The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the
word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:8
The area I live in, the northlands of Minnesota, was hit hard by flood waters this
past week. Though there is a river
running through my town of Cloquet,
we did not suffer as much because we are on high ground. However, Duluth and many smaller towns around took a
beating as 8 to 10 inches of rain pounded in a mere 24 hours. Roads were washed away, basements were
flooded, dried up creeks became rushing rivers, rivers no longer had discernible banks and people lost homes.
We do realize that with all this property damage we were blessed not to
have any loss of life.
For some of you reading this, you have experienced similar
floods and hurricanes and probably some much worst than ours but you have been
prepared as to what to do when it happens.
Our area emergency preparedness teams have numerous contingency plans
for all sorts of disasters but not for floods.
The flooding exceeded all records imaginable for this area. If it had been a snow of several feet, it
would have been just a blimp in our radar… but rain took us by surprise.
It makes you wonder… what are we prepared for as
Christians? Do you have contingency
plans for whatever comes along?
What will shake your faith?
Is it losing everything you own, a death in the family or possibly did
you have faith in a pastor that went bad?
Were there Christians in your life who did not treat you as a Christian should? I had that happen once when I was struggling
to understand what faith and God meant to me. It kept me from attending church
for years. But if I had my emergency
preparedness plan in place that could have just been a blip on my radar. Instead it was a major set back.
But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is
like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed
by the wind. James 1:6
We need to be thoughtful about our faith. Not allowing ourselves to be tossed by the
wind. I probably have not put my plan
into the terms of “emergency preparedness” but certainly I have been very
purposeful of deepening my knowledge of the Lord and my relationship with Him.
I want it to be just like the fire drills we all have been through, so
ingrained in me that I know what to do without thinking.
How to have an emergency preparedness plan in place? (These are in no particular order.)
- Read
God’s Word daily. Even if it is only
one verse. Once you develop the
habit it will stay with you always.
I am totally unsettled if I go to bed without reading the Bible.
- Seek
out a Biblical church that can feed you in the knowledge of the Lord, do
not choose it just to make you feel good.
- Become
involved in Bible studies or other groups that help you grow in the Lord.
- Learn
to depend on God’s Word not on people.
- Question
what you are being taught. Check out the verses in context and see if that
is how God meant them to be.
- Be
involved. Where, how? Just try various things. I tried children’s ministry at one time
and it drained me as did cooking for others in need but when I started
teaching adults I was energized!
- Probably
the most important of all… remember God is the same yesterday, today and
tomorrow. Take time on a regular
basis (maybe at night in bed or while journaling) to remember the things
God has done for you. Never let
that leave you so that when the crisis in life hit, when you feel
depressed or forsaken... review them.
This is what I do.
I tell
myself if God pulled me through that, if God helped me grow through this, if God saved me in another situation, etc...
therefore why would He not do the
same for me today? I then wait expectantly to see what He will do and how
he will carry me through.
I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. Psalm 130:5
(Note that the word “wait” in this
context meant to expectantly hope)
