texas

We have been glued to the Weather Channel around here. The damage and flooding due to Hurricane Harvey in Texas is utterly devastating. There is no better word.

In my daily quiet time, I am reading the book of Job. Good gracious. So many chapters, so much suffering. As Job wrestles with his circumstances, his being tested (to the extreme), he never loses his faith in God. He questions God, cries out to him in anguish, but doesn’t lose his faith. Tragedy upon tragedy strikes his house and he is left with almost nothing. He is virtually alone, physically in pain, brokenhearted, desperate, confused, frustrated, and almost hopeless.

Yet there still is hope. In his pain and unimaginable grief, this deepest, darkest time, he finds hope in one place: he knows his Redeemer lives (Job 19:25). He longs to be in the presence of God. He knows there is more to life than his earthly existence and he is confident that he will someday see God.

In the past week, the people of Texas have suffered tremendously. Constant rain turned into catastrophic flooding. So much has been lost. So many lives have been impacted, forever changed. I have seen photo after photo depicting tragedy and sadness.

But also so much good. My eyes fill with tears as I watch and read stories of all the good. People coming together, neighbors helping neighbors, emergency responders and guardsmen, rescue crews and good samaritans working around the clock to save lives. It’s been overwhelming.

Millions of dollars in donations are also flooding Texas. Trucks of supplies are traveling from across the country. Volunteers are lining up to do whatever they can. Everywhere people are praying.

It is a beautiful sight amidst the devastation.

There is hope.

God is still in control and His presence is being seen in the goodness of these people He created.