Who You Are

Every day, we see more pictures of the destruction caused by the Texas Hill Country floods. We hear new stories of those still missing or those who lost their lives. We see the efforts of many who have jumped into action to help in any way possible. Our hearts hurt from the stories of being awakened in the wee hours of July 4^th in the middle of a terrible flood.

I have watched hours of videos of interviews and reports provided by many news sources and most of them are well done and respectful. A part of one of those reports caught my attention, and I cannot stop thinking about it. A phrase like, “What kind of god allows this to happen?” This statement was made at the conclusion of the report and altered the overall content of the report.  I was awake several times during the night and each time this was in my thoughts.

The “Left Behind” book series ran from 1995 to 2007, with film adaptations released between 2000 and 2023. Many books and movies have been produced based upon Bible scriptures to present those events to an audience that may not be directly involved in a Christian Church. The first book and movie begin with people disappearing in an instant from wherever they are while driving, in airplanes, or on a sidewalk. The story is then about how those left behind react to that event and what it means.

In Genesis 6:9-22, we learn the story about Noah and his relationship with God. The command God gave Noah to build a boat with detailed specifications. This was at a time when there had never been a flood of any kind or size. Many people today do not believe that flood ever happened regardless of the evidence available. Why is that story important? This matters because it shows Noah stayed committed despite ridicule and the project’s scale over many years.  Second, it shows that the others had moved so far away from God’s values that God chose to start over with just Noah’s family and the animals on board the Ark. It shows the mighty of God’s power to flood the entire Earth.

Salvation through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is offered individually but open to everyone.  Judgment for our sins for most of us will be on an individual basis; however, there are more than one example in the Bible where entire nations have received judgments that led to their destruction.

Why do bad things happen to good people and why do good things happen to bad people? To answer the first question, Jesus tells us that no one is good and that we all fall short. The Book of Job presents a narrative in which an individual named Job experiences significant losses as part of a test, intended to demonstrate whether his faith would persist regardless of his circumstances.  To answer the second question, bad people may appear to have more, but they may be living a miserable life and they surely will be judged for their life if they refuse Jesus Christ.

The US has a history of beginning as a Christian nation as evident in the founding papers and our Constitution. However, there have been periods when our society has strayed away from God’s principles and adopted values promoted by Satan. Then periods of a rebound where we returned to God. We are in one of those cycles now that parallel events in the Bible. Just like on a personal basis, when we as individuals try to give up activities promoted by Satan, the harder Satan works to hold on to us. For our nation, we see people becoming more violent to prevent the country from preventing ungodly activities.

The weather experts talk about weather patterns, air currents, fronts, and all the things that can cause weather events. They cannot change the weather, and their tools just allow them to predict based on what information they have at any given time. What we want is the ability to know early enough to prevent the loss of life. Some people believe we can do things that allow us to control the climate of the Earth. Those people do not understand that the group pushing those ideas is looking to gain power over your freedoms and seeking to make trillions in the process. They are not silly enough to believe they can change the climate.

Could God have caused the flooding in Texas? My answer is yes; God has the power and maybe it was His action. Why would God take that action? Look at the actions being provoked by elected Democrats fighting the efforts to restore order within the United States. Why would God cause damage and cause the loss of lives of those not involved with the riots or ungodly activities? We are assured that those children and adults are in Heaven because of their salvation.  Their loved ones left behind will forever be changed, but they know they have reached their destination.

What we are witnessing is a nation coming together to help in many ways and turning to God in group prayers. Praying for those still missing, for those who have been lost, for those directly impacted, for those involved with the recovery effort, and for our nation. Those involved with attacking our country’s leadership have the attention of the rest of the country and they will be seen as who they are and that the majority do not agree with them.

My comments are my opinion of what we are seeing played out in public view. We don’t always understand how God works, because we cannot see the big picture or all of time, including the future.

²⁸ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28 New International Version