As everyone is aware, the tornado outbreak last week across the southern United States was one of the worst to ever occur in this country. At least 342 people were killed and hundreds more hurt from Mississippi to Virginia - and Georgia was not immune to such tragedy. Today, I spent several hours in Griffin, Georgia helping with the clean-up and putting together bag lunches for those who lost everything. Seeing it on television and in photographs does not prepare you for the enormity of the devastation... Walking the streets, cleaning up yards, and talking with those who somehow survived in ditches and in homes where only a small closet and toilet remain standing on the concrete slab, brings it home.
Following such disasters, it's natural to try and explain why such tragedies happen. However, blaming God is not the answer. For example, I've lost count of the number of times I've heard these tornadoes described as "the finger of God." This is just wrong on many levels! So, as I was thinking about what I saw and what I've heard, the Lord brought to my mind Elijah.
In I Kings 19:11-12, Elijah was hiding in a cave feeling a bit sorry for himself when he encountered the Lord. "And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire...." God did not cause the tornadoes that killed 342 people and injured so many others. Jesus clearly told His disciples that the thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy, but His purpose is to give use a full and satisfying life. (Jn 10:10)
These tornadoes were not the judgment of God. Jesus fully satisfied God's wrath on the cross. For God, in Christ, reconciled the world to himself no longer counting people's sins against them. (I Cor 5:19). For He himself (Jesus) is the sacrifice for our sins - and not only for our sins, but the sins of all the world. (I Jn 2:2).
Tornadoes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters occur because we live in a fallen world, and man is the one who allowed sin to enter this world - not God. In times such as these, we should not blame Him for what has happened, but rather turn to Him. God is good. His love for us endures forever, and His mercies are new every morning.
Tornadoes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters occur because we live in a fallen world, and man is the one who allowed sin to enter this world - not God. In times such as these, we should not blame Him for what has happened, but rather turn to Him. God is good. His love for us endures forever, and His mercies are new every morning.
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| Despite having lost everything but the clothes on their backs, Avada proclaimed the goodness of God and His love. |
