The reality of the magnitude of the devastation is shocking. It is utter devastation. You can see all the pictures and videos online, but it is completely different to drive through it, to live in it. Words cannot describe how bad it is. But the response of the Christian community, of the church, has been a beacon of light. A very large portion, from what I can tell, of the relief work has come from private, mostly faith-based organizations.

Paul Maurer was on the plane back from the Fourth Lausanne Congress in South Korea when he began getting texts from work and home: a category 4 hurricane named Helene was plowing across the eastern United States, heading right for his home and the college he leads in the Asheville area.

By the time Maurer landed Friday evening in Charlotte, North Carolina, Helene’s 140 mph winds and heavy rain had killed hundreds of people, destroyed towns, and caused landslides in multiple states.

At Montreat College, where Maurer is president, one of the small mountain streams that runs through campus had become a raging river.

“The lower level of our gym became part of the river,” he said. “Over five feet of water was running through the fitness center, the offices, and the classrooms.”

The students were safe in the dorms but didn’t have electricity or running water. Faculty and staff were at home, but Maurer didn’t know if they were OK and he couldn’t ask—there was no cell service.

“I grew up and lived in tornado areas, and I lived in California in earthquake areas, but I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude,” he said. “It is surreal.”

The Gospel Coalition asked Maurer if his faculty and staff made it, what he did with the hundreds of students still on campus, and how he saw God at work through it all.

Was anyone who worked at Montreat killed or injured?

As far as we know, no one died, and I’m not aware of any serious injuries. We have employees who lost their homes and all their earthly possessions. That is devastation, and that is real. But God protected our people.

I tried to drive home Friday evening but was stopped 20 miles from home by an interstate closure and state troopers who said there were no open roads into western North Carolina. I drove two hours back to Charlotte, where there were only a few hotel rooms left.

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