Tornadoes, Twisters, and Trees

So, as most of you may know, a sum of about 6 tornadoes hit the Suffolk area 2 days ago (April 28). Some were small ones that had no effect on human lives, but 3 of them anded up being devastating. One very large one swept through 2 neighborhoods called Burnett's Mill and Hillpoint. A couple kids from our Wed. night cells lived in those suburbs. Some were completely safe, home and all. But others lost a part of their houses or the whole thing.



My good friend Kaylin Ramos and her mom, Sis. Janyne, were both at Sal's (which used to be at the end of a strip mall that got ripped to shreds) when the tornadoes hit. Kaylin was getting a pizza before she left her shift at the pizza place, and was about to take it to her mom who was waiting in the car just outside. They were both fine and escaped with only minor injuries. Kaylin hid in the bathroom when she saw it coming and Sis. Janyne took cover on the floor of her car. Kaylin and her mom both went to the hospital because Kaylin had neck muscle spasms, and her mom had been hit in the head and caught some glass shrapnel. Both were luckily ok.



There were 3 main families from the church that lost thier homes or part of thier homes. The Chappells, the Griffins, and the Mariners. They are all safe now but are staying in hotels or friend's homes because thier homes are either gone or half gone. So keep them in your prayers.



I am writing this blog not only to let everyone know what has gone down in Suffolk (which, ironically, has been pinned the name "the town where nothing happens"), but to help stop and realize the depth of this "disaster" if you will. And disaster indeed.



But, as I was on my way to church from my piano lesson today, I realized something. God has taught me something through all of this chaos and disaster. He created it all. And it really makes you wonder, why God would let such a terrible thing happen? My answer: Because he loves us.

This might seem a little harsh to some people. Especially ones directly affected by the twister, but when you think about it, we needed a little "shakin' up". I mean God doesnt just throw tornadoes at unsuspecting innocent people everyday, but sometimes we need a little eye-opener. This is definately an extreme eye-opener. We need to get off our tails and get going. We've been sitting around as Christians, and have done NOTHING. We needed this disaster to realize how much we have, but don't always need. So now that we have this realization, we can start a movement for Him. It's a miracle no one got killed, and I think that was part of God's plan. To give us a jolt, but not have anyone die.

In closing, the trees that I see that were hit by the tornado make me realize something. They look like toothpicks now. Big large Oak trees just transformed into tiny splinters. It made me realize, if God can create such magnificent scenes of nature, and also take it apart by a tornado, then He is so much bigger than anything we have happening in our life right now. It just goes to show us. God has something brewing.

So may we see that God has awakened a new realization in us, and may we let him not only stir the wind, but stir our hearts to make an even bigger impact on our world than these tornadoes had on our city.

The Wannabe Rob Bell (referring to the last paragraph of this blog, for those that have seen the NOOMA videos),
Harrison Peaks