It has been a week!

It was 1979 when Hurricane David came ashore here. For some that was not so long ago for others it was before their existence, history. Since then other than the threat of Hugo and Floyd all we have had was remnants of storms we call “back door” as most often they come from the panhandle of Florida across Georgia and out to sea by us. Lots of rain and some thunderstorms but that is about it. Not so this time.

The center of the eye passed our barrier island about 30 miles off shore as a Cat2 hurricane. So 50 miles inland here in Effingham we had tropical storm force winds 40-60 mph (straight line constant) with gusts above that. My house is surrounded by pine trees. The wind makes a sound through the needles with normal wind speeds. Saturday morning from 4am-6:30am it sounded like a jet engine was outside my window. I noticed the wind had died down by the sudden quiet later that morning.

Storms come and go but with all of these years with no damage we have come to believe they might never come. Matthew just glanced us. It could have been so much worse. It wasn’t. While they are going on it is all we can think about. Coming from the Midwest, I like tornados better. When the warning goes out it is already too late. All you have time to do is duck and cover. No “hunker down or cone of uncertainty” no, when that siren sounds it’s certain you are late. Even then it only lasts 15 minutes maybe. Then comes clean-up. Hurricanes are a whole other thing. Days to prepare with uncertainty as to track and therefore damage and worry. There I said it, worry with great uncertainty. While the storm is blowing there is nothing to do until the wind stops. So you wait hour-upon-hour, the ugliest word in the language. Nothing to do until it stops. All you can think about doing is making it stop and you can’t. You have to wait. Even before the storm hit, those who had evacuated wanted to know when they could return. Emergency management folks had no answer as they did not know. Both had to wait until the storm passed to begin to answer that question.

Waiting is powerlessness. Our waiting is at the mercy of what we cannot control. Truth is most of life is out of our control. We are powerless to affect events. Sure we can prepare before and then after the storm consider what we need to do differently, but we are unable to change the course of nature or even predict it well. All of that has been and always will be in God’s realm. What it leaves us with is faith and an opportunity to exercise and strengthen our faith that we, “Can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.” Once again a need to learn and exercise our dependence on God our Maker and Sustainer.

I am sure He can hold us up.

Storms help us remember!      

            

In HIS Service and Yours,

BroG