I planned to write to you 10 days ago, but I was distracted. We watched as Hurricane Milton approached Florida. Thank you for your prayers and concern last week. We were fine last Thursday as the storm passed overnight and are now back to normal life.

This is how the week unfolded for us.

• Sunday, we checked our long-term preparations (as outlined in the General Hurricane Information note below) and planned meals to use up perishable foods.
• Monday, we filled our cars with gas, organized the garage and bought a few last-minute items.
• Tuesday, we put plywood over some windows, moved our gas grill to our garage and secured our patio furniture and trash cans.
• Wednesday, we moved both cars into the garage, covered one more window and moved food for a few meals from the refrigerator to a cooler.
• Late Wednesday afternoon we spent an hour in our most secure room during a tornado warning. Hurricane Milton caused 47 tornados in Florida as it approached.
• Wednesday at 11 p.m. we lost electrical power. We slept fitfully as the storm passed about 30 miles south of us. Wind gusts of 87 m.p.h. were reported at the Orlando International Airport, five miles from us.
• Thursday, we used our camping gear and gas grill to make coffee and then read by window light until power returned at 2 p.m. We also started cleaning the yard.
• Over the weekend, we did more yard work and put everything else back where it belonged.
• This week, we’re back to normal.

Oh, and ten days ago, I was going to tell you about our October 1 day of prayer at Cru, one of two such days we set aside each year. This year, each of us was asked to use the information at the EveryCampus.com website to “virtually prayer walk” a campus in our home state. I chose Southeast Community College in Beatrice, Nebraska. It was a good reminder that Cru started by reaching college students so they would go on to reach the world.

Please join us in praying for those who were affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene. Along with other organizations, Cru’s disaster relief ministry, Unto, is helping with aid. If you’d like to help with those efforts, go online to Hurricane Milton Relief or Hurricane Helene Relief.

Thank you for your prayers, friendship and generosity.

Sincerely in Christ, — Mark, for the Winz family

General Hurricane Information

We’re grateful for your prayers and concern when you hear about storms approaching Florida.

After multiple storms have passed near us, here are five things we’ve concluded.

• Storms are worse on the coasts. Storms lose power as they travel over land. People who live near the coasts come to Orlando to be safe. When you hear dire predictions, those typically apply to the coasts and less so inland.
• We feel safe in our home. It was built in 1958 and has survived at least two major hurricanes, including Charly in 2004. It hasn’t flooded in the 31 years we’ve lived here, and we’ve never had water on even the lowest point of our lawn. We have plywood window covers that we put up if the storm appears serious. We don’t evacuate as those routes are needed by people who live in low areas or the coasts.
• We prepare each hurricane season and for each storm. The season runs from June through November. Every June, we stash food that doesn’t need refrigeration, get fresh batteries for flashlights and lanterns, and fill propane tanks for our gas grill. We fill any empty freezer space with ice so our food will be safe if we lose power for hours or a couple of days and we don’t open the doors.
• The storm often changes as it moves. While the forecasting is very good, the path and strength of a storm is constantly adjusted. We watch and stay flexible. 
• The path of the storm affects our experience. There’s usually more rain on the left side and more wind, including possible tornados, on the right side. We prepare accordingly.