On July 4, 2005, NASA's Deep Impact probe completed its scientific mission by colliding with comet Tempel 1 at a speed of more than 23,000 miles per hour. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California reported: "Deep Impact scientists theorize the 820-pound impactor vaporized deep below the comet's surface when the two collided." Scientists want to know more about the nature of comets.

The sound of the cicadas was deafening as I walked along on a summer Sabbath morning, enjoying the breeze and collecting my thoughts after a busy and eventful week. I had so much to think about, and was trying to making sense of it from a biblical point of view. Yet, those cicadas were humming away so loudly, it was hard to concentrate.

Tens of billions of dollars worth of damage has already occurred with billions more projected. Oil prices continue to rise in the wake of potentially the most devastating storm in United States history. One of the world's most important shipping ports is currently closed. And ultimately the closure of this shipping port is projected to affect nations around the world that depend on United States grain.

Hurricane Katrina has just struck the Gulf Coast with fury! News reports already are telling us that at least 1,000 people are dead. And the death toll may greatly increase when all the bodies are counted! The authorities have also stated that Katrina will definitely become one of the worst natural disasters in American history in financial terms. The damages will mount up into the tens of billions. .

Do you realize that there is a growing tension in Europe regarding the Muslim population that exists there? Earlier this year the nation of France has expelled eight different men—Muslim men—on the grounds that they're preachers who foment anti-western sentiment and violence in their sermons. Earlier this year, France also passed a law that bars Muslim girls from wearing headscarves at public schools. This sort of thing has stirred up quite a bit of controversy among what is really a growing Muslim population in France and other European nations.