly, our plans seemed irrelevant, and we felt called to help. We volunteered with Lutheran Disaster Response through the ELCA website link and were deployed to Bethel Lutheran Church in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Within minutes of arrival, we were working on relief efforts. A 53’ truck came from Virginia, and we helped unload it. But, that delivery, which seemed so large, lasted only a day, and we were praying for another truck. We urged our clients to pray for trucks, and when one arrived, everyone shouted with joy, “God sent another truck! Amen!”

One afternoon, the shelves were especially bare--only pork’n beans remained. One of the volunteers walked an elderly client home with her supplies, and a trucker stopped to ask if they would like some bananas. The volunteer explained that he was with LDR and yes, we would take bananas. The load had been dumped over and could not be sold as premium fruit, so the trucker was donating them. Soon, twenty cases of bananas were being distributed to the fruit-starved people of Biloxi, and they began cheering, “God sent bananas! Amen! God sent bananas! Thank you, Lord.” The next day, God sent bagels.

Miracles and grace reign in Mississippi. Go in peace; serve the Lord.

- Kim Toskey