Submitted for inclusion in the Faith Section of the Henderson Daily Dispatch Saturday, August 25, 2011 edition.
First, there were waterspouts along the southeastern coast of North Carolina. Then, there was a surprise earthquake outside Richmond, VA. Now, we await the Lady Irene and her hurricane force that will make her away up the Atlantic using wind, waves, and rain to leave a trail. A native North Carolinian friend said the earthquake helped his bucket list, where is the volcano?
The weather outside has been frightful, leaving some to ask, “Is this it?” While native North Carolinians find hurricanes to be no surprise, the east coast earthquake really had some shaken – not only physically, but also spiritually. Such spiritual rattling can be common when Mother Nature becomes more extreme and chaotic than the norm. The scriptures speak of such things. Matthew 24 offers Jesus’ own teaching of the end times. Matthew 24:6, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.” Spend five minutes reading the newspaper or watching the news or surfing the net and you will see and hear of war, famine, and earthquakes; yet, is the end near?
Jesus’ teaching of the end times continues in Matthew 24. Jumping to Matthew 24: 36, “’But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.” Furthermore, Matthew 24:42, “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
I have always found comfort in these ancient words. Growing up on the coast I lived through a dozen plus hurricanes. I had family in California who lived through earthquakes. My wife was raised in the tornado alleys of the Midwest. She and I were products of the Cold War when the fear of nuclear holocaust was a red phone away. There was, as there is now, famine among various people throughout the earth. I used to live in fear; today, I live with hope. He will come like a thief in the night. We must always be ready. Living for Jesus, living with Jesus – ALL the days of our lives!