First of all, my prayers go out to everyone who has been affected by this major tornado outbreak.
I have decided to use this blog to voice some of my thoughts to this horrific, natural disaster. As I talked about in my last blog, I am an avid weather watcher and a trained volunteer for Sky Warn. I also enjoy watching the storm chasers via a live-feed site. This means, I watch, through their dashboard cameras, as they look for and follow the storms. And as I do this, I also keep an eye on the radar. Now, please remember, these chasers are trained at what they do. They are also the eyes on the ground and help provide warnings to communities who will be in the direct path of these storms. And as I listen to their comments and watch the radar, I am able to increase my knowledge of what to look for, in case any of these storms would ever come my way.
Now, I was listening to this one storm chaser late at night as he was trying to find an unobstructed way back home. As he was driving, knowing that there were still people following him via his live feed camera, he started talking about everything he had witnessed that day. One thing he said really got to me. Although I am paraphrasing this, he said: As he was driving to catch up with the storms, having gotten a late start, he was noticing all the people outside, going about their business. People were coming and going from work and school. People were working out in their front yards or just outside walking and enjoying the day. By the time evening came, some of those people would possibly be dead.
As of this writing, there are 284 people dead and that number continues to rise. These are people who, only earlier that day, were minding their own business, as if the day was going to be like any other day. At least 284 came face to face with an Almighty God and their fate had already been decided. It's a heartbreaking and sobering thought.
This is why I admonish you, my brothers and sisters, to warn the people, those who don't know Jesus. This is why I sometimes appear to be desperate in shouting out my own warnings. Tomorrow is promised to
nobody. The next hour is promised to nobody. There are 284 people who, if they didn't repent of their sins and accept Jesus' sacrifice, have run out of time.
Please remember, being a good person isn't good enough to enter into God's presence. God is perfect and nothing imperfect can come into His presence. One little white lie is a sin and therefore an imperfection. One little immoral thought is a sin and therefore an imperfection. Just coveting something that doesn't belong to you is a sin and therefore an imperfection. As you can see, we cannot enter into God's presence on our own accord. We will never be good enough.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." John 14:6 (NKJV)
But it isn't hopeless. God loves us so much that he provided a way. He became man, took our sins upon Himself, died on the cross as a sacrifice for those sins, and rose again. All we have to do is accept it. Yes, it's that simple.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)
In our natural state, we are destined for eternal hell. We can do nothing to rescue ourselves from that fate. We need to humble ourselves and accept it. We also need to know that we are not worthy to be rescued. We need to repent of our sins. To repent, to acknowledge our sins, to be utterly sorry, to turn away from our
sins. We need to want to be delivered. The we need to accept Jesus' gift of salvation, the gift He provided on the cross.
whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, Romans 3:25 (NKJV)
Think of a person drowning in the ocean. The Coast Guard comes by and throws out a life-line. Now, this person has two choices, accept the life-line and live or reject the life-line and die. We have that same
choice, accept the life-line Jesus offers, or reject it and die in our sins. Jesus is not going to force you to take it. He's handing it to you. Whether to take it or not is your choice.
But my advise is - don't delay in deciding. For 284+ people, it's now too late. They had already made their choice. Their time ran out during a horrific storm. I just pray that they had already accepted the life-line out of hell.
I take each one of these deaths seriously. I am heartbroken. I prayed and cried yesterday as these storms were plowing through these communities, destroying people's lives and livelihoods. I continue to pray today for the families who have lost everything, for the families who have lost loved ones and friends, for those who are severely injured that they may be healed, for those who have lost jobs because businesses have been destroyed. I ask that you join me in prayer for these people.
I also ask that you join me in warning people on how short time is. Not only do I believe that Jesus will soon be coming to get His Church, but as we can see from the natural disasters that have happened recently, no one is immune from sudden destruction. Are you ready? Are your family members and friends ready? If not, have you told them about the Gospel and offered them the life-line that will save them from an eternity in hell?
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, Hebrews 9:27 (NKJV)
God willing, until next time
Maranatha
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