NOTE: This post is being posted between midnight and 1:30 A.M. on Saturday, 03 September 2005 A.D. Disregard the date above and time below, I am taking advantage of a Blogger bug to keep this post at the top of the list no matter what I blog during the weekend.

The blogosphere is at work to provide some relief to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Hugh Hewitt, author of the book Blog : Understanding the Information Reformation That's Changing Your World (which I need to procure and read), came up with the idea, and apparently, Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit.com seconded the idea.

So here it is, a number of blogs are encouraging people to contribute to aid agencies helping Katrina victims (read that: our neighbors who have been affected by Katrina). The effort is headed up by Truth Laid Bear (this link includes instructions if you want to join this effort), and you can track the progress.

Here's the point. I'm searching for my best Uncle Sam voice and look as I type this next sentence. I want you to contribute. Open that wallet, and think about this: Colossians 1:15-16 says "He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him." All things were created by Jesus, through Jesus, and for Jesus; and that includes your wallet and the contents of it. I want you to contribute to the International Disaster Emergency Service (IDES), which is a channel for Restoration Movement churches to assist those in need. Their motto is "Offering help and hope to a hurting world", and their vision is "To bring glory to God by meeting the physical and spiritual needs in our hurting world until Jesus returns.". IDES has giving instructions on its website, including PayPal or snail mailing them a check. After you contribute, if you would please log your contribution, we can keep track of how much of a difference we are making.

In Luke 10, Jesus is asked what the greatest commandment is, and to summarize His answer is "Love God and love your neighbor." The person asking the question asked who his neighbor was, and by way of a parable, Jesus taught us that neighbors "show mercy" towards those in need. Thank you for showing mercy towards the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Really posted at 1:23 A.M.

Quick edit at 1:30 A.M.: I forgot to link to Instapundit's roundup page as instructed.

Update (04 September 2005, 1536): I am unable to add the blog to the database at Truth Laid Bear. I've e-mailed TTLB about the problem, and hopefully it will be resolved soon. In the interim, post your contributions to the comments section of the blog, and I will post them to TTLB when I am added to the database of participating blogs.

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