Natural disasters are often called “acts of God,” but in reality, we know they’re the result of living in a fallen world. However, we also know that God moves in the midst of disaster to use these events to turn people’s hearts toward him.
We have seen this time and time again as we walk with people through recovery, and it’s clear that it is the work and power of the Holy Spirit orchestrating circumstances while moving in their hearts. We could not do the work that we do without the miraculous intervention of the Holy Spirit in every situation, working everything together for our good and God’s glory.
As followers of Christ, empowered by the fruit and gifts of the Holy Spirit, we each have the opportunity to demonstrate unique aspects of His character to others. We can show a different part of that fruit to someone else in a powerful way—especially those facing a crisis—and this can change their entire experience. What God has given us through the Holy Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—becomes the solution to the needs of others.
In a time of crisis, people need to see peace. These situations ultimately create opportunities to reveal what the gifts of the Spirit look like when everything else is crashing down. If you have the gift of faith, God can use you to stand in the gap for people who feel overwhelmed and hopeless.
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We get to choose to have faith in God when we dive into this ministry and face reality with these precious survivors. We have genuine faith that’s not a just feeling, but rather a choice to surrender and trust God to show up. We simply have to be willing to remain poor in spirit, for the Bible tells us that when we are, we will experience the reality of His kingdom. It’s not about being a crisis responder, but about abiding in His presence and allowing Him to transform the atmosphere through us.
God always does His part when we do our part. While few others may look to God in times of crisis, we don’t take a single step forward without consulting Him, trusting and believing in Him, no matter the circumstances. As we journey alongside those in disaster recovery, we do so in a posture of prayer and humility, making room for the Holy Spirit to move. Whether it’s provision of the exact supplies we need at just the right time, the generosity of donors to purchase gift cards for those who’ve lost everything or the softening of the hearts of officials who aren’t predisposed to welcome Christian volunteers, each of these results are a testimony of the Spirit’s role in ministering to survivors.
It’s not our job to be the savior, just the volunteers. It’s not our job to have everything figured out, but to simply rely on the Lord’s power. When faced with overwhelming disasters, we might wonder, “What can I possibly do?” The answer is simple: the Lord brings the power; we just have to say yes.
We exist at the front lines of a great war between two different realms. In this world, there is a clash between good and evil, light and darkness, and the devil has used the tools of a world in turmoil to divide us. But God’s Spirit has come back to the earth through Jesus’ death and resurrection to shatter these divides, reuniting His family for one of the greatest and most terrible times on earth. When we as believers exhibit Holy Spirit unity in our efforts on behalf of survivors, it points them clearly to Jesus, the only one who can calm the storms in their hearts.
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Daniel Geraci is the founder and CEO of United in Crisis, a training organization focused on uniting and equipping churches around the globe to form local crisis response church networks that meet the emotional, spiritual and physical needs of survivors. In May 2024, Geraci released his debut book, “United in Crisis: A True Story of God’s Miraculous Power Working Through a United Network of Churches.“
