Natural Disasters

As a huge winter storm was bearing down on the midsection of the United States, the media continually broadcast urgent warnings to be prepared for the worst. Snow, freezing rain, sleet, ice and high winds were predicted. When such warnings are made, it seems certain that every supermarket, neighborhood grocery and convenience store will be quickly sold out of bread and milk. This buying frenzy is so predictable that it is the subject of jokes and comedy sketches. “What do people do with all that bread and milk?”

The state of Texas is fast becoming the United States' poster child for drought of "biblical" proportions. Austin—the state's capital—and nearby San Antonio have in the last 22 months experienced the driest weather on record since the extraordinary drought that occurred in 1954–56. People's lives and livelihoods are being devastated, and billions of dollars have been lost.

A much-beloved Protestant hymn asserts, “This Is My Father’s World.” The song has a beautiful melody, and the sentiment is tempting. Yet, the reality of the matter—as so pointedly shown by the many sudden and destructive events caused by natural disasters—is that our world today is not our Father’s world.