I pray that this blog post find everyone doing well. I can't exactly say that the great State of Alabama has been doing so well. Some of you may not know, but a tornado of epic proportions, along with many other tornados, ripped through certain parts of our beautiful state and destroyed or utterly leveled everything in it's (their) path(s). Many people lost their lives....many people are still nowhere to be found. We do not understand, but what we do know is that God is Sovereign and He is still on His throne. Although it's hard for our fleshly minds to grasp, none of this caught our great God by surprise. And in the wake of the destruction of 4/27/2011, God's people have banded together and exhibited the true spirit of brotherly love that the Bible teaches. This incredible storm hit a little too close to home for me, as I have immediate family members that were in its vicious path. Praise God alone, my family members were unharmed. However, there are many in their lives who were not so fortunate to go without total devastation.
Please continue to keep the great state of Alabama (and the surrounding great states of Mississippi, Georgia and Tennessee) in your prayers. They were also greatly affected by off shooting storms from the massive system that went through Alabama. I can't help but think of the words that Jesus spoke when the disciples woke Him up in the bottom of the boat in a panic over a storm...."Peace Be Still". Our Father is still the Peace Speaker.
Isaiah 41:10 (New King James Version)
10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
On a final note, I'm sure that you might be wondering why I included a picture of a hydrangea (of all things) in a post that is about the destruction of a tornado. Well, I'll tell you why. The reason that I chose this picture was simply as a reminder. Hydrangeas can be grown in many places in the United States, but there is something unique about Alabama hydrangeas. They're almost impossible to kill...and they come back bigger and stronger every single year for decades...for probably centuries. There is not really anything that you can do to them to destroy them. You might even cut it back to a nub, but guess what...it's still probably going to come back even better. This hydrangea happens to be in my yard. It's a "Penny Mac" pink hydrangea. And to me, it represents the strength of the great state of Alabama in the face of utter death and destruction....God has seen us through incredibly tough times on the Gulf Coast and all over Alabama. We are totally vulnerable to hurricanes and now this system of tornadoes in the middle and northern parts of our state. But God is still on the throne and we will give Him the glory for the great things that HE is going to do as a result of the devastation that has occurred. And, rest assured, Alabama will be back...and we will be bigger and stronger and even more beautiful than before. I think our state will need to renamed from "Alabama the Beautiful" to "Alabama the INCREDIBLY Beautiful"!
Thank you in advance for your continued prayers. If you are interested in helping with or donating towards Tornado disaster relief, please contact The Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions Tornado Relief or Samaritan's Purse. Both of these organizations are reputable and both are directly involved with providing immediate relief to victims. Our great state appreciates every prayer offered up on our behalf.
To God Be The Glory!
