Nyumba ya mshiriki wa Kanisa la Waadventista wa Kwanza wa Chattanooga Coleen Jenkins huko Cleveland, Tennessee, ilikuwa ikihitaji kukarabatiwa paa. Jumba la bungalow la 1935, ambalo aliliita "lililopungua," lilikuwa limefanyiwa kazi miaka mingi kabla, na sehemu mpya ilikuwa imeongezwa kwenye nyumba hiyo. Paa la nyongeza hiyo lilivuja katika sehemu nyingi, na mvua iliponyesha, ilizua tatizo kubwa la maji. Kutokana na mapato yake machache, Jenkins humsaidia kumlipia mjukuu wake karo ya shule, lakini kwa ubadhirifu, aliweka akiba ya pesa za kutosha kununua vifaa vinavyohitajika kutengeneza paa, akitumaini kuwa ataweza kumlipa mtu wa kufanya kazi hiyo.

Nick Joy, shemasi mkuu katika Chattanooga Kwanza, alipokea simu kutoka kwa rafiki yake akimwambia kuhusu hali mbaya ya paa la Jenkins linalovuja. Kusikia habari hizo, Joy alivutiwa kusaidia. Yeye na Rusty Williams, Mchungaji mkuu wa Chattanooga wa Kwanza, walitoka nje kuiangalia nyumba hiyo. Mambo waliyoona yaliwasadikisha kwamba kulikuwa na uhitaji, na walihisi wamechochewa kusaidia.

Joy alikusanya kikundi cha wanaume waliojitolea kutoka kanisani mnamo Novemba 2022, lakini kwa likizo na hali mbaya ya hewa, kazi ilicheleweshwa. Hata hivyo, Jumapili, Januari 15, 2023, walikuwa tayari kwenda. Saa 9 a.m., timu ya watu 12 ilikuja nyumbani. Kuunganisha ujuzi wao mbalimbali, walianza kufanya kazi.

Kwanza, iliwabidi kuvua shingles kuukuu na karatasi ya lami. Joy, ambaye Jenkins anamwita “mratibu” wa mradi huo na “baraka,” aliazima lori la kutupa taka na kukokota shingles kuukuu na karatasi ya lami. Hans Groschel alitumia trekta yake kupata nyenzo mpya juu ya paa. Wafanyakazi, ambao hatimaye walifikia karibu 20, walitia ndani matineja kadhaa ambao, kama Mchungaji Williams alivyoona, “walikuwa na nguvu na shauku ya kufanya kazi hiyo.” Timu ilifanya kazi siku nzima, ikishukuru kwa chakula cha mchana kitamu ambacho kilitolewa.

An ironic tragedy in this effort of repairing a church member’s house roof occurred when Joy, the project’s driving force, received a frantic phone call from his wife. He remembers he had a nail gun in his hand when he took the call in the afternoon and learned that disaster had struck his family. His wife told him their house was on fire. He dashed from the work site right away and went home to find that his house had been destroyed. He praised God that his wife and children escaped unharmed.

The remaining crew continued the job and finished after dark. “I had been praying about the roof for about a year,” Jenkins said. “God helped me through the church.” She added that even with the hard rains that have fallen since the job was done, there have been no leaks: “The roof has stood the test.”

Joy said that despite the loss he suffered that day, he was glad he had a chance to reach out and do a much-needed job. Pastor Williams, reflecting on all they had been able to accomplish that Sunday, echoed the feelings of everyone who had worked on the project: “We give God the glory.”

— This story originally appeared on the Southern Tidings Website.

The original version of this story was posted on the North American Division website.