7 days=one week

People always say that a lot can happen in a year....I've recently said it many times because I am realizing that it is so true. However, I have realized that a lot can happen in a week as well. 7 days, 168 hours, 10,080 minutes....when you think of it that way it definitely gives you a different perspective on how much time you really have in a week. Anyway, I'm a bit off track. The focus of my post isn't about the breakdown of time, but how this last week has looked for me.

My last post was last Thursday and I was getting ready to leave on a trip to help with tornado cleanup in Harrisburg, IL. Those who know me, know that I definitely don't have your "typical" life. I'm not content to do the normal 9-5 day in and day out. I'm not saying the 9-5 is a bad thing, it's just not who I am. Honestly I like being "in the trenches". I like working with those who have no hope, because I know, on a personal level, the One who does!!! I daily desire to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I desire to point others to the Light in a world filled with darkness. All that being said, I've had the opportunity to go and serve after many natural "disasters". Tornadoes, flooding, hurricanes......God's given me opportunities to go and serve and Harrisburg is the most recent place.

We arrived in Harrisburg on Friday morning, and wouldn't you know it was at the same time as the St.Louis Rams. While they were there to "help" and for photo ops, me and my girls were there to serve.....however and wherever we were needed. The next 3 days were filled with raking up leaf piles, picking up debris on a golf course, sifting through rubble looking for photos and anything else we could find to give back to their owners, mending fences, but most importantly hearing the stories of those who had been affected. Harrisburg is not a big town, and it was clear that everyone we talked to had in some way been affected. 7 people lost their lives, and it seemed as if everyone we talked to were somehow connected to one of the ones who had passed. It was a bit eery, but also continued to remind us that we were dealing with human lives, not just homes that were destroyed, but people just like me and you. Your heart would have to have been made of stone for your heart to not be broken by the stories of those we talked to.

I think when things like this happen our first question is to God. We ask why Lord? You know what? These people weren't asking why? they were speaking with confidence that they knew they had been spared for a reason! They knew that the Lord had a purpose for them and they wanted to know what it was! There is a sense of guilt for some, one of them men we worked with was so broken because he found that his roof had landed on an apartment building and had crushed the apartments. This man, knowing that he could have done nothing to stop it yet still feeling guilty, was so convinced he was saved for a reason. I saw his house, there was no way that he should have been alive, standing in front of me talking. God's hand of protection was on this man and he recognized it!

Stories of hope and God's hand were plentiful. In times of devastation it's easy to dwell on how much is gone rather than on how much has actually been spared, but the people of Harrisburg were quick to share how they were protected and their stories speak of a supernatural protection. How many of you can say that you not only survived a tornado, but when you woke up you were lying on your couch and your home was gone. Yes, you read that correctly....the mobile home that this woman lived in was completely gone! The only thing left was the couch that the woman had fallen asleep on! Tell me that she didn't have God's hand on her holding her down to that couch?!?!? This is just ONE of the stories we can share! Even now, as I type this, I am reminded of God's power and I am in awe!

So now I go back to the period of one week. Last week I was going to Illinois to serve, this week I am back in my "comfortable" life. Last week I was listening to stories of God's power and faithfulness. This week I am complaining because it is a dreary day in the NY. My God is the same God this week as He was last week. I may not be in a tornado ravaged area, but I still serve the same God. He still works and I still have opportunities to hear stories about his power and faithfulness. Sometimes I forget that, but in this past week I have been reminded that God works in the normal day to day just as much as He works in the devastation. So my prayer is that the Lord would help me to be open to what He has for me here in my day to day and that He would open my eyes to see His power in a real way.