In light of recent and on-going weather-related disasters in our state, a few thoughts have come to mind.

Last night, I was on the phone with my best friend, who is from Vinton, one of the towns in eastern Iowa suffering from the devestating floods. My friend is on a church trip as a chaperone down in Florida all week, but her family was evacuated from their low-lying home in Vinton. She was venting her frustrations to me, wishing she could be at home to help her family and friends and do her part in the relief and aid, and something she said really bothered me.

"I just want to know why God is doing this to us."

I told her that God wasn't doing this TO her specifically and probably not to any of us at all. I said that God had a reason for sending the floods, the tornadoes, etc. But what I was telling my friend was more reassurance than something I actually believed myself.

When I got home from the paper around 2 AM, I was flipping through my Bible looking for something to read before going to sleep for a few hours. Something made me flip to the story of the flood in Genesis 6 (and following).

God sent the flood to destroy the whole world because the sins of man grew so great that "The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain." (Genesis 6:6) So he sent a flood to wipe mankind--and the animals and creatures He created--from the face of the world.

But God found a righteous man, Noah, whom He chose to save and use to rebuild a more godly world.

After the flood destroyed the earth and the waters receeded, God made a covenant with Noah. He gave the rainbow as a sign, saying "Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life."

This is a VERY brief summary of the story in Genesis but I urge you to read it through on your own time.

How does this relate to our problems today? Well, first of all, the flooding we are experiencing is just a brief taste of disaster and by no means will destroy the whole world. God has since held His promise.

But I began thinking about the reason God flooded and destroyed the world so many years ago. He saw all that He created and the corruption that sin had inflicted on his precious creation and decided to destroy it and start over.

By no means is the current flooding going to destroy the world and start over, but maybe God is sending us another sign, a warning. Maybe He wants us to be more grateful for all that we have--stop complaining about gas prices, the faltering economy, the competing political parties, all of it. Maybe God is sending this devestation, this destruction, to make us stop, come together as His creation and realize all the blessings we have. Sure, we have to work a lot harder and longer to pay for gas, food and things. But that's all they are--things. We should realize that what is more important is our family and our friends and the fact that they are safe, healthy and alive. So the floods and tornadoes destroy our things. As long as they don't destroy us--and our faith--I think we will be okay.

So I guess all that I am rambling about is this: maybe all this destruction and devestation is God's way of telling us to stop, slow down and appreciate all we have. Maybe we all need a break or a vacation or just a little more time of devotion. So spend some time with your families this weekend and enjoy the beauty of God's creation. Be thankful for all you have...and pray for those who are suffering from the flooding and storms.