The tornado struck Mayfield Kentucky late afternoon, December 10, 2021. At the time of this writing, we did not know what the final death toll would be, but the devastation was stunning. They called it an EF 4, and there have only been five that severe since they started keeping records. I’m not sure what EF stands for but it’s easy to see what it means.
Since then, Christian and non-Christian organizations, neighboring towns, governments, individuals, responded, digging deeply into their hearts and into their purses to help with the devastation. We can find multiple scripture passages that reflect what we should be doing. We hear Jesus telling us in no uncertain terms that we need to respond. That we need to go and do likewise. Since our youth we have been hearing “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” and now we are called upon to do just that.
In the book of Ephesians, we read : 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.
Think about that, even before he separated darkness from light, and said “Let there be light.” Even before He divided dry land from the water, he had us in his divine plan. He had love in His heart for this part of His new creation; you and me. He envisioned Love as an active force in this perfect world that he wanted to create. Love that would create harmony, compassion, a caring for one another.
Yet, so many of our brothers and sisters have deviated from that divine plan. Even from the start, there in the garden of Eden. It seems we can simply not recognize cause and effect. We have a hard time understanding behavior, especially behavior that seems to be different than what we would expect and what we think we exhibit.
When you first heard the news of the devastation in Kentucky, maybe your first thought was “Thank God it didn’t happen here.” Then your next thought might have been “how can I help?”, or maybe you simply turned to the task of checking off the next item on your Christmas to-do list, and got on with your life.
Oh, yes, we celebrated Christmas, the coming of the Christ child. The reason for the season and God’s divine plan. You and me, created by Him in love, for love. When we shift to the shopping list, we are in effect passing by on the other side, maybe someone else can handle that, the good Samaritan? He’ll be along. God’s divine plan. Do you know that you and me are part of that plan? Huh. Really? Well…
The need is still great, not only in Kentucky, but throughout the world. Now, the important questions: What can I do as this new year begins? How can I help? How can I go and do likewise? Think, pray on this, and then act in love.
For What It’s Worth.
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