Prayer Journey (Through the Lens)

Recently we have been writing about our prayer journey through the Gulf Coast to pray for the effects of the oil spill. Before we return to our regular blog series we thought we would take another view at the journey as seen through the lens of our cameras.

A community prayer center near Buras, LA where we stopped and prayed.

A helicopter picks up more sand to construct offshore berms as part of the barrier island project to protect the shoreline.

A glimpse of some pelicans rehabbing at the Fort Jackson Rehabilitation Center. While we (like many others) were not allowed access, we were able to catch this glimpse of their work.

A view of Venice Marina in Louisiana. No longer a place where fishermen head out of, any activity in the marina now surrounds the oil spill.

A bird flies near the marina. Hopefully it was able to stay out of harms way.

[CLICK MORE TO SEE THE REST OF THE JOURNEY]

One of marina animals caged up at the Plaquemines Parish Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). While they are doing good work at this no-kill facility, they have seen a distinct rise in relinquishment rates since the oil spill. It was hard to see all these creatures caged up with nowhere to go.

A variety of signs can be found all around, expressing both support and disdain for BP.

A cleanup tent set up on the shoreline at Grand Isle State Park. The orange boom is visible on the shore, as are oil rigs in the background.

Absorbent boom waiting to be deployed.

Baby pool used for decontamination. My daughter has one of these in our backyard – minus the oil of course.

A major chunk of oil on the shoreline in Grand Isle State Park.

Oil stained shoreline

A close-up of the polluted shoreline. Both the black oil and the browner tar balls are visible here.

A worker gears up in his hazmat suit to decontaminate some people who crossed the boom without permission.

Fish swim in contaminated waters.

Dolphins swim near the closed shoreline. Scientists are saying they are avoiding the greater concentration of oil further out. But are they safe here?

Scott converses with new missionary friends serving at First Baptist Church, Grand Isle.

A bird hunts in the waters of Grand Isle

Boom stretches down the shoreline as far as the eye can see.

A panorama of the Grand Isle coastline with boom and work stretching from one end to the other. (Click to enlarge)

Ben in a Grand Isle bird sanctuary

Another protest

Cleaning up the shoreline

We met and prayed with 2 total strangers on the end of the pier in Gulfport, Mississippi. Michael (left) and Luis (middle) are pictured here with Ben (right). We had a wonderful time talking and hearing the stories of these two. And how cool to pray (in two languages) with people we had never met. We were a diverse group, but we prayed together to our Lord regarding this spill.

Workers and beachgoers share the waterfront in Gulf Shores, AL.

Ben holds a shell covered in oil.

Watch as I explore the consistency of a tar ball found i Gulf Shores.

After going into the water to explore the tar balls, Ben’s hand had droplets of oil dissolved on it.

A worker digs up oil from out of the sand in Gulf Shores.

Watch video of the cleanup effort in Gulf Shores.

A worker cleans up oiled boom at Gulf Shores State Park.

Trash bags from the cleanup line the shore.

A cross stands before the oiled shoreline in Orange Beach, AL.

A bird flies overhead.

Sand stained by the oil in Orange Beach, AL.

Waves washes oil ashore.

Watch video of oil washing ashore.

Another video of oil washing ashore.

Oil dispersed through the water.

Blue-clawed crab. A casualty of the spill.

Minnows killed by the spill.

Beautiful Pensacola Beach, FL. We took time to pray here. Unfortunately, oil has since washed ashore.

Lighthouse on St George Island, FL. We had a prayer meeting on the beach in front of the lighthouse.

Some of those gathered together on the beach for the prayer meeting.

Spending time with our new friend Pastor Themo and his wife April.

A pelican flies by.

Ben and I on Lafayette Pier in Apalachicola, FL where we prayed prior to heading back to New Orleans for the trip home.

{Note: we will also be posting a reflection post or two in the near future.}

More from our prayer journey:

But It Doesn’t End There

Dorsal Fins & Prayer Meetings

In Shock

“I’ve Got Tears In My Eyes”

Decontamination, Frustration, & Oration

Choppers, Marinas, & Shelters

Let the Prayers Flow

Praying Confidently in the Midst of Disaster

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