Scary Scenes

In late September of 2024, Hurricane Helene moved north out of the Gulf of Mexico and delivered massive amounts of wind and rain to western North Carolina and other states.

Just over a week ago, my wife and I drove through those areas on our way back from visiting relatives. What we saw was stunning.

The forests along the highway had trees knocked down everywhere. Metal guardrails along the roads were smashed in dozens of areas from huge trees blown into the road.

The French Broad River was full of massive trees…piles of them. As we drove along the river there were vast stretches of dried mud where the river had crested to historic heights and wiped away houses and people…I grimly wondered how many were still in that river, never to be heard from again.

I was reminded of the story of the little boy who was carried away in the floodwaters of Asheville along with his grandparents. He was crying out to Jesus to save him as the flood carried him away:

https://churchleaders.com/news/498515-jesus-save-boy-grandparents-asheville-flooding-hurricane-helene.html/2

I’ll be honest, fast and deep water scares me. I like pools just fine, but everyone else can have the lakes, rivers, and oceans. I almost drowned once, and I don’t want to be in over my head again.

The Psalmist says that we don’t have to fear even when the earth brings calamities that are terrifying and overwhelming. I pray that your deepest fears never materialize, but if they do, know that God is your refuge in the storm.

Please remember western North Carolina in your prayers…and California also as they experience very scary scenes of wildfires today.🙏🙏