About 95 percent of the tiny islands of Barbuda and St. Martin sustained some damage or were outright destroyed by Hurricane Irma, officials said late Thursday night. 11 people died in the wake of the storm and other islands impacted include: Haiti, Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos, and possibly Cuba, the Bahamas and Florida when the hurricane makes landfall there. 

HUrricane Harvey UPDATE

The Chicken That Saves. 
Just in case you were wondering how #blessed the chicken at Chick-fil-A is, just ask J.C. Spencer and his wife who hitched a ride out of their flooded house from a restaurant manager's husband. “We had to get out of there so I called Chick-fil-A, now that sounds kind of funny,” J.C. Spencer said in an interview on Good Morning America Wednesday. “I ordered two grilled chicken burritos with extra egg and a boat. And can you believe that one of the managers of Chick-fil-A, she sent her husband to pick us up and we are so grateful.” 
Read more heroic stories here. 

HARVEY AND THE AFTERMATH
Christian leaders are stepping up their relief efforts after Lakewood senior pastor Joel Osteen was publicly shamed for not opening the doors of his mega-church sooner. Coming to his defense was actor Tyler Perry who also donated$250,000 to the church's relief efforts. Associate pastor John Gray also defended Osteen while announcing his own foundation dedicated to helping victims of this devastating storm. 

On his Instagram page he said," We stand with every single person who's been affected by this once in a lifetime tragedy. We are determined to help as many people as possible." Go to www.johngrayworld.com to donate and email Relief@thebridgeover.com to volunteer & share your needs. 

PRAY. ACT. GIVE. 
In other Hurricane Harvey news, the bill for Hurricane Harvey is estimated at 180 billion dollars, according to Texas governor Greg Abbott. If you're looking for a way to give, you have to do your research before blindly giving to big name organizations like the Red Cross and others. Charity Navigator recommends giving to organizations with four star ratings like the Houston SPCA, Houston Humane Society, Houston Food Bank, Food Bank of Corpus Christi, or San Antonio Humane Society. These highly-rated organizations are located in the most-affected areas and are providing support to individuals and animals and don't forget to check in a few months later to see how their needs have changed.  

Catalyst Conference 

CATALYST Leadership Conference 

October 5-6, Atlanta, GA
Catalyst Atlanta is a 2-day conference to help leaders like you grow strong teams and be a catalyst for change.  Speakers include Andy Stanley, Christine Caine, Brene Brown, Tim Tebow, Katie Davis Majors, and more. If you're interested in attending, email us for a special discount rate.