The purpose of the Calvary East Valley Disaster Relief Team is to respond promptly to natural disasters in the United States by offering practical assistance and support to disaster affected communities. As part of the disaster relief effort, it will be our goal to share the love of Christ
with not only our actions (Ephesians 2:10) and various skillsets (1 Peter 4:10), but also by sharing the good news of the gospel with anyone the Lord gives us contact with (Romans 10:13-15). Calvary East Valley Disaster Relief Team will partner and collaborate with other relief organizations and agencies to maximize our impact.
After seeing the destruction on TV in California from the wildfire in Altadena, I wanted to go and help. I was blessed that Calvary in Gilbert partnered with Calvary in Monrovia, CA to offer disaster relief through the Heir Force team. I was nervous and didn't know what to expect, but felt God calling on me to go and serve. This was my first time serving on a disaster volunteer mission. I put all my fears and anxiety up to God and placed my trust in Him to use me as his servant. Throughout the week God worked through the whole volunteer team to bring comfort and spread the good news of the gospel of salvation to the people we came into contact with. We focused on helping others and putting our needs aside for the week. Whether it was cooking and serving food to people, or driving around the neighborhood and talking with people, listening to them, it was all for the glory of God in bringing the good news of salvation. I now have more confidence that God will be with us and speak through us to bring comfort to others as we use our talents as His voice, arms, and legs in spreading the gospel of Jesus. After seeing just how important it was to minister to people and comfort them, I have a new confidence and desire to serve God. Even though I may still have some doubts and fears, God is always with me and will use me to help others. I now realize that we only have to be willing and avaliable, and God will use our abilities to help in the service of His church here on earth.
Being a So Cal girl, my heart and soul were stirred by the Lord with the first fire in Pacific Palisades Jan 7th. I’ve never been on a missions trip, yet had always wanted to serve on our soil. When the Eaton Fire broke out, that’s exactly where I wanted to serve. This was made possible through Heir Force.
It very easy to become overwhelmed at the intense magnitude of the devastation and the thought of what could a team of 5 do for the glory of God? Everything we did was lifted in prayer for guidance and direction, we were reliant upon Holy Spirit completely. He brought each of there to serve for His good pleasure and at times, be gently nudged out of our comfort zone.
We joined the efforts of Calvary Disaster Relief, Calvary Chapel Monrovia, U-Turn for Christ, Calvary Bible Institute and several local Calvary Chapels. We delivered supplies from home base to the site, preparing and serving food, prayed with and ministered to homeowners and various responders; National Guard, FEMA and Haz Mat. We made burrito and supply runs in the burned neighborhoods as led by the Spirit and blessed many.
The Lord hand crafted specific tasks and made impactful connections for each of us to tackle. He is true to His Word found in Ephesians 2:10 “For we are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do the good things He planned for us long ago.”
He increased my faith through experiencing Him through His grace, focused purpose, faithfulness and almost immediate response to our prayers. So many “But God” stories.
“Before they call, I will answer; while they are
still speaking I will hear. “ Isaiah 65:24
It was also impactful to serve alongside my brothers and sisters; and be able to encourage them and be encouraged. There was true joy and the love of Christ on that corner that could not be dimmed! Our prayers are the seeds we planted would continue moving out and being impactful like concentric circles.
I invite you to come see what the Lord would have you do and experience Him fully in an upcoming disaster.
Psalm 34:4-6
I had the privilege of going on both trips as part of the Heir Force, the first trip to North Carolina was a much more work based trip, and this trip to Los Angeles was all evangelistic in nature. As much as I personally enjoy manual labor, this trip to Los Angeles was faith building for me as I got to see the Holy Spirit move in very powerful ways. There were a couple people that we got to witness the Lord saving, as they surrendered their life to Him through faith! We had the opportunity to cook meals for the impacted community and to pray with each and every single person that would walk through there. As part of the Heir Force you will have an opportunity to share with communities and individuals the hope that is in the world, which is only found in Jesus Christ.
Previous Trips
North Carolina 10/28/24
In reflecting back on my trip to North Carolina I wanted to share a few things that the Lord was working on and how He was working through me throughout the week.
Going into the trip, the enemy was in my head stating, “you are only one person, how can you possibly make a difference in such a huge disaster area?” I quickly realized that once again, our gracious Lord is always in control. I was able to overcome insecurities with praying over/with people on the streets, and being intentional about it. Something I had struggled with for years. They have literally lost every material possession imaginable, and yet they were so GRATEFUL for us being there there with them, praying with them, loving on them. That was bigger than anything that they had lost in the flood.
God started this journey off simply by putting it on my heart that I had to sign up for Heir Force. During this trip, God kept us safe and sustained/gave us the energy each day despite poor sleep, 30 snoring men in a sanctuary hall, cold showers, and the dangerous work of chainsawing trees, walking roofs/attics to remove chimneys, and operating heavy machinery. God drew us close to Him through much prayer as a volunteer group with cavalry Asheville, as the Heir Force team and individually.
We saw first hand the devastation of the small community of Swannanoa. It was heart-wrenching to hear the flood escape stories and see the condemned houses, but seeing God’s goodness in all of the volunteers (both with Calvary Asheville and other organizations, like Samaritans Purse) was uplifting and reminded me that God works all things for His glory.
The thought that we could do some small part to help be the hands and feet of Jesus and the bonds we formed with each other will stay with us forever.
Before going on a trip like this, you see some of the images from the media and you end up with a thought of how things are going to be and what things are going to look like. Honestly, nothing apart from the Holy Spirit could prepare me for a trip like this. There was a ton of manual labor that needed to be completed, but I think one of the most impactful things we were able to do was minister to those impacted by the storm and to pray over them with the gospel of Jesus Christ as the ultimate goal.
I saw the Lord move in powerful ways through the Heir Force team, most notably removing us from our comfort zone, so that He is glorified. Our team time at the end of the day was encouraging, convicting, and uplifting all at the same time. I now have a list of people to be praying over in North Carolina and an amazing Heir Force team that I know is praying for me!