September 27th (Unabridged)

7:45

We were woken up by a series of loud knocks on our door. Our ministry host let us know that due to the severity of the storm (I’d gotten 2 emergency alerts during the night) and the risk of trees falling on us, we had to move out of our cozy cabins and into the dining hall. We were supposed to bring everything we needed for the day.

So we got up, and started packing, but nobody was rushed. We had no power, so everything was done in semi darkness. I packed up my sleeping bag and pillow in my backpack, just in case a tree fell on the cabin and opened it up to water flow. I did NOT want my sleeping bag getting wet.

I followed my normal morning routine, then put everything I wanted with me in a waterproof stuff sack. I put my Bible case, with my Bible, journal, and all my pencils and letters from family inside, along with a towel, and a warm shirt.

Then we ran like our lives depended on it into the dining hall. The rain was so heavy that water was streaming down the road and puddling everywhere. I slipped on my way up the stairs, but ignored the pain in my ankle. All I wanted was to be out of the rain!

8:10

Everyone was inside the dining hall. Vans had been moved to higher ground. People were setting up sleeping bags and pillows, but I wanted to explore. In one room, we could see a huge waterfall running down the rocks and into a pool, where a drain released it to flow somewhere else. This fascinated me, because we don’t get a lot of rain where I’m from (Michigan), so the idea that so much rain even existed was amazing! There was no fear, just a little wondering on what we would do if the drain stopped working and the water started coming in the building.

Roll call happened, and we learned nobody was missing, so we ate breakfast, and wandered around for a bit.

8:20

The water in the pool looked like it was rising, so I started taking pictures so I could look back and see if it actually was rising.

8:28

A stick got lodged in the drain, so while the water was still draining, it wasn’t going as fast as before, and the water level was definitely getting higher. I talked with the leaders about it, and they said that an eye would be kept on it, but it wasn’t a cause for concern.

8:31

The water level had completely obscured the drain, and was now half way up the piece of wood. I think we were called in for another roll call around this time, this time organizing us by teams.

8:37

Only the faintest sliver of wood could be seen by this point. Everywhere else, the water was obviously rising. There was still no concern. A third warning alert went off, warning of flash floods potentially in my area.

8:40

Me, Aaliyah, Meghan, Ashley, Jess, and Zach started playing Spicy Uno, while Romy watched. The wood was completely covered by water. When I came back from taking another picture of the water, someone accidentally scooted her chair over my toes, and was so unaware of it, I had to lift it off my foot while she was still on it. It stopped hurting as soon as the chair was off my foot, and we just laughed about it.

8:46

Spicy Uno was just getting going after a very long explanation of how the rules work. We still didn’t have power, so we were playing in the dark. The water was still rising higher, but there was a large gap that it could go through, so there was still no concern

8:55

The gap was almost completely covered by water. Another meeting was called, where our leadership team assured us that they were in constant communication with people who knew what was going on and what to expect. We had a prayer session for protection from the storm and peace over those who had to evacuate. Someone asked if we could have a worship session, but there were some logistical things we had to figure out first.

9:06

This was the last picture I took. Mud had slid to partially block the drain. The water was almost on the porch. Spicy Uno had been paused, but we were just starting back up. I got a fourth warning alert, telling me that the Dam was at CRITICAL levels and to evacuate NOW. I laughed and ignored it.

9:10

I randomly looked out the window to see a giant wave of mud and trees coming directly at us. I thought, “That’s kind of concerning. Should we be moving out of the way?” When a voice yelled, “Landslide! Everybody run!!”

The Uno players were closest to the landslide, and as we ran out of the room, the wall behind us crashes inward. Thankfully, we’re far enough away that no one is hurt.

We ran into the next room, the main room where we had roll call, and I was distantly aware of everyone else running for their lives. I briefly wondered if I should grab my stuff, when another wall crashed in and more mud and debris came. I abandoned all thoughts of trying to save any worldly possessions and sprint out to the porch, where most of us are gathered. A few people are on the ground, and I thought about joining them, before deciding the porch was the safest place. It was higher off the ground, which had turned into a river of mud and trees and water and parts of the house we had just been inside.

Most of us were in shock, but there were some people who were sobbing. We were all doing our best to comfort one another, when more mud comes sliding onto the porch, higher than my ankles. But it’s moving slow, and we don’t know where else to go.

Emily, one of our leaders, yelled at us to follow her, and we ran on the porch, through the mud, until we reached higher ground. The whole time I was wondering if I should wait for everyone else, or if it was more helpful to just follow instructions. I go with the latter. Mud splatters us everywhere, but we don’t lose anyone.

We made it to high ground, where the vans were parked, and we were all so in shock that we barely knew what to do. I realized that everything I’d brought into dining hall is gone, but at least I had everything in my fanny pack; my phone, noise canceling ear buds, chap stick, deck of cards, charger, watch, and my Uno hand, which I had been totally unaware that I was carrying. Everyone else also saved their Uno hand, which became a bit of a joke later.

Some people grabbed everything they could as they ran out and some people who thought they’d lost their phones got the wonderful surprise of learning someone else had grabbed them. Most of us left our shoes. A lot of us only had the clothes on our backs.

The rain was still falling, the wind was still blowing, the mud slide was still causing so much destruction in its wake, but you know who else was still moving? God.

We prayed like we’ve never prayed before. We sang His praises out into the air. We didn’t know where to go or if we’d be rescued, but we did know that we served a God bigger than the storm.

We waited in shock for a little, making sure we had everyone, taking in stock what we had, calming the people who were sobbing, warming the people who were shivering, calling our family to let them know what was going on.

We piled in the vans to try and leave, but we only had one of the keys, which Jackson had grabbed as he ran. We couldn’t all fit in the van, so we tried to make it on foot. We very quickly realized that we were trapped by a large, muddy, fast-moving, river. Then we were going to stay in one of the cabins near us, but it was surrounded by trees, so we decided to just head back to the vans, where we’d wait for further instructions from the people who owned the property.

9:41

We were still waiting and praying and realizing that if we hadn’t left the cabins when we did, we’d just be eating breakfast and we would have been swept away.

10:00?

We got instructions to stay put, stay warm, and keep praising God. The fire department was called, but too many trees were down for them to get to us. A team was searching for the best way to get us to a more secure location, the gym, where we’d cleaned yesterday. First, they had to find a way to cross a river. We were told we might have to wait for a long time, but nobody wanted to go into the vans, because a tree had recently fallen, and everyone wanted to keep an eye out. I learned that Mitch hadbeen keeping an eye out, and he was the first one to see the landslide and give the warning shout. If not for that warning shout, things would have ended very differently.

10:30

We got another talk telling us that we were in the safest place possible right now, and that we’d soon be able to leave for an even safer place.

10:45

One last meeting to reassure us and give us proper expectations. In order to get to safety, we had to cross the mud river. They’d scouted out the shallowest part and tied a rope to give us support. Then they had us split into 2 groups of 15 (I was in the second group), and they started crossing the first group.

11:00

The second group started heading down. We left the vans and moved down the road. I partnered with Natalia, because we had to cross in pairs. We were all in such a weird state of shock. Some of us were crying, some were numb, and some were laughing hysterically at the weirdest things.

When I crossed, I was told to keep tension on the rope, carefully place my feet, and do not, under any circumstances, let go of the rope. They had people stationed at every potentially difficult place to give us a hand and direct us to step in the safest place possible.

Then we all piled in a bus, which shuttled us to the gym. There weren’t enough seats for everyone, so half of us were standing. Ironically, this was when I got hurt. We took a turn and my foot hit a metal bar on the floor pretty hard. It was bleeding a little, but it felt like nothing compared to Kait and Lily’s ankles, or Cimmie’s banged up hip and elbow.

When we made it to the gym, they had towels, food, dry clothing, and medical equipment for us all. I feel like a refugee of war or a natural disaster (which I guess I am now).

It was so funny how we came to serve, but now we were being served. We didn’t know how long we would be here or how we’d get back to Georgia, but we asked whenever possible and spent the time of rest communicating with family and relating our experiences to each other.

A team of people went back into the house that collapsed and rescued everything they could find. It was such a blessing to see people reunited with their belongings. One really cool thing that happened had to do with the Bibles that were recovered. Almost all of them were in amazing condition!

9:30

We needed to be moved again. There were some concerning gas lines that might have led to flooding at the location we were at, so we had to be moved to a hotel in Asheville, about 20 minutes away.

I was not handling this well. My body started shaking, and I thought I was going to throwup from the nerves. I had been trying to fall asleep, but whenever people walked, it sounded like the mountain coming down, so I couldn’t relax.

I packed up the sleeping stuff they’d given us, grabbed the few personal belongings I had, and proceeded to have a conversation with God, where He reminded me who He was, who I am, and what my job is on this earth. To see light in the darkness. But I’d never struggled so much to see the light. It was like I was being smothered by darkness.

I just kept reminding myself that God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self control. I rebuked the sprint of fear, anxiety, and dread in Jesus name, and I actually did much better afterwards.

10:00

We left in groups of 5, and the trip took about 30 minutes. There was one part where we had to drive through water, but the man driving, Chris (part of the Disaster Relief crew at AIM), warned us beforehand, so there was minimum worry. He told us story after story of how God had showed up in amazing ways in his life. We shared how God had had such a big hand in giving us slight warnings and maneuvering us into positions of safety when disaster struck.

10:30

We safely made it to the hotel, which was off the mountain and high in elevation. There weren’t any open rooms, but they removed the tables and chairs so we could sleep in the conference room. We saw so many people in the lobby, and they were wearing smiles on their faces and expressing their sympathy for us. Someone who worked here said that God has been multiplying food, which is so cool!!

 

Sep 28th

7:40

We were woken up to learn that Clara’s Dad had driven through the night to bring us all back to Georgia. He brought 2, 15 passenger vans, and we left as soon as we finished breakfast, which the hotel had generously provided.

8:50

Our few belongings were packed and loaded in the vans. We’d thanked God for our safety and His provision. We’d taken pictures and gotten into the vans, so thankful to be on our way back to Gainsville.

Our hearts are breaking for those who lost their homes and have nowhere else to go, but they’re also warmed by the generosity and warmth around us. People see that we have no shoes and offer us what they have. People wear brave smiles and express their sympathy, all while they have it so much worse. Disasters bring out the worst in some people, but they bring out the best in so many more.

As we drove away, the destruction crowded into our vision from all directions. It was almost more common to see branches on the ground than on the trees. Mini landslides were every few yards. Water covered sections of the road, despite the fact that we’ve had no rain for almost 24 hours. People pushed their belongings in shopping carts and work crews clean up as much damage as they can.

We left a part of ourselves in that landslide, and we took a part of it with us. It both doesn’t feel real, and feels too real. We switch from softly crying to hysterically laughing at the drop of a pin.

But we are bonded together now, in a way we never could have been otherwise. We’re still the Joy Squad (even though we’ve lost our snacks). But most of all, we know God is so good and so powerful and so loving and so caring and so thoughtful and so meticulous and so protective. If one thing had gone differently, someone, if not everyone, would have died.

If the vans hadn’t been moved, they would have crushed the cabins. If we hadn’t moved into the dining hall, we would have been swept away in our cabins. If Mitch hadn’t yelled out a warning, no one would have known what was coming. If we’d had worship, no one would have heard the sound of the mountain coming down. If anyone had been in the bathroom, they would have been lost forever. No one stepped on glass when traveling across the river, even though it must have been full of it!

You can’t tell me God’s not real!!!!