The Rest is for Remembering

Today was maybe the hardest day so far, but not physically. We only worked for half the day, though we were doing some of the worst of the painting, but in the afternoon we took a guided tour of New Orleans, particularly paying attention to the damage the flood did. This is the second time I have had the tour, but it still grabs you in a weird way. I was struck between the time Katrina hit, and the time the levees broke. Our guide said it was something like 12 hours, and people had actually begun to put lawnmowers and outdoor work equipment back outside. Then the levees broke. The tour made me wonder and pray for the Midwest and the flooding there. New Orleans has begun to come back, but it is long and slow and urban. I wonder what will happen to those small towns in Wisconsin and Iowa. As I saw the places again I was reminded of my reflection a year and a half ago. This is what I wrote then, still in pretty rough form:

What makes you feel safe? What do you rely on? Who do you trust?

Our Psalmist raises these same questions when he asks (Ps. 20:7)

The right answer to these questions according to this psalm is the name of the Lord.

But, in the light of our trip to New Orleans, and all the devastation we witnessed, that answer, although theologically accurate is not quite as appealing as we once may have thought. We now have another question, “Why did God allow this to happen?” There is not a simple answer, but I would like to look at two scriptures to begin to form something of an answer. Turn with me to Luke 13.

The first part of the answer according to this passage is that we are all asking the wrong question. The flood in New Orleans should drop us to our knees in repentance. We are to repent of those things we trust too much. Those things that can not bear the weight of our trust. Popularity. Boyfriends, girlfriends. Jobs. Parents. Our stuff. All of these are misplaced trusts.

The second part of the answer to “Why God would…” involves something larger and more cosmic. Namely, part of the answer is the end of the world. (Revelation 21)

THE END IS LIKE THE BEGINNING

Is. 25:1-9 as background to Revelation 21.

The honest answer as to why God allowed New Orleans to be flooded is that we don’t know 100% why. But, what we do know 100% is how we are to respond to it. Repent- trade in your false trusts and BELIEVE- fully rely and be confident in God’s ability to bring about His plan.