Katrina: Bigger than the Satellite Imagery

Man... I don't think there's gonna be an easy way to say this, so in advance, I offer my condolences. Every person down in New Orleans is a human being in need of all the support and care they can receive. The treatment of the situation has not been satisfactory, the criticisms are out and about and accurate. And I think Kanye picked a bad time to voice his opinion, but I don't exactly totally disagree with his take on things...

So I don't want there to be any doubt that I recognize this is a crisis. At the same time I don't think most people will recognize the true crisis; I admit, I didn't even fully grasp it until my pastor preached this morning...

When I see natural disasters, I always connect them to God. I mean, I know He speaks to us through His Word, but if you read His Word closely you'll see that His voice comes and has come in the past in many ways. One way is through natural disasters. And it really hit home today when my pastor pointed us to Hebrews 12:26, "...yet once more I shake not the earth only, but the heaven also." I used to think it meant that God shook the planet Earth and the Kingdom of Heaven, but notice the heaven in the verse isn't capitalized. In other words this verse is telling us that God uses earthquakes to try to wake us up, but He even shakes the heavens, or skies, with hurricanes.

Then our pastor reminded us of where Katrina unloaded the brunt of her fury: New Orleans. The Big Easy. Where the most palms get read and the most dolls get stuck (take it as a pun if you feel it). Home of the infamous Mardi Gras--- a boisterous festival dedicated to pretty much everything God was ever against, right? So here's the bigger picture of Katrina in a nutshell: God dialed-up Burban Street. We're seeing what happens when God's patience reaches its limit; when people decide not to listen to God's messengers and God Himself becomes the messenger... And it's not service with a smile.

I almost missed it, so I'm posting this up to make sure nobody else will. And whether you believe it or not, at least admit that it's food for thought. At most, pray for a revival to come to New Orleans, as well as your own city. And if I sound like a religious fanatic, don't worry 'bout it--- think of it as "service with a smile" or "the calm before the storm"...

But again, our hearts are with the victims of Katrina. You're in our prayers and foremost thoughts.