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I don’t know about you but I got a good chuckle last week watching Washington and much of New England get snowed in. In some places it was the largest snow in a century, in others it beat all records. President Obama joked about ‘Snowmeggedon’, which I particularly enjoyed since global warming alarmists had warned just a year ago that Washington would never see snow again unless we accepted their radical plan.
There are several lessons to be learned from this experience. First, nature is stronger than mankind. Nothing we can do will truly prepare us for the devastation of an earthquake, hurricane, or blizzard. Of course, we can and should be prudent, and that might mean not living in a place earthquakes or hurricanes are prone. (By the way, I just saw a documentary that says the San Andreas is now 100 years overdue and the next quake could exceed 9.0 on the Richter scale! Apparently the ground underneath is still moving, building up tension, while the ground on top hasn’t caught up yet.)
This admission that we can’t prevent these catastrophes should also help us develop a healthy perspective on the proper government role in our lives. Most believers I know are of the opinion that government is an extension of the family, a means to protect our rights that on our own we cannot guarantee. One such example would be national defense, since no one private citizen alone can foresee every threat and act to protect against it.
However, even with every available resource and millions of employees, the federal government cannot even function through a snow storm. Congress adjourned early and members fled the capital to (mostly) warmer home districts, the White House was snowed in, and even the Supreme Court closed. Chief Justice Roberts got some good-natured ribbing from older justices who reminded him that his predecessor, Justice Rehnquist, refused to close the SCOTUS and would even wager on how much snow had fallen.
Our leaders want to manage every aspect of our lives and dictate most of the ‘solutions’ to us, but they are both completely wrong about ‘global warming’, and can’t even handle the ‘climate change’ that really does happen (i.e., Katrina, flooding, blizzards, etc). When there is a catastrophe, the government’s first thought is to law and order, not to feeding the hungry, aiding the injured or getting the lights back on.
Finally, I’m reminded that these ‘little emergencies’, if I can call it that even though many people have been seriously injured and a few killed, help us to review our own emergency plans and check them against reality. Are we ready for the power to go out for days, or weeks? Are we prepared to feed our loved ones, even if there is no electricity and we can’t get to a fuel source for days at a time? Are there medical conditions that exist that need to be planned for… and are we prepared to treat likely injuries or even just common ailments if no Doctor is available? Can we defend ourselves and/or our property if criminals decide to take advantage of the situation and take from us what they desire?
Join my family and review your emergency plans today, and whenever you see a natural disaster or man-made catastrophe and add another layer of preparations, along with your prayers for the victims.
