"When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. 9"You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them." Mark 13:7-9
"We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time." Romans 8:22
The earth has been busy the last few weeks! As the earth keeps shaking and there has been earthquake after earthquake... I just want to cry. Honest, as I watch my children everyday I just cannot imagine what it is like to live in such a place. Even now, they sit on the floor playing with legos, waiting for me to finish here at the computer so we can start school. How would life be so different if we lived in a different country? I cannot imagine having to sleep under the stars night after night because it's safer than sleeping indoors. I cannot imagine knowing that any day now the rainy season will be upon us and then we'll either have to sleep in unstable homes, or fashion shelters out of tarps and tin.
On the one hand, I am so, so blessed to live in the country we live in. As I continue my in-depth study of the founding of America, God's hand was so obvious every step of the way. Really- Napoleon just decided to sell the entire West to America on a whim? I don't think so. I think God moved this dictators heart- He used Napoleon for something great and good. God put the French army in Haiti, and God caused the slaves to rise up against their masters, and it was God who designed that yellow fever would be carried by mosquitoes and wipe out that French army, causing Napoleon to have doubts about this large piece of land. Thank God for all the different steps and pieces of history that made this country what it is. And I pray every day that He will continue to bless this nation- the one place in the world that represents freedom.
But on the other hand... I have no idea what it's like to live otherwise. And everytime I see pictures of the countries who have been affected by earthquakes, my heart breaks a little bit more. There are already so many children without homes. And now because of the earthquakes there are even more- and worse, they are without parents. My first reactions to every single earthquake are met with frustration because I know so many people who would love to give homes and love to these newly orphaned children. But the process.... it's severely lacking. And closed in many cases.
One thing that I remember though, is that I have a God who hears my cries. That same God who hears my cries, hears the cries of those children, and oh, how much He loves them! And so as I think about these little ones, even though I have no names and no faces, I can pray for them. I can pray for the miraculous, for God to wrap these children with love and with everything they need. I can pray for families and shelter and food for these children. God fed Elijah with ravens! He feed the Israelites with manna- which appeared on the ground every day for 40 years! Surely He can supply these hungry children. And He can give them peace so that they can rest.
I was praying for the country of Haiti even before they were ravaged from the earthquake. For some reason, I feel like God placed a piece of my heart in that country, and I pray for them almost daily. The sad thing about it all is that the world doesn't hear all the good that is coming from Haiti. Do you know what the nationwide response to the earthquake was? The country united in days of fasting and prayer to God! They publicly asked for forgiveness for their ways, and they united UNDER GOD! Voodoo priests have given up their ways and repented- accepting salvation from Jesus Christ- and people all over the country are turning to God. Haiti is becoming a light to the dark world!
And nearly two weeks ago, after the earthquake in Chile, there were the tsunami warnings across the Pacific. You know, we spent some time that Saturday watching the live feeds from Hawaii as the surge was expected to roll in. The whole time I was juts praying for God to have mercy on His people. And do you know what happened! The tsunami was a blip! It happened all right, but it was very minimal, and barely indistinguishable from normal current activity. Geologists couldn't explain what happened! But I know what happened! God heard the cries of His people and showed mercy. He heard the cries of all of His children and showed them His love and goodness.
May the world hear and know that HE IS GOD! May He bring comfort to those who have experienced disaster, and may the people of this world repent and find Him. Only then will the earth stop groaning. When the people will cry out that He is Lord, the earth won't need to do it anymore. Because God says that if the people are silent, the rocks will cry out.
"I tell you," he replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." Luke 19:40
May the people begin to cry out so the rocks don't have to. And may God be glorified in everything!
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