Posted: 3/4/05
Parents urge missions worker:
'In case of tsunami, please call home'
By John Hall
Texas Baptist Communications
Most youngsters are taught to call home in case of an emergency. A recent Texas Baptist college graduate discovered that rule applies no matter one's age.
Christy, whose last name and exact location are being withheld for security reasons, has been serving in a South Asian nation the last several months–including the day after Christmas, when a series of tsunamis struck the country where she was working.
Christy said on that day a woman told her an earthquake killed about 100 people. She felt sorrow for the situation but did not realize the scale of the damage.
| Children in South Asia received clean water and food through Baptist World Aid. (Photo courtesy of Baptist World Alliance) |
Friends encouraged Christy to contact her parents to let them know the area she is in was unaffected, but she got sidetracked. That night, she went Christmas caroling with her friends and missed her mother's phone call.
“I'm scared to death,” said her father, Wayne. “I know the town she's in, and it's not mentioned in any of the articles, but it's still your baby.”
Later that night, Christy's boyfriend called to check on her and told her how worried her parents were. Still not realizing the enormity of the tsunamis, she explained to him that she was sleeping and asked him to tell her parents she was fine.
Both parents described hearing of their daughter's safety as a “big relief.”
“That was the longest four or five hours of my life,” Wayne said.
It wasn't until the next day that she contacted her parents and began to realize the situation. Her father had the Red Cross searching for her.
He left messages for his congressman and senator. Her mother contacted the agency she was working for, seeking information, of which there was none.
She received several e-mails explaining how worried her church was about her. Many of the members did not know exactly where she was but knew she was in the region.
“When I found out how much I put my family through, I was sick to my stomach all day, thinking about my mom having to think that her daughter might possibly have been killed,” Christy wrote via e-mail. “Even now, I can't believe she had to go through that all because I didn't think it was a big deal and wanted to go to bed because I was tired!”
Even though Christy is not in a region affected by the tsunamis, she believes she is playing a role in the recovery process. The time she spends homeschooling children enables their parents to organize medical clinics and relief efforts.
“We are all the body of Christ, and we all are called to serve God in different ways at different times,” she wrote.
Christy also has concentrated her efforts on prayer–for the people and relief workers.
“I've also been reminded of the power of prayer,” she wrote. “I may not be able to go right to the frontlines and help, but one of the most powerful things I can do is lift up the people of the area and the volunteers coming in prayer. I'm right here and hear all that is going on and my prayers can be so much more specific … not that they're any better–just more specific.”
As for her mother, Debra–a member of South Main Baptist Church in Pasadena–she's proud her daughter has the courage to follow God's calling.
“She could have been home, but she was where she wanted to be,” she said. “God took care of her.”
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