These are just the local pictures. The big city ones were much worse as was the video on the news of the building floating down the interstate that eventually crashed into a semi and came apart. The middle TN area has this past weekend experienced one of the worst weather related tragedies ever recorded. And yet much of the media has not even noticed. Thousands without power, the downtown area of Nashville and Franklin flooded, water supplies tainted and compromised and dead bodies being pulled from cars that are under water. Local here we had downed fences like never before, our pond/lake left it’s banks and threatened to come in our house, but instead ran underneath it. We have lots of messy clean up and repairs to do but praise the Lord, not so much as a chicken hurt to the best of my knowledge. Our friends were not so fortunate. I received a local prayer request for a family whose husband tried to rescue his two children from a raging creek. One was saved but one was not and the father and husband lost his life. There is a grieving woman who now is minus her loving husband and a 15 yr old daughter. There have been lots of lives lost and much destruction. Yet none of it surprises heaven. And unlike the leadership of this country the Lord will not remain silent when we ask for help.
I don’t believe in accidents. I don’t believe in a powerless God. I don’t believe that the enemy has ultimate power in a believers life. I believe Jesus knew exactly what was going on and still does. I believe He is speaking to us always. I believe His ways are higher than ours and I believe that He loves us with a love so deep that we as mortals cannot even understand it. I believe He will do what is ultimately best for us.
I have not been without my own trials in life. I have a child in the arms of Christ. I know all about pain and suffering. More than I would ever wish on anyone. And I also know enough to not let things go without asking the Lord, “what are you saying to me?” I know better than to not glean what the Lord has for me and those around me in every situation. I would rather go straight to Canaan than to walk around the mountain for 40 years.
I encourage you to not let trials happen in vain. Sometimes they could be punishment, and if so you won’t need to wonder why, none of us is ever disobedient without the Lord gently reminding with the mercy of a loving parent before He gets out the spanking rod. But many times He just has a message, or wants to change our direction. Or many times He has a gift for us, something that can only be understood when we are in a broken state.
I encourage you to have the courage to become the clay and let Him handle your life. You won’t be sorry.
I know how hard a flood is…I pray that you make it through and stay safe.
Penny, I’m praying you and your family are all right, and that even now you are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. God bless!!!
yes! our family experienced flood last year, the first time that happened in our place. Not only for us who lived near the river but almost of other places which was very far from us whom did not expect that they will experience that flood. But during that time God reminded me that all things in this world are only temporary..I Praise God that He restored every thing that we had lost.. He was really in control at that moment.. God bless…. I have post my wfw..
[...] Nashville Flood (Penny Raine – blog post with a couple of pictures; Penny lives quite close to my parents and many of my other relatives, but I didn’t know that until after I began following her blog last year!) [...]