Monday, May 12, 2008

Nature's Fury

The wind is blowing. Again. Topping out at 50 miles an hour. Maybe more. There's certainly more shingles flying off our roofs . . . many more. Fortunately, the damage from the wind has been confined to this minor thing. But, the full force of nature's fury has been on display through this past weekend. My heart goes out to those in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and other states as they clean up following the destructive and deadly tornadoes that struck in the past couple of days. My heart also goes out to the thousands upon thousands of people whose lives have been impacted by the earthquake in China. And, of course, in the past few weeks, there have been reports of monsoons, famines, wildfires, and other episodes of nature's fury.

In episodes such as these I find it fascinating how people cope and how many times we use these moments as learning experiences. One tragedy produces in us a resolve to be better prepared in the future. We will never completely master the forces of nature, but reflect on how far humanity has come in dealing with these disasters. The credit for this resiliency, of course, goes to the One who created us and gave us dominion over this world as stewards of what he had made.

So, let us be awed by the fury and power of nature, but let us realize that it is within our potential to be strong in the face of nature's fury.

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