tornadoes

December Eve

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Tomorrow is officially the first day of the last month of the year. 2016 is rapidly drawing to a close. That means I’ll have to get used to writing 2017 on everything (including those rare checks that I write).

There has been so much tragedy lately, between the Gatlinburg wildfires and the tornadoes that have swept through parts of Tennessee and Alabama. It feels a bit like the apocalypse draweth nigh.

But December heralds the coming of Christmas, and with it the arrival of Emmanuel, the baby Prince of Peace born to be the Wonderful Counselor and Savior of us all.

Ever since the fall, nothing in creation has worked quite right. The Incarnation was the first step toward making it right and turning an upside down world right again.

I’m thankful for waking up this morning as usual. I’m thankful for my vintage Jeep that got me to my job this morning, for the clothes on my back and the food in my belly. I’m praying for all those families who lost everything in the wildfires and tornadoes. I’m praying especially for those families who lost loved ones.

Christmas is a time for generosity, and not just for family and friends. Perhaps God has stirred up your heart with compassion to help those in need who otherwise might not have much of a reason to celebrate this Christmas. One way is through DollywoodFoundation.org.

Not everyone may be able to give, but everyone can pray for these families. Everyone can hug their children and their parents a little tighter and breathe a prayer of gratitude and thanks for all they have.

On a lighter note, I started on my list of required holiday movie viewing, beginning with the original Christmas in Connecticut. That’s a classic that never gets old. I figured the world– or at least my world– needed a bit more levity on this last day in November.

 

 

 

Sadness and Joy

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It seems there is so much sadness in the world lately. From the Boston Marathon bombings to the tornadoes that ripped through Shawnee and Moore, Oklahoma, it seems tragedy and loss are everywhere. It seems like on Facebook people are having to say goodbye to loved ones, where they be furry or people.

It can be overwhelming if you let it. The magnitude of pain around the world right now is massive. So many people are hurting, so many are suffering, so many seem like they have nothing to look forward to but more hurt and suffering.

But as callous and unfeeling as this may sound, you can still have joy. Joy is not a denial of what happened in Boston or Oklahoma. Joy doesn’t turn a blind eye toward those who have suffered and lost. Joy sees past the pain to the God who waits on the other side. The beautiful part is that God is on both sides of the pain and walking with you through it.

I love an illustration a pastor gave. Jesus isn’t limited by time and space, so he’s in your present with you. He’s also in your future, so that the promises he gave you are already as good as done. He’s in your past in that moment when you were wounded, ready to heal you so that your past wounds no longer bleed into your present. He’s in all three places at once.

I am convinced that sadness and joy can coexist. It’s only right to grieve what’s lost. But we don’t grieve as those who have no hope. We grieve with hope that one day God will set everything right and will restore a thousand-fold what we’ve lost or given up. We grieve as those who know that our troubles are only a blip on the radar screen compared to the glory that awaits and that what we suffer pales in comparison with the ultimate joy that awaits us.

So my heart aches for all those in pain tonight, but my heart rejoices that while there may be pain in the night, joy comes in the morning.

 

Earthquakes, Fires, Tornadoes . . . . Oh My!

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This may be common knowledge to be filed under the file drawer labeled “DUH!”, but I felt it needed to be said (or more accurately, written down).

The same God who went before the Israelites as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night still reigns. The same God who took human flesh and stilled the waves of a storm in the person of Jesus still has authority over all storms.

This God is Lord over earthquakes and tornadoes and hurricanes and wildfires and any other catastrophic natural occurrences you can imagine. He still has the power to speak over storms and bid them be still.

That goes for the storms in your own life.

I don’t know why he allows storms to come. In the end, he is able to work good out of tragedies such as Hurricane Katrina or any of the devastating tornadoes or earthquakes that strike anywhere in the world.

I think that part of the reason for storms is that creation suffers under the effects of the fall. The Bible speaks of creation groaning and awaiting a time when Jesus will come and set things right again.

Creation and nature are out of balance and out of whack since Adam and Eve sinned (and don’t even get me started on who’s to blame on that one– they both messed up).

Sometimes, God causes storms. In the Old Testament, God stirs up wind and fire and other natural elements to do his bidding. Storms show that God is not only a God of love and mercy, but of power and justice.

The point is that God is still God in the midst of the storm as he is on a clear and sunny day. He has just as much power and He is just as able to rescue those who call on his name.

I love the quote that says that sometimes God calms the storm, but sometimes he allows the storm to rage and instead calms his child. I think that’s so very true.