Disaster Readiness

As Conference Minister in the Central Pacific Conference, I’ve had one big thing on my mind as I’ve watched the news coming out of Turkey and Syria – the Cascadia Subduction Zone. That’s the faultline that threatens Portland and areas west. The earthquake that occurred on February 6th in Turkey was a magnitude 7.8, while Cascadia has a potential of creating a magnitude 9 earthquake followed by tsunamis along the coast. I’m also aware how many of our CPC churches are potentially threatened by forest fires and wild grassfires, by heat domes and ice storms, or by the possibility of people with guns who don’t like our prophetic messages. And then there are the more-localized emergencies, like someone having a heart attack on Sunday morning or at a Board meeting.
 

I don’t want to scare you, but I need to ask: Are you ready for an emergency?

None of us are ready for every emergency, but we can get ready for some, and then get ready for more. I’m challenging each of our churches to Get Ready, Set, Go! on your emergency preparedness. Download the 2023 Readiness Challenge, and begin to check off items on the list. Our Disaster Ministry Working Group, led by Kim Vogel, has listed fifteen items you can do to get ready for emergencies, big and small. Some of the items are worth more than one point, and if you get six points and send your tracking sheet to Kim at the address listed on the Challenge Tracker, you’ll be honored at the Annual Gathering. 

Please participate in the 2023 Readiness Challenge. Being ready doesn’t have to be daunting if you take it one checklist item at a time. Do six things this year, and then you can do some more next year. 

This is yet another way we can be the Church God needs for this place and this time.