Tornadoes and Storms

Several days ago when doing the entry on Surround Sound, I came to the realization that storms are not a part of God's original creation.  Storms, specifically tornadoes, are destructive.  God creates.  And, what He creates is good - until we mess it up.  In the beginning God created and it was good.  (Genesis 1: 4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25)  By the time He was finished, it was very good.  (Genesis 1: 31)

So, initially creation was perfect.  I don't know that I can even imagine what that perfection was like.  The way I see things now is so marred by the negatives that I just can't imagine it.  The plants grew and produced perfectly.  In my mind, that means that every blossom produced a fruit.  Every leaf was perfectly shaped and there were no bug eaten holes in them - unlike the tomatoes and peppers on my back porch.

God had a perfect sprinkler misting system in this perfect creation.  There was no rain.  There was a mist that rose from the ground and watered the whole face of the ground.  (Genesis 2:6)  I imagine that to be similar to the way dew waters the ground.  Then, God created humanity.  He formed man out of the dust and breathed life into him.  (Exciting!)

Man promptly broke the one rule given to him.  And because of this sin, we no longer have perfect creation.  As time has passed, the decay brought by sin has resulted in several changes to the sprinkler system.  It took many hundreds of years and the sin of man was so offensive that God caused it to rain resulting in a world wide flood. Prior to that time, rain did not exist and the misting system was still working.

Just this week, deadly tornadoes have been spawned across Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri.  Earlier this year, deadly tornadoes rumbled across Georgia and Alabama.  While these storms can display the awesome power of God, they aren't what He originally had in mind for us.  The devastation of a tornado can remind us of God's justice to come.  It will come, it will come swiftly and it will leave nothing in its path.   (Proverbs 1:27)

God's voice does come out of the whirlwind.  It is strong and mighty.  It is a reminder.  "As the whirlwind passes, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation." (Proverbs 10:25)  "Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked."  (Jeremiah 23:19)

In Nahum, the prophet tells us,  "God is jealous, and the LORD revenges; the LORD revenges, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserves wrath for his enemies.  The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD has his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet." ... Yet, "The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he KNOWS them that trust in him."  (Nahum 1:2-3, 7)

Tornadoes and storms won't go away until perfection is returned to this earth.  In the mean time, I will seek to honor God with my whole heart.  I'll be standing in awe of the power He mercifully withholds from judging me.  I will stand sheltered in His strong hold because I believe Him.

(Father God, you alone have the power to calm the storm.  I pray that you will sustain those that have lost much in this tornado.  I pray that you will use this to draw all men near to you.  In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.)